Page 75 of Breaking Matt

The car beside me slowed before making a U-turn. The action of withdrawal was so sudden it took a few moments for it to sink in.

"Sarah?" Matthew said with concern.

I held the phone tighter against my ear as the sight of the police car came into sight in front of us.

"They're here." I swallowed the emotion that bubbled to the surface.

"They're here," I repeated, nodding to confirm I wasn't seeing things. We passed the cop car and it turned to follow us.

"Hold on a sec." I heard him talking in the background. I couldn't stop the call even if I wanted to. I don't know if it was the adrenaline or the shock that had set in but I remained fixated on the distance in front of me, still unable to process what had just happened.

Voices echoed around me. Mark touched my arm and I looked at him, still holding the phone in my hand but not against my ear. His mouth was moving but I couldn't hear anything he was saying. He frowned and took the phone from me.

He pressed the phone against his ear while he continued to drive. He wasn't stopping.

What if they come back?I shook my head, unable to contemplate that.

Dazed, I looked to the front, my eyes unseeing. My wrist throbbed.

I'd hurt myself trying to keep myself from flying around the car, I remembered vaguely. I wasn't sure how long I sat there staring at my wrist before I looked up to see the familiar gates of my parents' home swing open.

One breath in. I exhaled. I was home. I was safe.

Fear and pain throbbed through me. I began to shake, feeling my entire body tremble. The hysteria I had managed to suppress welled up in me.

I looked at Mark as the car stopped. Slowly I began to hear the sounds of doors opening.

One breath in. I tried to remember to breathe to keep myself from giving in to the emotions that needed to be released.

"Sarah," a voice breathed—it was so close.

I turned my head. Matthew pulled me gently out of the car. Emotions that had been frozen with fear began to warm and seep through me.

He winced slightly when I touched his side. Then I remembered that's where he had been shot. He was still injured.

For the last week he had been on my mind and the fact that he was really here in front of me, looking at me with fear in his eyes... I could have died today.

"Say something, Sarah," he said gently. His hand touched my face. I swallowed.

Then I realized he was scanning me for injuries. His arm wrapped around me and he led me inside. I stumbled slightly, unable to put one foot in front of the other. My feet felt like lead.

I caught sight of Mark talking to a couple of police officers as I walked beside Matthew and into the house.

"Sarah," my mother gasped. She rushed toward me.

She hugged me but I didn't have the strength to return the gesture. My arms stayed limp by my sides.

"What's wrong?" Her eyes searched mine.

It was like my mind was still trying to catch up with my body. I felt dazed and unable to process what was going on.

"She's in shock," Matthew answered and steered me into the nearby kitchen. "I need some sugar water."

While my mother hurried to get what he asked for, he sat me down.

"Are you in pain?" He spoke to me like he was talking to a child.

My wrist was throbbing. I lifted my arm and his fingers touched the darkening bruise. I winced when his fingers applied a little more pressure.