by S. K. Lessly
I nodded, breathing out slowly. “I think so. Are you?”
“I’m good.” He looked toward the front door of the building. “Excuse me for a minute. I’ll be right back.” I nodded and he was gone, moving toward a group of men, dressed similarly to the bad guys we had just killed. I breathed out a sigh of relief, knowing that these newcomers were with Ethan. It was over; well, at least I hoped it was.
The lights came back on, bathing the carnage everywhere in an unbelievable, real life, hellish nightmare. Plaster, gun powder, blood and death choked the air around us, filling my body, my soul with a heaviness I wasn’t sure how I’d recover from.
I leaned against the wall and watched Ethan meet up with men I assumed were with him. I took a few more breaths but my eyes never left Ethan’s back.
These last few months have been a rollercoaster of emotions and drama. From Ethan coming back into my life, losing my mama, to being accused of treason and selling secrets to the Russians, and being in the middle of a gunfight. Hell, I wasn’t sure how I was still upright and not losing it.
And what about Ethan? I had been ready to drop everything for him and I had thought he felt the same. But I guess that was all bullshit. So, what did I do now?
Ethan moved off to stand in front of Jessica and they seemed to melt into their own world. He touched her arm lightly… she smiled up at him… a smile, mind you, that lit her entire beautiful face.
Pain consuming my chest and soul, I turned away from the couple and looked over at Lionel. He was standing against the receptionist desk watching me.
“Are you okay?” I croaked, my voice filled with emotions I hoped would wait until I was alone to drain out of me. I had a huge cryfest due me, and I knew it would be spectacular.
Lionel didn’t respond to my question, and I asked again, “Lionel, are you okay?”
“Did you fuck him?”
“What!” I exclaimed.
“You heard me. I see the way you look at him and how he calls you “Lexie.” You two had sex, didn’t you? Is that why you gave me back the ring? You wanted to run away with him?”
I rolled my eyes. “You are unbelievable, do you know that? You have been sleeping around on me for years and you think you have the right to ask me something like that.”
Lionel went on as if I hadn’t said a word. He scoffed and shook his head in disgust. “I can’t believe you. You stand here all high and mighty and you’re just as wrong as I am. All that time you spent down here. I was wondering why you didn’t come home and now I do. You two were fucking behind my back.”
I walked up in his face. I was fuming at this point. My body started shaking, my blood pressure rising right along with my temper.
I brought my finger right to his face. “I’m nothing like you, you selfish bastard. You are a lying, manipulative, cheating son of a bitch and a coward,” I spat coldly. My entire body was trembling with rage. I felt my body growing weak from all that had happened and I refused to allow myself to break, but this son of a bitch was making me do it. “No matter how much I wanted to cheat on you, I didn’t,” I went on. “I honored our fucked-up relationship. I was committed to you and you’re going to stand here and accuse me…” I stopped talking, feeling lightheaded, and stepped back from him. “You know what, you’re not worth my time or energy. Why don’t you go fuck yourself. I’m done.” I turned and walked away, suddenly feeling really dizzy.
I felt Lionel grab my arm and I tried to yank out of his hold and stumbled.
“Fuck, Alexis. Stop! Something is—”
“Get off me,” I mumbled, righted myself, then dropped like a heavy sack of potatoes, losing all feeling in my legs.
I stared up at the ceiling trying to figure out what just happened and why I was feeling so weak. Maybe it was the fact that I’d had nothing to eat really, or maybe it was the adrenaline wearing off. I had heard that could happen after a traumatizing experience.
I heard my name being called but it sounded so far away, like they were underneath water. Was I at the beach or something? The pool maybe? But I wasn’t wet. Was I?
I was so confused and I couldn’t understand why. Not to mention I couldn’t move. I know, maybe it’s shock. After all, I had been through a serious ordeal. I’d killed people. It wouldn’t be unheard of for my body to collapse from the traumatic experience of being shot at. But why couldn’t I move?
Lionel’s stupid mug appeared over me, that son of a bitch. I wanted to punch him. I narrowed my eyes at him and tried to do just that, but I couldn’t bring my arm up to do it.
Damn it.
I turned my face away from him, unable to bear another second looking at his stupid face. I did, however, want to close my eyes.
***
Ethan
“Alexis!”
I heard Lionel calling Lexie with fear and panic in his voice. I turned around just in time to see Lexie fall against him. They both disappeared behind the bullet riddled reception desk. I was moving in seconds, my heart in my throat. Lionel stood and looked around frantically.
I ran.
One of my guys got to Lionel before me but I pushed my guy away and knelt down next to Lexie.
“What happened?” I asked touching her face and moving her head so she was facing me.
“I-I don’t know,” Lionel answered, his voice trembling, nervous. “We were talking then she just fell.”
I rubbed Lexie’s cheeks trying to stimulate her, to get her to open her eyes for me. I called her name as I rubbed but her eyes remained closed.
Fuck, did she just pass out? Was she hurt?
I looked up at Lionel. “How was she when you talked? Did she seem shaky at all? Uneasy on her feet?”
Lionel shook his head. “No, nothing like that. We were, uhhh just talking then suddenly she fell.”
Fuck…
I started roaming my hands over her arms and hips. I went to unzip her sweatshirt and gasped. Her once white t-shirt was soaked with blood.
“Fuck, she’s been shot. Why didn’t you say anything?” I demanded. I gripped her t-shirt and ripped it open to find where she’d been shot. I found an entry wound in her lower abdomen.
“I... I… I didn’t know she was. She didn’t say…” I heard Lionel croak, but it sounded more like white noise to me. I tuned the fucker out, trying desperately not to lose my shit on him. My top priority was Lexie. I’d be sure to beat the fuck out of him as soon as I was done.
I quickly turned her body toward me so I could check for an exit wound. I couldn’t find one.
Fuck, fuck, FUCK…
I started trying to rouse her any way I could, calling her name, slapping the side of her face to get any reaction from her. I got nothing.
I placed two fingers to carotid artery to check her pulse; it was there but barely.
“Got damn it!” I exploded, panic filling me quickly.
“What happened?” Jessica asked, kneeling next to me. I looked at her and found Bruce close by too.
“She’s been shot,” I told her then looked up at Bruce. “What happened? Did you see her get hit?”
“No sir. I didn’t see anything. It was pretty hectic up here for a while. She had my back…”
“She what? What the fuck do you mean she had your back?” I was seeing red at this point. No way was he telling me Lexie was on the front line.
Bruce, to his credit, took a step back from me as if he knew I was a half second away from losing it.
“Billy went down and couldn’t shoot. From my understanding, she was the one that protected him and that piece of shit.” Bruce stuck a chin in Lionel’s direction. I looked over at Lionel and saw his face blanch in embarrassment. The fucking coward piece of shit.
Bruce explained further, “Bullets started flying and she was the only one to step up to help.”
I cursed and looked back at a still Lexie. The bullet didn’t exit. That meant it was still inside her. She needed an ambulance, but I wasn’t waiting around for one to fucking get
here.
I started scooping her in my arms. “We got to get her to the hospital quick. There’s no exit wound, Jessica. The bullet still in there.”
Jessica stepped back and I stood, Lexie’s body heavy, lifeless in my arms.
No, no, no… this shit can’t be happening. Not now. Not after I found her.
I headed for the exit and once outside, I moved quickly to one of the sedans parked in the parking lot. Bruce was right behind me, opening the back door for me to get inside. I shifted awkwardly inside the car, not wanting to let her go. I grunted with the effort and once seated, I looked over at Jessica.
“Call me when you’re done here. Let George know where I went.”
“I will, Ethan. Take care of Alexis.”
I nodded once before she slammed the door.
Bruce peeled out of the parking lot without preamble. I didn’t have to give him directions; he knew this town almost as well as I did, but from studying maps instead of actually living here.
I twisted my body so I could see Lexie’s better. She looked pale. Sweat coated her lovely face and I could feel the life leaving her body. I had never been scared in my adult life. There had been no room for it in my life. Yet, I was about to fucking lose it in this back seat. I was petrified.
I knew Bruce was driving as fast as he could, but I couldn’t help but tell him to drive faster. I felt her slipping away in my arms. That couldn’t happen. Fuck, that couldn’t happen.
Her gunshot wound was still oozing blood. I shifted quickly to lay her torso down. I took off her sweatshirt, moved my knee to the floor of the car for leverage and started applying pressure. I started calling her name and putting more pressure on stomach. I wasn’t sure what caused it, didn’t care, but she finally opened her eyes.
“Hey, there you are,” I said a softly as I could, desperately trying not to sound panicked. “You scared the shit out of me.”
She didn’t speak, just looked into my eyes.
I smiled down at her. “Everything’s going to be okay. You’re going to be fine. I promise.”
I caressed her cheek softly and pushed her damp hair away from her feverish skin. She started to open her mouth to try and speak but I shushed her softly.
“Shh… don’t try to speak, baby. Just be still, okay? I’m sorry for all this,” I confessed, still brushing the backs of my fingers along her heated skin. “I wish I didn’t let you talk me into giving you two days. I should’ve carried you over my shoulder straight to the airport. Then none of this would’ve happened. We could’ve been on a beach somewhere right now, feeling the tropical air on our faces, soft sand under our feet. Drinking tropical drinks and enjoying each other.”
She groaned and her eyes started to flutter closed. My eyes widened in panic. “No, don’t, Lexie. Keep your eyes on me, sweetheart. Keep them on me, baby,” I instructed but she lost the fight and closed them.
I quickly checked her pulse and it was weaker than before. I was just about to yell for Bruce to hurry the fuck up when I noticed the neon lights of the ER's ambulance entrance.
Bruce jumped out and started calling for help. I opened the back door and got out. I turned around, leaned inside the car and brought my arms to Lexie’s back and underneath her legs. It was a struggle trying not to hurt her as I angled her free, but I managed to get her out of the back of the car and onto a waiting gurney.
They rushed her inside, yelling shit I could barely make out. I was too busy watching one of the nurses as she started beating on Lexie’s chest. Everything after that had become a blur.
I was asked what happened and I gave them the bare minimum. They asked about her medical history and I gave them that too— what she was allergic to, her blood type, if she had any prior injuries or surgeries.
Once she disappeared behind the surgery doors, I was stopped. I watched as the gurney carrying her lifeless body turned a corner and disappeared from view. My heart was caught in my throat, fear gripping the fuck out of my chest. Then rage began to fill me. I turned around, pulled my phone from my pocket, found the number I needed and hit send.
She picked up on the second ring.
“Tell me we have what we need to hunt these fuckers down.” I growled into the phone, my hand tight on the device.
“Yeah, we got it,” she said, and I blew out a breath just as I felt the darkness consume my body.
“Good, I’m on my way back. Be ready to move when I get there. We’re going hunting.”
I hung up my phone, placed it in my back pocket, and left the hospital.
Part III
Chapter Twenty-One
Alexis
I pulled myself out of the large, empty hotel pool and cocooned my tired body with a plush towel. I was exhausted as hell, but I felt good. The water felt amazing against my overworked body, allowing me to forget the pain and just breathe.
It had been two and a half months since I was shot.
What was crazy was that I’d had no idea I had been shot. I couldn’t even remember when it happened. All that time I’d stood around arguing with Lionel, shooting bad guys, I was bleeding to death. Maybe it was before all hell broke loose outside the interrogation room or it could have been when we finally made it to the lobby and we were cornered. Who knew? Bullets had been flying all over the place. It could’ve been any time.
I had lost a lot of blood. The bullet entered my body on my left side, traveled past my liver, nicking it, and then lodged itself in my ribcage. The trajectory of the bullet and where it entered my body caused the doctors to believe it was a ricochet that hit me. Luckily for me, I was taken to the hospital in time. The doctors went in, stopped the bleeding, and removed the bullet. They also gave me blood to replenish what I’d lost. I recovered in the hospital, battling infections and all that good stuff for a month and a half before I got the green light to return back to my life. The only problem was, I didn’t have a life to go back to.
The apartment I’d shared with Lionel had been seized by the Feds and everything inside confiscated. By the time they released my stuff back to me, I didn’t want any of it, including my laptops. All I wanted was for things to go back to the way they used to be, before the high school reunion. Living in denial wasn’t as bad as living in reality.
I, at least, had one good thing going for me. Lionel was out of my life. I hadn’t seen him since about two weeks after the alleged “kidnapping” at the warehouse. Yes, that was what the Feds had called what happened to us, a kidnapping that was thwarted due to my ex and his shady dealings.
The bogus story was released to the media shortly after that night with unknown suspects and a stupid motive. The story was Lionel and I were kidnapped by one of his clients who turned out to be a whack job. Lionel had lost a case which enraged his client who decided to take it out on us. Luckily for us, we were then rescued by some secret government team and during the rescue I was injured.
It was bullshit. Lionel didn’t have clients capable of doing such a thing. The man practiced worker’s comp cases for companies, not employees. No one would be pissed if they lost. But the Feds managed to spin a web of lies convincing everyone that one of Lionel’s clients was a madman. Anyone with half a brain could see the holes. But you couldn’t tell the government anything.
They did, however, dish out some rules that if broken would no doubt result in our disappearance. We were told, in no uncertain terms, to keep our mouths shut. No interviews or book offers or bragging to our friends at the water cooler—their words, not ours. We were also told to never mention Ethan or his team again, like ever. As far as we were concerned, they didn’t exist.
Well that wasn’t hard. I had no idea who he was anyway. The man I used to know was gone, replaced by a killer with only darkness in his heart and soul.
Anyway, they didn’t have to worry about me. There was no way I wanted to relive that night. For many reasons.
On one hand, I had no one to talk to about what happened. I didn’t have any friends and I wouldn’t tell m
y father a thing. All he’d do was march to Philly, and force me to come home with him with guilt and yelling. That wasn’t going to happen. I loved my father, but I refused to live with him.
On the other hand, I had been doing my best to forget everything that happened from the day I went to my high school reunion to now. Now, if I could just stop reliving what happened to me, when I close my eyes at night, or stop dreaming about the night Ethan claimed me, destroyed me, then ruined me, maybe I’d be okay.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him. I saw his smoldering green eyes, his taut, hard, beautifully sculpted body, his soft lips, magical fingers and glorious cock. And every single time I’d lose my mind. Then I’d suddenly remember that he was a cold-blooded killer and I’d wake up screaming, my sheets soaked with sweat, my heart beating out of my chest, and my pussy soaked. Yeah, I wasn’t sleeping at all these days.
The only thing that had given me solace over these last few months was getting even with Lionel, the lying, cheating rat bastard thief. Good ole Lionel wasn’t brought up on charges for stealing my parents’ money or the conspiracy to frame me for treason. He made a deal to testify against the Russians as his penance.
Fortunately for him, I wasn’t letting him off the hook. He stole from me, from my family. He would pay me back or I’d make him pay. I gave him an ultimatum the single time he came to the hospital to visit me; he either paid me back or I would hack into the security feed from the warehouse, and extract the part where he’d had a breakdown and cried like a bitch while I was trying to protect us. Then, for good measure, I’d show the part where he pissed himself and I’d leak it all over social media. And no, he didn’t piss himself, but I could make it seem like he did.
Of course, at first, he didn’t believe me, but I reminded him what I was capable of in no uncertain terms and told him I was willing to risk getting in trouble to humiliate him. Needless to say, he was smart enough to realize I wasn’t bluffing.
