I opened my mouth, desperate to make any sound, to tell him I was right here. But that elbow strike had left my breathing shallow and ragged. Something inside me was damaged. I could feel it. I was too weak to produce even a whisper.
"The young master's got a girlfriend? She must be something special. You've got to bring her back to the valley next time so we can all meet her," Barrett said, his tone dripping with false warmth.
"Yeah. I was planning to bring her home for the holidays, but I made her angry."
"Actually, Uncle Barrett, could you arrange a helicopter for tomorrow morning? I don't want her spending the holidays upset. I'm going straight to her place to apologize."
"By my estimate, she should be home by now."
I stretched out a trembling hand toward the door. I wanted to tell him I wasn't home. I was here. Right here. That if he left, I would die in this room.
But every word I tried to form dissolved into tears that slid silently down my face.
I couldn't just lie here and wait to die.
If Declan walked away, I had no hope left.
"Dec... lan!"
I poured every last shred of strength into his name.
Declan spun around, but before his eyes could find me, the door slammed shut.