by Bella King
And if Rey killed Eddy, well… I don’t know what I would think.
Rey is already in the hallway, moving toward Eddy with his revolver outstretched. I jump toward the door, coming around with the rifle in my hands. I don’t even know what I’m going to do, but I do know that whatever happens, I need to be by Rey’s side. Maybe if I can get between the two of them in time, they won’t shoot each other.
I see Eddy’s gun pointing around the corner from downstairs, and Rey takes aim at it. My heart stops, and I open my mouth to scream, but no sound comes out. I want to tell Eddy to stop because I’m in the hallway, but he doesn’t know that. He can’t see me, and he starts firing blindly at us both.
Rey fires back, but he knows that he doesn’t have cover in the hallway. He jumps toward the doorway, attempting to grab me, but I run forward, slipping out of his grip.
Finally, I’m able to shout. “Eddy!”
The shooting stops, and I know I haven’t been hit. I need to take Eddy out of here and leave Rey behind, at least for now. I don’t want them to kill each other.
“Marybeth?” Eddy asks, his voice shaking as I run down the hallway and round the corner.
He opens his arms for me, but I run past him, yanking him down the stairs. “Let’s go,” I command.
“We can’t go,” Eddy says, stopping in the staircase and refusing to budge. “I’m not finished.”
“Don’t,” I ask, pleading in much the same way that I did with Rey.
“Look what he’s done to you,” Eddy says, his lips curled in disgust as he looks over my bare lower half.
“It’s not like that, Eddy. Please, let’s go, and I’ll explain it all later.”
He tilts his head back, letting out a cold chuckle. “This ends now, Marybeth. You can’t save him.” With a firm jerk of his arm, he shoves me down the stairs.
I flail as I fall backward, unable to find anything to grip onto. My rifle goes with me, toppling onto my chest as my back hits the sharp corner of the stairs.
Eddy’s eyes are still fixed on me, cold and uncaring as he lets me fall. Maybe he knows that I was going along with Rey willingly. He might even know that the sex we had was my choice. If that’s the case, then I don’t know what he’ll do to me if he kills Rey.
Eddy wrinkles his nose at me as I lay exposed and hurt at the bottom of the stairs. He turns around, cocking his pistol and moving back up to finish what he started with Rey.
I yell for Rey this time, warning him about Eddy. Suddenly, the realization of what my life would be life without him strikes me, and I can’t allow Eddy to go through with this. He thinks he’s saving me, but in reality, he’s ruining my life.
I have no time to think anything through. What happens next is a product of raw emotion and the split-second reaction to a threat. I raise my rifle, pointing it at Eddy’s back, and squeeze the trigger.
Chapter Thirty
Marybeth
I killed Eddy. I didn’t know what to do, and I fucking killed my ex-boyfriend. He’s lying on the staircase, blood running down toward me as I hold his death sentence in my own two hands. I’m a killer now, no better than Rey or the rest of the cartel.
Eddy was innocent.
“Rey,” I shout, panic freezing me from the waist down. I can’t move, but I can call for help. Somehow, the only thing I want right now is Rey, as though he can make all of this suddenly go away.
There’s silence for a moment, and then I hear the sound of Rey’s footsteps running down the hallway. I stare past Eddy’s lifeless body at the top of the stairs, waiting for Rey’s face to appear at the doorway, like a beacon of hope and comfort.
I’ve done something awful, something that I’ll never get away with. I’ve killed a man, and the police will throw me in a jail cell for the rest of my life if they find out. Maybe the monster was never Rey, but me all along.
Rey jumps out at the top of the stairs, his chest heaving, sparkling with sweat as his eyes take in the sight at his feet. He doesn’t hesitate in aiming his revolver at Eddy’s limp body and firing twice into his head.
That jerks me out of my frozen state, and I scramble to my feet, still clutching the rifle as though my life depended on it. “Is he dead?” I ask although the answer is obvious. I’m in shock, and my brain is moving like pudding on a winter morning.
“If he wasn’t dead before, then he is now,” Rey replies, shaking his head at Eddy’s cracked skull.
I shiver, as though my soul left my body with Eddy’s. I know that I’ve done something bad, but for some reason, it felt necessary. I wouldn’t let Rey get hurt, even if I had to kill for him, and I believe he would do the same for me.
“The fun and games are over,” Rey says, coming down the stairs. “Put your pants on, and let’s go.”
Just like that, we’re letting this whole thing go. For me, it’s a major turning point in my life, the final step over into the darkness with Rey. For him, it’s just another country evening. Sometimes I forget how many people he must’ve offed in his years leading the cartel.
“Can you bring my clothes down for me?” I ask, staring at Eddy’s body as I speak.
“Sure, but we need to be quick.”
I nod, and Rey leaves me to return to the bedroom.
I stare at Eddy’s body for what seems like a lifetime, trying to collect some sympathy in my heart for him, but nothing comes. Just seconds ago, I was terrified that he would get killed, but now that he’s dead, I find that I’m not all that bothered by it.
I look away from Eddy as Rey comes back down the stairs with my clothes, holding them out to me with a serious expression on his handsome face. I smile at him, touched by his protectiveness.
“Why’d you do it?” Rey asks.
I shrug, taking the clothes. “I didn’t want him to get you.”
Rey’s expression softens, and his pale blue eyes look into mine with curious intensity. “You know, for a moment, I thought you were going to leave with him.”
I laugh, but it feels like someone else is speaking through my lips, like I’m watching myself talk from inside my own head. “I would never leave you, Rey. Eddy was a dick, anyway.”
Rey nods. “It’s a shame. Nobody has made an attempt on my life and lived to tell the tale. He was stupid to even try.”
I look back down to Eddy. Yes, he was stupid. Nobody can possibly defeat a man like Rey. He’s unstoppable, untouchable, and he’s all mine.
I put on my pants. I guess Rey left the torn panties on the bed for the owner of the house to find. I wonder what he’ll think when he comes in and sees this mess. I hope it doesn’t shake him up too badly.
“I’m going to grab some food,” Rey says, stepping past me to go to the kitchen.
“Wait,” I blurt, grabbing his bicep.
He turns around quickly, planting his lips on mine and pulling my body to him. I’m surprised by his action right after having killed a man, but I shouldn’t be. Rey is the ultimate sinner, and I’ve fallen head over heels for his wicked ways.
The heat of Rey’s body radiates through me, replacing the coldness inside with something stronger and greater. I feel wanted and appreciated in ways that I’ve never been before. I know that I can’t give up Rey, even if he gives up on me.
I sink into his kiss, wrapping my arms around him and enjoying the brief moment of clarity in the chaos that surrounds us. I want to stay like this forever, but the moment ends as quickly as it came, and I’m left cold again.
I straighten up my clothes, following Rey out into the kitchen to finish our raid, looking back one last time at Eddy. Either I’m still in shock at what I did, or I just don’t care anymore. Either way, I’m off the rails, and there’s no turning back from this.
Rey grabs cans from the shelf, carrying them in his arms without a bag. His actions are swift and urgent, as we’ve already been here too long. The gunfire was sure to draw attention from the neighbors, even if they’re half a mile down the road.
I grab as much food as I
can hold and run out through the back door, trailing behind him as he rushes to the Mustang. Eddy’s trunk is nowhere in sight, which confuses me at first until I see it parked behind a tree down the road. He really followed us all the way here to rescue me. It’s too bad that I didn’t want to be rescued.
Rey opens up the Mustang, grabbing the plastic tube and gas canister out of the back and heading to the old car parked along the side of the house. I toss the cans of food into the front seat, letting them roll onto the leg space with the remaining apples I bought the day before.
I stand outside the car, watching Rey as he siphons gas for the next leg of our journey. There are no more jokes about sucking, something I never thought I would miss. The humor has dried up and has been replaced with rigid seriousness.
The road outside the house is still empty, but I keep my rifle close to me, holding it in the case of someone coming past and noticing what’s going on. Before I stepped into the house with Rey, I wouldn’t consider killing someone who came by. Now, I’d shoot first and ask questions later.
My father would be so disappointed in me right now, but I wonder if he’s really any better of a man. After the torture he put me through growing up, I don’t care much for his opinion. I’m a free woman now, and no, I don’t think I’ll be visiting him this Christmas.
Rey hurries back to the Mustang, gasoline sloshing in the canister as he takes long steps over to me. He pops open the gas cap and shoves the nozzle in, pouring the gas in and looking up at me with a smirk. “Looks familiar,” he says, shoving the tip of the canister in deeper.
I smile, and just like that, he’s back to his flirtatious ways. For a moment, I thought that they had vanished completely, but I should’ve known better. Rey is special.
“Someone is going to find my panties upstairs,” I say, tapping my fingernails against the barrel of my rifle.
“I’d be jealous,” he says, reaching a hand into his pocket. He pulls out the torn panties that once laid abandoned in the bedroom. “Which is why I took them.”
I laugh, shaking my head at his silliness. “You’re too much.”
“I’m just the right amount, Marybeth,” he replies, stuffing the panties back into his pocket. “And that’s why you’re coming with me.”
“To Canada?”
“No.”
Chapter Thirty-One
Rey
Marybeth’s face contorts in a frown much deeper than when she had to pull the trigger on her unfortunate ex-boyfriend. She’s more bothered by my words than she is by the death of a fellow human being.
Just like me.
“I’m coming with you to Canada,” she says, her words venomous as they slip from her tongue. It’s like an order, but I’m the one who gives the orders.
“You’re coming with me until we hit the border, and then you’re going home,” I reply.
“You’re a fucking asshole,” she snaps. “What do you think is going to happen to me once they find out I killed Eddy? I’ll go to jail because of you.”
I shrug. “Just tell them I did it. It’s really not a big deal.”
“It is a big deal, and you’re not ditching me on the border. I’m coming with you,” she replies.
I can hear in her voice that she’s on the edge after what happened, driven to a state of lawlessness under my influence. I feel a tinge of sorrow at what I’ve done to her, and that makes this harder. I care about her, and I want to see her succeed in life, not get sucked into the cartel with me.
“Marybeth,” I begin, but she cuts me off.
“It’s not open for debate. Do you even fucking care about me?” she asks, jabbing her rifle out at me.
I swat at it. “Put that thing away.”
“Answer me, Rey. Do you care?”
I sigh. “Yes, Marybeth, I care about you. That’s why you can’t come all the way to Canada.”
“Stupid,” she mutters, looking down at her feet and shaking her head. She looks up at me, her eyes catching mine and locking on like guided missiles. “You’re fucking stupid.”
“I’m not,” I reply lamely.
“You are because you want to ditch me when I fucking killed a man for you,” she snarls.
I’m on eggshells, and I’m not used to it. I’ve dealt with killers, thieves, and all sorts of power-hungry criminals, but for some reason, Marybeth is more threatening.
I clear my throat. “We could probably talk about this.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“We really need to go,” I say, pulling the gas canister out of the side of the car.
“Then, let’s go,” she says, his lips curling up in a trembling smile.
Now I know she’s unstable, but I can understand why. She’s afraid, and fear makes us do crazy things. Maybe I’m crazy as well because part of me wants to go along with her. I’m selfish for her love, and I don’t want her to leave and find someone else to replace me.
“We’ll talk about it,” I repeat, throwing the empty gas canister into the back of the Mustang and walking around to the driver’s side of the car.
Marybeth glares at me, then ducks into her seat as I get in the car. From there, she continues to stare at me with daggers shooting from her eyes. I can feel her frustration piercing me as I turn the car on.
I’m silent as I pull out onto the road, but I can’t stay that way for long with the way that she’s looking at me. I have to do something to get her off my back, or I’m afraid she’ll kill us both before we ever get to the border.
“Canada is pretty cold,” I say, trying to ease into the reasons why she shouldn’t join me.
“Texas is hot. The sky is blue,” she replies dryly.
Okay, time for a different tactic.
“I really don’t think that the police will think you have anything to do with Eddy’s death. You’ll get away with it, and you can go back to living a normal life,” I explain. “You hated me before, didn’t you?”
“Not really,” she replies, crossing her arms. “I just didn’t trust you.”
I raise an eyebrow. “And you trust me now?”
“Yes.”
“That sounds a little reckless.”
She chuckles. “Everything we’ve been doing has been reckless. This is nothing new.”
“I bet you just want the money, huh?” I ask, glancing her direction to check that she’s not still glaring at me.
“God, Rey, I could give less of a fuck about your money,” she groans.
I hold up a finger. “Couldn’t.”
“What?”
“You couldn’t give less of a fuck. Could is incorrect, but a lot of –”
“Rey, are you listening to me?!”
I shrug. “Yes, but I was trying to explain that –”
“Stop explaining,” she barks. “Just let it be and stop trying to twist this into some kind of power play. It’s not going to work. I don’t know why you’re so offended that I want to be around you, but you weren’t like this before you got in my pants.”
“It’s not about sex.”
“Then what’s it about?” she asks, raising her voice. Her words spill from her mouth faster than I can keep up with. “You fucking kidnapped me, threw me in the trunk, fucked me senseless, and I fucking shot a man, and you’re going to act like you don’t even know who I am.”
“You’re a good woman.”
“I’m a good woman? That’s laughable.”
“You are,” I insist.
“Not in the eyes of my father, and not in the eyes of the law either,” she replies.
“You are to me,” I say softly.
“Then act like it and let me come with you,” she pleads.
I’ve done some crazy things in my life, but this takes the cake. Money isn’t an issue, and I know it’s not what she cares about. Maybe it is fear that drives her, or perhaps it’s something deeper, but I’m not sure if any of that matters. I care about her, and although she’d be safer without me, I need her by my side.
/>
“This isn’t going to end well,” I grumble to myself.
She leans forward, her eyes wide. “What did you say?”
I turn my head to her, looking into her beautiful eyes and pressing my lips together. “You can come, but don’t be crazy.”
Her eyes light up like fireworks, her entire face glowing as she bounces up in her seat. That’s the sunshine I wanted to see from her. I can’t stand to see her looking so drab and pitiful.
“Are you serious?” she asks, “Or are you just messing with me?”
“I’m always serious,” I reply, committing to my statement. “If you want to come to Canada with me, and you accept the risk, then let’s do it.”
With those words, the tension that’s been pressing on my shoulders since I picked up Marybeth in some small Texas town slips off and comes crashing to the floor. It’s swept away in an instant by the blur of asphalt beneath us.
I settle into my seat, feeling a surge of happiness at the thought of finally being free from all of this crazy shit. Sure, the cartel and the police will always be close behind me, but that’s normal. I feel as though I’ve gained something much more important than money from this trip.
“Um, Rey,” Marybeth says, her voice tight and high.
I frown, looking over to her, but she’s not looking back at me. Her eyes are fixed on the rearview mirror.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Sheriff Wesley
As soon as I got the call, I knew it was about Eddy. I told that kid to stay out of trouble, but he wouldn’t listen to me. He’s been tearing through Texas, pointing his gun at gas station clerks and driving like a madman on the road. I shouldn’t be surprised that this is how he ended up.
I look up at Deputy Stephen, shaking my head slowly. “It was El Rey del Desierto. I told Eddy not to go after him,” I say.
We both look back down at Eddy’s body. His head is splattered across the top of the staircase, shot multiple times in the skull after he took a bullet in the back. There were likely two people shooting at him.
