by Tijan
of Jace’s eyes, but his boss was clueless. He pointed at Tray. “I thought you were supposed to have taken care of him years ago?”
Jace was barely moving. He stood as still as a statue, but he moved to the side two steps. He moved with such grace it was like watching an animal getting ready to attack.
My free hand tightened on Tray’s arm. He felt me shaking, and his finger started to rub over mine, trying to soothe me.
Galverson cast his employee a dark look, and then swung back to us. He jerked his chin up as he said, “You, girl, since this wacko seems mute now, tell me who you are.”
“I’m Taryn.” I stopped. They heard the trembling in my voice. Brian’s face flashed in my mind. The shaking stopped. His memory steadied me, and I remembered the loathing I had for Jace again. He was the reason for all of this. I raised my chin and my eyes narrowed. “You took something of mine. I took it back.”
There was a moment of silence. Tray stiffened in front of me.
Galverson started laughing. It sounded genuine, like I was a comedian for his personal pleasure. He pointed his finger at me. “You’re funny.” He glanced to the side. “You didn’t tell me she was a joker.”
Jace still didn’t say a word. His entire face was a mask now. I was trying to read him, to see if there was any of the old Jace still there, but a cold stranger stared back at me.
“You’re like a robot.” The words slipped out of me before I could catch myself.
Galverson swung back to me. A speculative gleam formed in his eyes, and his finger moved to stroke his chin. He pointed to Jace, but said to me, “You care for him.”
My hand moved from Tray’s arm, and I flattened it against his back. I said, “No. I don’t.” I waited a brief moment. “But I used to, before I realized how much of a monster he is.” My eyes held Jace’s. His was void of expression. He was so empty. I told him, “You’re standing next to the man that killed your brother. What happened to you?”
A flicker of emotion appeared in his eyes, but it was gone in an instant. I wasn’t sure if I had seen it. It happened so fast. Galverson was watching him too. He asked, “Is that true?” Then he started laughing again. “You’ve always been a monster to me. That’s a good one.” He was shaking his head, but his phone beeped and he took it from where it was clipped to his pants. Reading the screen, he grunted and pointed at us. “The boat’s coming. Go on. Kill them. It’s time to go.”
Jace raised his gun.
“Wait!” I cried out, my heart racing. I was grasping for straws. “There’s DEA here. If you kill us, they’ll know. There’s proof we’re here.”
Galverson whipped his head to Jace.
The two shared a look, but Jace motioned to the edge of the tunnel with his gun. “Come on. Line up.”
Oh god.
We didn’t move so Jace started for us. “I’m not kidding. Move, Taryn. Your boyfriend too.”
Tray let go of me, but he didn’t move. He started to tap the side of my hip, then moved his shoulders a tiny bit, jostling the gun in my hand. As he did, he tapped again quicker. He was giving me a message. Then his shoulder moved forward, as if motioning at Jace. He went back to jostling the gun with his shirt and tapped even harder this time.
He wanted me to shoot Jace. I patted him on the back, confirming I understood and then he stopped. Jace moved closer. Then we heard Galverson behind him, saying, “Yeah. We’re in the tunnel. Complete evacuation. Have the trucks cover us.” He paused, then hissed out, “DEA is here. Send all the guards.”
They weren’t going down without a fight. I was watching Jace, still trying to search if the guy who brought me soda and ice cream was still in there. His eyes narrowed, like he knew what I was doing and if possible, he became even harder. “Move, Taryn. Now!”
I jerked at the hatred in his tone.
“Come on, man,” Tray started. He held his hand up.
I calculated the distance. He couldn’t lunge for him. Jace would shoot him. It was up to me.
Then Galverson cried out, “Let’s go. Kill them. We’re on a time table.”
“Get the fuck over there.” Jace snarled, gesturing to the tunnel’s edge again.
Slowly, we began backing up. We needed as much time as we could get. As Tray shuffled me backwards, his hand moved back to my hip so he was still holding me. I started to look for the best angle to shoot from. I wanted Jace and Galverson lined up. I wasn’t wasting time. I was aiming for the chest. I could do it.
Jace’s voice came back to me as I remembered, ”Don’t think. Pull the trigger.”
I had asked, “And afterwards?”
“It’s you or them. When they fall, watch their chest. Don’t look in their eyes. Once they stop breathing, turn around and go. You’re the one walking away. That’s what you have to tell yourself.”
I was going to walk away. When we got to the edge, I tapped Tray on the arm. I was ready. It was time to do this.
Time slowed.
Galverson bellowed out again, “Kill him. Christ, what’s the hold-up? You didn’t hesitate to kill his dad. Find your balls again, Lanser.”
Tray drew in a sharp breath. “My dad?”
I bit down on my lip.
Jace didn’t react. He didn’t show any remorse. He only raised his hands again and took aim. Hearing shouts from back in the tunnel, he wavered and glanced back. Galverson was on his phone, but he flung his hand in the air and snarled. Then Tray lunged for Jace at that moment.
It happened so quickly.
I was left, stunned, as Tray was in the air. His hands went out to tackle Jace, and Galverson’s eyes went wide. Jace twisted back around. He dodged Tray, brought his elbow up and clocked him in the nose. Tray fell to the side, but he tucked his shoulder to help absorb the impact and kicked his leg. Jace blocked his leg, grabbed his shoulder, and turned the gun so he was holding the end. He was going to hit him with it.
I yelled out, “STOP!”
He didn’t. He rained it down, hitting Tray above the nose. My stomach rolled over at the sound of it. Tray tried to move aside, but Jace had him trapped. He couldn’t move. I raised the gun. “Jace, I mean it.” I turned the safety off. “Stop. NOW!”
He glanced up, then did a double take. His hand let go in an instant
Tray scrambled out from his hold, then stood to the side. I looked for a brief second, to make sure he was okay. When I looked back, Jace had his gun pointed at me. It was him and me now. I stared at him, feeling all the old layers of laughter, times he was my teacher, times he was my friend, times when he comforted me, and when he took me to my new home. One by one, those memories peeled away. He had been family. That was gone as well. There was nothing left.
“You’re a killer.”
Jace didn’t respond. He moved forward.
I moved back, just one step. The tunnel’s edge was right behind me now. “Stop, Jace.”
“What are you going to do, Taryn?” Finally. The stranger fell away, and the guy who had loved his brother stood in front of me now. He began to move so his back was to the wall.
I frowned. What was he doing?
Then Galverson stepped forward. He had a gun pulled as well, but it was held at his side. He was silent, watching us.
Jace continued, “If you fall, you die. If you don’t, you still die.” His hand loosened on the gun and he softened his tone, “What are you going to do, Taryn?”
I didn’t understand what he was doing. “Are you trying to bait me?”
He stared at me, long and hard.
“Taryn.” Tray was glaring at Jace, but he pointed to the river. I glanced down and saw three boats below, moving to place a net in the water. My heart couldn’t sink anymore, it really was over. If we jumped, they would catch us. There was no hope.
“You and Brian were like my family.”
Jace didn’t waver. “We were your family.”
I flinched. “Then why? Why all this?”
“Because you were supposed to stay away,” h
e ground out. His eyes flashed a heated warning and he moved forward a step.
“Stop,” Tray held his hands out. “Stop.” His hand whipped up, I glimpsed a knife, but before let it loose, Jace swung his gun to him instead. Tray faltered and the knife fell to the ground.
“No! God, no.” I hurried to Tray’s side, but he held me away.
Jace shouted at the same time, “Move back, Taryn.”
More shouts were coming from the tunnel. There were men all around us, and Galverson let out a growl. “For fuck’s sake. This is enough.” He brought his gun up. It was pointed at Tray. He was going to shoot him; I saw it in his eyes. I moved without thinking. Tray couldn’t die. I threw myself in front of him, yelling, “NO!”
“No!” Jace jerked forward.
Tray fell back, but he grabbed me, trying to cushion my fall. It was too late. We were going backwards. As we tipped through the air and fell from the tunnel, I looked back. Galverson hurried to the edge. He was going to shoot at us, but Jace, never looking away from me, raised his hand to the side, and shot him instead.
I opened my mouth, shocked.
Galverson fell to the side. I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Jace shot him in the side of his head. Galverson was dead. We were going to die and Jace was alive.
It was too late. Nothing mattered anymore.
There was no more fight in me so I turned it all off. I savored the feel of the air and the last moments of freedom. Another memory came to me, and I could hear Brian’s voice whisper to me, ”Remember when we used to pretend we were flying?” I had laughed, saying, “You’re high, Brian.”
He shrugged with a small pout. “But it’s the most amazing feeling, Taryn. Try it. Pretend you’re flying.”
I didn’t have to pretend. I closed my eyes and I soared.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Everything happened in a blur after that. When we hit the water, we were grabbed and pulled aboard a boat. I went in one and Tray went in the other. Then they took off. I wasn’t paying attention—I didn’t want to see who would be torturing us—but when I was guided to a comfortable seat in the back and two large towels were placed on my lap, I looked up. My mouth fell open.
There were no guards with rifles strapped to their backs. The men wore black coats that had the words DEA on them. I was in a boat full of DEA agents. I rubbed at my eyes and saw the same thing again. One of the men caught my reaction and grinned. He leaned closer to me. “You weren’t expecting us?”
“How…” I had no idea what to ask. “A man just killed another man up there. What are you doing? Aren’t you going after him?”
He pressed something warm into my hand and patted my shoulder. “One thing at a time, kid. Everything is being handled and all your questions will be answered.” He nodded to me. A thread of respect was in his voice. “We got your friend. The one you went in for. He’s okay. He’s being treated by our doctors already.”
Thank god. I looked down, and a small laugh bubbled up.
He started to turn back, but gave me a quizzical look.
I held the thermos up to him. “You gave me hot chocolate.” He called me kid too.
He frowned.
Before I knew it, I felt a stupid smile stretch over my face. I couldn’t contain it or even dim it. I must’ve looked ridiculous. I didn’t care. For once, I didn’t feel any responsibility. Gray was alive. I was alive. Tray was alive. I didn’t have to save anyone or protect anyone, the cards would fall how they would fall. I turned to look for Tray and that relieved feeling plummeted.
He was in the other boat, sitting in the same seat I was, except the towels weren’t wrapped around him. He held them on his lap as if he didn’t realize they were there, and there was no hot chocolate given to him. As I watched now, an officer tried to hand him a thermos, but Tray didn’t acknowledge him.
He lost his father.
My responsibility was now Tray.
I watched him the entire time. He glanced at me once. The corners of his mouth lifted up in a brief smile and then he turned away again. As soon as the boats docked and we were allowed to leave, I broke through the crowd to get to him. People grabbed for me, but I evaded their hands. “Miss,” one called after me, “we need to question you.”
“Let her go.” I recognized that voice. Chance, Tray’s older brother, was there and he said further, “We’ll get their statements in a few hours. They’ve been through enough.”
I ducked around another officer and then was at Tray’s side. My hand slipped into his before I realized I was there and after a slight hesitation, he squeezed my hand and pulled me into his side. His arm wrapped around me, resting on my hip.
We were led to a black SUV and I sat next to Tray, scooting so close that my leg was pressed right next to his. Comforting someone wasn’t my thing. I didn’t like to be comforted and I felt awkward when I tried to comfort others. It was hard to search for words that would ease someone else’s pain and in this case, there were none. I only hoped my presence would help. When Tray rested his hand on my leg, rubbing it back and forth in an absent-minded motion, I knew he wasn’t going to push me away. I stuck to him like glue until the SUV came to a stop. As we got out, I paused.
Tray got out behind me, his hand came to rest on my hip again, and he turned to the side. “Your headquarters is my house?”
Chance flashed him a grin. His hand raised to the radio attached to his shoulder, and he pressed the side of it, saying, “We’ve arrived at home base.” He released the button and said to Tray, “Literally.”
Tray shook his head. “You’re still annoying.”
It was meant as a tease, but the hollow sound from him caught his brother’s attention. Chance frowned, studying his brother for a moment. Tray acted like he didn’t notice. A glazed look was in his eyes, and I knew he was remembering Galverson’s words from the tunnel. Then Chance caught my eye and raised an eyebrow in question. I looked away. It wasn’t my place to say anything.
“Well, okay then,” Chance mused. He pointed inside. “I had the guys stay out of Mom and Dad’s old room. I saw you two have been using it. Go ahead, shower, sleep, and eat. Do whatever you need to rest up.”
Tray nodded and started forward.
“Taryn,” Chance called me back.
Tray stopped and waited. I knew what his brother was going to ask so I waved him forward. “Go ahead. I’ll be right in.”
He nodded, but it was a half nod. As he left, his shoulders were still strong and straight, but there was a slight droop to them. No one noticed. His brother only caught it just now, but Tray was in pain, like the deep aching pain that buried deep inside a person and took root, never to leave. I understood because I felt it too. Mine was named Brian.
“What gives?” Chance interrupted my thoughts. He was frowning in the direction Tray had gone. “We have a lot of stuff to go over, but what happened up there?”
“The guy on the boat said you found Gray. He’s okay?” I was stalling. I wasn’t ashamed of that.
His frown deepened and he scratched his head. “You’re not going to tell me, are you?”
I hesitated and then said, “I would like an update on Gray.”
“Okay. Fine. Your friend was taken to a government medical facility. He was mainly dehydrated. He’ll stay there to recuperate. When he’s cleared by the doctors, he’s free to go.”
As those words left him, a sense of finality filled me. It really was over now. “Thank you.” I started to go again.
“Taryn.”
I didn’t look at him, but I paused.
“You two will have to undergo an intense debriefing with myself and other officers. You will tell me what happened up there.”
I half-turned to him. My heart was upstairs, wherever Tray was. “You will get all the information, but what you’re asking about is personal, and it isn’t for me to tell you.” With that said, I left.
Different members of the DEA were in every room. Laptops, printers, fax machines, and other machine
s were placed on the kitchen table. I knew people were sitting there and working. Others were in the living room. A few were coming down the hallway. All of them paused as they saw me, but I ignored every single one of them. I only had one place and one person I needed to be with. When I got to the master bedroom, the shower was on. I didn’t pause. After locking the door, I went to the bathroom. Tray was inside, a hand braced against the wall, and his head was bent forward. The water was streaming down on him.
He turned, saw me there, and leaned against the far wall of the shower. He was still in his pants and shirt. The water pelted down on him, making his clothes cling to him.
He was beautiful. And I couldn’t move for a moment. God, I