Chapter 28
Myles
Icould die right now, and I’d die happy.
I have Mina back in my arms. I was able to confess everything.
She knows how much I love her, and she loves me back.
It’s crazy, and honestly, I probably should feel bad, but…
I don’t. She made me realize that I’ve lived my life centered around my best friend.
My best friend, who’s been gone for twenty years.
It’s time I start living for myself and what I want. And the only thing I want is her.
“Mina, baby.”
“Hmm?” she hums.
My head is still resting against her chest, listening to the steady thumping of her heart.
“I love you,” I whisper as I kiss between her breasts. My cock is still buried inside her, and I can feel her muscles throb when I say this.
“I love you, too. Promise you’ll never leave me again.” She cups my face and lifts it until she can kiss my forehead.
“I promise, Sunshine. Now let’s go home.” I say as I lean back in my seat to look at her. She's fucking perfect. Her skin is glowing right now. Her dress is torn down the front, still showing off her amazing body. She’s curvy but also has muscle.
“My place or yours?” she asks.
“Home is wherever you are, Sunshine. It doesn’t matter to me where we live.”
“Wait…Are you asking me to move in?” she tilts her head slightly and smirks. Did I fuck up? Did I move too fast?
“Umm. I mean…”
“I’d love to.” Her smile makes my heart beat faster every single time. “Can we go to your place? I want to see your house.”
“Our house, Sunshine,” I correct her as I kiss her again. I can feel her lips smile against mine, and the rest of the world seems to fade away.
“Okay. Show me our house.”
She climbs off my lap, and I instantly miss the feeling of her in my arms. I click my seatbelt, start the car, and place my hand on her upper thigh as she settles in the seat and buckles her seatbelt.
She turns to me with a look of pure excitement in her eyes, but in a split second, that excitement turns to fear. I watch her eyes widen as her lips part on a soundless scream.
The sudden impact of a car slamming into the side of us has the world blurring around me.
I can hear the metal-on-metal grinding and tires spinning in place as they continue to push our car into the guardrail.
Fuck. They’re trying to force us down the embankment.
I glance over at Mina, and she’s panicking, looking out her window at the river below.
“Mina, you have to get out! Now!”
I grab my window breaker from the center console and slam it repeatedly into the windshield until it splinters enough to break the glass.
“Mina…”
“Myles. I can’t…I…”
“Baby. You have to go. I’m right behind…”
I don’t get to finish the sentence. The car has quickly reversed and is speeding towards us again.
The squeal of tires on pavement is all I hear before it hits.
I can feel the door crushing into my side.
Her scream pierces my heart, and I watch in horror as our car pushes past the guard rail, tips and rolls at least three times before landing and flipping one last time until the car rests on my side on the edge of the river.
The ease of the embankment slowed us enough that we didn’t land far in, so the water isn’t deep.
“Mina?” My voice cracks from the pain radiating all over my body. My head is partially in the water as I turn to look at her. The seatbelt has kept her locked in her seat, but her body hangs limply against the strap. No!
My fingers painfully fumble with my belt until it finally clicks.
My body fully slumps into the water against the driver's side door. Outside, it’s dark and only getting darker.
I don’t know whether anyone saw what happened or if the police are on their way.
All I know is I need to get her out of here.
I can smell gas and oil leaking into the water.
My entire body is in pain. I can feel blood running down my face, and my rib cage feels bruised. I try to sit up, but I almost throw up from the pain. A small gasp, then a cough gives me the kick in the ass I need to get up. She's alive.
I manage to get up, standing in the water on the driver's side window. The windshield is completely broken out, so I can get her down and get us out through there.
“M…Myles?” Her soft voice cracks. Her eyes open, and I can see how scared she is.
“It’s going to be okay, Sunshine. I’m going to get us out of here.”
She glances around, realizing the position she’s in and the water that leaked into the car. She panics and begins to pull at her seatbelt.
“Mina, wait. I need you to breathe. I need to get under you so I can catch you when you unhook the belt.”
“Okay…Myles…Who was that?”
“I…I don’t know...”
“They…Tried to kill us…” She cries harder, and her eyes are becoming more bloodshot. “What if they’re up there…What if they’re coming for me…Us…What if…”
“Sunshine!” I shout, trying to snap her attention so she stops spiraling. Her eyes focus on me as I touch her face. “I need you to breathe for me.” She takes a slow, stuttered breath. Her face pinches in pain. I’m assuming her ribs might be bruised as well from the rollover.
She takes a few more deep breaths, and I watch her body relax as she starts to calm down.
“Good girl. Just keep breathing for me. I’m going to push up against you so that when the belt unbuckles, I will catch you, okay?”
“Okay. Myles?”
“Yes, Sunshine.”
“I love you.” She pulls her bottom lip in as she tries not to cry.
“Hey. Don’t you dare give up. I’m going to get us out of here! I love you, too, but don’t you dare fucking give up!”
She closes her eyes and nods.
This is going to hurt like a bitch. I get underneath her and brace myself against the dash.
I click the buckle and let her slowly lower against me.
I can feel my ribs burning in pain. I bite my lip so hard to keep from screaming that I can taste the warm, coppery tang of fresh blood.
I lower her until her feet are in the water and she’s standing on the frame of the door.
I quickly take off my shirt to wrap it around her. Her dress barely covers anything now, and I don’t want anyone seeing her like this.
“Myles…” she gasps.
“What?” I look to where she’s looking at my side at the gash that is bleeding horribly. My dress shirt is black, so I didn’t even notice.
“It’s okay, Mina. I’m fine. Let’s get out of here,” I lie.
I step out of the broken-open windshield, being careful of the shards of glass and twisted metal.
I turn and take her hand to help her out of the car.
Her eyes keep bouncing from my face to my side.
I can feel warm blood continuing to leak as I lift her to carry her to shore.
It’s going to be okay. It has to be. The universe wouldn’t do this to us twice.
I place her on the shore and then drop to my knees. My chest hurts and I feel nauseous. She drops to her knees next to me and cups my face.
“We have to get up to the road. I don’t know if anyone saw what happened,” I say as I struggle to stand. She pushes herself under my arm and helps me get my footing. We continue to struggle to get up the damp embankment. I slip a few times, but she helps me, and together we make it.
“You’re going to be okay, Myles. Don’t you dare fucking leave me again. You promised.” She gets up to the edge and looks back at the river below.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I groan as I crawl up the last foot onto level ground.
“You’re not…But she is,” a voice seethes in the darkness. Interior lights flick on as the driver's side door opens, and the man starts walking toward us
“Quin? What the fuck…” Mina starts, but he grabs her by the hair and yanks her to her knees.
“Shut the fuck up!” he screams, and I watch the color drain from her face.
“Quin. What the fuck do you want?” I shout. All I can see is red as he holds her in place.
“I want to know what happened the night you killed Declan…” He rips her by the hair and forces her to stand. “And you’re going to tell me.”
She screams for me as he pulls her away.
“Quin! I’m the one you want. Let her go and I’ll tell you everything.” I try to stand, but the pain is so excruciating that I fall back to my knees.
“You’re next on my list, Langston…But first, I need to deal with the traitorous bitch who turned her back on my brother.”
I can only watch as he yanks her and throws her into the passenger side of the truck.
She tries to get out, but he pulls a gun and points it directly at her face.
My world stops when I see him point it at her.
I can't hear what he tells her, but she suddenly stops and slumps in the seat with her eyes locked on mine.
He slams the door shut and begins to walk back to the open driver's side door.
He stops and turns back to me with a maniacal grin on his smug face.
“An eye for an eye, Mr. Langston. You may not have been the one to kill Jocko, but I know for a fact that you and she killed Declan. I’ll be seeing you soon.” He climbs into the truck and slams the door.
“Sunshine…” I’m barely able to choke out as the truck reverses and drives away. His truck wasn’t even damaged because of the heavy-duty rancher grille guard.
I watch the taillights dimming as he gets further and further away. Sirens can be heard in the distance. Someone saw the crash, but it’s too late. He has her. I couldn’t save her.
When the cops and ambulances pull up, people are rushing everywhere. Another car pulls up, and Alexandria comes running out.
“Fuck! What happened?” she screams as two other people get out of the car and run towards me. Jaz and Cash. How the fuck are they all here?
“How did you…”
“Fabian called me. He was freaking out when your car's security sensors went off for an accident. I had him send me your last location. When I told Cash why I was leaving, he freaked because he said you and Mina left together.”
“Myles! Where’s Mina?!” Jaz screams as she looks over the edge down to the river. She’s about to rush down the hill, but Cash grabs her and pulls her back.
“He took her,” my voice cracks with the reality of all that just happened.
“Who?” Alexandria asks.
“Who fucking took her, Myles?” Jaz screams as she drops to her knees next to me.
I look up at Cash, who seems confused and also hesitant. As if he knows what I’m about to say.
“Quin took her.”