When everything began to swirl around her, she closed her eyes, praying it would soon stop. Her stomach lurched, but the mere idea of throwing up only made the stinging in her head worse. At least she’d stopped him from choking her.
“Felix!” she cried out. “Help me!”
Footsteps pounded on the floor, but she couldn’t open her eyes to see.
“Katrina!” Felix’s voice raised in alarm mere seconds before his strong arms cradled her against his chest. “You’re bleeding.” He lifted the hand that had been holding the dagger.
“No,” her voice choked out. “It’s Robert’s blood.”
“Robert? Where is he?”
Once again, she struggled through the dizziness reeling in her head, and tried to open her eyes. She was able to open them slightly, but it was enough to see the door Robert had gone in. “There. He went there.”
Felipe’s loud voice issued instructions to the other men. Through her groggy vision, she saw them run toward the door and kick it open. Suddenly, heavy white smoke billowed like thick clouds in the air, quickly filling the corridor. Men turned away, coughing.
“The rooms are on fire!” Felipe yelled.
Felix lifted Katrina in his arms, holding her close to his chest. “Someone, get Mr. Landon,” he shouted.
“No,” she said quickly. “Felix, he’s already dead.”
His arms tightened around her. “Sweetheart, I’m so sorry.”
Smoke continued to fill the hall, growing fuller by the second. Screams from the servants echoed through the house as they rushed to assist, mixed with the shouts from Felipe’s men.
Felix bolted down the steps, darting past servants rushing to help with the fire. Felix ran outside into the rain carrying Katrina. As the wetness coated her face, she snuggled against his chest. A sob escaped her throat, more from the pain coursing through her body than the terror unfolding before them. Felix had her now. He would protect her.
She struggled to remain alert. Felix caressed her arm and back, while whispering soothing words of comfort. The commotion from within the house continued to ring through the evening. Felix’s voice soon overrode everything, even the sound of the rain beating upon the ground.
From off in the distance, a shout came from Felipe as he exited the house. He and another man were dragging a lifeless body. Felix’s body stiffened and he swung his gaze in that direction.
Panic grew inside of her.Now what?“What is it?” she asked with a tight throat.
“It’s Faro.”
She snapped up, studying the charred man’s frame. “Are they certain? Tell them to check his stomach for a knife wound.”
Felix yelled something at the other men in that odd language. Felipe lifted the burned shirt off the lifeless man. Quickly, he moved his gaze back to Felix and nodded.
“Faro is dead,” Felix sighed. As his body relaxed, he pulled her into his comforting embrace once more.
She expelled a relieved sigh. “We are free from him at last.”
