Chapter 36 #3
He leans closer, chest pressing against mine.
My head feels like it might explode from the pressure.
Then, without warning, he’s ripped away from me.
I greedily suck in oxygen, my body realizing that it’s not actually about to die.
I cough and sputter, and when my vision focuses, the first thing I see is Jude slamming his fist into Micah’s face.
“Jude!” I yell, throwing myself between them as Micah staggers back.
Jude glares at me, and I realize that I have no idea who I’m looking at anymore. My heart shatters, a small sob falling from my lips when I see the wildness in his gaze.
All of us duck instinctively when gunfire cracks through the night. Everyone but Jude. He’s still glaring at me, like I’m his...enemy.
For a split second, everything freezes. Then the mansion erupts, high-pitched screams pouring out of the doors.
Glass shatters. Guests flood the courtyard in a wave of glittering gowns and black tuxedos, panic replacing laughter.
The bass inside cuts abruptly, replaced by chaos and shouted commands.
Jude stiffens, every muscle in his body coiled painfully tight.
“Jude!”
My head snaps over to see Adriana bursting through the doors, scanning frantically.
“Jude!” she calls again, breathless, eyes wild.
The blonde man who escorted her earlier is nowhere to be seen.
She spots him, and relief floods her face for a brief moment before her eyes land on me.
Her mouth falls open, understanding dawning.
But instead of stepping back or questioning, she goes straight to his side.
Her hand finds his arm like she belongs there.
Hot and viscous anger ignites in my chest, sharper and more volatile than the fear.
“Save him, please,” she begs.
She might as well have punched me in the face. Before I can respond, movement flashes in my peripheral vision. My heart stutters as I watch Rafe and Adela emerge from the side of the building like war incarnate, both of them streaked with blood, guns still raised.
They’re alive.
Relief crashes through me so hard my knees nearly give out. I hadn’t realized how tightly I was holding that fear inside, how convinced I was that at least one of them wasn’t coming back out. Adela’s gaze locks on us all standing there.
Jude turns at the sight of them, Adriana still clutching his arm. His breathing shifts, and then he pulls out his gun. It happens in a blink. One smooth, efficient motion.
He raises it, pointing it straight at Micah.
“No—” I breathe, but the word barely forms.
Micah goes completely still. His hands hover slightly at his sides, not reaching for his own weapon, not moving to defend himself. His face…it crumples. Not in fear.
In heartbreak.
“Jude,” he says quietly, voice cracking in a way I’ve never heard before. “Please.”
The barrel doesn’t waver. Jude’s expression is empty. Like his soul has burned away. His finger curls slightly against the trigger.
Adriana looks between them, confusion and horror twisting her features. “Jude, what are you doing?”
Micah swallows hard. I can see the shine in his eyes even in the low light. “It’s me,” he says. “You know me. I’m really here.”
Rafe shifts his stance, gun angled. Adela mirrors him on the opposite side. They’re ready.
“Hey,” I whisper, stepping forward despite the terror clawing at me. “Please. Look at him.”
His eyes flicker. Just barely. Everything suddenly feels suspended, like I’m experiencing it all in slow motion, waiting to see if he kills his best friend like he almost just killed me. For one terrible second, I think he’s going to pull the trigger. My entire body goes cold.
Please please please—
Rafe exhales like he’s run out of patience with the entire universe. “Oh, for fuck's sake.”
The gunshot explodes before my brain can catch up.
I scream, and Jude staggers, collapsing to one knee. It takes me a fractured beat to understand that Rafe didn’t shoot to kill. He shot to drop him. Before Jude can recover or swing the gun back up, Rafe is already on him, driving the syringe into Jude’s neck with zero hesitation.
Adriana shrieks as a bullet ricochets off the shed behind us.
Micah lunges forward to disarm Jude fully, wrenching the gun from his grip as he struggles weakly, fury flashing in his eyes. He looks feral.
“Hold him,” Rafe snaps.
Jude sways, but before the sedative can drag him under completely, his hand shoots out and fists into Rafe’s collar, yanking him down with surprising strength. Their faces are inches apart.
Jude’s eyes burn. “Take her,” he forces out, voice thick and desperate. “Take her, too.” His gaze flicks toward Adriana.
He means...her.
Everything inside me freezes solid.
Why does he care about her? What…why?
Rafe doesn’t argue, and then Jude’s grip loosens, his body going slack.
Adriana’s head snaps back towards the mansion, where the blonde man is running towards us, a gun aimed in our direction. “Hurry! We need to go!”
“Move!” Rafe barks.
Gunfire erupts from the mansion doors again. More men spill out, armed to the teeth.
Oh shit, shit, shit—
Nico and Kieran sprint toward us. Car doors are yanked open so hard they slam against their hinges. Micah helps haul Jude up, blood soaking through his pant leg. They shove him into the back seat like they’re loading a body. Heather and Micah scramble into the third row back seats.
“You fucking bitch!” The blonde man shouts at Adriana, pulling the trigger.
She jolts back, blood bursting from her shoulder. Her scream is painful and scared, a sound that I hate to hear, even if I hate her. She stumbles into the car behind Jude, his legs in her lap, and her face pale like she’s about to vomit.
I climb in without thinking, sliding across the seat and pulling Jude’s head into my lap before the door even shuts. His skin is warm, and a sob explodes from me. We’ve got him. He’s here. If I die right now, at least I’ll die knowing that he’s in my arms again.
My Jude.
Nico dives into the passenger seat. Kieran is already behind the wheel.
“Go, go, go!” Rafe shouts from outside.
The engine roars to life. Behind us, Adela and Rafe don’t get in.
Instead, they turn towards the violence, and they fire.
Muzzle flashes light up the lawn like violent strobe lights.
Men chasing us drop. Some of the fleeing guests are caught in the crossfire, collapsing into the grass like ragdolls. The sight punches the air out of me.
Heather screams, hands flying over her eyes. “Oh my god—oh my god—”
Micah pulls her into his chest, shielding her face, even as his own expression is wrecked.
Bullets ping against the side of our car, one of the bullets zipping between our heads and cutting a clean hole through the windshield. We all scream, and Kieran floors it. We tear off the pavement and onto the narrow forest road, tires spitting gravel, engine screaming as trees swallow us whole.
I whirl around to ensure my friends weren’t hit, and thankfully, they both nod, as in reassuring me.
“Are they going to be okay?” I choke out, trying to see through the rear window. “Rafe and Adela—”
Nico starts laughing. It’s wild and almost unhinged. “Okay?” he repeats, glancing back at me with blood splattered across his jaw. “They’re more than okay. He wasn’t trapped in a room with those fuckers. They were trapped in a room with him.”
Another sharp turn. The mansion disappears behind a wall of trees. No headlights follow. Just darkness. Stunned silence settles inside the car. I look down at Jude. His head is heavy on my lap. One hand rests limply against my thigh. I brush his hair back from his forehead with shaking fingers.
“Put your hands on his leg to slow the bleeding,” I command, my gaze locking with Adriana’s as she holds her shoulder.
She nods, abandoning her own wound immediately and placing her hands on Jude’s. “What the fuck are you guys doing here?”
“Saving you, dumbass,” Nico calls from the front seat. “Clearly.”
She scowls. “Where are we going? Alexei’s going to find you—”
“No, he’s not,” Nico answers swiftly.
She glares at him. “Oh, you’re fucking stupid if you think he won’t.”
Nico groans, suddenly turning up the music.
Kieran bats his hand away. “Dude, chill the fuck out.”
“She’s pissing me off,” Nico snaps.
Adriana finally quiets, focusing on Jude’s leg instead. I tear my gaze away from her, finding it insane that his abuser is here, and that he even wanted her to be. It’s hard to ignore the pang of betrayal. Why did he protect her?
“You’re okay,” I whisper, even though he can’t hear me.
Behind me, Heather is trembling uncontrollably now that the adrenaline is draining out of her system.
Her teeth chatter, her breaths coming in shallow gasps.
Micah holds her tighter, staring out the back window like he’s waiting to see if we’re doomed or not.
I check again, too. There’s nothing. But that doesn’t ease the knot in my stomach.
Because Rafe and Adela are still back there.
Still fighting. And the forest road ahead of us feels endless.