2
Melissa saw Kieran’s whole body flinch as the shotgun went off in their hands. His mouth gaped wide, but his cry of pain was drowned by the noise of the weapon. So too was her own cry, caused by the butt of the shotgun as the recoil slammed it into her stomach, driving the air from her lungs and doubling her up.
As she collapsed on top of Kieran and Zack, who seemed unaware of what had happened, Melissa saw the mess that had been made of Kieran’s groin by the shotgun blast. She didn’t know if he was dead, but she couldn’t help feeling a sense of satisfaction that, alive or not, he would never again be able to hurt anyone the way he had hurt Georgina, Rose and Daisy, and the other girls he had attacked.
**
