Before Nicholas could even pull himself to his feet, Mattie had already sprung to hers, said her piece, and ran to the house beside them. Hand against the wall, he managed to stand on shaky legs. Again, the dizziness hit him. Hard. So hard that he would have fallen if Jacob hadn't opened the door at that very moment and caught him.
"Whoa," Jacob said. "Easy now. You come on back in. Where's Mattie?"
Nicholas looked up at him and could see that he'd cried. Jacob's voice still had the sobs in it. Nicholas' jaw felt tight, like it didn't want him to open his mouth. The stump where his arm should have been was aching. He said, "Sh-She went next door. She knows. She's...broken up about it."
Jacob helped Nicholas back into the living room, and Nicholas half-expected to see Darrin lying on the floor, but he was not there.
"You lay down and sleep," Jake told him.
"Yeah," Nicholas mumbled. "Where'd you put him?"
Hands on his hips, Jacob said, "Basement. Hatch is over there," he pointed to said hatch. Then, he went into his bedroom, no doubt to either check on Cole or to get some sleep himself.
Nicholas worried to death over Mattie. Why hadn't Jacob?
