Four.
Five.
I take a deep breath, readying myself.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
My body tightens, and I turn my shoulder toward the door.
Nine.
Ten.
I push forward with all my might, slamming my shoulder into the thick wood, and it pops open.
Flimsy construction is normally a bad thing, but today, I’m thankful their builder didn’t use better materials.
“Lulu!” I shout as I stand in the foyer, my gaze moving around the expansive space.
I hear a scream in the distance, and my headsnaps in that direction. It’s Lulu, and my heart sinks, making my heart pick up its pace.
My feet move on their own, my body propelled by the knowledge that she’s alive and is, in fact, in danger.
I fucking knew it.
I take the steps two at a time, and as soon as my boots touch the top landing, a man steps out of one of the bedrooms. Not just any man either.
Mark.
My insides instantly turn to stone.
His face still hasn’t completely healed and is a mess, but I am about to add to his pain.
The sunshine glints off something in his hand, and I realize he isn’t going to fight with his fists. The man has a knife, but that doesn’t scare me.
“You fucking piece of shit,” I say as I barrel forward, ready to stop him from breathing.
He comes at me with the knife raised high above his head. Amateur. The man clearly doesn’t know how to fight and has taken all his knowledge from movies.
I raise my arm, easily stopping his downward motion with the knife, and use my knee to pop him in the stomach. He lurches forward, sucking in air as my knee lodges in his insides.
I work quickly, slamming my fist down on his arm, causing his grip on the knife to loosen enough to send it sliding across the hardwood floor.
But the guy doesn’t give up. He comes at me again, thinking he can inflict damage with his hands. We’ve done this dance before. He lost then, and he’ll lose now.
I crouch down, popping up with all my might when he’s close to me. My hands find his middle, and I thrust him into the air, tossing him to the side. Our location does the work for me, sending Mark over the railing of the top floor.
When he lands, the sound of bone cracking against the tile below makes me recoil. Not because I feel bad that his body is a mangled mess, but the crunch is something I’ve never heard before and I don’t think I’ll ever forget.
“Oliver!” Lulu screams from down the hall.
I stare at Mark for a moment, but he isn’t moving. There’s not a sound coming from him. He could be dead, but at this point, it doesn’t matter to me. I hope he is. If I go to jail for saving Lulu’s life, so be it. At least she’ll be safe, and Mark will be out of their lives forever. I could sleep easy at night even if I were behind bars.
“Lulu!” I yell back as I hustle down the hallway.
