Cyrus
I had never felt such an intense and mind-numbing fear. The moment I’d heard Megan’s scream, I’d grown instantly sober. All thoughts of what I and Sadie had just been doing vanished from his mind.
Sadie was right beside me as we sprinted up the stairs and down the hall to Megan’s room. I burst through the door and my eyes instantly settled on my niece, who sat up in her bed, sobbing.
“Megan? What’s wrong?” I asked.
She didn’t say a word, unable to speak around her cries, but she pointed to the window. I rushed across the room and threw it open. There was a tree branch that hung so close, its branches nearly scraped the glass of her window. I hadn’t realized the tree was that close to the townhouse. I looked all around, but I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. The street below was quiet and empty but well-lit with streetlights. It would be difficult for someone to hide from view, even at night. I didn’t see anyone walking along the sidewalk. A couple cars drove by, but neither slowed or seemed to linger in the street. Still, I felt a prickling along the back of my neck.
It felt as though I were being watched.
Slamming the window shut again, I spun around and found Sadie sitting on Megan’s bed, the little girl tucked in her arms. She rubbed her hand up and down Megan’s back and cooed soft words to the little girl to try and calm her down.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Sadie murmured, rocking her back and forth. “What happened? Did you have a nightmare?”
“There was a man in the tree!” Megan exclaimed, burying her face into Sadie’s chest. “He was staring at me through the window! He tried to get in my room!”
My eyes widened, and Sadie looked up at me, her brow furrowed in concern. She continued rubbing Megan’s back, careful to keep her surprise and anxiety from being obvious to the girl.
“Take a deep breath, honey,” Sadie gently told her, even as she kept her eyes locked with mine. “It was just a dream. You’re safe. I’ve got you.”
Megan continued crying, but she appeared to calm down slightly. Her wailing turned into soft sobs as she clung to Sadie. Sadie glanced down at her, pressing a soft kiss on the crown of her head. Looking back up, Sadie met my gaze again, and I could read the fear in her eyes.
I could see that we were thinking the same thing. It hadn’t been a dream. It had to have been Ralph. He’d climbed the tree and must have been perched on that branch that was so close to her window. That bastard! What was he thinking getting so close to Megan after what I said to him? Did the man have a death wish?
I made a mental note to have that branch trimmed. I’d have the whole tree cut down, but it did provide some coverage for the window. Still, the idea of metal bars on the window crossed my mind as well, but I reasoned with myself that that might be a bit extreme. Still, I couldn’t risk Ralph getting anywhere close to my house again.
I sat down on the bed next to Sadie and put my hand on the back of Megan’s head. I struggled to think of something to say to her that would offer her any kind of comfort.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” I murmured. “There’s nothing there…”
Sadie released a short breath and subtly shook her head. Warning me not to say anything to Megan about her father? Unnecessary, but I appreciated her looking out for Megan, as always.
“Everything’s all right, sweetie,” I softly say to Megan while I look into Sadie’s eyes. “You’re safe. No one is going to get to you. I promise.”
Chapter 35
That did seem to comfort Megan a bit more. Sniffling, she lifted her head from Sadie’s chest and turned her face toward me. Her face was red and her cheeks were streaked with tears. It gutted me to see her so distraught, and I wanted to hunt down Ralph at that very moment and beat him bloody.
“Okay, Uncle Cyrus,” she murmured. She moved from Sadie’s lap and climbed into mine, curling up like a kitten. I gazed down at her a moment, stunned. I wasn’t exactly the guy people turned to for comfort, and yet, here was this tiny girl, putting all her trust in me to keep her safe and calm her fears.
Looking up to find Sadie gazing at us with a soft expression, my heart began to race. She reached over and laid her hand on my shoulder. We didn’t say a word, just hovered around Megan, offering her what comfort and security we could. I wanted to hold her and never let her go. I never wanted to see that tear-filled expression on her face ever again. She continued to cry and whimper, but the sounds grew softer as time ticked by. Soon, she went quiet, and her breathing grew even. Sadie and I stayed like that until we were sure Megan had fallen back to sleep. Scooping the little girl from my lap, I tucked her into her bed but hesitated to leave. I didn’t want her to be by herself, but I remembered that I was still buzzed and realized at the moment how exhausted I was.
“What if she wakes up and is still scared?” I murmured. “I don’t want her to feel like she’s alone…”
“I’ll stay with her,” Sadie whispered, climbing into the bed laying down next to Megan. “I’ll make sure she’s not alone when she wakes up again. You should go to bed and get some rest. You’ve had a long night.”
I gave her an appreciative look, even as I inwardly flinched, remembering I’d been out with another woman barely two hours ago. Was Sadie upset by that? Was I being selfish for thinking that, given everything else that had taken place that night? I forced the thought away. There was no point dwelling on it at that moment. It was late, Megan was safe and sound for the moment, and Sadie was right…I needed to go to bed.
“Thank you,” I murmured. “I’ll deal with this. I promise.”
She wrapped a protective arm around Megan and gave me a small nod.
“Good night, Cyrus.”
Swallowing, I replied, “Good night.”
I hesitated a moment more, feeling momentarily helpless and weak. This shouldn’t have happened. I should have been able to protect Megan better than this.
And Sadie…what had I done to Sadie? I couldn’t decide what was worse, nearly ravishing her on the stairs, or rejecting her like I had. I’d seen the hurt in her eyes, and I saw the growing frustration and anger in them now.
Turning, I made my way out the door, knowing I’d get little sleep that night and that I’d be doing all I could to bring hell down on Ralph’s head in the morning.