Chapter 27
27
Jade
F abian’s gaze drills into me like he’s trying to pull the truth out of my soul with his eyes alone. His calm, collected demeanor is gone now, replaced by something darker, more raw and sinister. I can feel the tension in the room tightening like a noose, and I know whatever I say next could seal my fate and Tawny’s. My heart pounds in my chest, each beat like a countdown I can’t stop.
I have to get us out of this. I have to save her, to save myself, to save my baby.
“I’m not going to tell anyone what I saw,” I say, my voice trembling but determined. “I was never going to, I swear. It’s been two years and I haven’t said one word. I just want to live in peace.”
Fabian laughs, a cold, hollow sound that sends a shiver down my spine. He starts to pace, his polished shoes clicking against the concrete floor.
“If you were planning on staying quiet, why did you run? You could have just gone on living your life with your family. People who run are usually guilty of something.”
“I couldn’t stay there anymore. I couldn’t just go on walking past the spot where it happened every day. I couldn’t live the rest of my life feeling like I was being watched all the damn time,” I admit. “That’s why I left.” “I take a lot of risks in my life querida , but this is a risk I cannot afford to take.”
He takes his gun and rubs it against my face, sending cold shivers down my spine and causing my stomach to lurch.
“Please Fabian, I’m pregnant,” I plead, as if someone like him would care about that. But it’s my final trump card, my Hail Mary that he might not kill me. “I want this baby to live, I want to raise it and be a good mother. I swear on his or her life that I’m never going to say anything to anyone. I’m not going to risk my child’s life like that.”
“But you already did,” he sneers, his void deathly calm. “You sent an email to your little friend here.”
I swallow hard, glancing at Tawny. She’s trying to stay calm, but I can see the fear etched into every line of her face. My chest tightens. This is my mess. She shouldn’t even be here. I look back at Fabian, my resolve hardening.
“I’d only just sent it to her when you grabbed me. She was probably already here.”
I look over to her, willing her to agree as if we have some kind of telepathy. Thankfully, she nods, croaking her agreement.
“I don’t know about any email,” she says earnestly. “Take my phone and my computer if you want, I don’t care. Please, I won’t tell anyone either.”
“Both of you, shut the fuck up!” Fabian screams, his face a steely mask. Maybe I should heed his words, but I’m not quite ready to concede yet. I’ll plead for our lives until the moment I die.
“Fabian you have my word, on my child’s life that I will not speak about this ever to anyone.”
“Suppose I believe you. What about her?” he points to Tawny.
“You have my word too,” she says. “I swear it.”
He seems to consider for a moment before shaking his head. “I have a better idea. How about I just kill her to remind you of what will happen if you do talk?” he says, pointing his gun at my friend. Tawny lets out a small gasp beside me, and I grit my teeth, forcing myself to stay calm. I meet her eyes and shake my head slightly, trying to convey that she needs to stay calm.
“You don’t have to do that,” I say to him. “Give me her computer. I’ll delete the email. She hasn’t read it anyway. And I’ll go again. I’ll leave this place and never look back and never contact her again. She doesn’t know anything, and she never will. You’ll never hear anything from either of us.”
“You’re really testing my patience, girl,” he snarls. “Normally, I don’t kill mothers. Call it a personal rule. But for you, I’ll make an exception.”
I feel my heart pounding in my ears, but I force myself to stay calm. Fabian is losing control, and that might be my only advantage. As he looms over me, shouting obscenities, I see an opening, a tiny, fleeting chance.
With everything I have, I lunge forward, slamming my forehead into his nose. The crunch is sickening, and Fabian stumbles back with a howl of pain, blood pouring from his face.
Before I can even think about what to do next, his nephew, Javier, grabs me and throws me to the ground. My head hits the concrete hard, and stars explode in my vision.
“You little bitch,” Fabian growls, holding his bleeding nose.
I look up to see Javier holding his gun to my head, finger dangerously close to the trigger. I slam my eyes shut, preparing for the end, for this to all be over. One way or another this is going to end tonight.
“Javier, stop,” Fabian calls out, tough his words are muffled by his hand covering his bleeding nose. “Don’t kill her. I want to do it myself.”
Javier steps back, his gun still trained on me as Fabian aims his own weapon. He stands over me, his face a mask of fury and blood. My chest tightens as I stare down the barrel of his gun, every muscle in my body frozen with fear.
Suddenly, there’s a loud crash from above, followed by the unmistakable sound of boots on the floorboards. Fabian and Javier both freeze, their heads snapping toward the ceiling.
“What the hell is that?” Javier hisses, his grip tightening on his gun.
Fabian doesn’t answer. He’s too busy listening to the chaos unfolding above us, the sound of shouting, footsteps, and then a loud, deafening boom as the door to the basement flies open.
Everything happens in a blur. Men in suits pour into the room, their guns drawn, their voices barking orders. Fabian and Javier react instantly, firing wildly as they dive for cover. Tawny screams, and we both scramble behind a metal container as bullets ricochet off the walls.
“Stay down!” I shout, my voice barely audible over the gunfire. My heart is pounding so hard, I can feel it in my throat. Tawny is staring at me as if I’m her lifeline, her eyes wide with terror.
A bullet whizzes past my head, so close I can feel the heat of it, and I press myself against the cold metal, praying it’ll hold. The air is thick with the acrid smell of gunpowder, and the noise is deafening, a chaotic symphony of gunshots and shouting.
I can’t see much from where we’re hiding, but I catch glimpses of men in suits exchanging fire with Fabian and Javier. One of the men goes down, clutching his chest, and my stomach churns.
This is a war zone, and we’re smack in the middle of it.