The Cunning

56

"Fuck sake," Jase growled, waking Madison up as he threw himself out of bed. Immediately, her ears were assaulted by the sounds often followed by violence. It took a few seconds for the obnoxious noise to separate enough for Madison to deduce the screaming girl and the shouting men. She sunk in the covers, subconsciously trying to get away from the sudden hostility that had ripped her from sleep.

"What's going on?" she asked. Jase ignored her question.

"Stay here," he ordered. She did as he said, having no desire to leave the safety of the bedroom.

The shouting stopped abruptly. And then picked up with the same suddenness, growing louder and louder. Madison squeezed her eyes shut as the voices became enraged. Sounds of a scuffle and furniture being knocked about ensued.

No actual words could be deciphered through the cacophony but the sound that silenced it all shook her to her core. The gunshot worked like a vacuum, sucking the house into a muted abyss.

It was still ringing in Madison's ears when footsteps thundered up the stairs. She yelped when the door ricocheted off the wall as Jase burst in. His jaw muscles were jutting out, fists clenched and knuckles bloody. He looked around the room, eyes resting on Madison. That's when she noticed the blood splatters over his chest, and the gun tucked into his waistband. Her lips parted and Jase shook his head.

"No questions, not right now," he said, his voice gruff from the shouting. Madison swallowed dryly, staring after him as he grabbed a hoodie and left with no further explanation.

* 

Before you move onto the next chapter, what do you think happened?