34. Bel
The bang of the gun is deafening, and my ears ring to the point that I lift my hands, placing them over my ears to eliminate the sound. Fear holds me frozen in place, and time ticks by slowly. What happened? A heaping dose of adrenaline fills my veins, and awareness trickles back into my body.
Drew’s been shot. He’s going to die.
I’m going to lose another person who I love and for no fucking reason whatsoever other than selfishness. My heart clenches in my chest when I lift my gaze to Drew and find him standing there, perfectly still like a statue.
Oh god. I move to take a step toward him, but my feet, legs, they refuse to move. The thunking sound of metal on wood drags catches my attention, and I watch as the gun in Drew’s father’s hand clatters onto the hardwood a few feet away, stopping at the edge of the rug.
I look from the gun and back to Drew’s father, who is slumped against a sideboard, his hand clutched tight to his side. Bright red blood blooms against his white button-up, and nausea rolls through me. There’s no missing the wide-eyed look on his face, a mixture of shock and anger.
It happens in slow motion, as everyone in the room turns to look in the direction he’s looking. I blink, wondering if what I’m witnessing is really real. It can’t be, can it? There’s no way. Yet the image before me doesn’t change.
I can’t seem to unsee Drew’s mom sitting there, her feet dangling off the edge of the bed, a gun clutched tight in her hand that she slowly drops as all the attention in the room turns to her.
This… I can’t wrap my head around it, and I don’t know who’s more shocked. Lyle or Drew himself. At this point, I think everyone is shocked, and I can’t swallow past the hard lump that’s formed in my throat.
What the hell do we do now?
No one makes a sound. It’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Victoria lists to the side, fisting the sheets with her free hand to keep herself upright. Her skin is ghostly white, and her long dark hair fans out around her biceps, only accenting her pale complexion. She’s wearing the same blue hospital gown I saw her in before.
I’d only seen her one time, but even then her beauty shined bright. Now, holding a gun in her hand, with fury flickering in her eyes, I feel a different level of respect for her.
Victoria waves her hand in a come-hither motion, and the doctor, still on the far side of the room, rushes across the room, stopping once he reaches her side. He quickly checks a bunch of the cords and then quickly plugs some things into the machines.
The puzzle pieces slide into place so easily now. She had herself unplugged from the machines so she wouldn’t give herself away, but how did she do so without going unnoticed? I can’t even begin to understand what’s going on.
I can still feel my pulse on my tongue, leaving my mouth dry and my hands shaking. I’m helpless. This isn’t my fight, my revenge, none of it. Yes, I hate that man, but I sure as hell wouldn’t be able to kill him. Mostly. Probably.
Drew’s dad makes a feeble attempt to sit up, and coughs, blood sputtering out of his mouth as he does. When he speaks, his voice is labored. “Looks like you didn’t have the balls after all, Son.”
Even dying, he has to disparage him.
Okay. I could probably kill him.
My legs are heavy, and my knees quake, threatening to give out on me. If I don’t sit down soon, I’m going to pass out. Ungraceful as hell, I slump to the floor, spreading my legs out in front of me. Relief courses through my veins.
Drew’s concerned gaze falls on me before pinging back to his mother.
“I don’t understand what’s going on? What’s happening, Mom? How did you get a gun? I thought you were in a coma?”
The questions boil out of him, but he’s not getting answers, not yet at least.
She flicks her eyes to Drew for a heartbeat, then focuses her attention back on her husband. “A mother’s love knows no bounds, Drew. Even on the verge of death, I knew I’d do whatever I had to do to protect you.”
Drew jolts and looks shocked. “What...? I don’t understand.”
Again, his mother doesn’t explain further and sneers at Lyle. “I’m glad the first shot didn’t kill you, so I can tell you what a damn asshole you are. I can’t fucking believe you.”
Like an angel avenging those she loves, her gaze darts around the room, over each person. Drew. The guards. Sebastian. Me. When she reaches the officiant, whatever the hell his name is, who is standing to the side with a strange look on his face, something changes in her features.
“Richard, is it? Do you think it’s self-defense if you kill a man who has been slowly killing you for years?”
Richard blinks and focuses on the wall opposite like he doesn’t want to draw attention to himself. “I mean...I could probably sell it in court if you had some kind of proof, and the person in question had a track record of being a bad person. There’s a lot of things to take into account, though, especially when in court.”
Drew takes a staggering step toward his mom. “No, we won’t be inviting the law into this. Sebastian agreed to take care of things. We already have a plan in place.”
Her pensive gaze swings back to Drew, and a smile touches her lips, making her face appear brighter. “Sweetheart, I hate to break it to you like this, but Sebastian and I also had a plan.”
What? I’m as shocked as Drew is, and his face is a portrait of sheer surprise when he turns toward Sebastian. “What the fuck, man? My mom, really?”
There”s a shuffling of boots on the floor, and I skitter back as Sebastian stalks over, kicking the gun Drew’s father was trying to snatch off the floor with the toe of his boot. It flies toward the wall and bounces near the door, out of reach of everyone.
The guards shift on the hardwood like they want to do something, but Sebastian is there in a flash, his guns pointed back at them.
His voice is low and dark as he stares them down. “I don’t think you want to do that. I’m itching to make one of you bastards hurt for all the beatings you’ve inflicted on my friend.”
Drew’s hand brushes my shoulder, and I focus on him again. “What do you need from me?”
He shakes his head, keeping his eyes on his mom, though. “I don’t think there’s anything you can do right now, Flower.”
Fuck. I feel useless. I don’t know how to fire a gun, or fight, or do any of these things that seem integral to this world. Am I useless to him too?
Victoria slides off the side of the bed until her bare feet settle on the hardwood. Dr. Brooks rushes around flustered, helping her to stay standing.
“Victoria, you should stay in bed. I understand you need to do this, but you shouldn’t be moving if you don’t have to be.”
She glares at him for a second, and it’s the look of a lover, frustration and hope? “I do have to be up because that asshole isn’t dead yet.”
He sighs long and deep, and simply helps her forward. She limps and wavers every step of the way. When she reaches Drew’s dad’s feet, she stops and waves the gun at Seb. “Lock the door. I don’t want any more surprises. This ends now.”
Another gunshot rings through the room. I flinch and draw my knees up to put some distance between me and them, but the second I move, Drew stops me, keeping me close. Drew’s dad jerks, and blood pools around him more. He coughs and sits up, wincing as he does. There’s something crazy in his eyes, like he still might try to fight back even though he has two holes punched through him.
I should be more horrified, more scared, but right now, I feel Drew is finally getting the justice he deserves, and apparently, so is Drew’s mom.
“I’ve been sick for ten years. Ten years you’ve been slowly killing me. Ten years you’ve been murdering me.”
There’s so much venom in her voice even I’m a little scared right now.
“And you know what?” She speaks louder. “I’m not the only one he slowly killed. Although I think it took a lot longer for your mom, Bel.”
I flinch at the sound of my name and then process what she’s saying. “Wh-what?”
Her gaze skims Sebastian who is standing jaw set tight. He knew. He knew, and he didn’t say anything to me. “What do you mean?”
“The first woman he poisoned was your mom. She knew she was in trouble and ran. And that poisoning stayed with her, making her sicker and sicker over the years.”
I gulp, hot tears building and falling down my cheeks. But I’m focused on Seb now. “You knew?”
“It’s not his fault. I asked him not to say anything until we could figure out a plan. Sebastian’s private investigator is the one who uncovered the information, mostly from your mom’s doctor. Please don’t blame him. It’s my fault. I asked him to keep it a secret until we knew everything.”
I gulp and swallow my rage down. I sure as hell can be mad at him, but I’ll wait until we get home to discuss it with him. Like Drew, he didn’t trust me with his plan. Neither of them did. Because they think I would have ruined it? Or because they thought they were protecting me? I don’t know.
Drew’s dad coughs up more blood. “Just finish it if that’s what you’re going to do. If you…” He coughs again. “Just want to talk me to death, this entire event is going to take fucking forever.”
Drew walks over and kicks him hard in the ribs, spraying blood in an arc out of his father’s mouth. His eyes flutter closed, and Drew kneels. “You don’t get to die yet. Not until we say you do. We aren’t done getting our answers.”
Victoria places her hand gently on the back of Drew’s neck, and for a heartbeat, I see the broken boy in his face. The one who only wanted one parent to love—actually love and care for him.
I wrap my arms around my legs and hunker further into myself. How did I get here? This feels like a nightmare none of us will ever wake up from. I’m in a fucking wedding dress, for fuck’s sake.
Victoria resettles her feet to keep her balance, and Dr. Brooks is right there at her side, clutching her close, keeping her upright. And when her arm droops with the weight of the gun, he lines his own up with hers and helps her carry that weight too.
I bet he got to know the plan. Then almost instantly I scold myself for being a child. This is life and death, actually life and death. It’s not that he didn’t trust me. He needed things to go off perfectly, and with me knowing, it was one more variable to manage.
Another wave of nausea rolls through me. I might still be mad about the drugs, though.
I breathe deep and then regret it with the scent of iron heavy in the air. How is Drew’s dad still alive after being shot twice?
Victoria steps closer, and Drew’s dad slowly, so fucking slowly, pushes off the floor and stands. Blood smears down the front of his white shirt, and across his mouth and cheeks. It would almost be admirable if the man wasn”t possessed by a demon or something right now.
“Any last parting words, Bel or Sebastian?”
I shake my head instantly. Funny how hours ago, I considered convincing Drew not to go through with his plan to murder his father. Now I couldn’t care less what happens to this man. He’s the reason my mother suffered up until the day of her death.
He deserves everything he’s about to get and more.
Sebastian clears his throat. “Why would I have anything to say to him?”
“Don’t play coy. You know the truth. No matter how deep you dig the hole to bury your secrets, they’ll eventually be unearthed. The answers you seek are right here. I thought I’d give you the courtesy he never did with your mom, and let you say whatever last parting words you might want to before I kill your father.”