“Sis. It’s over. Let’s go.”
Sis looked up at Devin. “I loved him.”
“This isn’t love, Sis. Don’t blame this on love. Love is good.”
Sis closed her eyes. Like that would make the words go away.
“And this isn’t hurt either… I know hurt. This isn’t loss. And it isn’t grief. But it definitely isn’t love.”
At that moment, she heard a call from the hallway. “ALL CLEAR. Defused. ALL CLEAR.”
Devin felt relief wash over her like she’d never be able to describe. It was physical – like a wave that went from the top of her head to her toes and back. And she made a mental note that she would never find a fog machine cheesy ever again.
Sis rubbed her eyebrow anxiously. She covered her eyes and started crying.
Devin put her hand on Sis’s shoulder. “Sis, let’s go.”
Sis gathered herself, she wiped away some tears. “You were everything good, you know?”
Devin took her hand back. She listened. She felt that’s what Sis needed to be finished with this. Just fucking listen. Let her say it and this’ll be over.
“You were everything good in the world in one person. One young woman. You made me feel like I could go on.”
Devin didn’t say anything. There wasn’t anything to say.
Sis wiped a tear away. She suddenly looked incredibly tired.
She looked far away. Like remembering. Or going somewhere else. The she focused again. On Devin. She looked sad and broken.
“But you were wrong.”
“You did go on.”
Sis shook her head. “No… I didn’t. Not me. Someone else went on.”
Devin shook her head too. But at the shame of it. She held Sis’s gaze. “But you could have.”
Sis closed her eyes again for a moment. It was as if she could hide from the truth that way.
Devin shook her head again. What a waste this was. “You could have,” she said again.
“No…”
“People do. People do go on.”
Sis just shook her head.
“He would have wanted me to…” she said.
“Yeah, Sis. He would have… You didn’t do this for him. You did this for you.”
“I know…” she said quietly. Then it hit her. “I’m sorry, Andy…” she whispered.
Devin stood up from the console. “Okay, Sis. Time to go. It’s over.” Devin eyed the gun in front of Sis. She reached for it, time for this to be over.
But before she could, Sis Warren grabbed it and held it up to her head.
“Yes, Devin Jones. It’s time for this to be over.”
She pulled the trigger and shot herself in the head. Devin jumped back from the sound and the sight.
At that moment, the door slammed open and ten SWAT guys came streaming in.
They came right up to Devin, then saw Sis with the gun in her hand.
Devin stopped for a moment and looked at Sis. She looked at the shame of it all. She looked at what could have happened to her own heart if she hadn’t chosen a different path. Loss can make you fight for something good or want to destroy everything good. Devin thought the choice was so clear it was obvious. Looking at Sis slumped over the console with blood pouring out of her head, she realized it wasn’t that obvious to everyone.
Devin patted the SWAT guy on the arm who’d run right to her rescue. She smiled weakly, she didn’t have any more in her. “Thanks…”
She turned and walked out of the room. She didn’t want to deal with one more minute of this.
She walked along the corridor, everything around her seemed different. Just sounds and haze. She only focused on her own heart beating. She was alive. She only focused on what was in front of her.
She came out into the theater and walked up the aisle towards the exit, the place was now teeming with police. She acknowledged congratulations from fellow officers but nothing was sinking in. She smiled a bit but kept walking. It was like her hearing was turned off.
Out in the lobby, the doors were now open. She saw the C4 now dismantled and defused and covered in liquid nitrogen. She knew she’d been responsible for that. But she didn’t care.
Devin stepped through the open door into the beautiful night air. She breathed deeply. The beautiful smell of Los Angeles at night. She made her way down the red carpeted stairs and then down the red carpet itself towards the police barricade.
She barely noticed all the people around, cheering her, pictures being taken. She didn’t notice any of it. She looked in front of her and there behind the barricade she saw her best friend. Brad. Standing there smiling at her.
She walked faster the rest of the way about thirty feet. At the last minute one of the patrol officers recognized her and moved the barricade aside. She walked right into Brad’s arms and they hugged. Finally it all caught up with Devin. She buried her face in his shoulder and cried. For what was probably five minutes. But seemed like an eternity.
Finally she lifted her face to his. “Can we get out of here?”
He laughed. “Thought you’d never ask.”
Brad tossed his jacket around Devin’s bare shoulders and they walked along through the crowd to a waiting police car. Devin smiled at the cop who held the door for her. “Thanks.”
Devin got into the back of the police car with Brad.
Inside the car, it all seemed so much quieter. Devin heard the tap tap of the officer outside indicating to the driver to go and the police car started through the crowd, doing the little bleeps and bloops of the siren on and off. Lights going.
Devin turned to Brad. “Oh, sorry. Did you bring your car?”
Brad laughed. “No, Armand drove me.” He gently wiped a tear away for her. “Although I thought we’d be leaving in a limo, so I’m a little disappointed.”
Devin laughed. “Yeah, sorry.”
Brad put his arm around her. “That’s okay. You did save a buncha people and a building from being blown up. We can take a limo next time.”
“Yeah,” Devin said, “Next time.”
She laughed a bit. Then she leaned on him as she watched the lights of Hollywood Boulevard go by. She used to love this street at night. She knew she probably would again.
104
Caitlin O’Brien gathered the three leashes up in her hand as rounded the corner up Weepah to Utica Drive, where her little canine charges loved taking their daily walk.
The sun was shining on this gorgeous L.A. day. Caitlin couldn’t think of anything except Devin Jones. She hoped she would be outside her house. But after a night like last night she’d probably be on vacation or something.
Caitlin came up around the corner. She looked up at Devin’s house. Her heart sank. No Devin. But then she saw her. She was sitting on the stairs. Caitlin hadn’t been able to see from the angle she was at. She was sitting there in jeans and a t-shirt and sandals. Like she was just having a nice day off. Not like she’d basically saved the world the night before.
Caitlin wasn’t sure what to say. “Hey…” she managed.
Devin didn’t answer her. “
Oh great,” Caitlin thought. “She thinks I’m a fucking loser. ‘Hey’ like I couldn’t come up with anything better to say. I’m such an idiot! God. Why did I come up here today? She’s going to think I’m a…”
At that moment, Devin stood up.
“Oh GREAT!” Caitlin thought. “Now she’s going inside. Great! I’m such a…”
But she didn’t go inside. She walked right over to Caitlin. She still hadn’t said anything. Caitlin was getting even more nervous as Devin walked towards her. “Is she going to arrest me? Get a restraining order? Why isn’t she saying anything?? God, she’s beautiful”
Devin got to Caitlin. She looked right in her eyes. Caitlin felt her stomach flip-flop and like someone set off a sparkler in there. Suddenly Devin took Caitlin’s face in her hands, and without saying a word, leaned in and kissed her. Tentatively at first. So gently. Just pressed her lips a
gainst Catlin’s. Her amazing lips. Then she pulled back and looked right into Caitlin’s eyes. Almost checking. Then she pulled Caitlin in towards her and kissed her again. This time with passion. This time with tongue. It was far and away the most amazing kiss Caitlin O’Brien had ever experienced. If she could drop the leashes let the dogs run free and put her hands on Devin Jones’s face right now she so would have.
Devin took her hands from Caitlin’s face and slipped them around her waist as she went in for an even deeper kiss. This girl was a great kisser. She didn’t want to stop, but there were three impatient mismatched dogs attached to their kiss.
Devin pulled back gently. She stared right into Caitlin’s soulful dark brown eyes.
Devin ran her fingertips along Caitlin’s full lips. What a great smile. She’d loved it from across the street so many times, and now it was hers. It was her smile to adore up close whenever she wanted.
To be loved. To love and be loved. Shit. So simple. This wasn’t like anything else ever before.
After last night she knew life would never be the same. And as of this moment she knew her heart would never be the same.
And that was okay.
This is Devin Jones Page 23