Page 58

Olivia

“R icky’s a grown man. We need to leave,” I tell my dad. “Now is really not the time,” I mumble, rubbing my temples as Dad paces.

I kneel next to Aleks, gently tapping his cheek to get him awake. Aleks blinks, slowly adjusting.

“I know. I just- I thought you were going to die. I never thought any of this would happen. With Charles. Or Rema. I never…”

“Dad,” I snap, casting a look over my shoulder. “Later. Right now, shut up and help me with this.”

“Right.” He kneels next to me. “What does he- Can he walk?”

“That’s one way to talk to a cripple,” Aleks coughs, his playful facade just as intact as ever.

Dad sputters, “Well, I-“

“He’s messing with you,” I explain. “Help me lift him.”

We each grab one of his shoulders until I hear movement from behind. I turn to see Sofia clumsily dragging herself through the balcony doors..

“Dad.” I smack his arm as she spots us, anger flashing across her face.

“You are all dead,” she hisses.

I don’t see any weapons on her, but that doesn’t stop the panic from swimming through me as Dad clumsily stands, holding his gun in front of him.

“Stop!” he yells, and she does, hair wild and crazed.

“You won’t shoot,” she scoffs and Aleks pipes up from the ground:

“If he doesn’t, then I will.”

She scoffs. “Like you’d ever understand.”

“Maybe I would if you didn’t lie to me to get to my family.”

“That’s literally how lies work-“

“Stop!” I yell, silencing everyone as another gunshot pierces the air.

Sofia smiles. Almost as if she can see Crew outside. Skar and Charlotte too. “Go on then. See if all of your friends are dead.”

No. They can’t be.

Something hardens in me, but all the blood drains from my face when I see someone else emerge from the smoke-filled hall.

Chase.

He coughs, a gun lazily pointed in our direction as he stumbles toward his sister.

"Where the hell have you been?" she demands, buthe shakes his head, still coughing as he stumbles toward her.

Dad aims toward him, his hands shaking as he says, "Stay back."

"You," Chase spits once he sees me.

"If you come any closer, I will shoot," Dad says, voice darker than I've ever heard it. And for once, I know he's telling the truth.

“Step away from them.”

I turn when the balcony door opens again and Charlotte stands there, covered in blood- gun aimed directly at Chase.

Sofia's shoulders fall. “Not dead then.”

Charlotte laughs, the sound tired. “Not yet.”

Sofia raises her hands in surrender as Skar, Ricky, and Crew walk through the door. Even Chase's grip on his gun goes lax as Charlotte stumbles closer. “Shame. Should have known you’d have something up your sleeve. You-“

Charlotte sighs, motioning to the floor with her gun. “Get on your knees.”

Chase obeys silently, pistol discarded, practically trembling in fear. When Sofia doesn’t, Charlotte prowls closer, prompting Sofia to drop. “What are you going to do with us?”

“Nothing,” Charlotte answers as she reaches for a zip tie from her vest. She’s too weak to tie it herself, but Skar does it for her, strapping Sofia’s arms around her back. Then Chase's. “I’m going to watch you rot behind bars.”

“What? Now you’re too good to kill us?” Sofia taunts, and when Charlotte stops walking, Sofia grins. “There will be more.”

Skar rips a wad of fabric from Sofia’s dress, gagging her mouth. “I’m so tired of hearing you talk.”

It’s then that the facade fades and the carefree Charlotte falls away. All that’s left in her place is the scared Charlotte- the Charlotte that lied. That hid her life from me because she had no other choice. That Charlotte stands in front of me now, eyes glossy.

“Are you okay?” I find myself asking, my voice hoarse.

She shakes her head no, eyes watering slightly. “Are you?”

The question almost prompts a laugh. “Hell no.”

She gives me a look that says we’ll talk later as Crew appears, his warmth enveloping me like a hug. Then I remember his bullet wound, and I reach for him carefully.

His shirt is stained with blood.

“You’re shot” is all I can say, my stomach twisting when I see his brown eyes sweep over me, leaving a trail of heat in their wake.

“I don’t think I give a shit about that right now,” he tells me, and something about the way he says it, about the way he’s looking at me, about the way his hand lifts to the throbbing wound at my skull, makes me burn.

Because he came for me.

“We need to leave,” he says, and we search for the cathedral doors on the levels below, leading to the exit. We’re lucky the fire hasn’t spread to the ballroom yet.

“I’m uh- I’m still on the floor,” Aleks says suddenly. “Any help?” he asks, and my dad reaches a hand down for him.

Charlotte shoves Sofia forward, Chase stumbling behind. We make it outside, and in the distance, I hear sirens as we make it to the far side parking lot. I clutch Crew’s hand, forcing all the strength I have into helping Ricky drop Crew and I on the grass where the other guests are huddled.

He’s still bleeding, my hand pressing on his ribs to slow it. I see a small smile on his lips. “Distract me, Princess.”

“What happened?” I ask, watching as Ricky, Skar, and Harvey disappear inside, coughing at the smoke filling the sky.

Sofia is shoved into the grass beside us, still cuffed. Charlotte collapses next to her, pinning Sofia with a look as she leans against a nearby car. Chase is thrown into the ditch beside us as Aleks ties off a makeshift tourniquet on Charlotte's arm, blood staining the grass.

I try to keep calm. Focusing on one thing at a time.

Crew spares most of the details, but he’s quick to tell me everything. I still don’t understand, but I can’t worry about anything except for keeping Crew conscious and awake. I force myself to nod, the adrenaline wearing off and the tremors finally hitting me.

I only relax when I see Skar, Ricky, and my dad return from the flames. They’re carrying the guards from inside- all of which are still unconscious.

Something like relief floods through me as I realize that maybe all of this really is over. The exhaustion, the emotion of it all hits me, and I nearly collapse under the weight of it.

Everything that happens after is a blur.