So I did.
I threw an elbow and dropped down to my ass. The guy I hit groaned and his gun went off.
“Bitch!” the other guy yelled.
I’d done it!
I kicked back and rolled, knowing if I could shield myself with the furniture, I’d have a shot at getting out of this.
I was on my knees and looked to the door, hoping to see Wes gone.
Instead, there was another man in a black mask standing there, something in his hand. I screamed, but it was too late.
The thud of the object hitting Wes’s head made my stomach flip.
Wes collapsed like he was dead.
I jumped forward and someone grabbed my hair.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa… take it easy…”
I fought to look back, but didn’t really need to.
I knew the voice.
It was him.
It was my brother.
The Assassin.
~
“Do you want me to kill him?”
“No!” I screamed.
“Shut up,” Luke yelled at me. He pointed to the guy standing over Wes’s body. “Don’t kill him. I have a plan. We’re going to end this entire thing right now.”
Luke lifted me by the hair, bringing me to my feet. He pulled me to his body and put his cheek to mine.
“How was your little getaway?” he whispered. “Did you enjoy it? I hope he fucked your brains out. I really do. Because you’ll never feel pleasure again, Rose. I’m going to fucking cut you limb by limb…”
“I love it, boss,” one of the guys said.
Luke reached for a gun and pointed it at the guy. He pulled the trigger, sending the guy stumbling back. He fell into a table and then was on the ground, dead.
“Hey, let’s do it again,” Luke whispered. “Like we did with Roc. Okay? Come on.”
“Luke, please,” I begged. “What do you want from me?”
“I’m not sure yet,” he whispered. “I wanted to come and kill you. But the more I thought about it, your little slut escapade has put me in a good position. I can use you. I’ll get exactly what I want now.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I’m the one who runs everything, Rose. That’s how it’s going to be. Our fucking father was happy peddling fights around. Not me. I’m better than that. And I have the blood to back it up. Now, let’s do something fun.”
“What do we do with Wes?” the other guy in the black mask asked.
“I’m not sure,” Luke said.
He put the gun in my hand, just like he’d done with Roc. His finger to my finger, against the trigger. I tried to resist, but Luke was strong. He was the worst kind of bully you could imagine, the kind with no heart and no remorse. The kind with too much power.
The only way I could feel safe was… Wes. And he was face down on the floor.
Luke lifted the gun. He pointed it at Wes. That meant I was pointing the gun at Wes.
No, no, no, no…
This couldn’t happen like this. I couldn’t do it. I’d rather get shot than hurt Wes. He did nothing to deserve this. Yeah, well, maybe he had been part of an attempt to kill me. But…
Luke lifted the gun more, right to the guy in the black mask. The guy jumped back but had no chance of escaping. Luke squeezed my finger to the trigger. I shut my eyes in time. The gun went off and when I opened my eyes, the guy was on the ground.
Dead.
“Now, Rose,” Luke said. “Let’s go for a ride. This place stinks of sex and death.”
Luke forced me to step over Wes’s lifeless body.
I almost tripped over Wes.
I looked back and prayed for Wes to jump up. To grab a gun and shoot Luke in the back. And for a second, I swore I saw Wes’s left foot move.
But it didn’t move… and Luke had me… it was over.
36.
(Wes)
Shane lands a left, then a right. The crowd screams. I push between two guys. One looks at me and shoves me back. I throw a right and sock the asshole in the jaw. He stumbles away and I push through. Now I’m on the edge of the circle. Shane is throwing fists like a mad man. There’s something burning in his eyes. Punch after punch, he works the other guy across the circle. The guy can’t defend himself; Shane is too smart with his fists. He finally takes the guy to a knee. The guy reaches up and puts his hands to Shane’s body. The guy looks down, defeated.
My mind is racing; my heart the damn same. Shane just needs to punch the guy one more time. Cock a big fist back and wham!
But Shane steps back. He waits for the guy to get up! What the hell is he doing?
Shane waves his hands. He’s telling the guy he’ll wait.
The guy gets to his feet. Wipes the blood off his face. He puts his fists up and nods. A sign of respect, sure.
Ten seconds later Shane gets the knockout punch. A hard right to the guy’s jaw that sends him spinning and collapsing to the floor. Later, we’ll find out that the guy broke his jaw in two spots.
After the fight, I stand there as Shane unwraps bloody tape from his hands and wrists.
“Why’d you let him back up?” I ask. “You had him.”
Shane looks at me and smiles. “Nothing wrong with a little honor, brother. He’s pressing against my body, shaking. So I let him up. Let him go with honor.”
Honor.
It sticks with me.
Honor.
I respect it.