Monsters' Gift (Crude Hill High Book 2) by Sam Crescent (classic children's novels .TXT) 📕

twice, and then I tried to poke him in the eye. My vision was slowly fading. I kept on fighting, trying to get him to get off me.

I was going to die on the school grounds, and fear lodged inside me. I didn’t want to die. There was a life with my men. I hoped they all knew that I loved them so damn much. Even though I was pissed and tried my escape, I loved them all.

“Fucker!” Drake was there, thrusting a knife into Marshall Keller’s throat, and I didn’t have time to move away as blood spilled from the wound and a dead Marshall fell on top of me.

I breathed in hard and deep.

Drake helped me to push his body off.

With a hand at my throat, I took deep breaths, but it hurt to do so.

“They’re coming, Em. I promise, they’re coming.” He pulled me into his arms, holding me.

His arms were the wrong ones. I only wanted my men.

****

River

I was never going to forget the way Emily looked when we found her last night. We called our doctor to run some tests on her.

Marshall hadn’t crushed her throat, but it had been a close call. Way too fucking close for my comfort. I didn’t like it and as I sat in her bedroom now, watching her sleep, I thought about how close we’d come to losing her.

Drake also hadn’t left.

“I thought you said you didn’t have any feelings for her?” I asked, not taking my eyes away from my woman, not for a second.

“I don’t.”

“Then why the fuck are you still here?”

There was a brief silence and I chanced a look toward him.

“I fucked up last night. Emily could have died because of me. I didn’t want that to happen, ever. There is no way that man should have gotten the best of me and yet he did.”

“He hit you over the head with a baseball bat,” Emily said.

I looked toward her.

Her voice sounded raw. Considering the bruises all around her neck, the fact she could talk was a bonus.

I got to my feet, leaning over her, kissing her head.

“I don’t think your dads approve of me as yours,” she said.

I laughed. “Don’t joke around.”

“Kind of have to. It’s funny if you think about it. Your parents can’t stand me. Isn’t it every girl’s dream?” she asked.

Shaking my head at her, I sat down. She looked at Drake. “Thank you.”

“I’m sorry, Em.”

“You didn’t know he was there.” She sighed. “Thank you for not being completely knocked out for longer.”

I didn’t care about Drake or his feelings right now. The only person I cared about was this woman right here, in this bed.

“Will you go and let the others know she’s awake?” I asked.

Drake left seconds later.

“He feels guilty,” she said.

“Good, he should.”

“He didn’t know.”

“Em, you nearly died. He told us what happened. Marshall nearly killed you.”

“But, and this is a big but, he didn’t. I’m still here.”

“In pain.”

“I’m used to the pain.”

I got up and kissed her head again. I was about to sit down, but she grabbed my shirt and pulled me to the bed. “Don’t leave. Sit with me. I love you, and I don’t want you to leave me.”

I smiled. I couldn’t help it. I still had my shoes on, but I didn’t bother to remove them. Instead, I held her close, wrapping my arms around her.

“I don’t want anything to ever happen to you,” I said.

“Nothing is. I think I’m proving to be a little invincible.”

“Em, you came close to being strangled.”

She sighed. “I know. Marshall had it in for me. I guess that means two down, right?”

“Yes, and we have a feeling the other two are not going to be far behind.”

“What do you mean?”

I didn’t get a chance to answer her question as Vadik, Caleb, and Gael spilled into the room, all of them looking relieved to see her awake. She’d been awake when we’d gotten to her, but since the doctor looked her over, she’d been out for the count. I understood their worry. I was terrified when Drake called us. We could have lost her today.

“Are you okay?” Gael asked, coming to the bed.

“I’m fine.”

“You don’t sound fine,” Vadik said.

“Well, I had a man trying to kill me. Forgive me if I don’t look my best.”

We all chuckled, but we all didn’t see the humor. Our dads were the worst kind of men. Well, not the worst, but they knew our weakness. Emily. We didn’t want to live without her.

Stroking her hair, I pressed my face against her head and breathed her in.

“Are you going to tell me why you think the others are suddenly going to come out of the woodwork? Marshall and Ace are now dead.”

“Yes, which leaves Dean and Daniel,” Gael said.

“Your dad and yours,” Emily said, looking toward Caleb.

“Yep.”

Emily sighed. “You’re making me work for answers here, and I’m the victim. Can’t you at least, I don’t know, help me out?”

“Earl put out a call, a reward if you will,” Caleb said, perching on the edge of the bed. “Anyone working for your fathers will be given a reward to come clean and for information. We’ve had five people within two hours of him putting out the reward.”

“I thought you were hunting them down?” Emily asked.

I held her a little tighter.

“Earl wants to leave. He wants to take Ashley and have this business over with. He’s not going with stealth, but speed.”

Emily tensed in my arms. “But?”

“Emily,” Caleb said. “If this works, then it means Earl kept his part of the bargain.”

“What about Ashley?”

“She’s happy,” Caleb said. “I’ve checked. Drake