by London Casey
This was the guy who did it. He was finally standing right in front of me.
Luke was back on his feet. The Assassin didn’t wait around again. He was a skilled fighter, rushing right at me. He wiggled his right shoulder as though he was going throw a right fist, but I saw the way his left shoulder tensed up. It was a fake out. I looked at his right shoulder and hand though, letting him think he had me.
I saw the left hook coming from a mile away. I lifted my right hand and blocked his punch. Being cocky with the punch, Luke left the right side of his body open and exposed. I came across his ribs with a hard left. I felt something crack and it wasn’t my knuckles. I then lifted a right elbow to his chin, sending his head snapping back.
Now I had him.
I got him with punch after punch, face, chest, ribs, stomach. I controlled the fight, walking him across the circle. I kept my hands up, always ready for an attack. But I really had Luke reeling. His legs spread and he held a stance. I came down with a right fist that popped his jaw and had him reaching back, looking for the ground.
But then someone reached from the crowd. Someone put something in his hand.
That something I found out a second later.
It was a razor blade.
And Luke swiped at my throat.
41.
(Rose)
I saw it all happening and I couldn’t stop it. Luke going after Wes with a knife or razor or something. Wes reacted fast enough to turn and offer his shoulder. The scream Wes let out was enough to make my blood run icy cold. He stumbled to the right and turned. When I saw his shoulder, I thought I was going to pass out. That was too much too fast.
Luke wasn’t done.
He ran after Wes, the blade in his hand.
This wasn’t allowed. No weapons. No cheating. Did it surprise me that it was happening? Not at all. Nobody would stand up to Luke. The people who threw money down at Wes winning the fight were getting screwed but they all feared Luke. And why not? He was tall, thick with muscle, and had a blade in his hand and a killer’s instinct in his eyes.
I’d rather lose a couple thousand dollars than face Luke.
Luke swiped the blade to Wes’s back, cutting him open again. He then grabbed Wes’s hair and twisted, pulling Wes back. Luke brought his hand around and put the blade to Wes’s throat.
The crowd started to go silent. A second ago they were cheering. But now they understood what they were about to witness.
And that’s when Luke looked at me. He smiled. He wanted me to see it happen.
Wes looked up at me too… my eyes filled with tears as Luke pressed the blade to his throat.
42.
(Wes)
I was not going to die in front of Rose. Not with a razor blade to my throat. Not with Luke’s tight grip. Not in the middle of the circle. Not like Shane.
I’m not going to die.
Yet I was in a bad position.
I looked up to Rose and saw her eyes glistening. Goddamn crying, again. I hated that she cried because it tore through me with a fire that I never knew I had.
The blade pressed against my throat and started to burn.
If I panicked, I’d be dead. If I stood still, Luke would slit my throat.
So I had to move fast and accurate.
My right arm was loose. My left shoulder throbbed as it gushed blood. My body started to feel cold. I was losing too much blood too fast.
I had one chance at this.
In one swift move, I reached up for Luke’s wrist. I pulled him - and the razor blade - away just enough to give me room to throw my head back to his face. There were a million things that could go wrong… except they didn’t. My face smashed against his and his grip lessened on me instantly. I focused on my hand holding his wrist, staring at the razor blade.
Do not lose sight of the weapon…
I kicked back at Luke, hitting him in the knee. He bent and leaned against me. I felt his goddamn breath on my shoulder like he was trying to mount me. I pushed my ass back and flipped him over me. My grip was tight on his wrist and his wrist twisted so hard, he let the razor blade go. It hit the concrete ground… a second before my left fist came down and smashed his face. His head hit the ground hard.
Just like Shane…
Luke’s mouth opened and he picked up his head.
I hit him again.
His head hit the ground again.
I crouched down and started to unleash on him. I let his wrist go and now had both fists to destroy him. The razor blade was within my reach, but I wasn’t going to cut him. Fuck no. I was going to beat him to death.
Just like Shane…
Luke grabbed at my arms, but he had no strength. The blows to his head had him disoriented. He tried to look around, obviously looking for help. I should have taken cue and made sure nobody was there to send a bullet through my head. I just couldn’t stop myself though.
I straddled Luke, hovering over his chest. My hands were balled up as tight as I could make them. And I came down with punch after punch, watching his head smack against the ground, hearing the sound of it. The hard thuds slowly became wetter from his sweat… and then his blood…
It was only a matter of time before his head would open and spill everywhere.
Just like Shane…
The crowd started to cheer louder. They started to chant my name.
Wes! Wes! Wes! Wes!
A few people were boo’ing and throwing drinks at me. I guess they had been the ones who bet against me.
I took a break for a second and stared down at Luke. My entire body hurt. My heart hurt. Everything just fucking hurt so badly. I saw Shane sitting on the edge of the old brown couch. His eyes wide. A smile on his face. On the TV was the final action scene of a movie. The hero, dangling from a wire, reaching for the beautiful woman. Guys on the ground shooting but the bullets never hitting the hero.
“You fucking took him from me,” I growled.
Luke’s head rolled left to right. His mouth moved but he couldn’t talk. Everything was too swollen. Everything was beat up.
I put a hand to his throat and held him to the ground. I put my feet down and started to stand up. My hair hung in my face as I stared into his eyes. The eyes of the Assassin. I didn’t need to wear a fucking mask to make my final stand. Not like Luke had done to Shane.
Luke put his hands to my wrists but gave up after a few seconds. He then started to nod at me. The fucking guy nodded. He was accepting death.
No…
That’s not how it was supposed to be. Luke was supposed to fight to death. He was supposed to be afraid of death. There was no accepting death. No greeting death like an old friend waiting at the bar for a cold beer and some stories.
So I did something I never thought I’d have the will to do.
I took my hand from Luke’s throat.
And I walked away, leaving him to live.
~
I looked up at Rose. I wanted to do something, but I knew this was far from over. This wasn’t just going to be a walk away kind of thing. Not like the movies where the hero throws his arm around the woman and leaves.
I touched my shoulder and my fingers slid into the open wound. The squishy feeling and the pain were enough to make me feel sick. I swallowed and my throat felt like it was closing. With my right hand I reached for someone, needing help.
“Hey. Drink.”
The guy - some asshole in a loose tie - pushed back and waved a hand. “Get the fuck away from me.”
I cupped my shoulder, trying to pinch the cut shut.
That was going to help.
I took a step forward. I needed to get to Aton or Danny to get some medical help. When I took that step, my body decided to call it quits. My knee gave out like it was broken. I fell to the ground. Hands and knees on the cold ground. I heard the crowd oohhh and aaahhh like they were about to enjoy another show. Rose screamed my name, but I couldn’t react to her. I couldn’t even lift my head. My body was like stone, my muscles
shaking, my mind starting to slip.
Christ, I wanted to die.
I really did.
The blood seeped from my wounds. A tingling weakness climbed throughout my body. There was almost a blanketing feeling too. Like a welcoming feeling. Hell, I lifted my head, wondering if I was going to see a white light.
Instead of a white light, some guy looked down at me and shook his head. “You… better…” His voice waved in and out. “… watch… out…”
I forced myself to my knees. I put my arms out and kept my balance.
The entire crowd started to scream. Rose screeched like she was being hurt.
I turned my head and saw Luke standing there. The son of a bitch was already back on his feet. Worse yet, he had the goddamn razor blade back in his hand. Blood covered his face except for his eyes. They were small, dark, deadly. Violence kept him alive and my death was his final feast.
I knew I had no chance at defending myself.
Christ, I was supposed to be invincible. That’s how I lived after Shane died. That was my way of staying alive. I never exposed myself.
But it was too late.
I got too involved. I got involved with Rose and I fell for her. I let Shane’s death win the battle. And now Luke was going to end me.
I curled my right hand into a fist.
Luke charged at me, the razor cocked back in his hand. Maybe the first wouldn’t kill me. But the second, third, fourth… eventually…
I smiled.
I fucking smiled at Luke.
I had no fear of him.
“Fuck… you…,” I yelled with my last good breath.
Luke was inches from me when the gun went off. The bullet hole was a small black dot in the center of his forehead. His head snapped back and he took another step before collapsing.
The crowd screamed and started to break up.
There was Aton… standing with a gun in his hand. His lip curled.
“I still got it,” he said.
I looked at him and smiled. “Holy shit.”
Aton then pointed the gun at me. “Wes, I’m sorry. But I know that you aren’t married to Rose. You lied to me…”
Darkness. Again.
43.
(Rose)
It was like watching a horror movie. The way Luke just sat up, his head turning and grabbing for the razor. Wes was on his knees and couldn’t move. He was hurting. I had tried to move, but the guys next to me grabbed my arms and held me there. They wanted me to watch this fucking scene. I was ready to fight my way out of it, that was for damn sure.
I thrashed my left arm as Luke took a step at Wes.
I screamed Wes’s name as loud as I could.
Wes couldn’t die now. Not after everything he’d been through.
I turned my head and saw someone rush to the guy next to me. He grabbed his throat and threw him back, slamming him so hard against the wall, he was out cold. The guy to my right jumped away from me to fight the attacker. The attacker was quick though, even in a suit and tie. His fists were fast and hard, sending the other guy to the ground, knocked out too.
The attacker then grabbed me. I tried to scream, but he lifted me and put a hand over my mouth. He started to run with me in his arms like I was nothing.
And I had no idea if Wes was alive or not… then I heard a gunshot…
~
It wasn’t exactly a hospital, but it was a little bit cleaner than the shit hole warehouse where the fights had taken place.
I sat in a chair and waited for the door to open.
There were a handful of people rushing around. They were all in suits and ties. They were talking about power, muscle, money - even drugs. It was like the world had come to an end or something. Which maybe was true. I mean, at least my world. Someone muttered that he was dead. That all it took was one bullet to finish it off.
They all looked at me and shook their heads.
Did they feel sorry for me?
What the fuck was going on?
I waited with forced patience because there was nothing else I could do. A man stood across from me with his hands at his waist. His suit jacket open just enough to show me the gun.
Yeah, I get the picture.
A door opened a short while later and Aton came walking down the hallway. A cane in his hand, moving slowly and looking tired. He put his other hand to the wall and pointed the cane at me.
“You and me,” he said. He whacked the cane off a door. “We need to talk.”
I stood up, ready to face my fate. Good or bad. It didn’t really matter what my fate was if Wes was dead. I had fallen in love with him and he’d done everything possible to protect me.
I went into an office and one of Aton’s guys shut the door.
It was just me and Aton now.
“Sit,” he ordered.
I sat down.
Aton hobbled to the other side of the desk and sat down. He balanced the cane to the desk and stared right at me.
“I tried to kill you once,” he said. “Sent Tommy and Wes out to blow your car up.”
“I remember.”
“Your brother saved you from that fate. He had intel about it. I guess that worked out for you and Wes.”
I slowly nodded. “Yes.”
“Yet I wonder how… well, why would Wes go along with killing his wife?”
I felt my cheeks rage with fire. “He came to me. The next day. That’s when he was shot in the shoulder.”
“After the bomb was planted. The trap set. You should have gotten into the car, Rose.”
“I didn’t.”
“Because of Luke? Because of Wes?”
My chin quivered. “I…”
Aton raised a hand and nodded. “Don’t get upset, Rose. I’m not a damn fool. And I knew what was happening behind my back with everyone. You don’t stay in power without recognizing the target on your back and protecting it. Understand me?”
“Yes,” I said.
“Your brother was very powerful. But he could never do what I do. I’m sorry to tell you this, Rose. You may get angry, that’s fine. But I killed him.”
My heart twisted. “Wes?”
“Your brother,”Aton said. “Wes had his chance but couldn’t do it. I had to do it. I had to end all this.”
“That’s okay,” I said. “Luke was a bad person.”
“He was going to kill you, Rose. He was going to kill me. He was going to kill Wes…”
“He told me his plan,” I admitted. “I saw Danny, too. They held me captive after Luke killed Tommy and his own guys. I thought he killed Wes too. My head is spinning. Is Wes okay?”
Aton folded his hands. “I’m going to ask you this once, Rose. You better not lie to me.”
I knew what was coming. I gripped the arms of the chair.
“Are you and Wes really married?”
I hesitated and then sighed. “No. We’re not. He told me to go along with it to keep ourselves alive. Because you were going to kill me to get to Luke. And that you were going to hurt him for messing up some fight. He said you had a soft spot because of your wife’s passing. I just went along with it. I was in a room and Tommy threw a sandwich at me. I was terrified. I wanted to help. I did help, too. I told Wes everything I could. And then we…”
“Rose,” Aton said. “Please stop talking.”
My mouth clamped shut.
Aton sat for a few seconds. “Do you love him?”
“Wes? Yes. I do with all my heart.”
“You truly love Wes?”
“Of course. I swear on my life. I couldn’t imagine living without him. So if he’s dead, or he’s going to be dead, then just kill me. Right now. Seal my fate.”
“Seal your fate,” Aton said. “Okay. I will.”
Aton then opened the top drawer.
I saw a gun and I turned my head.
He’s going to kill me.
44.
(Wes)
I opened my eyes and saw some woman rubbing my shoulder. I thr
ew my elbow and groaned.
“Whoa,” she said. “Hey. It’s okay, Wes.”
“Who the fuck are you?” I asked.
“I’m Julie. I work with Dr. Stenbrer.”
I looked around the room. It wasn’t a hospital. And I was on a desk. The desk was pushed against the wall, some couch cushions under my head. It was a makeshift hospital room.
“How’s the shoulder?” Julie asked.
“Burns.”
“You lost some blood, but you’re going to survive, Wes. You need a lot of stitches.”
“Where’s the doc?” I asked.
The door opened and in came the doctor. Wearing an ugly green sweater, sleeves pushed up, a brown collar sticking out of the top of the sweater. He had a combover and glasses. He looked like some middle aged insurance salesman living the middle class dream. Who he really was was a genius doctor on Aton’s payroll. So, yeah, he lived the middle class life and ran a small doctor’s office, but he was paid a ton of money to help Aton when needed.
“Wes,” the doc said, “I’m Dr. Stenbrer.”
“Yeah, I got that.”
“You’re good,” the doc said. “Julie helped me stitch you up.”
I looked at Julie. She smiled. She had twinkling blue eyes. “Thanks.”
“No worries,” she said and touched my chest. “Anything else…”
“Where’s Rose?”
Dr. Stenbrer nodded. “Let me go get Aton and we’ll get this moving along.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“Julie, come on,” the doc said.
The nurse walked around the desk and they both left the room. They were replaced by Aton as he came into the room, walking with his cane. The last thing I remembered of him was pointing a gun at me. That’s when I toppled over and blacked out. Only to wake up here.
“Wes,” Aton said.
“Aton,” I said. “I…”
“No,” he said. “I need you to come with me. We have to walk and talk a little here.”
I swung my feet off the desk and sat up. Pain ripped through my shoulder and my back. I saw a t-shirt dangling from a chair and forced myself to stand and walk to get the shirt. I put it on and stood there, looking at Aton.
