My tears mixed with my blood, splashing to the floor one drop at a time.
Sullivan was clearly losing patience. “Alright, enough. As long as you stay put in the basement today, I won’t—”
But before he could finish—the ground trembled beneath us. A deafening explosion tore through the air.
And then… my eyes went wide in horror as I see him.
My… My dad.
His body plunged from the shattered railing above, hitting the concrete with a bone-crushing thud—right in front of me.
His eyes—those warm, gentle eyes that used to light up every time he saw me—were now rolled back, glazed over with death. Blood gushed from his nose, his mouth, his ears. His skull was split open like a cracked porcelain doll.
“Daddy!”
A scream tore from my throat, so raw and guttural it barely sounded human.
I threw myself forward, crawling on hands and knees, fingers scrabbling desperately across the floor. The concrete shredded my skin, blood smeared beneath me—but I didn’t care. I didn’t feel it.
I just needed to reach him.
But before I could even brush his fingers, a pair of strong arms yanked me backward. Hard.
“No!” I shrieked. “Let me go! Let me go!”