Jared looked for his moment. He could not leave Andrew free to terrorize Emily and Aaliyah. He’d failed to protect his mother; he was damn sure not going to fail them.
The sound of sirens suddenly split the night.
Andrew’s hold on Jared’s hair loosened in shock over the sirens, and Jared jumped on the opportunity to rip his head out of Andrew’s hands and roll to the side, kicking hard as he went but catching Andrew only a glancing blow.
Andrew leapt to his feet. The whites of his eyes had gone red, like he’d popped blood vessels in his overblown anger. He looked between Jared and the door as though to decide whether to finish him off or run. Jared wasn’t giving him that chance. This was going to end. Now.
Jared kicked out again for the knee he’d cracked before, but Andrew jumped out of the way, roaring like he was more beast than man. Jared used the distance for the chance to roll to his feet, but his vision swam and his stomach rebelled like he was going to lose it all over the floor. He swayed on his knees, fighting back the wave of nausea that wanted to take his sight and his consciousness with it. Definite concussion.
His vision cleared just in time to see Andrew reaching behind his back, fumbling for something he had tucked away. The snick of the blade opening gave it away even before he saw it slashing toward him.
Knife! Jared dove to the side, vision and stomach twisting again, but Andrew caught him by the leg with one hand and buried the knife in his thigh with the other. Jared howled, pinned in place by the pain that exploded over him.
There was pounding now at the front door, a demand to open up, but Jared’s whole world had narrowed to pain and fear. He knew there was some artery in the leg that could bleed out in moments. If Andrew had hit it—
Andrew left the knife buried in his leg and turned for the back of the house and the sliding glass door to escape as a crack split the front door, probably thinking he’d already killed his only witness. It was just a matter of time, and Jared wasn’t sure how much he had.
But he was going to make it count. Andrew was not getting away.
It took everything he had to gather his legs under him and lunge after Andrew. He had the advantage of no longer being concerned about himself, and when he flew into a tackle, it was with everything he had. He caught Andrew around the knees, and they both came crashing down to the floor together. Andrew tried to catch himself on his hands, but they slid out from under him, and he cracked his chin hard on the sharp tile. It stunned him for half a second, but then he was flailing, thrashing, bucking, and kicking to get Jared off of him. Jared hung on as though his life depended on it.
The police crashed through the door a second later, demanding they stop right where they were.
Jared had no intention of doing anything else. He held onto Andrew until the police insisted he let go, which he did with the relief of fading strength. He heard someone call for an ambulance, watched as they cuffed Andrew, and then let his eyes close against the pain … until he heard someone shout from outside, sounding frantic, “Is he okay? Just tell me he’s okay!”
Aaliyah.
Outside, an officer tried to ma’am her, tell her to stay back, and he smiled, knowing how that would go. Maybe they could keep her back, but they’d tell her what she wanted to know first. She’d make sure of it.
“I’m okay!” he shouted from inside, hoping she’d hear him before things got heated.
“You’ve lost a lot of blood,” one of the police officers said, squatting beside him. They hadn’t cuffed him. Was it because they knew he was the good guy or because he was too hurt to be a threat? And wasn’t that the same thing they’d said about Emily, “she’s lost a lot of blood”?
The fear crashed in on him again. “Did he hit the artery?” Jared asked, hoping he hadn’t just lied to Aaliyah. Or to Emily when he’d said he wouldn’t leave her.
“I’m no medic,” he said, “but I don’t think so. Not enough blood. Although, I don’t know what will happen when they remove the knife.” He was putting pressure above the wound, using his hands like a tourniquet.
“Can I see her?” he asked, meaning Aaliyah. If he wasn’t going to make it …
The officer shook his head. “This is a crime scene. I’m sure you’ll pass her when the paramedics get you to the ambulance. Want to tell me what happened here?”
“Andrew killed my mother. His mother is the one who hurt my sister, framing her for his crimes. I didn’t know. I was coming to talk to her when he attacked me.”
“Do you have proof?”
“How about a confession? My girlfriend—the one you won’t let me see—” as if there was anyone else, “has it all recorded.” Well, right up until the end.
The officer’s mouth fell open in shock, and he called out to one of the other officers to get that recording. “Just hang on,” he said to Jared.
There were other sirens now. Close. Jared hoped they’d put him in the same wing as Emily.
Then the paramedics arrived and started working on his leg, and his only wish was that he’d pass out.