The glass on the nightstand, the clock, and the lamp all suddenly exploded in unison and he screamed, arms going over his face as shards flew toward him, hitting his skin and leaving shallow cuts.
“LIAM!”
Fix dove back to the bed, hauling him away from the mess by his waist. King burst into the room through the now open doorway, snarling, with the whites of his eyes showing.
“Liam? Liam? Are you okay?” Fix asked, checking him all over. Liam could only shake in his arms as Fix examined all hiswounds and cursed under his breath. “I’ll get this son of a bitch, okay? They could still be close by. Stay here, honey.”
“Fix,” he gasped.
Fix ripped his shirt off again and wrapped it around Liam’s shaking frame, laying a swift kiss on his forehead before diving out of the room toward the front door.
King’s distress overrode his own fears, and he sank down to cradle his puppy, tears slipping from his eyes. “It’s okay. We’re okay,” he chanted in a watery voice, like he always did.
He heard Fix’s low voice as he came back into the apartment; it seemed he was speaking on the phone to someone. Liam stayed huddled on the floor with King held safely in his arms.
“If you want to question us you can find us at my place. He can’t stay here anymore. It’s not safe. Whoever they are, they’re angry and escalating,” Fix was saying.
He was silent as the other person replied.
“What are you saying? You think it’s because of me?” Fix sounded gutted and it spurred Liam onto his shaky legs, creeping toward the doorway.
He saw Fix standing there, hand on his forehead as he looked at something on the kitchen counter, his phone held to his ear.
“I’m not leaving him,” Fix said finally, and Liam gasped, heart lurching. Like he’d heard him, Fix’s gaze found him. “I won’t,” he promised.
Fix put the phone down a moment later before moving to take Liam into his arms. Liam was trembling as he dug his nails into Fix’s broad back, more tears spilling down his cheeks.
“I’ve got you, honey. Daddy’s got you.”
“Don’t go,” Liam cried. “Please.”
Fix cradled his head. “I won’t. I promised, didn’t I? Do you believe me?”
Liam nodded against his chest, trying to get himself under control.
“I’m going to take you someplace safe, okay? We’ll gather your things and take King with us,” Fix explained calmly. “I’ll take care of everything.”
“Were they trying to get in?” Liam asked on a hitching inhale.
Fix was silent for a moment before he admitted, “They just wanted to leave a message. You don’t have to read it.”
Liam shook his head. “I need to.”
Fix’s chest expanded in a huge sigh before he walked him over to the kitchen counter. There a white note with red writing lay.
I didn't count your every breath for someone else to steal it from your lips.
You’re mine.
Liam flinched away from the claim, turning toward Fix with a gasped breath.
“I didn’t do anything. Why are they doing this? I don’t understand,” Liam said, verging on hysteria again. He’d never asked for this. He didn’t want it. Why was he always being punished?
Fix hushed him. “This isn’t your fault. Not one bit of it, you hear me? You’re such a beautiful person, inside and out. You deserve nothing but good things. Remember that, honey.”
Liam sniffled, completely exhausted. He allowed Fix to maneuver him to the sofa and bundle him up, urging King to settle on his lap while he tended to his cuts. When Fix was done he placed three successive kisses on his forehead and then one to his mouth.
“Just keep your eyes on me and let me know what you want to take. That’s all Daddy wants you to worry about, okay?”
