by Lola StVil
“Earth to Atlas,” Perry says.
“Sorry…what?” I say, turning back to the team.
Perry laughs.
“God, girl, you’re practically salivating,” he comments.
I punch him playfully on the arm.
“No, I’m not,” I protest.
“Well, the only other reason you’re ignoring us is that you’re too much of a pussy to join in the game,” Perry says.
“What game?” I ask.
“It’s called ‘Down It,’ and the aim of it is to drink five shots in ten seconds,” he says.
“You just made that up, didn’t you?” I say, raising an eyebrow.
“Yup,” he says. “Wanna play?”
I nod. “Bring it on,” I say.
I’m lifting my fifth shot to my lips when I see Kane crossing the club. He’s walking with a purpose, and he’s frowning. I look in the direction he’s heading in, and I see Talon standing just inside the entrance to the club.
Great. Way to ruin the mood.
“I’ll be right back,” I say.
“That means I win,” I hear Perry calling after me as I catch up to Kane.
We exchange a look and march over to Talon.
“What the hell are you doing here? Haven’t you and your sadistic girlfriend done enough?” I snap at him.
I wait for the sarcastic comeback, tensed, ready to take him down if he’s here for a battle, but none of it comes. I look him up and down, and I notice that he’s different. His usual cocky demeanor is gone. He stands awkwardly, looking down at the floor, and when he looks up at us, his face looks haunted.
“Talon? What is it?” Kane asks.
Even though they’re on different sides now, it’s obvious Kane still cares for Talon. After what they went through together, it’s understandable. A bond like that doesn’t break.
Kane looks at me, his expression worried when Talon doesn’t answer him. I shrug helplessly. I don’t know what to tell him. Part of me thinks this whole thing is just another trick, but part of me senses Talon’s upset is real.
“Seriously. What is it?” Kane asks again, putting his hand on Talon’s arm.
Talon finally meets Kane’s eyes.
He answers quietly,
“It’s Marlon Cray. He’s out.”
As Talon says the words, I see something inside of Kane die a little. His shoulders slump, and his face drops, his skin turning pale. It’s like he’s a lost little boy again. There’s almost a fear behind his eyes.
“Wait, what did you say? I thought I heard…” Kane starts.
“You heard me correctly,” Talon says.
“Fuck,” Kane says, regaining some composure.
“I said he’s out,” Talon says.
“And you know where he is?” Kane asks.
Talon nods.
“So, what are we waiting for? Let’s go,” he says.
“Wait,” I say. “Who the hell is Marlon Cray?”
Kane turns to me and puts his hands on my shoulders and looks deep into my eyes.
“Marlon Cray is the guy who ruined my life,” he spits out.
“He was the guy who ran the Market. And I vowed that if this day ever came, the day when they let that scumbag out of prison, that I’d be the one to kill him.”
I can hear the rest of the team behind us now. They can see something intense is going down between Kane and me, but the music is too loud for them to hear what is being said.
Kane goes on.
“Atlas, I know you won’t approve of that, but I need you to just let me do this. Okay?”
“What the fuck is he doing here?” Saudia asks from behind us, nodding at Talon.
“I didn’t come here for a fight,” Talon replies.
Kane turns back to him, and he goes on.
“I came because, despite everything, you’re still my best friend, Kane. And I know you need to kill that bastard as much as I do. Are you coming or what?”
Kane gives a barely perceptible nod. I don’t have time to talk him out of it here, but I can’t let him go alone. I grab his arm as Talon does the same, knowing if they teleport away, I’ll never find them.
Langston grabs onto my other arm.
“You need us?” she asks.
I shake my head. “No. This is something I have to do alone,” I tell her.
She lets go of me just as we disappear from the club. We come out to a wooden lake house. It sits at the end of a pier with a small boat docked there. A silver Range Rover sits beside the lake house.
“See that?” Talon says to me, nodding towards the car.
“I know you’re all prissy about murder, but the fact is, we were just kids, and what he did to us paid for that. He hasn’t been punished. He’s free to live his life in luxury now. How the fuck is that right?”
I wince. I know what he’s saying has truth to it, but there has to be a better way. Killing this man, no matter how much he deserves it, could send Kane back to darkness.
“Kane, please. Just hear me out,” I say.
Talon shakes his head. “There’s nothing to debate,” he says.
Kane turns his attention to Talon.
“Give us a minute, okay? We’ve waited our whole lives for this moment. Another five minutes won’t hurt,” he says.
“Whatever, man,” Talon says. “Just don’t let her talk you out of this.”
Kane focuses on me, and I know I only have one shot at talking him out of this.
“Kane, listen to me. You don’t have to do this. I know what he did to you was barbaric, but killing him won’t change that. All it will do is make you feel worse because you’re good now, and the guilt you’ll feel at ending another life, even one so unworthy, will eat at you,” I say.
“That’s bullshit,” Talon cuts in. His voice breaks. “You don’t know what it was like in there. What he did to us. He didn’t just take our innocence. He took all of us. Every single thing that made us human, he took from us. He turned us into animals.”
Talon clears his throat, and the vulnerability is gone, replaced with venom that scares me in its intensity.
“That man deserves to die a horrible, painful death. And Kane and I vowed that we would see that’s what he got. Together,” Talon adds.
I look back at Kane, and I’m horrified to see that same intense hatred burning on his face.
“I don’t know what to do,” Kane admits.
“Yes, you do,” Talon says. “Fuck, Kane, we’ve waited for this forever. It’s the closest either of us will ever get to redemption. You know exactly what to do, you just don’t want Atlas to see what you’re capable of.”
Talon turns to me.
“If you stop him from doing this, there will always be a part of him that will hate you for it,” he says.
“That’s enough, Talon,” Kane snaps.
I notice he doesn’t deny it and I can’t help but wonder if it’s true. Would I feel the same if it was the other way around? I can’t help but think I would, but I also think deep down I’d want him to talk me out of it, to make me see there was a better way to handle it.
“If you don’t care enough about Kane to see this is the right thing to do for him, then think of all the other kids out there who Marlon is now free to hurt,” Talon says to me.
“I said that’s enough,” Kane yells. “Both of you, just be quiet and let me fucking think.”
Talon and I both fall silent, exchanging glares. Kane scrubs at his face with his hands.
Part of me thinks this is the hardest decision he’s ever had to make, but part of me thinks he’s already made the decision. He knew from the second Talon said the name that he wanted to end him. And this indecision, this mental torment, is because of me.
I’m tearing him apart, making him the prize in a game of tug-of-war, and it’s not right, but what else can I do?
As much as I hate this Marlon Cray guy for what he did to Kane and those other kids, he’s still human, and I can’t just stand by and let
Kane kill him. Can I?
Kane finally looks at me, and I can tell by the set of his face that he’s doing this.
“Atlas, I’m sorry, but I have to do this. I don’t expect you to be okay with it, but I hope you can at least understand,” he says.
I nod. I do understand. I glance at Talon, expecting to see that evil glee back on his face, but I don’t. He doesn’t look smug. He looks relieved. And that’s when I know. This isn’t about turning Kane back to the dark side for Talon. It’s about closure. It’s about finally being able to close the door on the atrocities of their childhood. It’s about moving on. And I definitely get that.
“Please, just leave,” Kane says to me. “You don’t need to see what we’re about to do.”
I shake my head.
“No,” I say. “I’m not letting you do this alone. You’re right—I’m not okay with it, but I do understand why you feel like you have to do it. And if you’re going in there, then so am I.”
Kane looks like he’s ready to argue the point, but he doesn’t. Instead, he just nods.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he says as the three of us walk towards the lake house door.
Talon kicks the door, and it flies open, rebounding off the wall. A middle-aged man sits on a chair watching the TV. He jumps to his feet when the door slams open, the color draining from his face when he sees the three of us standing in his doorway.
“What the hell?” he says.
He doesn’t get to say anymore. Talon is across the room already, and he punches Marlon hard in the face. Marlon’s head flies back and blood bursts from his lips. He looks at Talon, fear written all over his face now. Kane gives me one last look and crosses the room. He takes Marlon’s head in both of his hands and brings his knee up, slamming Marlon’s face onto it.
He lets go of Marlon as he slumps to the floor, dazed.
“My wallet is in my jacket pocket. Just take it,” he says.
I wince at the panic in his voice. I try to remind myself of what he’s done, what he’s capable of, but it’s hard. All I can see is a defenseless man being brutally attacked.
“It’s always about money for you, isn’t it?” Talon sneers.
He kicks Marlon hard in the ribs.
“What else could this be about? I don’t even know you,” Marlon whimpers.
Kane snorts and raises his foot. Marlon throws up a hand to stop the kick, and Kane’s foot connects with his fingers. The snapping sound of breaking bone followed by the screech of agony from Marlon make me feel sick, and I know I can’t just stand here and watch this. Whatever he’s done, this is enough.
“Stop,” I say, stepping forward. “Please. You’ve made your point.”
“We haven’t even come close,” Kane says.
His eyes don’t leave Marlon. His voice shakes with barely concealed rage.
“Did you hear what he said? He doesn’t even know us. After everything he put us through, he doesn’t even remember our faces. What kind of a man is that?” Kane bellows.
He kicks Marlon with each word. Talon does the same on Marlon’s other side, and I vaguely wonder how Marlon is still conscious.
“Who are you people?” Marlon screams. “Why are you doing this to me?”
Kane crouches down, and his eyes meet Marlon’s.
“My name is Liam Kane. And I’m doing this to you because you ruined my life. And for what? Money and some sick pleasure,” Kane says slowly.
I see the light of recognition come on in Marlon’s eyes, followed by the panic of a wild animal that knows it’s cornered and can smell its death on the air.
“I’m sorry,” Marlon pleads. “Really, I am.”
Kane straightens back up. Marlon is covered in a mixture of blood, snot, and tears. I step closer to the three of them, unsure of what to do.
Marlon peers up at me. I can see the hope in his eyes. He thinks I’ll be the one to stop this, to save him.
“Why did you do it?” I ask him.
Maybe if Kane can see for himself that Marlon was as desperate as he was, just in a different way, it’ll make him stop.
“It wasn’t anything personal. It was just business,” Marlon says.
His words have a strange effect on me. I feel like I’m in a bubble where only Marlon and I exist. I look at him, and instead of feeling revulsion at what’s being done to him, I feel revulsion at what he is.
How could he do that to children and then condone it because it was just business?
I’m aware of the room around me again. Talon and Kane have stopped their attack, as stunned as I am by Marlon’s words.
“You sick fuck,” I spit at him.
Before I can stop myself, I pull my foot back and kick Marlon in the face. His head flies back, and more blood sprays from his mouth and nose. He falls onto his back. He’s still conscious; I can hear his pathetic sniveling.
“Do whatever you need to do,” I say.
I speak mostly to Kane, but at that moment, I’m talking to Talon as well, and to every child who had the misfortune of meeting Marlon Cray.
I step away from them and turn my back on the scene unfolding behind me. I get it now. I get why Kane feels someone like Marlon doesn’t deserve to live. The world isn’t black and white, good and evil, and for the first time, I truly understand how you can kill a human and still be good. Because ridding the world of someone like him is doing humanity a favor.
I feel like I am shaming Kane by turning my back on the scene. As much as I don’t want to see it, I owe it to him to watch. To be there for him and show him that nothing will change between us because of this. Because it won’t.
I turn back. Marlon is unconscious now. Talon and Kane are punching and kicking at Marlon’s body, making the blows that they know will cause the most pain. They either don’t know or don’t care that he’s unconscious.
It’s like the humanity has left them; they are animals, acting on instinct alone, and for a horrible moment, I see the old Kane. The Kane that inflicted pain on people for his amusement. I try to remind myself this isn’t what’s happening here, but it’s hard.
It’s hard to see him like this and not try to stop him, but I can’t stop him. I have to let him do this, to exorcise the demons of his past and get the closure he deserves.
On some unseen signal, Talon and Kane stop their onslaught as one. Marlon is still alive. I can see his chest moving up and down feebly, and I can hear the tortured wetness of every breath he pulls in.
Kane pulls out his sword and raises it above Marlon’s neck. He starts to swing it in a downward arc towards Marlon. It’s so silent in the room I can hear it whistling through the air. At the last second, as the sword is about to sever Marlon’s head, Kane moves his arms to the side, and the sword comes down on the ground with a loud crack.
He puts the sword away and comes to me. He wraps me in his arms.
“I just couldn’t do it,” he whispers.
I can feel his body shaking, and I hold him tighter, wanting to offer him comfort and strength the way he has for me so many times.
He pulls out of my embrace as Talon roars. He has a dirty blade in his hand, which he uses to sever Marlon’s head. It’s a blunt blade, and he makes a back and forth sawing motion. Marlon’s body convulses, his eyes bulge open, and the veins in his forehead pop out until they implode.
I almost wish Kane had been able to do it. At least that would have been quick. And I wouldn’t have had to hear Marlon’s final, gurgling breaths, or the sound Talon’s knife makes as it cuts through the bone in Marlon’s neck. Those sounds will haunt me forever. But I don’t look away. I have to watch this. I have to let Kane know I’m supporting him.
“It’s finally over,” Kane says when Marlon’s head rolls free from its last piece of skin and rolls away.
Talon picks the severed head up and looks at it for a second. He tosses it to Kane, who catches it almost like a reflex action before dropping it to the ground, where it sits at his feet, its eyes looking up
at us, judging us.
“You’re damn right it’s over,” Talon snaps.
“After everything Marlon did to us and those other kids, you were willing to let him live. We’re not family. The big bad former Keysu, my best friend, my brother—you are nothing, Kane. You betrayed me, and from this moment, you are dead to me.”
He’s gone before Kane can react. Kane stands on the spot, his jaw clenched as he watches his best friend disappear out of his life for good.
Marlon is still watching us, and I nudge his head with my foot, turning it onto its face. The movement breaks the spell and Kane’s knees buckle; he falls into the chair behind him. If the chair hadn’t been there, I have no doubt he’d be sprawled across the floor now.
He looks out of it, spaced almost, his face frozen in a mask of horror. I sit down next to him.
“Kane?” I say gently.
He doesn’t answer. I reach out and touch his arm. He jumps away from me like my touch burns. He shakes his head, and I see some awareness come back into his face.
“Sorry,” he says.
I shake my head. I have no words. I want to tell him I’m proud of him for not killing Marlon, but I’m not sure that’s what he needs to hear now. I slip my hands around one of his, and this time he doesn’t pull away. He clings to me.
“Did I do the right thing?” he asks me finally.
He looks at me, and I feel as though he’s searching my soul for answers. His face is blank, and tears sit in his eyes.
“Yes,” I say firmly. “Does it matter who made the final blow? Marlon is dead either way, and he can’t hurt you anymore. He can’t hurt anyone.”
Kane stands up and begins pacing the floor. He’s starting to look more like his old self again.
“I guess I should be pleased I didn’t kill him so at least you don’t hate me,” he says.
“I wouldn’t have hated you,” I reply.
“I know. That was my awful attempt at making a joke to lighten the mood. It’ll take more than that I guess,” he says with a shaky smile.
He continues to pace.
“I don’t know what it is. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m not sorry he’s dead. He got exactly what he deserved. But I expected to feel different inside, and I don’t. I thought with him dead, I’d feel…I don’t know…free I guess. But I feel exactly the same. And now I’ve lost my brother, the only person who has always stood by me. And for what? To feel nothing?” he says.