Chapter 64 Hana
HANA
I tried to hide my fear, but the tears silently spilling down my face gave me away.
“Please, Amber,” I begged, but she just pushed the barrel of the gun harder against the base of my skull.
“Wolfie was mine.”
Her admission was like another punch to the face. Fuck, it all made sense now. She was the woman in the photo. She’d had work done; she must have to look so different, but her eyes, behind those glasses, that’s what I had recognised.
“He loved me, promised me a future. I walked away from my old life, let them think I’d vanished, and I got myself ready for him.
Made sure I was everything he dreamt of.
And then you… you had him locked away, even though that sleazeball Preston promised to keep him safe.
Wolfie paid him to keep him safe.” Her voice was sad now, her earlier anger replaced by a softness that I knew wouldn’t last long.
While she spoke, I pulled my calves, twisting my ankles, desperately trying to loosen the ropes that kept me tied to the chair.
“I-I didn’t—”
The handle of the gun struck the back of my head hard, and dots danced at the edge of my vision.
“Don’t try lying to me. Preston told Wolfie everything.
How you set him up so you could hatch your little escape plan.
How you no longer worked for him and were fair game.
How disappointed he was in his little girl.
” I shuddered at her tone: childlike and sinister.
“How your brother was in the same prison and would be a great place to start with his revenge on you.”
A sob tore from my lips, knowing that Tony had not only ended up in prison because I wouldn’t cooperate with Preston’s plan, but he also died because I walked away from Preston. My heart ached, and I wondered if I should just let Amber shoot me; maybe I deserved it.
“Wolfie and I talked a lot. He wrote me letters, and we had our own special code. That’s how in love we were. We had a secret language. I bet you and Roman don’t have that, do you?”
His name focused my attention, reminding me that I had a reason to live: him. His face flashed through my mind, and I whispered a silent prayer that he was safe.
“I didn’t kill your boyfriend,” I said with a little more sass.
Amber shoved the gun to the base of my skull again, forcing my head forwards with the pressure.
My temples throbbed from the sedative and the crack to the skull, and my vision swam, making the room look like it was dancing in front of me.
“Not with your hands, but you put him there. You, Preston, his whole gang… you make me sick. All of you thinking you were above the law. He died, taken from me before I ever had a chance to love him in real life, but I knew what my Wolfie wanted to do to you. How he wanted to save you till last because you’d been the reason he ended up locked up. ”
She appeared in front of me, the gun held out in my direction as her eyes widened, giving her a wild look.
Had every moment with this woman been fake?
I struggled in the chair again, wondering if the ropes were feeling looser or if my brain was trying to trick me into thinking I had a chance of getting out of here when everything happening around me told me otherwise.
She pushed her fingers through her hair. “Wolfie asked me to find you, keep an eye on you. I knew when the others started dying, you’d run, but I also knew I’d always be able to track you down. You’re too special to stay hidden for long.”
She offered me a smile that looked like it belonged to my friend and not a revenge killer.
“But then he died, so I took over. They were all easy to kill. No one suspects the pretty young woman, right?” She rolled her eyes and scoffed.
“Silly me, of course you know that, Hana. You built a life playing the innocent one, getting people to do what you wanted, didn’t you?
Now I guess it’s time to pay for your crimes. ”
She clicked off the safety, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a tarot card like the one that had been found on the other bodies.
“No-no, you don’t have to do this, Amber. Let me go, let’s talk about…” My words fell away when she threw the card into my lap.
“Goodbye, Hana.”
I scrunched my eyes closed, fear coursing through my body like white water rapids, hammering against my pulse points as though my blood was already trying to escape.
Just then, alarms sounded loudly, and my eyes popped open to find Amber looking from left to right.
Before she could even speak, there was a loud crash, and the door flew open.
Roman stood there, caught in the shadows like an avenging angel.
“Gun,” I screamed, just as Amber fired, and Roman lunged to the side, the bullet barely missing him. I let out a cry of relief.
With Amber distracted, I twisted my arms, realising that the rope on my left wrist was coming loose. I tugged with all my might, sweat rolling down my back as I held my breath and forced my wrist away from the armrest until there was enough space to squeeze my flattened hand through.
Amber stalked around the room as Roman moved as well, circling each other like two wild animals about to attack.
“Amber, put the gun down,” he said, his hands up in the air like he didn’t want to fight with her.
“No,” she spat back. “I don’t want to shoot you, Roman. You’re a good guy. You shouldn’t be here. I made sure you’d not get caught up in all this. Walk away now, and we’ll forget you were ever here.”
With Amber’s attention fixed on Roman, I quickly untied my right arm before starting on the ropes around my ankles. Freedom gave me a rush of relief, but it was short-lived.
Amber obviously saw me stand out of the corner of her eye as she spun quickly, levelling the gun in my direction, and everything that followed played out in slow motion.
Roman’s cry was long, loud, primal as he threw himself between me and the weapon.
There was a deafening crack as the gun fired.
Roman hit the floor with a thud just as a red circle appeared in the centre of Amber’s forehead. Her mouth slackened, and her legs crumpled, causing her to hit the floor first.
My head snapped to the side to find Jarrid standing there, as white as a ghost, his gun still outstretched from where he’d just shot Amber. Then my attention went to Ro, expecting him to get off and throw his arms around me, demanding that I tell him who I belonged to, but he didn’t move.
“Roman,” I yelled, moving as fast as my unsteady legs would carry me. I dropped down beside him, landing in a pool of blood that was spilling from the wound in his neck.
“No, no, no,” I cried, covering it with my hands. They were instantly covered as each beat of his heart seemed to expel more of the sticky red substance. “Please, Ro. No. You can’t leave me. I need you. I love you. You promised to watch out for me. You promised Tony. Don’t go…”
His eyes fluttered open, and his now pale lips parted. For a second, I thought he’d be okay, but I was wrong. He offered me the weakest of smiles and whispered, “You were worth the wait.”
Then he closed his eyes as his body went limp.