I choked on my coffee, my eyes bulging painfully in their cavities. She was talking some more, but I couldn’t listen. Swiftly, I threw my phone on the table, grabbed the TV remote and switched it on the News.
A reporter stood opposite to my old house with a red strip under her.
Beast Escape before Verdict.
“Professor Declan Montgomery, known as the Beast from the Beauty and the Beast domestic violence case has escaped last night…”
The reporter’s voice droned. Every rational thought torn apart. Only desperation left.
I hurled my cup across the TV. Brown liquid spilled on the smashed screen, the cup in pieces all over the room. Terror shredded me open, ripping a scream from my throat.
I was a sobbing wreck on the floor when Kayden came running through the door. “Belle!” He’d thrown the bags in his hands and collected me into his arms.
“He’s out. He escaped. He’s out.” I trembled. Quaked.
He looked around for a second, and then he hugged me closer. “Oh, baby. Baby, no. You’re safe. As long as we’re here, you’re safe.”
I shook my head in a manic frenzy.
“Look at me! Look at me, Belle.” He cradled my face in his hands. “He can’t get anywhere near you. We’re here now. He can’t hurt you.”
Kayden couldn’t stop what was hurting me. All that pain. All that agony that wouldn’t leave me be. Nothing could.
Mindless panic took over me again. I had to get away. To never let that monster find me. Screaming, I lurched out of Kayden’s grip for the open door. Dashing over one flight of stairs after another, I leapt down and down until I landed on the sidewalk outside my apartment building. Then I sprinted away from the horror that awaited me, as if running fast enough and far enough would stop it from ever catching me.
I crossed to the woods, Kayden’s shouts after me. The trees lashed at my face, the dirt digging under my toenails as I ran. It wasn’t long before I’d collapsed, and Kayden was on top of me.
“Please, baby. You can’t be that afraid of that fucker, not when we’re all here for you. The whole pack not just Alec and I. Even Asher. We can protect you. From anything.”
“Where were you when I needed it?”
“You know we couldn’t or—”
“The devil would have me. Well, I have news for you. The devil did have me, Kayden. For ten fucking years. And now he’s back for me.”
CHAPTER 28
BELLE
Forest Grove police officers swarmed in my apartment and around the building. Joshua sat with me while they kept telling me not to worry and they had it under control.
Kayden and Alec stood against the living room wall, arms crossed over their chests. I’d told them to go before the police asked them for a justifiable reason they were at my place. But the wolf twin had invited over their bear brothers and told the police they could all help patrolling the neighborhood.
“Your students really care for you, Professor Ferro,” one of the officers had said. I couldn’t decide whether he was being nice or just mocking me.
Even if he was one of those people I was afraid would turn on me if any rumors had spread about me screwing around, I didn’t care. The monster was already out. The worst had happened. I had nothing more to fear.
Detective Magnolia had flown to Oregon and arrived at my place around nightfall. I didn’t know what hour exactly; it was hard to look at clocks when time was another monster moving slowly and rapidly at once. Every second fell heavily as it delayed the inevitable or brought me closer to my awful destiny.
“A police car will be outside your building at all times. An officer will escort you to campus, too,” she said.
“No need. I’m not going back to work,” I replied, my mind spiraling.
“Sure. Take a few days off—”
“I’m not going back. Ever.”
“You just started your job. Why would you say that? Did something happen?”
