Timeless

Chapter 43

She didn't hear anything after that. Not a single thing that Rosie was saying. She couldn't help the feelings that were rising in her chest or the way that she felt like she was suddenly drowning and being shoved under the waves of a merciless ocean. The pit in her stomach seemed to widen into a chasm and it tore up through her chest as she slammed the phone back onto the receiver, abruptly hanging up on Robert Rosenthal.

Her vision was swimming as Kathryn stumbled into the bedroom, all sense of self totally and completely slipping from her grasp. Because the fact of the matter was that Kathryn felt total and unadulterated rage and hatred . In this moment—Hausmann should have been having a slow and painful death. Her testimony should have sentenced him to the justice and demands of the court. It was what he deserved . It was the only way that Kathryn could receive her justice in any way, shape, or form.

But by killing himself, by taking the decision and autonomy out of her hands, out of the court's hands—he had selfishly robbed and raped her of her decision yet again. She felt as though her throat were closing up and she was being buried alive, dirt covering the casket she was so clearly lying in.

And in this moment of rage and red in her vision, Kathryn completely lost it . Her breaths were coming out in short spurts and she could scarcely suck in the air fast enough to sustain her lungs. She needed to throw something, needed to break something, needed to scream and scream and—

It was happening all over again and she could feel that thing inside of her, stealing away her safety and security and innocence. Could feel the bruises he was leaving inside of her legs and choking her out. He was going to snuff her from this earth as easily as blowing a candle out. There was no stopping him from taking what he wanted. No justice, no security.

Then she was gone.

Gale had been in the middle of dishing up plates for he and Kathryn when the screaming began. When the crash entered his ears—and he had dropped everything, making a mad dash for the stairs. Because surely if she was screaming like this, she must have fallen—something was broken and she was in pain and—

He slammed the door open and Gale felt the breath catch in his throat and all blood drain from his face. Because the sight in front of him was horrific . Crimson stained across the beige carpet in their room and glass littered the floor. Kathryn was absolutely manic, standing there and wailing, grasping at her chest as though she couldn't breathe—she had glass in her hands and all over her feet—and oh God, her eyes—there was absolutely nothing there as she stepped across the glass and continued to just scream.

For a moment, Gale was so taken aback by the sight—by the total loss of clear sanity by his wife. And then he was moving and she was backing up and away from him like a cornered dog or animal. What had happened? What had she been told? He didn't even have a minute to process that as Kathryn's gaze landed on a lamp near their bed.

"Kath—"

But she had already moved, the glazed over expression in her eyes seeming to be the present force in her mind. He lunged as she grabbed at it and she let out a bloodcurdling scream as he caught onto her wrists—

Something inhuman tore out of her throat but he needed to stop her—needed to stop this—she was hurting herself. Gale hauled her around the waist despite the fact that she was clawing at his arms and tearing at skin and he maneuvered until they were out of the bedroom and away from the broken glass.

They had no sooner made it into the hall when Kathryn elbowed him in the jaw and completely dropped to the ground. "Shit—" As soon as her body made contact with the ground, Kathryn just let out a choked sob and curled into a fetal position, shaking madly from head to toe.