And then there were also the good moments—the moments that made everything worth it, the moments he'd made her feel like a princess, the moments he'd made her feel important and loved.
She sighed.
Chris ran his fingers along her cheek. "What's wrong?"
She looked at him and saw worry etched on his face.
"What will happen to Xavier?" she asked.
He nodded as if he knew she'd ask that, and how couldn't she? She was not the type of person who could live without knowing that the people she cared about were safe.
Yes, even after everything that came about, she still wished for Xavier to be safe and happy. No matter what the consequences were, whatever had to happen happened, and she just wanted this chapter to be closed. All she wanted was for everyone to be okay.
"Well," said Chris, "I have informed Alex about Xavier. He said he'll handle it."
"How?"
"Not sure. Xavier is in the hospital right now, so if I have to guess, I'd say that they've probably arrested him and are keeping him under surveillance till he's discharged. So, I'm positive he won't be able to escape."
She contemplated. Did she want him in jail? A part of her wanted him to suffer for everything he did to her and her father. But there was another part of her that wanted him to be gone as if he'd never existed.
She knew it wasn't his fault, but he'd killed an innocent man. He was a murderer. And as much as she used to forgive him when they were together, her eyes were now open to the severity of the situation. He belonged to a gang that murdered people. How was she so blinded before? When he'd announced to her that he was a killer, a breakup should've been in order.
He'd told her about his past traumas, yes, and she knew how important mental health was and how much she wanted to be there for him and fix him, but now that she thought about it, it was one huge mistake. It wasn't her job to fix everyone, she realized too late. It wasn't her responsibility to ruin herself to build someone else. She should never have fallen for his I-can't-live-without-you's.
She sighed again.
Chris ran his thumb over her lower lip. Butterflies erupted in her stomach at the touch, and she loved that it was Chris her heart wanted and her body reacted to, so she smiled.
"What's on your mind, Elle?" he asked quietly.
She gulped. "Can we let him go?"
He looked away and then back at her, exhaling. "You need to stop this. Not everyone deserves your empathy, Giselle."
She closed her eyes. "No, I know, but..." She paused. "He's been through a lot."
He stayed silent so she opened her eyes to look at him staring down at her. "He killed Abbott."
Her eyes filled up instantly at her father's name. "No, I know... And I know it's difficult to understand, but killing my father is punishment enough for him. He lost everything because of that."
"And what of whatwelost? Whatyoulost?"
"It won't change the past, Chris," she said quietly. "And from what I can gather, Xavier killed him because he wanted to escape that life. We should just let him go."
"Abbott or not, he killed an innocent man! I don't think there's more to it."
"Chris."
"Giselle, this is—"
"Please. Just... Please."
He sighed in a defeated way, shaking his head.
"Trust me," she said.
He closed his eyes for a moment. "I'll tell Alex to drop the charges."