“Carl, can you get this sorted?” I ask, taking Stella’s hand and leading her away. Her poor baby has been through a hell of a time the past few weeks.
“Sure thing.”
“What’s going on?” Mum asks the second we step back inside the house. Both Sophia and Zoe are well aware of everything that’s been happening, but clearly, they decided to keep Mum out of it. Wise.
With her seemingly doing so well, the last thing we want to do is send her back down again quite so soon.
“Just some guy who’s trying to intimidate us. Nothing we can’t handle.”
“Sebastian,” Sophia screams from the kitchen, forcing us all to move.
“What’s—fuck.”
I study Phoebe’s ruined teddy in her hand.
It’s had the eyes ripped out, and there’s a giant slash through its belly, all the stuffing bursting out.
“The back door was open,” Zoe says, not really needing to give us any more evidence that he was fucking here. Inside our house.
A violent shudder runs down my spine.
“Sebastian, what’s really going on?”
“Fucking hell,” I mutter, scrubbing my hand down my face.
This time, Sophia doesn’t complain about my language. Instead, a concerned expression washes over her face.
I get it. I feel it too.
“You should probably take Phoebe home. We don’t want her around this.” We don’t want to make her a target. I keep that final thought to myself. It doesn’t need saying.
We all know what’s at stake here.
It would just fucking help if we knew what this motherfucker actually wanted.
I thought it was Stella.
But then he threw me for a loop when he sent me that photo of her, allowing me to find her.
Did he want her dead, or was I meant to find her still breathing?
Was it a test? Was he trying to find out where my loyalties really were with her?
Exhaustion weighs heavily on me as I stare at my sister.
“Yeah,” she agrees. “Are you going to be okay? What about Mum? Should I take her with me?”
I glance back at where she’s sitting at the table beside Stella.
I want to say yes, but I already know it’s not worth the fight.
“She won’t go with you, and we both know it.”
“I know,” my sister sighs sadly.
“Jase, Carl, and I will check the house before you go. Test the alarm and make sure she sets it. But it’s not her this sick fuck wants. It’s Stella.” I think. If he’s as clever as he’s turning out to be, then he should know that hurting Mum isn’t going to get him all that far. Especially when we’re all pretty much expecting to wake up one morning and discover she’s OD’d as it is.
She nods. “Okay. I’ll start on this lot.”