Cole’s POV

The heavy wooden front door of the apartment rattled against its frame under another brutal, rhythmic slam of iron knuckles.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

“Ms. Lang! Open this door immediately!”

Aria’s mother’s panicked voice echoed from the hallway outside her bedroom. “What?! What is going on?! Who is there?!”

I didn't think. I grabbed Aria by the waist, lifted her body off the bed in one swift, silent motion, and shoved her back into the deep shadows behind her bedroom door. I reached down, snatched my red cooler, the duffel bag, and her aluminum crutches, tossing them under her bed skirt in three seconds flat.

“Cole,” Aria gasped in...