Chapter 8 Who?
Landon stood motionless, staring down the barrel of the gun held by the woman he once promised his life to.
“Evelyn…” he said calmly, ignoring the weapon. “You’ve been coughing for a while now. I noticed it the moment you spoke. You’ve been ignoring your treatment again, haven’t you?”
Her brows furrowed. Her hand trembled, but her voice stayed furious. “Don’t you dare. Don’t pretend you care. You lost that right the moment you vanished.”
“I’ve missed you,” he murmured.
“If you say that again, Landon, I swear I will pull this trigger.”
“Leave,” she spat. “You were dead to us. Stay that way. Don’t ever come back.”
“Mummy?”
A small voice shattered the tension.
Evelyn’s eyes widened. “Aurora!” She quickly lowered the gun and hid it behind her coat as the little girl padded into the room in her nightgown.
Landon froze.
She was his daughter.
Aurora walked straight up to him, stopping just inches away. He glanced between the framed photo on the wall and the girl. The resemblance hit hard—Evelyn’s eyes, but that nose and jawline were unmistakably his.
“Is that… Aurora?” he whispered.
The girl blinked up at him. “Who are you?” She turned to Evelyn. “Mummy?”
Evelyn’s face twisted. “Sweetheart, go back to bed. Come here.”
Aurora didn’t move. “But who is he?”
“I said come—” Evelyn started, voice sharp.
A loud crack ripped through the air.
The window exploded. Glass sprayed everywhere.
Evelyn screamed and pulled Aurora behind her. Landon spun around as five masked men crashed into the house through the broken windows. They carried hammers, pipes, and blades, eyes locked on one target.
Aurora.
“Grab the girl!” the leader barked. “Kill the man and the woman if they resist!”
Landon moved before they did.
He grabbed a chair and smashed it across the first attacker’s head. The man dropped like a stone.
The second swung a pipe at him. Landon caught the wrist mid-air, drove his elbow into the man’s throat, and watched him wheeze and collapse.
The third came from behind. Landon ducked, swept his legs, and stomped his ribs. The man didn’t get up.
The fourth charged with a hammer. Landon sidestepped, twisted the arm, and slammed his knee into the attacker’s sternum. He snatched the falling hammer and used it to knock out the fifth man before the blade in his hand could even rise.
In seconds, the living room was filled with broken bodies and painful groans.
Landon grabbed the nearest half-conscious intruder and slammed him hard against the wall.
“Who sent you?!” he snarled.
The man spat blood, teeth gritted. “I… I don’t—”
“Talk!” Landon roared, pressing harder.
Movement flashed in the corner of his eye. One attacker was bolting for the broken window.
Landon threw the man aside and chased after him. The coward jumped through the shattered glass. Landon followed right behind.
“Who sent you?!” he roared again.
The masked man spun and hurled a throwing knife. It skimmed Landon’s cheek and buried into the doorframe.
By the time Landon recovered, the man had vanished into the darkness.
He wanted to hunt him down, but a soft cry stopped him cold.
Aurora.
She was crying, clutching Evelyn’s dress tightly.
Landon turned back immediately. He couldn’t leave them. Not now.
Aurora’s cries grew louder, small and fragile. Landon knelt beside her, arms wrapped protectively around their daughter.
“It’s okay, sweetheart. Mummy’s here. You’re safe now,” Evelyn whispered, stroking her hair.
Landon dropped to one knee in front of them. “I need you to take her upstairs. She shouldn’t see this.”
Evelyn looked at him, eyes unreadable, but she nodded. She lifted Aurora into her arms.
“I’ll sleep here tonight,” Landon said firmly as he stood up.
Evelyn opened her mouth to argue, but he raised his hand. “Don’t. Not tonight. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
She sighed. “Fine. Just for tonight.” She carried Aurora down the hallway and disappeared into the inner rooms.
Landon stood alone in the shattered living room, glass crunching under his boots. He walked back to the broken window and stared into the night, jaw clenched tight.
Who would dare attack his family the same night he returned?
