Page 10 of Blood in the Water

“You stabbed me,” he murmured.

In disbelief, I pushed against the door, and the hinges creaked. My father looked up and locked eyes with me as blood coated his teeth and bubbled at the edge of his lip.

“Leona,” he mouthed, frantic.

Max whipped around, pointing the gun directly at me standing in the doorway. He winced before his lips pressed together in a tight line. “Fuck.”

Without another moment’s hesitation, the man I had been in love with since I was twelve shifted the direction of his gun, pointed it at my father’s head, and pulled the trigger.

I blinked as the sound echoed through the room, bouncing around inside my head while I tried to process what exactly was happening.

My father slumped to the ground, his brain matter scattered across the desk behind him.

My heartbeat thundered in my ears. A few seconds of silence passed.

“This can’t be real,” I whispered.

My father’s body twitched while Max stood over him with a literal smoking gun in his hand. A little laugh bubbled up inside my throat.

Blood dripped from Max’s face. My father’s blood. He wiped his forehead on his sleeve. “Leona. It’s unfortunate you had to see that. I had hoped Cas would keep you downstairs.”

Bile coated the back of my throat.

No, no, no, no.This couldn’t be real.

Max held his finger to his ear. “Clear the house. He’s dead. All men converge now.”

“What’s happening, Max? What have you done?” I gasped, my eyes glued to the pooling blood at his feet next to my father’s crumpled corpse.

“I’m doing what your father didn’t have the balls to do. I’m fixing his mistakes.” He cocked his head, listening to whoever spoke in his ear. “Hurry. Find Caspian and subdue him. I’ve got Leona.”

“Max…” I took a step backward and stumbled slightly, my ankle twisting in my heel and shooting sharp pain up my calf. A choked sound of disbelief crawled out of my throat. “What’s happening?”

He said nothing, only stared at me with the same dead look on his face. His thoughts, usually so difficult to read, were plastered across his face.

He wanted to kill me, too.

I slammed the door shut and whirled. My ankle screamed in these uncomfortable shoes.Just had to wear four-inch fucking heels.As fast as I possibly could go, I raced for the stairs.

I had to get to Cas. Cas could fix this. Cas would figure out what the fuck just happened. This had to all be a mistake, a misunderstanding. Cas would talk some sense into Max and stop my world from falling apart.

Cas would keep me safe.

“Leona, running will only make this more difficult for the both of us,” Max called after me as he yanked open the door.

I couldn’t stop. I wouldn’t look behind me. I grabbed the banister and launched myself down the stairs with all the speed I could muster.

Shouting echoed from below as chaos erupted. Two shots whizzed past my ear and embedded itself into the floor right in front of my feet. I jerked backward, almost slipping on the marble. Max just fuckingshotat me.

I didn’t have time to turn around. I didn’t have time to hesitate. Max was looking for Cas, and we had to leave. I almost choked on a sob, but I bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself from breaking down.Fuck no, Leona. Hold yourself together.Until you can find Cas and get to safety.

Everything was falling apart.

“Leona!” Cas shouted as he struggled to get through the crowd rushing for the exits. A cut on his eyebrow leaked blood down his face, and his shirt was torn, but he looked otherwise okay. That alone kept me from imploding.

I pushed through the crowd until his hand latched onto mine, and he yanked me toward the kitchen. A service entrance led outside, and he was heading there. We could escape through the backyard.

“We’re under attack!” he shouted, pulling me through the kitchen door. It was already deserted. My cake sat on a countertop, waiting to be brought to the celebration.