by Ivy Smoak
“Were you planning on…you know…dressing up tonight?” Liza asked.
“I’m planning on wearing all black, if that’s what you mean.” I knew the rules. I wasn’t allowed to leave the apartment unless I was in disguise.
“Well, yeah,” Liza said. “But are you going to like put on some makeup? Wear a pushup bra? That kinda thing?” She pointed to my breasts.
I quickly folded my arms across my chest. “No, Liza, I wasn’t planning on dressing up for the extraction tonight.”
“Oh.” She pushed around a piece of pancake with her fork as she kept staring at me. “I think you should reconsider that. A little mascara maybe…”
“Drop it, Liza,” V said as he placed a plate down in front of me.
I didn’t look up at him, I just continued to stare back at Liza. “Why?” I doubted Liza even owned mascara. So why was she badgering me to put on makeup? I needed the momentary distraction. Soon she’d be rapid firing questions at me.
She looked down at her food. “I just think that it’s important to always look your best.”
Really? I was pretty sure she hadn’t combed her hair in a week.
“Liza, I said drop it.” V’s voice rumbled lower than usual.
Liza pressed her lips together, like she wanted to continue talking and the only thing preventing her was V’s disdain.
“What's this about?” Eli asked. “We agreed to talk about everything during our nightly meetings. The two of you going behind our backs and discussing…”
“Us?” V said, cutting him off. “What we’ve been doing doesn’t exactly compare to what you and Sadie are doing together behind our backs.”
“What?” Liza’s voice was almost a whisper. “What have they been doing behind our backs?”
“Nothing,” V said and handed Eli a plate too. It clattered against the table. “Nothing important.”
I could feel V’s anger radiating off him as he sat down across from me.
Liza looked back and forth between V and Eli. “Okay. But, V, I still think it’s a good idea…” her voice died away when V glared at her.
“Really, I’m curious,” I said. “Why would it be a good idea for me to dress up tonight?”
“I just think that if things go south it would be nice if you could distract Don or at least bait him into not hurting us or to maybe even tell us something important.” Her words came out so fast that V didn’t even have time to clamp his hand over her mouth. Which he did. One second too late.
Liza’s eyes got wide, but she didn’t look upset. She looked oddly happy that V was touching her.
“I doubt that I could distract him. V, would you please let me have a conversation with Liza?”
“You don’t need to listen to her, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about.”
That seemed to snap Liza out of her stupor. She shoved V’s hand away. “And why not? Don loved Summer's mom. Maybe he loved her aunt too. And Summer looks just like them. He probably loves her too.”
Loves me? The thought made a chill run down my spine.
“He literally blew up her aunt,” V said.
“Regardless. Don’s physically attracted to her. Obviously. I think we should use whatever we can to our advantage. Besides, she’s his target, not us. And if things go south tonight, I don’t want to die.”
“You just want me to die?” I asked.
Liza sighed. “That’s not what I said.”
It didn’t matter what she said. It’s what she meant. Suddenly my news didn’t seem so bad. At least I wasn’t wishing death upon any of them. “I’m not,” I said. “I’m not his target.”
Everyone turned to me.
“Of course you are,” Liza said. “Don followed you here. You’re the only reason any of us are in this mess.”
“Maybe he came here because of me. But I don’t know if he stayed because of me. Don loves a challenge. And what bigger challenge is there than to take the turf of the New York City vigilante?”
V laughed. The low tone made my stomach flip over. “I don’t think so, Sadie.”
I hated when he called me that. And I hated that he dismissed my thoughts so quickly. “I don’t think it, I know it. Before they kidnapped me, Joan said there had been a change of plans. She said Don wanted you dead. They were hoping I could lead them to you. Yes, Don wants to kill me. But he wants V dead more.”
V’s smile vanished. “And you didn’t think that was important to tell us? What the hell, Sadie?”
“Despite what you all think, I’ve been protecting you guys too. So don’t sit there and tell me to look pretty when I’m putting my life on the line for him.” I pointed to V. “Maybe we should be serving him up on a silver platter instead. Maybe Don would like it if you wore mascara and a pushup bra.” I pushed my plate away and stood up. “If you’ll excuse me.”
“Eat your breakfast,” V said. “You need your energy for tonight.”
Was he joking? I was decidedly not hungry after that conversation, or lack thereof. “I lost my appetite.” I walked away to the sound of their whispers.
Chapter 14
Thursday
“Everyone in place?” Liza’s voice sounded shaky in my earpiece, even though she was the farthest away from any action that would be happening tonight. She was sitting safely on the roof of the building scanning the premises through her computer.
“Yes,” I whispered my reply into my watch. I listened to the other yeses come through and exhaled slowly. Everything was set.
Despite what I had said earlier, I was wearing a bit of makeup. And a pushup bra. I knew Liza was partially right. No, Don didn’t love me. But he did love hurting me. Or using me. Or something. He had always looked at me like I was a piece of meat. Like I belonged to him. If things went south, I wouldn’t want anyone else to get hurt. Maybe I would be able to distract him while the others got away.
“Thanks, Summer,” Liza said. “For listening to me. About the makeup and stuff.”
I assumed she was talking to only me. But I didn’t know how to respond to only her. So I didn’t respond at all.
“And it’s just in case,” she said. Her voice sounded far away. “Good luck.”
Thanks, Liza. I heard the sound of footsteps and my heart started beating in rhythm to the echoes. I peered around the column I was standing behind and looked down at the abandoned theater. Don just had to choose the creepiest meeting place ever. It didn’t look like the theater had been used in a decade. The red fabric on the seats was torn and stained. There was a slash through the screen up front. It was depressing, like dreams came here to die. Maybe that’s why Don liked it.
A chill ran down my spine. I could feel Don’s presence, but I couldn’t see him. Something wasn’t right. Where is everyone? I could hear the footsteps, but there were no bodies or voices to accompany them. The meeting should have started by now.
I stepped out from behind the column and approached the railing, keeping low. I could just make out V on the other side of the balcony from me. Eli was nowhere in sight.
“Stand your ground,” Liza’s voice flooded my ear.
“I need a better view,” I whispered into my watch.
I crouched down in front of the railing and looked down at the theater. Still nothing. But the echoing of distant footsteps continued. It was disorienting, like the sound was all around me.
And then all the lights turned off.
Fear crept into my bones. I was frozen. I couldn’t see anything. My heart pounded against my chest. I was hyperventilating.
“No one move,” Liza said. “Something's interfering with my feed.”
I gulped. None of this was right. Don was here, I could feel him. I looked behind me, but couldn’t see a thing. The echoing of footsteps grew louder.
There was a burst of light and Don appeared larger than life on the theater’s ripped screen.
“Hello, Summer.” His lips curled into a smile. Don’s voice was all around me, booming from speakers.
“You failed the game,” he said.
The air in the theater was suddenly stale. I took a huge gulp of air, but it felt like my lungs didn’t expand.
“Liza, where is he?” V’s voice sounded in my earpiece.
“Shit,” Liza said. “He scrambled my surveillance. I don’t know…”
Seeing Don so large made it seem like he was all powerful. Like whatever he wanted would happen. Everyone’s voices died away but his. And I couldn’t look away. His eyes were focused forward, not on me, but it felt like he could see me.
“This was supposed to be fun, Summer,” Don said. “But you’ve never made anything easy.”
My bottom lip trembled.
“I sent people after you.” He ran his fingers downs the scars on his face. “A face for a face.”
“Summer, get back in position,” someone said into my earpiece.
But I couldn’t move. All I could do was watch the movie unfold.
“And I’m sorry about that, doll,” Don said. “I changed my mind. I could never destroy your beauty. You know that.”
I felt nauseous.
“You’re everything to me. A living, breathing replica of your mother. I could never hurt you. But you were supposed to make this fun.”
“Summer, you have to move!”
I ignored the voice in my earpiece.
“You left me,” Don said. “Do you know how much that stung? No, killing you isn’t an option. But I can take everything from you. Until you come crawling back to me on your knees. I always loved you on your knees.” His smile grew crueler by the second. A leering scowl that took up too much space on his face.
I swallowed down the vomit that was threatening to come up.
“I’ll keep playing this game until you can’t trust anyone. Until you realize your mistakes. Until you willingly hand me who I want. He’s here, right? The infamous V. Hello, V. Guess what? I know your secret.” Don laughed. “I know exactly who you are. It’s going to hurt her when she finds out. Whatever game you’re playing, you’ve already lost.”
“Damn it, Summer,” Eli said as he grabbed my arm. It seemed like he had been trying to get my attention for awhile. “We need to go, we were set up.” He pulled me to my feet.
And then all the lights came back on. I blinked as my eyes adjusted to the light. I tried to blink away the image in front of me. But no matter how many times I did, the image didn’t go away.
The real Don was standing in the middle of the theater. With that same stupid smile. And his gun was pointed right at us.
“He’s in the theater,” Liza said. “But I guess you already know that…”
I barely heard her. I reached for my gun.
“Don’t move,” Don said. He made a disgusting tsking noise with his throat. “Oh, it’s so good to see you, doll.”
I could feel his eyes scanning my body.
The movie stopped playing and it sounded like the movie roll was continuing to spin in the projector.
“And Elijah Serrano,” Don said. He turned his gun to Eli. “I see you’ve found something better to do than sit outside my house spying on me. I’d apologize for ruining your career, but weren’t you trying to do the exact same thing to me?”
Eli stepped in front of me, blocking me from Don.
No. “Don, stop.” I ran to the balcony, blocking Eli. “I’ll do whatever you want. Please just take me. I’ll go with you. Please.”
“Weren’t you listening to what I said?”
His gun fired faster than I had time to react. All I could do was close my eyes and wait to die. I expected an impact. I expected to feel the bullet pierce my flesh. I was prepared for death. I had been ready for it since that first night Don put his hands on me.
But I didn’t feel anything. I was alive. God, I’m alive!
“Eli, Summer, get out of there!” Liza’s voice sounded in my earpiece. “Now!”
Sirens wailed in the distance. I turned around and grabbed Eli’s arm. I nearly tripped when he didn’t move.
“Eli, we need to go.” I intertwined my fingers with his and tried to pull him.
A horrible gasping noise escaped his throat.
“Eli?” I turned back to him. Something was wrong. His face was pale. “Eli?” I said again, but it was like he didn’t hear me.
He coughed and blood sputtered out of his mouth.
“Eli!”
I held my breath as he fell to his knees, pulling me down to the ground with him. For one second.
His free hand was pressed against his stomach. For two seconds.
Blood was seeping into his winter jacket. For three seconds.
So much fucking blood. For four seconds.
No. The sound of the sirens were drawing closer. For five seconds. It took me five seconds to realize that my life was still a nightmare.
I pulled my hand out of his and touched the side of my watch. “Eli’s been shot! Someone help!” I put my hand on top of his, hoping to stop the bleeding. “You’re going to be okay, Eli. We’re going to get you out of here.”
“He needs medical attention,” Liza said through my earpiece. “You need to leave him.”
Leave him? I can’t. I looked down at his face. His eyes were focused so intently on mine.
“Go,” he whispered. More blood dripped out of the corner of his mouth.
It was so soft, I thought I imagined him saying it.
“Summer, you have to go.”
“I’m not leaving you,” I said and touched the side of his face, smearing blood onto his cheek. God.
The sirens were getting closer. He’d be arrested. What did it matter if I was arrested too? I wasn’t going to leave him like this. I’d never leave him.
He gasped for air.
“You’re going to be okay,” I said as calmly as I could muster. But it didn’t seem like he was going to be okay. He was growing paler by the second. The life was draining out of him.
“I will always love you, Summer.” His voice was raspy. He took a huge gulp of air. “Always.” He gasped.
“Eli, I’m not going anywhere. We’re in this together remember?” Stay with me.
He didn’t look like he was focusing on me anymore.
“Eli?” I touched the side of his face again and his head fell to the side. “Eli?” He blurred in front of me as the tears streamed down my cheeks. “Eli! You can’t leave me.” My body started to shake as I let my fears take over. “Please, Eli, you can’t. I love you.”
V grabbed me around the waist, lifting me away from Eli. My fingers slid off Eli’s cheek, leaving lines of blood against this neck.
“No!” I shouted and struggled in V’s grip. “Eli!”
But Eli didn’t move. His body was so still.
“Let go of me!” I thrashed in V’s arms. Months of training proving useless against his strength.
“We have to go,” he whispered in my ear.
“Not without him! We can’t leave without Eli.” I kicked and screamed.
“It’s too late,” V said. “It’s too late,” he repeated.
If he thought his words were soothing they weren’t. His words echoed around me as he carried me away from Eli’s motionless body.
Chapter 15
Thursday
I held my breath for one second as I watched the cops swarm the theater.
For two seconds. Why had I moved out of formation in the first place? I should have stayed behind the pillar.
For three seconds. Why hadn’t I listened to what Don was saying? He wasn’t there to hurt me. He was there to take away everything I loved.
For four seconds. My last thread of hope had been cut.
For five seconds. It was my fault that Eli was dead. I tried to take a deep breath, but it felt like I was choking.
V carried me farther and farther away until I couldn’t see the red and blue lighting up the sky. The whole time I reached out, trying to get back to Eli. Trying to remember what his eyes
looked like before they went blank. No. No!
The wind swirled, blowing some of the fallen snow around us, like it was trying to pull me back into my memories. Trying to pull me back into everything I had lost.
“They’ll find him,” Liza said from beside us. “They have to.” But there was doubt in her voice.
It’s too late. Those were V’s words. And I had seen Eli’s face. He was staring into nothingness. It should have been me. It felt like my tears had frozen against my cheeks.
“I need to go back,” I said and kept trying to struggle out of V’s grip. “I have to…I need to be with him…”
“I’m the only one that isn’t a wanted criminal,” Liza said as she stopped running. “I’ll go figure out what I can.”
“It’s not safe, Liza,” V said.
“He’s our friend, V.”
“The cops are going to recognize him. They’ll link you two together. You can’t.”
Liza shook her head. “He’s one of us. I’m going back. I’ll say I heard a gunshot. I’ll point them in the right direction before he bleeds out.” She started running toward the fire escape.
Before he bleeds out. I saw the death in his eyes. “V, please,” I said and tried to push V’s arms off of me. “Let me go with her. They’re looking for a brunette, not a blonde. Let me go.”
But he continued to carry me farther away from Eli.
“He needs me!”
V didn’t say a word.
“He needs me,” I sobbed. I wasn’t even sure if it was true. But I needed him. I desperately needed him.
***
“Put the apartment on lockdown, Athena,” V said.
A few seconds later, Athena’s voice came over the speaker system: “The apartment is on lockdown.”
He lowered me to my feet. As soon as he did, I collapsed to my knees. The tears were back, raking through my whole body. I didn’t even know I could cry so hard.
“Sadie, get up. You’re stronger than this.”
I lifted my head and looked at V. I couldn’t get up. And I couldn’t explain it to him. I had just lost everything. If he didn’t see that, then he couldn’t possibly understand.
