41. SHANE
41
SHANE
A s I start the engine about to back out of the parking bay, Kane jumps into the passenger and Dom into the back. “What are you doing?”
“Coming with you. If Lilly’s in trouble, you’re not playing the hero all on your own,” Kane says as he tries her mobile.
I floor the accelerator, screeching out of the car park, wishing I had the blues and twos. The muted unanswered ringtone from Kane’s phone is like an alarm bell ringing in my head.
I tap the screen on the dash. “Call Ben.” The phone rings just like the alarm in my head.
“Sarge? Aren’t you meant to be taking a night off?”
“I never get a night off, you know that.” I put my foot down, running through an amber light. There’s no slowing down, not when I don’t know where or who the fuck my girl’s with. “Ben, I need you to run an address for me. Lake View Rise. It’s a row of three story flats.”
“What number?”
Kane zooms in and says, “The car’s parked outside forty-three, could be forty-four or forty-five.”
“Run the whole damn block. See if there’s anyone on file living there.” I growl out the words, my heart hammering in my chest. I’ve only just got her, I can’t lose her now. Not after everything it’s taken for us to get here.
Kane continues calling her phone, looking more and more agitated by the second. “Where’s Ash living?”
I silently pray that this is Ash’s place, and she’s just having tea and biscuits, but I know that’s highly fucking unlikely, especially where Ash is concerned.
With Ben still on speaker, I say, “Run a search on Asher Sinclair. I want to know where he’s living. He could still be on parole.”
“On it, sarge.” The sound of tapping on keys comes through the speaker.
I hold my breath, hoping there’s something that shows up. Anything.
“I got him. He’s residing at number five Stillwater Street.”
“That’s Lilly’s home.” I bang my hand on the dash. “Fuck.”
“There are a few people come up on the system for Lake View Rise. But looks like they’re old residencies.”
“Stay on the line. I don’t know what I’m gonna find when I get there.”
My body jerks forward, the seatbelt digging into my chest as I slam on the brakes behind her car, not bothering to find a parking bay. I race to the door to the block of flats. Thankfully, it’s unlocked, saving me from busting it down. As I enter the communal stairway, gunfire has my heart rate picking up speed. My eyes widen as I stare back at the guys, the same fear mirrored in their eyes. Taking the steps two at a time, we race to the third floor unarmed, unprotected, and unsure of what we’re gonna find, but unyielding in our pursuit of our girl.
“Ben, you still there?” I say into my phone.
“Yes, sarge.”
“Requesting back up. Gun shot fired at Lake View Rise.”
“Any casualties?”
“I don’t know yet. Get an ambulance in case.”
I slip my phone into my pocket, but don’t wait for backup. With a knowing look from Dom and Kane, I know they have my back and are probably more skilled than any cop. The only thing we don’t have is ammunition.
Busting open the door, I let out a sigh of relief at hearing Lilly’s cries, but my adrenaline spikes as I hear a male shout, “Did you call the cops? Fucking bitch!”
I rush through the kitchen into the room; the stench is the first thing to hit me. On the floor, a lifeless body stares up at the ceiling.
Ash waves a gun around, his t-shirt soaked with blood as he holds his shoulder, pain etched on his already weary face.
My gaze floats to where Ash is aiming the barrel, but the way he’s shaking, he’s in no fit state to hit his target. All the air leaves my lungs as I lock eyes with Lilly. Black tears stain her cheeks, a switchblade at her throat as Levi pulls her hair, exposing the vein in her neck, pulsing as wildly as my heart.
“Get your dirty fucking hands off of her,” I say, trying to not sound emotionally invested. If he knows I care too much, he’ll hurt her just to get at me.
Levi laughs. “I haven’t even started yet.” His tongue licks at her tears running down her cheek. Every bone in my body wants to rip his head off for even looking at her.
With a stride of my heavy boot, my muscles burn with rage.
“Come any closer, and I’ll slit her throat.” Levi presses the knife harder against her neck.
Lilly stills, her shallow breaths the only movement along with her swollen eyes as they search mine. Her gaze flicks downwards, and I follow her line of sight to the small can of pepper spray clenched tight in her fist.
Kane’s hand squeezes my shoulder, holding me back from tearing into Levi and ripping his throat out. “This isn’t gonna end well for you. Let the girl go before you add murder to your sentence,” Kane says as if there’s a chance this guy’s getting out of here alive.
He’s already a dead man.
I can’t see Dom behind me, but I sense him in the room, taking everything in like a hunter watches their prey before they attack.
A skeleton mask stares at me from the arm of the couch, confirming Levi’s the one who's been burgling the old folks’ estate and the one who attacked Lil in her home.
My body vibrates under Kane’s hand, every muscle on fire needing to get to her. “You think you can break into Lilly’s home and attack her without consequences? I’m gonna enjoy killing you.”
Ash shakes, still pointing the gun in Levi and Lilly’s direction. “You broke into her place?”
Levi grins, showing his black, rotten teeth. “I wasn’t gonna let the pig here have all the fun.” He grips Lilly’s hair with one hand and waves the knife towards me in the other, “You’re the one paying her, aren’t you?” He laughs, bringing the knife back to her throat. “I watched you enter her house wearing a mask.”
Ash waves the gun between me and Levi. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Your sister’s a fucking whore, and the cop here has been paying to fuck her. Where do you think she was getting all the money from?”
“Is this true?” Ash aims the gun straight at me, his hand steadying. “Isn’t one sister enough for you, man? You have to take both?”
I hold my hands up in surrender, taking a step towards Ash. If I get the gun off him, I might be able to salvage this mess, but not before blowing Levi’s brains to smithereens. “Ash, it’s not like that.”
Kane’s by my side, ready to take a bullet for me. “Easy, Ash.”
“Don’t come any closer.” Ash’s hand trembles. “I should kill you now I have the chance. You ruined my fucking life, man.”
“Asher, please don’t hurt him,” Lilly shouts, her voice strained.
“Why not, Lil? Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t blow his head off right now?”
“Please. For me,” she sobs, making my heart ache with the need to make everything all right and get her as far away from this place as possible.
“Why? He’s done nothing but bring our family misery. Our own mother thinks more of him than she does us.”
“It’s not true, Ash. Please don’t hurt him.” Her nails claw at Levi’s hand as he holds the knife at her neck. “I love him, Ash.”
My chest stutters. I always knew she loved me like a brother, but the way she shouted it just now conveyed so much more.
Ash snarls at Lil, his face twisting. “You can’t be serious.” He straightens his arm, pointing the gun at me, sweat dripping from his temples. “You ruined my life, man. That night you arrested me, you ruined my fucking life.” His entire body shakes as if remembering back to that night.
I step closer with my hands up. “You ruined your life yourself. You shouldn’t have been at the robbery.”
“You know I had nothing to do with what went down. I was in the wrong place, wrong time. Do you have any idea what my life’s been like since?”
Kane matches my steps, remaining at my side. “Put the gun down, Ash, and we can talk about this.”
“No,” he shouts. It’s one simple word, but full of so much emotion. “You’ve no idea what it was like for me.”
“Let’s go back to mine. We can get your shoulder looked at and talk about it,” Kane says, tentatively stepping closer.
“Kill him, Ash. Kill that fucking pig,” Levi yells. “That was him who attacked you at Lilly’s house. Pull the trigger and end this arrogant fucker.”
“Please, Ash. Don’t hurt him.” Lilly screams. “I’m pregnant.”
Sirens sound in the distance, but they could be a million miles away as they’re drowned out by Lilly’s voice, echoing the words in my head. Words I’d longed to hear another lifetime ago. I gaze into her teary eyes, the moment bittersweet as I have everything I’ve ever wanted in one hand and the chance of losing it all in the other. I won’t let that happen again. I won’t lose anyone I love ever again. Not even her dumb fucking brother.
“You got her pregnant?” Ash shouts, but I don’t look at him. I can’t take my eyes off Lilly. “I can’t let you ruin any more of our lives. First Fern’s, then mine, and now Lil’s.”
“I’ll never give up where she’s concerned. I’ve been there for her more than you ever have.”
The gun shakes in his hand. “And whose fault is that? If you hadn’t followed me that night, I wouldn’t have got sent down.”
“You would’ve got yourself locked up, eventually. Either that or you would’ve wound up dead in a gutter somewhere.”
“Ash, it wasn’t him that followed you that night.” Lilly sniffles, her voice weak, barely audible. “It was me. I called the cops. I’m sorry.”
“Well, well, well, this is an interesting turn of events,” Levi says, his hand falling from Lilly’s throat as if he’s forgotten about holding her hostage, enjoying the show instead.
Asher inhales and exhales, gasping for air. He holds a hand over the wound on his shoulder, his t-shirt soaked in blood. With hollow eyes, void of all emotion, his gaze drops to the floor where Jodie lies, her lips grey. He’s broken, with nothing left to live for. Lilly was the only one who cared for him, and now I can imagine how betrayed he feels.
I want to go to the lad, tell him everything will be okay, even if things will never be right between us, I want to help him. If not for him, but for Lilly.
His eyes close. As if in slow motion, he turns the gun on himself, pressing the barrel under his chin.
Her scream shatters my already cracked heart. “Ash, no.” Lilly lifts her hand, spraying the pepper spray she’s been clutching in Levi’s eyes now his hand is away from her throat.
He swings for her, but Dom pounces, grabbing his wrist with a snap of a bone. Levi shouts out in agony as Dom wrestles him to the floor. The knife falls to the carpet and Dom kicks it away, restraining Levi’s arms behind his back.
Now Lilly’s free, she runs to her brother, but I wrap my arms around her, not wanting her anywhere near the gun and his unsteady hand. He’s lost a lot of blood, and he’s not thinking straight.
“Asher, please. Don’t do this. Please forgive me.” She screams and fights to be set free, but I hold her close, wanting to shield her from all of this.
“I’m tired, Lil,” he says as he pulls the trigger.
The click of the gun’s the last thing I hear, before all my thoughts drown out Kane’s shouts and Lilly’s cries. Holding Lilly, I spin us both around, shielding her eyes, pressing her head close to my chest. It’s as if the world fades away and it’s just us. I’ve failed again. Everyone will hail me a hero for saving Lil, but I know I’ve failed her and her brother. She’ll never forgive me for this. I’ll never forgive myself. I should’ve done more. Should’ve helped Ash more to get him away from this crowd. I’ve failed them all.
Just as I think all is lost, Kane says behind me, “Give me the gun now before the cops get here.”
I turn my head to Kane with his arms around Ash, holding him up, the gun hanging off his finger.
Kane takes the gun from his hand.
Ash sniffles as he locks eyes with me. “You were right. I am a useless piece of shit. I can’t even fucking kill myself properly.”
With the gun secured in Kane’s hand, I relax my hold, and let Lilly go to her brother.
Kane hands the gun to me, and I check the cylinder. With only two empty chambers, I gaze up at Kane wide-eyed. “What are the chances?” Kane shakes his head in disbelief, and we both know that someone up there is looking out for him. Maybe it’s the girl lying dead on the floor, maybe it’s his father, but he’s one lucky bastard to be alive.
Unlike the scumbag that cowers in front of me.
I make sure the next chamber’s loaded. I’m not playing Russian roulette with Levi. As much as I’d like to see him sweat, the next time this gun goes off, it’s gonna be firing a bullet between his eyes. I doubt he has an angel on his shoulder or anyone looking out for him like Ash.
Levi curses under his breath as Dom bends his arm behind his back. A sheen of sweat coats the dealers forehead. “Your days are numbered, pig. Even when I’m in the slammer, you’d better watch your back. Yours and your whore’s…” He continues talking as if he’s getting nicked.
I glance over my shoulder to check my girl’s safe. She’s tending to her brother’s shoulder with Kane holding him up.
My body lets out a sigh of relief, but my muscles tense with what I’m about to do. The gun like a lead weight in my hand, I nod my head, signalling for Dom to move aside.
He lets go of Levi’s arms and stands back, leaving him on his knees, cowering before me.
I lift the gun, aiming at his head.
The fear in his eyes holds my gaze. He opens his mouth to speak, but without further hesitation, I pull the trigger.
The bullet leaves the barrel with a crisp crack in the air, piercing my ears. It travels as if in slow motion, taking all the tension and worry from my body, knowing he’ll never hurt Lilly or her brother again.
Levi drops back onto the floor with a thud, blood trickling from his forehead onto his stunned face, his eyes dull as if a light just went out.
The room falls silent. All focus on me. Usually I strive to do everything by the book, but I couldn’t risk it with him. The only way for Lilly to be safe was to have him gone for good. I don’t trust our justice system. It wouldn’t be long before he’d be out on good behaviour seeking revenge.
The sirens in the distance get closer, but in the room you could hear a pin drop. I’m frozen to the spot, unable to move as Levi bleeds out onto the dirty carpet.
Dom takes the gun from me, holding it with his sleeve. “Do you want to take the rap for this or make it look like a suicide?”
I take in a deep breath, glancing at Lil as she stares at me openmouthed as if she’s about to speak, but a frown settles on her face before she looks away with tears in her eyes. It’s ironic that all this time wearing a mask, I was more myself. The real mask is the one I wear as the hero. And now it’s slipped, exposing me as the cold-blooded killer I am.
With her back to me, she focuses on her brother’s bullet wound. She’ll never look at me the same way again.
I drop my head, the disappointment in her gaze still at the forefront of my mind. “I’ll take the rap.” There’s too many witnesses here to do otherwise, and I may not be a hero, but I’m not a coward.
“Shane, no.” Lilly’s lip trembles, her eyes pleading with me, but for what, I’m unsure.
Ash applies pressure to his shoulder at Lilly’s instruction, but steps aside, moving towards the door. He glances my way, meeting my gaze with a nod of his head. “It was self-defence. He attacked me, then threatened Lil before lunging at you. You had no choice but to pull the trigger.”
Lilly wipes the mascara staining her cheeks, her eyes shining with a glimmer of hope. “That’s exactly what happened.” She looks at Kane, the same eyes pleading with him. “Tell him, Kane.”
I lock eyes with my best mate. Another person I failed when I wasn’t there for him when he needed me the most. He knows what it’s like to be in my position, and we share a knowing look that wordlessly conveys everything in his heart. The message is loud and clear. Don’t take the rap for this and leave our girl alone.
Dom holds the gun out in front of him. “Sounds like the truth to me.”
I take hold of it, my hand a little unsteady, but my mind’s never been more sure of anything than right now as I look back at Lilly. The disappointment I saw in her eyes wasn’t because of what I’d done like I initially thought. It was the disappointment that we’d finally accepted our fate, and I was throwing it all away, doing the right thing.
The inspector will be pissed he didn’t get to put him behind bars, but nobody’s gonna miss him. Levi Jackson can go to hell for all I care. He’s not taking anything else from Lilly, least of all me.