Chapter 26

Erick: Seagulls. Those nasty little things. If I could only get my hands on one of those damn brats! Yeah, as if that would be of any help. You cut off one, and a thousand take its place. Ah, the benefits of having a beach house. I didn't need an alarm clock. These damn pests did a fine job of waking you up at three o’clock in the morning. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I sat up groggily. I was startled into looking around the room when I couldn’t feel that familiar warmth next to me. Somehow, I ended up falling asleep next to her last night, afraid that if I left her alone, Emiel might get to her again. “Alina?” I called out. Did she leave as soon as I was out? I couldn’t blame her for that if she did. Yesterday, hell, the whole week, has been terrible for her. She needed to know that running isn’t an option, though. Besides, she was too curious to just up and leave without knowing the whole story. Yesterday was the first time in my life that I had ever felt so afraid. I was afraid o