Hide (Mommy's House 3)

5

Bella figured the man probably left, after there were several minutes of silence.

Until there was suddenly another knock at the door, a bit softer, but still urgent. Cole slammed the phone down into the receiver and swore again, his chest heaving as he pressed his elbows against the counter and put his head in his hands.

As the knocking persisted, Bella watched while Cole flung one of the kitchen drawers open and pulled a knife out of it. Her widened eyes followed Cole towards the door as he pressed his forehead against the wood, the knife at his side.

"If you don't leave right now, you're going to regret it," he told the man through the door.

"Cole, please put the knife down," Bella whispered as she rubbed her temples, the corners of her head throbbing with unbearable pain. "Please."

Cole looked over at her, before he looked back down at the knife. He then walked over and put it back in the drawer.

"Sorry," he apologized to her.

There was another knock at the door.

"It's James!" the muffled voice called through the door. "I promise, just open the door."

Cole walked over to the door and opened it, and James stood there with panic in his expression.

"What's wron-" Cole started, before James grabbed onto his arm and pulled him out into the hallway, shutting the door behind them.

Bella immediately stood up and walked quietly over to the door. It must be bad if he didn't want Bella hearing it. She pressed her ear against the door, and heard light, muffled whispering.

"Elliot's missing?" she heard Cole ask in disbelief.

Immediately, Bella froze in utter shock and fear. Elliot was missing? She couldn't believe her ears - images of the young, innocent boy flashed through her mind. The tears he cried in Rose's house, the way he stared up at Bella after she found out Rose punched him, the innocence that filled his large, dark eyes.

She thought about his large, dark eyes when she saw Elliot at James and Liv's wedding reception. They hadn't changed - they were still just as innocent, just as big, just as gentle. Bella felt true sorrow at the fact that she was jealous of Elliot forgetting what happened to them. Now, he was missing. She almost felt like it was her fault.

Bella couldn't handle it anymore. She couldn't stand it. They didn't deserve any of this, especially not Elliot. The strong urge to protect that boy from everything resurfaced in that moment. But she couldn't, and she knew that. She couldn't protect him now, just like she couldn't protect him from Rose before.

Bella started to feel nauseous. Her heart was racing, and the edges of her vision were tinted with a dream-like, faded blur. Her fingers were shaking as she reached up to chew on her nails. She looked over at the open window in the living room, where the maroon curtains blew towards her from the heavy wind that whistled through.

She walked over towards that window as quickly as she could, and stepped out of it, landing onto the cold grass. She looked back at the brick apartment building, as the wind bit at her nose and cheeks. She couldn't tell if the tears in her eyes were from the bitter cold or the fact that she was just so incredibly done.

"It's really one thing after another, isn't it," she laughed to herself as she cut through the yard of the apartment complex. It was dimly lit with orange-hued streetlights, which barely illuminated the area.

She continued walking - quite honestly - not caring in the slightest about how dangerous it was.

James and Liv thought that having Cole come back would help her, but it only worsened things. They all viewed her as weak, and perhaps she was - but could anyone blame her? She was haunted constantly by intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, nightmares, flashbacks - you name it. The terror would never subside. She was suffering.