Page 200 of I Never Stopped Loving You

“I’m not losing you, Noah. Hate me if you want to, but I’m not fucking losing you,” he snaps as he gently lowers me to the ground.

He turns to the wall fumbling for the handle.

“Get the fuck up!” James shouts. He’s hurting her, I can feel it.

“Damnit…Got it,” Jeremy whispers before light floods through the open doorway and he quickly moves around me again to drag me through the door.

He sets me on the stairs and lets me rest my head back against the steps. The knife is still in my stomach, but my body feels cold…and numb. I need him to go save her. She needs to survive, no matter what.

“Jeremy,” I groan as he slowly shuts the door.

“You’re going to be fine. None of that famous last words bullshit. Do you hear me, motherfucker?! I’ll kill you if you die on me.”

“The…gun,” I’m barely able to gasp out the words. I point to a box next to my mask at the bottom of the steps.

He opens the box and grabs the gun. It’s a small handgun, but it’ll do. It’s already loaded, and we’ve gone to the range enough to where he knows how to use the damn thing.

“Save her…Please,” I groan as my head falls back against the step.

“I will. Just hold on, Noah. You’re going to make it through this. You just got her back so you can’t abandon her now. She’ll never forgive you.”

He leaves quietly shutting the door fully behind him.

A few seconds later, I can hear James screaming.

“Where the fuck are you, Killer?”

He must have followed my blood. Fuck. It’s going to lead him right to the door…Right to me.

The light switch is on the wall just above me. If I can stretch, I can hit it. I reach my arm up, but I’m not able to reach it. I need something to be able to close the distance. That’s when I remember the mask. I use my foot to grab it then flick my foot up to toss the mask into the air. It lands next to me on the step. The pain in my stomach pulses from the quick movements, but I don’t have time to worry about that right now.

“Killer! I’ll fucking find you!”

He’s so close.

I stretch the mask up trying to hit the switch…

Almost…

Almost…

Got it.

The mask catches, and the light switch flicks. Plunging the labyrinth into darkness. The only light is in this room from the string of bulbs hung along the staircase.

“Fuck!” I can hear him curse from right on the other side of the door.

That was close.

I glance back down at the knife still protruding from my body. Blood is still seeping from around the blade, but it isn’t flowing as fast as it was before. I don’t know if that’s good or bad. Either my blood is coagulating, and that’s what’s slowing it down…Or I’m running out of blood. From the lack of feeling in my limbs, I have a feeling it’s the latter.

Please let Jeremy get to her in time.

My little rabbit needs to live.

CHAPTER 86

WILLOW