Vendetta - Lane Sienna. Страница 36

In a moment of perfect clarity I realize there’s no point in all those deaths. It won't bring my family back. It was never really about my family, I realize bitterly. I was a pawn to my uncle, a way to get even more power. He used my loss to manipulate me. I'm probably saving my own life by leaving.

I squeeze her hand tighter, pulling her to me. I kiss her. I kiss her guilt-free, the way I should have kissed her all along. She responds, meeting my tongue with hers, her hand skimming my jaw. I cup her face with my palm, unable to pull away from her. When I finally do, I graze her cheek with my nose, loving the way she seems just as reluctant to leave me as I am to leave her. Our breaths mingle as I look into her icy blues, so much emotion in something so simple as eye contact.

And in this moment, I feel it in my bones. I know without a doubt, I’m doing the right thing. Something wet touches my fingers, and I wipe away the tear that slides down her cheek.

She steps back, a blank look on her face. Another step back. And another.

“Leighton, what's going on?”

She puts up her hand, shutting me up. She pulls out a gun from the jacket pocket.

A gun. I recognize it instantly—it's the one I had on me the night we caught her sneaking in this same parking lot. I tried not to take weapons into her room for fear I'd do this exact same thing she's doing right now.

She raises it with a trembling hand. It's shaking so hard I'm afraid she'll drop it, and kill herself or me by accident. She grips it with both her hands and points it at me, steadying the gun.

I watch, numb, as the snowflakes land on her face, melting the moment they touch lips I just kissed.

“I can’t lose my family, Devon.” It’s as simple as that.

I open my mouth to speak.

“No, let me finish.” She’s shivering; I can tell she’s cold. Why did I expect her to just let this go? “You’ve lost your family and that’s a horrible thing, but do you think if you do the same to me I’ll be able to ever look at you again?”

I look away, because that’s exactly what I thought. I thought we could leave and never look back, and just let everyone kill each other until they’re all gone. I only need her.

“Because that was never going to happen, Devon. I’m not letting them die if I can do something about it. It’s what you would have done, isn’t it? Isn’t it?” She yells the last part when I don’t answer her.

I nod reluctantly, because she’s right. I’d have done anything I could to stop what happened, but I was just a fucking kid. She can do something about it.

“Now, tell me, do you love me?”

She still has me at gunpoint. “You know I do.”

“Then come with me, and let’s figure this out. Let’s do something so no one has to die. Didn’t you have enough of death in your life?”

And snitch on my own family? I don’t think so. Whatever they did, however they used me for their own plans, no matter how many times I wished my uncle was dead because he didn’t accept me, I’d never betray them. It’s instilled in me. Family first. Everything else—my own life, Leighton’s love—everything else comes after that. Going away is the only option.

“No,” I say, knowing what will happen next. “And you know I can’t let you do that, either.”

She cocks the gun and shoots. Just like that. I find myself on the wet pavement, a dull ache shooting through my whole upper body. I raise my head, looking around, not exactly sure what just happened. Then the pain comes, the real, excruciating pain slicing through my arm. I want to move, but even thinking about it hurts like hell. She hovers over me, looking through my jacket, stubbornly avoiding my gaze. My eyes are half-closed as it is, the unconsciousness taking over. She finds what she was looking for. If I weren't dying, I'd laugh. My phone. My stupid fucking phone.

I've laid it all out for her perfectly. Her fucking hero.

I close my eyes, finding it hard to open them again.

“Dom, it's Leighton,” she says, barely audible through the whooshing wind in my ears. She's calling Dom. I don't know why I need to remember it, seeing as I'm dying, but I know I need to remember she called Dom. “I'm at the abandoned parking lot at the harbor, near the ferry terminal. Can you come?” A pause. “We can talk about that later, Dom, just come, please. Hurry.”

Something presses into my shoulder and it hurts even more than I thought imaginable, pulling me further under. “You're going to be okay,” she tells me, as I hear a car pull into the parking lot. Her lips press against mine. “I'm sorry,” she whispers, and then she leaves.

LEIGHTON

Stuffing the phone in my pocket, I get in the car, sparing Devon one last glance. I know he'll be fine because they'll find him soon, and in a few days he’ll be okay. At least, physically. It's the emotional wounds that never heal. As much as running away with him sounds like the perfect option, I have to save my family. I love Devon with everything in me, but I wouldn’t be the person I am if I just let my family die. I love them, and I’m not that selfish. This was the only way.

“Dom, just drive,” I tell my cousin, my voice breaking. Dom flashes me an odd look before taking off.

“Are you okay?” he asks, staring straight ahead. He drums his fingers on the steering wheel.

“I just need to see Dad . . . then I’ll be fine,” I ramble. I run my fingers through my hair, trying to block out what just happened. What I just did. I close my eyes but instantly see his face, so I open them and stare out the window. Looks like I will never be able to close my eyes or sleep again without seeing his broken expression.

And I deserve nothing less.

“How’s Dad? Has he been looking for me? What’s happened since I was gone?” I ask him in a rush. I need to know what’s been going on—do they suspect anything about Devon’s family?

“We’ll talk when we get there,” he answers. “I let him know you called. What the hell happened with you? I thought you were in Ireland, though you never said anything about going and it seemed weird.”

“I didn’t leave, Dom. I was taken by the Andres. They’re planning this whole thing to take us down, all of us.”

His head snaps sharply to look at me. “I had no fucking idea, Leighton. Keith said you went off to Ireland.” I frown. Did he not hear what I just said? “He even sent your mom after you.”

“He did?” So he must have really thought I’d left. If I didn’t save myself, no help would have come anyway.

“You’re safe now,” Dom says, affection evident in his voice. “I wish I’d known, baby girl. I’d have come for you myself.”

I reach out with my hand and grasp his tightly in mine. We may not be biological siblings, but I’ve seen him as my brother my whole life. “I know,” I say. How was he supposed to know if my own dad had no idea?

I look out the window again, take a deep breath and then turn my head to my cousin. When I do, he glances at me, smiling. “Watch out!” I yell, grabbing for the steering wheel and swerving sharply off the road to avoid two cars parked across the street. The car stops almost immediately in a shallow ditch just off the side of the road.

“Are you okay?” Dom asks.

I nod, checking myself over. “Who the hell is that?”

My eyes widen when I see two armed men dressed in all-black approach the car, and open the door. I even recognize one of them as our own man. Dom steps outside and dusts himself off casually, giving me a once over as they grab me and make me stand, binding my wrists and covering my head with a black bag.

“What took you guys so long?” I hear Dom ask. After a moment of silence, he says, “Never mind, let’s just go before someone sees us.”

“I didn’t want to have to hurt you, Leighton,” he says, his voice sounding honest. “I thought you’d be taken care of by now, and I wouldn’t have to.”