Billy screams intensify, his hands wrapping around my wrist tightly. He could snap it if he wanted to, but his grip is too weak. He’s losing blood, and if I don’t hurry, he’ll die from his injuries before I get my chance. If I don’t hurry, Mako will die, too. And that just won’t do.
“You may kill me, River. But I’ll never die. I’ll be inside you the rest of your life, causing you pain. You’ll never be able to let me go.” He looks manic with his crazed eyes and bloody teeth.
I smile.
“That may be true. But it’ll be easy to not feel pain when I have the sweet memory of being the last thing you see before you die.”
He snarls, opening his mouth to spew more venom. I don’t hesitate. I lift the gun to his forehead and lock my eyes onto his.
And I pull the trigger.
His head jerks backwards, blood and brain matter splattering across the tile. His body slumps, and everything fades to silence behind the ringing of the gunshot.
Pure, utter silence.
Something I’ve never had the pleasure of experiencing when in Billy’s presence. It feels… nice. Good. I drop my butt on the ground, not minding that I’m sitting in a pool of blood. The gun clatters next to me.
And I stare at Billy’s dead body, and just smile.
I SHOOT UP FROM THE hard, plastic chair and rush towards Amar. “How is he?” I ask Amar, my ass having long grown numb from the uncomfortable hospital chair. I’ve been sitting here for hours on end, just waiting to hear anything. I’ll gladly give up all feeling in my ass if it means Mako being okay.
“He’s stable,” he answers, his eyes sparkling with relief, despite the exhaustion etched into every wrinkle on his face. Immediate relief assaults me, nearly stealing my breath. Slowly, the immense amount of pressure sitting on my chest starts to ease.
Amar had rushed us to the hospital and got Mako admitted into ICU. During the drive, I prayed. I prayed that I didn’t take too long killing Billy. I prayed that the bullet didn’t hit anything vital. I just prayed. While I did, Amar called in the death to his boss, explaining the story he told me right before the cops arrived.
Mako and Amar watched Billy. Followed him here. And they basically told most of the truth, with a few different details. I managed to escape myself, running out of the house just as they arrived. Billy immediately opened fire, shooting Mako once in the chest. Amar returned fire and shot back. Billy ran into the house, Mako followed while Amar held me back from entering the house. There, Billy came at Mako with a knife, in which Mako got ahold of the weapon and stabbed Billy with it. During the scuffle, Mako was able to overpower Billy and then shoot him dead.
Mako got the glory of killing Billy, but I couldn’t care less. I don’t care what the cops believed happened at all. A complete stranger could’ve gotten the glory for all I care, because I will go to sleep peacefully at night knowing the truth. I took Billy’s life from him.
“He had a collapsed lung and needed surgery. Had to get a blood transfusion ‘cause he lost so much blood. But luckily, the surgery was successful. He’s going to be okay,” Amar continues, pulling my attention back towards him. I nod, wiping the nervous sweat on my hands on my jeans. Flakes of blood crust from my palms. I haven’t gotten the chance to wash up yet. Every passerby has looked at me like I’m a lunatic.
I suppose I am one.
“Can I see him?” I ask, standing up.
“Yeah, you can see him. He just woke up from surgery. There’s gonna be a couple cops here that are going to want take your statement, though.”
I nod, another nervous sweat breaking out across my forehead. Speaking to a cop always makes you feel like you did something wrong, even if you didn’t. And well, in this case, I think murdering someone would be classified as wrong.
Noting my nervous energy, he says, “Just stick to the story and you’ll be fine. It’s just protocol.”
Stick to the story, River. Yeah, as if cops don’t ask the same question five hundred times just to see if you change your story.
“Oh, and Julie and Matt are on their way.”
I don’t say anything in response. I’m not ready to face them, yet. Especially least of all Matt. I might be liable to kill him, too.
Brushing past him, I speed walk towards Mako’s room. Anxious to see him, but incredibly nervous. The last time we spoke, he was done with me. I had information that he’d been searching for for a long time. And I kept it from him for entirely selfish reasons. I didn’t blame Mako if he wanted to cut ties with me. At this point, I’ve been nothing but a headache to him.
Timidly, I walk into the room. It feels wrong. Nothing about me has ever been timid. Not until I met Ryan. Forcing my spine to straighten, I walk around the corner and see Mako lying in the hospital bed, staring mindlessly at the television screen. Mako is a large man, but even he looks small in the hospital bed. Hooked up to IV’s and wires, with pale skin and dark circles under his eyes. The sight nearly brings me to tears.
I glance up, noting some cooking show that’s on. By the time my eyes dri
ft back to him, his grass green eyes are already pinned on me, holding me in place. I can’t move now. I can hardly breathe from the intensity in his stare.
“Teasing yourself with all the things you can’t eat?” I ask, proud of how well I kept my voice steady.
A small grin slides on his face. That small movement gives me a small amount of comfort, though. Maybe this conversation won’t be as hostile as I assumed it would be.