Hush - Fighting Fate #2 Read Free Page A

heart immediately jumped into panic mode. Stepping wearily into the lounge room, I found Ken and my loser step brother, Aaron, having some kind of face off over the coffee table.
    The second they both spun on me, their gazes dark and feral, I regretted my decision to interrupt.
    “Where’s Mom?” I asked.
    Ken’s eyes narrowed. “She’s gone shopping.”
    I exhaled with relief and turned, ready to make a quick escape.
    Aaron spun back on his father. “I’m not going. Make Kaeli go! I’m sure they’d appreciate her a lot more anyway.”
    I froze on the first step and looked back at them. Getting in the middle of their problems was the last thing I wanted to do. Aaron was o ozing anger, looking between me and his father, and Ken was practically livid.
    I watched Ken’s gaze turn from feral to calculatingly malicious. I’d seen that look a few times before, and the aftermath was never good. I was petrified to the spot.
    “Do what?” I asked hesitantly.
    Ken just continued staring at me, considering whether he wanted me to do this ‘thing’ or not. I was just about to ask again, when his lips curled up into a snide grin.
    “ Hmmm…I think you might be right, Aaron,” he said. “This could work in our favor.”
    “What do you want me to do?” I asked again, th is time a little more forceful.
    He wasn’t looking at me anymore. He’d begun bust ling around near the lounge, arranging a bag of some sort.
    “You’re going to go pick something up for me,” he said, not bothering to turn around.
    “I have homework to do.”
    “It can wait. This is more i mportant.” He zipped up the bag and walked over to the stairs to stand in front of me, shoving a piece of paper into my hand. “Here’s the address you’ll be going to. You’ll have to catch the fifty-one to Forty-Seventh, then go the rest of the way on foot.”
    “What? Why can’t I just drive?”
    “You just can’t! Tell them Ken sent you – that Tom OD’d, and you’re his replacement.”
    Alarm bells started ringing in my head. “Who OD’d? What are you talking about?”
    “Just shut up and do as you’re told, you stupid bitch! If you fuck this up for me, I swear to God, you’ll regret it!” He thrust the bag at me, knocking me back a fraction.
    I glanced up at him in alarm, pushing the bag back towards him. “This doesn’t feel right. I don’t want to do it.”
    Ken’s eyes flashed with murderous rage. “You’ll do it alright, you little bitch, because if you don’t, your mother will be the one to pay for your mistake, and it will be a lot worse than what happened this morning!”
    I felt the blood drain from my face. Oh God.
    As if reading my mind, he smirked.
    I felt sick. Every part of me screamed that this was bad. I ’d never wanted to say no more in my whole life, but the thought of Mom cowering next to the bed was still so fresh in my mind, I just couldn’t. I swallowed hard.
    He shoved the bag hard against my chest. “Now get going or you’ll miss the bus!”
    When I didn’t move, he grabbed me by the arm and pulled me towards the door. Once it was open, he thrust me out onto the porch and slammed it shut behind me.
    I started to shake as I stood there. I didn’t know what to do. I knew Ken’s threats weren’t idle. He’d definitely follow through with it and Mom would pay the price, but my head was screaming at me, telling me if I did this, it would be the biggest mistake of my life.
    Seeing no choice before me but doing what Ken wanted, I shakily checked I still had my cellphone on me and started down the street.
    As I walked, I kept reminding myself I was doing it for Mom, not Ken. Every time the anxiousness started to creep back in again, I placed a firm picture of Mom smiling on the screen of my mind to help me.
    The second I arrived at the bus stop, it rolled to a stop beside me. As the door swung open, I tried to ignore the warning bells that were still ringing inside my head. I couldn’t help but feel