With Me Through Troubled Times (With Me - book 2)

Chapter 56

When I open the door, I quickly scan the room before my eyes rest on a body lying on the floor by the window. I hear Paul shout '10' and close the door over. I run over to the body and kneel down next it. I carefully pull the person to see their face and almost sigh with relief when I see that it's was Odette.

"Baby, please wake up." I beg, taping the side of her face lightly.

She moans and slowly opens her eyes. I look down at the blood that was on her white top and pull it up to see if the blood that I saw downstairs was hers.

"Mum..." She murmurs quietly. I look up at her face. "Get out..."

"I'm not leaving without you or Emery."

"He'll...he'll kill you."

I look back down at her stomach and it confirms to me that it was her blood that I had seen. I take my jacket off and put it over the bleeding area. I press down on it as hard as I can and she screams in pain.

"Odette, I'm sorry but I have to if..." I start before the floorboards on the landing creek. I turn to the door and the handle goes down before I turn back quickly to Odette. I move her hands up to where mine were on her stomach "Odette, put pressure on that."

I stand up as the door open and Paul stands holding the gun to me. He starts walking towards me.

"You found one, but where's the other? Is she more important to you than your youngest?"

Out of the corner of my eye, a small flash of light shines outside to signal that people were moving about round the perimeter.

"Dad, she won't..." Callum starts, coming into the room. "Well, well, well. Mai Halliwell finally came for her daughters. Shame that only one is here now."

"What do you mean by 'only one is here now'? Where's Emery?" I ask, getting more worried.

"Kim took her," He confesses easily, moving to stand by the window.

"You know...I could have given you everything you ever wanted in life. Instead, you went for a dumb blonde footballer." Paul says.

"You could give me nothing. Joe is a better man than you and your son will ever be!"

"Well, you leave me no choice." He shrugs before pulling the trigger on the gun.

Joe's POV

I hear a gun shot ring out and look up from where I'm standing.

"Joe, don't even think about it." Lisa warns before I can even react.

"Dad, who's that?" Connor asks me suddenly, pointing to the woman that had come out of the road leading up to the house, carrying a small child.

I look over at her as the headlights on Tina's car come on. She looks over at us from under the hood she had up and quickly turns away from us before starting to run the other way.

"I think that's-" I start.

"Hey, get back here!" Connor shouts at her before he and Matthew run after her.

Connor's POV

She wasn't as fast at running because me and Matthew had caught up to her within seconds. I grab her hood as we approach her and she stops. She slowly turns round to face me and Matthew and then I see Emery in her arms.

"Kidnapping, are we?" Matthew says, looking down at Emery who was looking up at him.

"Matt..." She cries, pointing up to him as more tears fall from her eyes.

"Give her to me," I demand, stepping forward.

She steps back and holds Emery close to her chest. "She's mine."