I texted Molly, telling her I had a family emergency and not to worry about me for the rest of the night. She asked for a picture as proof of life, so I sent her one of Jace driving. Shereplied withI have so many questions. But I didn’t have the time or the energy to respond. Everything was spiraling.
As Jace drove, I grabbed one of his flannel jackets from the back seat of his truck and pulled it over me. It was long enough to cover me from my neck to the top of my thighs, making me look a little less ridiculous than I already did. I removed my bunny ears, tucking them into my purse, my night of fun officially over.
After an agonizing drive to my mom’s apartment, Jace swerved into the lot, slamming the truck into park. We caught the immediate attention of all the people lingering around, just like they had been the day we dropped her off.
Jace made large strides across the grassy area that separated the apartment building and the parking lot. He was up the stairs within seconds. I followed him closely. He probably wanted me to stay in his truck, like last time, but he was smart enough to know I was too stubborn to do that at a moment like this.
As we rounded the corner of the third floor, a door dangling by one hinge immediately caught our attention. With only one small push, the door would be on the floor in seconds.
Jace turned quickly, grabbing me by the shoulders, his face inches from mine. “Stay behind me, do you understand? I mean it, Cassie. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“I will, I promise.”
Jace turned back around, making his way into the apartment. It was quiet. There was no loud banging like when I was on the phone with my mom. Her apartment was trashed, papers scattered everywhere and drawers pulled from every place imaginable. The deeper we got into the apartment, the scale of the damage grew larger and larger. Whoever did this hadn’t just stopped at the living room. They destroyed the kitchen, tore things off the walls in the hallways, and continued on to the back bedroom.
The mattress was completely off its frame, propped against the wall, with my mom’s nightstand tipped over in front of it. It looked like a tornado had ripped through, blowing everything upside down and scattering it throughout the room.
“Mom? Mom?” I ran from room to room, calling out for her. A low moan from the bathroom stopped me dead in my tracks. I busted the door open and found my mom lying in the tub with her face covered in blood. It was streaming down her neck and onto her clothes, which were ripped in multiple spots. I stood in place, shocked.
Jace ran past me and scooped her up, rushing her to the couch in the living room and laying her down gently.
“Ma’am, can you hear me?” Jace asked. He grabbed a piece of cloth from the disaster around us and dabbed it on my mom’s head, trying to wipe away the blood that pooled in multiple spots on her face.
A low moan was her only response.
“Call 911, Cassie. Tell them we need an ambulance,” Jace demanded.
I pulled my phone from the pocket of the jacket I’d borrowed and did what he said.
“911, what is your emergency?” the operator asked. I gave her my mom’s address, begging her to send someone quickly. “Police and EMS are on the way, honey,” the operator assured me, trying to calm me down.
Everything was chaos, pure chaos. The room, my mom’s appearance, my heart—literally everything.
Jace kept talking to my mom as she drifted in and out of consciousness. After a few minutes, sirens wailed in the distance. I ran outside to flag down the ambulance so they’d know exactly where to go.
The paramedics climbed the stairs with their gear, skipping steps as they continued their ascent.
“She’s in here,” I pointed, leading them into the apartment.
“What happened?” the female EMT asked, kneeling beside my mom to check her breathing.
“I was on the phone with her,” I explained quickly. “Some man was yelling at her—I think he was the one that hurt her. We found her like this when we got here.”
Liam walked in just as I finished speaking, letting dispatch know the scene was clear. He was dressed in his sheriff’s uniform, which meant he was working tonight. His eyes moved across the apartment as he scanned the room, taking in the damage.
“What the hell happened in here?” he asked quietly.
Jace filled him in, explaining everything that had happened since I’d answered the call during our talk at Crowley’s Ridge. Liam listened carefully and jotted down notes on a notepad.
“We’re taking her to the trauma center,” the male EMT said, glancing between us. “One person can ride along.”
Jace looked at me. “Go with her. I’ll follow in my truck.”
I nodded and followed the EMTs as they wheeled my mom through the shattered doorway and down the stairs. My hands were shaking.
Jace’s figure through the ambulance window got smaller and smaller as one paramedic drove from the apartment complex, sirens blaring, while the other tended to my mom, who was lying lifeless on the gurney in front of me.
Chapter 24 – Jace
