Chapter 26
Panic and fear were like an iron grip that held her in place. She wanted to run to Declan, make sure he was okay, but the thought of seeing him lifeless on the ground had her legs giving out from beneath her. She collapsed just outside on the small, dilapidated porch.
Her lip chattered, and her mind went numb. The silence that came after the gunshot was almost too much to take. She knew she shouldn’t assume, but something in her gut told her that it was over.
A tear slipped down her cheek as she fought the overpowering darkness that tried to consume her. She had been strong for so long, carrying the weight of everyone else’s grief, and she couldn’t do it anymore.
Her head became too heavy to hold up, and she let it fall limply in her hands. A familiar ache of sorrow latched
