Page 93 of The Wicked Love

Cal came into the house, looked around at all the shattered picture frames, the broken drywall, the glass in every crevice, and he took his hands and his love and put it back together. He had made the house whole again.

And I think he did the same with me.

Cal is a fixer—he can’t help it. He could have looked at this mean, broken, damaged girl and walked away without looking back.

But he didn’t. He handed me each and every piece, and as I figured out where they went, he held me up, making sure I wouldn’t fall apart. Cal didn’t fix me. He helped me fix myself.

Loving Cal is the greatest thing I have ever done and will ever do. When I crack and a piece of me falls to the ground, I know he will be there to catch it. And I, for him.

“You guys excited to start self-defense class tomorrow?” Brooke asks after she takes a sip from her glass.

Sophie sets her glass down. “I’m actually so excited. I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. I hope Silas is patient though because it is definitely going to take me a bit to get it down.”

Brooke laughs. “He is—or at least, he’ll have to be for you guys, especially Stella.”

I can’t help but smile around them. And I’m ready to learn how to defend myself too. I think it will help my anxiety. My fingers brush over the scars on my palms.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” I say.

My mind drifts back to Stella. She should be here by now.

“Hey, Cade. Heard anything from her yet?” I ask him.

He picks his phone up and glances at the screen. “Nothing. Here, I’ll call her real quick and see what’s holding her up.”

I nod, getting kind of worried. The roads must be slippery since the rain started tonight.

“She didn’t answer,” Cade announces, and my stomach tightens.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Loud, uneven knocks rattle my front door, and an ice-cold shiver runs down my spine.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

My heart drops to my stomach, and I jump in my chair.

Cal and Cade take off for the door, and we follow close behind, all breathing rapidly.

BANG! BANG!

It’s harsh, like someone’s throwing their whole weight into it. The door handle jiggles over and over.

BANG! BANG!

Cal looks through the peephole. “Oh my God!”

He throws the door open and catches Stella in his arms as she falls forward.

And that’s when I notice it.

Her white sweater is drenched …

In red.

My eyes try to process what I’m seeing, but my brain won’t accept it. My vision shakes as my head shakes side to side.

And the reality of what I’m looking at sets in.

Sticking out of her sweater is the handle of a knife.

Oh. My. God.

“Stella!” Cade shouts and drops to his knees beside her, cupping her face.

The white sweater becomes redder by the second. She looks up, her eyes wide and terrified, and slowly, she shakes her head. “He tol-told me to sa-say—”

To be continued …