Chapter 43
Lizzy
My stomach drops as light illuminates the screens, unveiling the nightmare unfolding in my house. I barely have time to register Nik bound on the floor and Vincent looming in the center of the living room before Bash starts moving.
He’s graceful in his motions. Vincent used to watch boxing at the house, so I’ve seen vicious men fighting, but that’s not how Bash is.
He’s lithe as he takes down one armed man then another.
I can barely track his motions with how quick he is.
There’s minimal bloodshed as men drop at his feet. Until Vincent ends it all.
“Stop or I shoot him!” Vincent booms, gun pointed at the unconscious Nik on the floor. My heart clenches at the sight of him in such a vulnerable state.
The gun’s aim halts Bash in his tracks. My sweet boyfriend stills, dropping the man he had in a strange headlock position. But his features remain pinched in fury.
“Vincent Maroney, we finally meet face to face,” Bash growls. I’ve never seen him so uncomposed. His lack of self-control has more fear seeping into my bones.
“The boyfriend,” Vincent sneers the word. “You’re more capable than I gave you credit for. I’d be impressed if you weren’t making sex tapes with my woman.”
My cheeks heat as a mixture of embarrassment and anger flood my senses.
Embarrassed that he knows and announced it to an entire room, and anger that he watched us together.
How dare he? And his woman? He’s insane.
I haven’t been his woman in six years, and I’ll never be his again.
I would’ve thought the bullet wounds would’ve been message enough.
Bash roars and lunges at Vincent, but two men grip his arms, pulling him back. Even though Bash took down three of his men, there are still six more not including Vincent. Bash can tell he’s outmatched, so he doesn’t fight back.
“How does a computer nerd know how to fight so well?” Vincent asks, his voice filled with a mixture of disbelief, annoyance, and awe.
Bash meets his glare head on, a menacing look overtaking his usually kind features. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know you’re fucking my girl. That’s enough of a reason to kill you.
What I don’t understand is who that is?” Vincent is pointing at Nik’s unconscious form, then strides over to him and kicks him.
He studies Bash for a reaction, and when he doesn’t give one, Vincent sighs.
“I thought maybe Elizabeth turned into a real slut and is fucking two guys at once. Or that her boyfriend has a boyfriend. But I guess not. This fag sneaks away at night to go fuck some black guy anyway.”
If Bash is surprised by the reveal, he doesn’t show it. His expression remains neutral. But I’m seething. I don’t even know Anthony, but I still feel protective over Nik’s boyfriend and calling him ‘some black guy,’ is unacceptable.
“So, I’m going to ask again. Who are you? And who is he?” Vincent’s missing piece is the Syndicate, and that’ll be his demise. He won’t be expecting them. We have to keep him in the dark.
“I’m your worst nightmare. I’m the man Lizzy chooses to be with. The man who treats her well. The one she goes home to. The one she–”
“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Vincent shouts.
“Am I pushing your buttons?” Bash stares directly at a hidden camera while he says it, and I realize the message is for me.
I need to push the button. I curse myself for all the time I’ve wasted.
Precious minutes that the Montclair brothers could’ve already been on their way.
I slam my hand under his desk and hit the button.
When nothing happens, I contemplate hitting it again.
But without knowing how it’s set up, I refrain.
“Take out your fucking phone.” When Bash doesn’t move, Vincent stalks up to him. “NOW!”
Bash shrugs his shoulders, but his arms barely move with their restraint. “I can’t reach it.”
Vincent studies Bash, then steps back out of reach, proving he’s wary of Bash. As assurance, he points his gun at Nik, who’s starting to stir. “Let go of his arms,” he tells his men, then turns to Bash. “If you try anything, I’m killing your little boyfriend.”
When Bash’s hands are free, he pulls his phone out of his pocket and hands it to Vincent. The sly smirk on his face is all the confirmation I need that there’s nothing Vincent could find on that encrypted phone. He was never very smart and certainly not tech-savvy.
Vincent pushes it back towards Bash. “Call Elizabeth. I want to talk to her.”
“If she wanted to speak with you, she wouldn’t have shot you.” Bash’s sass earns him a punch from Vincent causing blood to spill from his nose. I know Bash could’ve blocked it, so he must have taken the hit on purpose, but that doesn’t stop the cry that comes from my lips.
“Fucking call her. Now!” Vincent demands.
Bash bares his teeth at his opponent but taps on his phone. He pulls it to his ear, but Vincent shakes his head. Bash rolls his eyes but puts the phone on speaker.
To my surprise, my phone actually rings. I figured he’d call someone else, but I guess that doesn’t make sense. Slowly, I answer the call, knowing whatever happens now is up to me.
“Elizabeth, is that you?” Vincent’s voice has softened to an almost human tone when he breaks the silence.
“It’s Lizzy,” I growl.
“Don’t start with that shit. You’re my Elizabeth.” I hear his eye roll more than I see it, and the way his jaw clenches is a clear sign he’s getting worked up.
“What do you want?”
“I want to see you. Aren’t you curious as to how I have your boy toy’s phone? And how I’m back from the grave you almost put me in?” He’s smirking while staring into Bash’s eyes. He’s trying to rile him up.
“I don’t want to see you.” I let all my hatred for him seep into my words.
“You don’t have a choice, baby. Get your ass over here now, or your friends die.” He pushes the butt of his gun against Bash’s head. The fact that he doesn’t know I can see him is proof enough that he’s serious.
“Don’t listen to him, angel!” Bash growls, staring into Vincent’s eyes. There’s no fear in his as he presses his forehead against the gun.
“Bash, he has a gun on you!” I cry out.
Bash curses as Vincent smiles. “So, she can see us? How interesting. Well, Elizabeth, sweetheart, you know the situation then. Get your sweet ass over here.”
“Stay right where you are!” Bash shouts, but behind his fury is fear. Fear over my safety as he’s the one with a gun on him.
“The funny thing about leverage is I only need one of you alive,” Vincent muses, then laughs darkly.
It happens so quickly. One moment, his gun is on Bash, and the next, it’s swiveled over to the floor where Nik’s waking up.
Before I can process what’s happening, a shot echoes through the speakers and red liquid spreads across Nik’s grey shirt, directly over his heart.
Nik slumps against the floor, a lifeless form.
I pray to every god I know that it missed its mark.
That the growing pool of blood isn’t too much.
That despite it all, he’s still breathing.
“NO!” I cry through my sobs. Tears spill down my cheeks as sobs rack through my chest. I heave in a sharp breath, only to choke on the exhale.
“Hmmm. Maybe you were fucking him,” Vincent mutters into the phone.
“I hate you,” I seethe.
“Don’t care. Get your ass over here, or this one’s next.” He returns his gun back to Bash, and a harsh sob steals from me.
“Lizzy! I swear to God, if you don’t stay exactly where you are–”
Bash is cut off by the gun slamming across his face, throwing him off balance. As he tumbles to the floor, I know what I have to do. I know what’s going to happen. How this is going to play out. I only pray I can buy us enough time for his brothers to come save us.
“I’m on my way.”
I end the call, needing these last few moments to myself.
Slowly I make my way through the house, taking in every detail of our life together.
Of his life dedicated to me before I even knew him as more than my running buddy.
Memories of our runs cross my mind, and in that moment, I make myself a promise.
If it’s him or me, I’m going down. This is my fight.
It’s my duty to Bash. After how he’s protected me the past six years, it’s my time to return the favor.
Men are outside Bash’s door, unable to penetrate what must be the bulletproof glass. The grins they have when they see me make my stomach roll. I’d forgotten what the stares of Vincent’s friends feel like. How invasive their lurking eyes feel.
Taking a deep breath, I open the door, and instantly, they swarm. They’re on me in an instant, hovering close enough that I can feel them but not touching me. I guess the one upside of Vincent believing I’m his is I’m off limits to these creeps.
“Come on. The boss is waiting for you,” one of them demands as he leads the way.
I follow silently as we make our way to the fence.
Another sob wracks through me as I think of Nik and Bash and everything waiting for me on the other side.
Slowly, so slowly, I march to my demise.
When we get to my back door, I take a deep breath before one of the goons opens it and pushes me in.
Inside, Bash is held by two men, a gun trained on him. But when he hears the door open, he turns to me, and his face falls. “Lizzy,” he whispers, his voice full of anguish.
“I’m sorry,” I mouth to him as he looks at me with a look of betrayal.
“Shut the fuck up,” Vincent growls at Bash, then turns to me. “Elizabeth, you’re finally here. How nice to see you, sweetheart.”
I ignore him. My eyes shoot past him to Nik, where he lies motionless in a pool of blood.
His expression is blank, so unlike my jovial friend.
The one who was joking with me not even an hour ago.
His eyes are closed, and I tell myself he’s just sleeping.
That if I can put pressure on the wound, he’ll be fine.
“See, none of this would have happened if you had just listened the first time I told you to come over. You’ve always been so bad at following directions.”
One last tear trickles down my cheek, then I steel my spine and meet the eyes of the man who nearly ruined my life. The man who just ended my friend’s life. And I make my choice.