A Beautiful Fate

by Cat Mann

  ****

  No. 3’s body went undiscovered until Saturday morning. I had not slept or eaten since early Friday morning, that morning I had killed a man. August arrived back on Sunday afternoon and found me lying on the floor in the bathroom. I had just gotten over another round of dry heaves. My ribs were sticking out from my stomach, and my hipbones had become sharp points. No matter how I tried to lie down, my stomach hurt.

  “Holy hell, Ava,” August shouted, causing my ears to ring. “What happened? Is everything ok?”

  I just shrugged my shoulders, unable to communicate.

  “Seriously, Ava, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” I croaked, “just not feeling well I guess.”

  Once again, I was consumed with hate and anger. My insides were hollow. When I hadn’t been busy getting sick in the bathroom, I was pulling my hair and screaming.

  “You are skeletal, Ava. When you feel like telling me what went down, maybe I can help you. We stared at each other for a few moments before August turned away and said, “So. . . did you hear about the mobster kind of guy they found dead a couple of blocks down in our alley yesterday?”

  I continued my deadpan stare and August flipped the TV on and turned it to the news.

  The newswoman was explaining that it was the third mysterious death of a Kakos brother this year. She explained that the first two deaths had taken place on New Year’s Eve, in Dana Point, California, during an attempted kidnapping. She went on to say that the Kakos family was not available for comments at this time and that no suspects had been named. The anchor then read a full page of arrests and criminal activity the three had been involved in.

  “Dana Point,” August said, finally putting it together. “Isn’t that where you sent all those boxes? That’s where Ari is from, isn’t it?”

  I nodded my head slowly, really, really not wanting to talk about this.

  “Oh, my gosh, that’s nuts. Do you know who they tried to kidnap?”

  I nodded my head again.

  “No way, are you serious?”

  I once again nodded my head then opened my mouth. “It was Ari’s sister.”

  “You’re lying!” August exclaimed.

  “I wish I were,” I said as I closed my eyes and tried to fight back fresh tears.

  “So what happened,” he pressed. I tightened my eyes, squeezing them closed as hard as I could. I would come clean to August. Our friendship would just be easier that way.

  “Well, those two men kidnapped Ari’s sister. I found them, managed to free her, and one of them shot me,” I began to explain as I pulled Ari’s sweatshirt down off my left shoulder revealing my now scarred gunshot wounds.

  “They thought I was dead and put me in a garbage bag. They were going to dump my body at sea but I regained consciousness. I cut myself out of the bag and found the gun. I shot one guy in the back of the head and I killed him. A fight broke out between the other guy and me and I managed to get a rope around his neck and then push him over the side of the boat; I hanged him. Ari saved my life; I nearly bled to death on his back patio. I moved here to London the day they released me from the hospital.”

  “Nuh uh,” was August’s response.

  I shrugged my shoulders, not caring if he believed me or not.

  “So is the fact that one of their brothers was found dead a block from here just a coincidence?”

  “He came here to kill me a few nights ago. I did the only thing I could to survive.”

  “Oh hell, Ava! We have to call the police.”

  “Go ahead and call them if you want. I don’t blame you, but by the time the police get here I will be gone and you will never see me again.”

  “Why?”

  “I can’t really explain it; I just can’t be connected to this.”

  August paced the floor for a while, and then he finally took a seat on the couch. “Fine, I trust you.”

  All I could do was roll my eyes at him. August took in the sight of my oversized sweatshirt and asked, “So, does he know?”

  “No, I haven’t told them. I’m sure Ari’s father has been made aware of the situation by now, but I don’t owe them anything. They chose to keep Aggie’s cancer from me so I don’t feel a need to tell them anything.”

  “You are so messed up, Ava,” August said with a sigh.

  “Whatever, you want to go with me to Jake’s?”

  “Sure, but I am not going anywhere with you until you shower and brush your teeth.”

  I took in one last inhale from Ari’s sweatshirt then put it back in the corner of my closet and headed to the shower.

  At Jake’s, I had a third tally mark tattooed onto my left wrist.