Page 26 of Die for You (Kiss or Kill #2)

This ground is forever cursed, for it has been housing nothing but horror and pain. If I make it out of this alive, I plan to change that.

No child deserves to be frightened, abused, or neglected. And that is all this place seems to offer. But I vow to protect children like Elena who don’t have a voice. I’ll be their voice because I’ll ensure vile people like Father Merry and Gianna will listen.

I didn’t have a voice when locked away in here, abandoned and forgotten.

But I have one now.

It surprises me to see a security guard stationed at the back door. This is new and, no doubt, under the orders of Gianna.

She’s worried about someone breaking in.

But when the guard eyes me closely, I realize it’s not about someone breaking in; it’s about someone breaking out. And that someone is me.

I’m under no false pretenses. I’m a prisoner here.

I do what Gianna says. When she says. And if I don’t, if I dare disobey her again, then those I love will suffer the consequences.

If only it was as easy as killing her. But until Lettie is safe, I am her slave.

The guard covers the keypad when he punches in the door code. Next time, I’ll ensure I make note of what the code is.

I step outside, and it’s pouring rain. The sky is black. The wind is bitter cold. A perfect reflection of the predicament I find myself in. A white van has pulled up by the ramp. I sprint to it and open the passenger door.

Danny doesn’t bother saying hello.

I peer over my shoulder into the back. I see a blanket covering something. Or rather, someone . This is how I’m to deliver Lewis to Lenny—in a floral blanket.

We commence our journey in silence.

The wipers grate my nerves, and soon, their sequence is in time with the thumping of my heart. The louder they swipe, the more anxious I become. I grip the leather seat and measure my breaths as I feel a panic attack approaching.

I focus on Lettie and how happy she was on her birthday. That calms me down because if I don’t keep it together, she’ll forever be five because she won’t live to see another birthday.

The car ride feels like ten hours, but when we pull up to the familiar gates, I wish I had more time to prepare. But nothing can prepare anyone for what’s about to unfold.

The guard at the gates is the same man who let me in yesterday. Or was it the day before? Time just seems to be one excruciating loop. He peers into the windshield and reads my expression immediately. He places his hand over his gun holster, but I subtly shake my head.

He’s debating what to do.

Thankfully, he chooses to go back into the gatehouse and picks up the phone.

Danny’s attention bounces between the guard and me. He trusts neither, and he shouldn’t.

After a minute or so, the gates open, and Danny sarcastically gives the guard a thumbs-up. He drives toward the house. Three men stand guard on the porch, their large guns in hand.

Danny cracks his neck from side to side, clearly ready for a fight.

I detach myself from any emotion when Danny parks the car and turns it off. I slowly get out of the van, hands raised in surrender. The heavy downpour has now turned to a drizzle. The men instantly point their guns at me, their fingers on the triggers as I slide open the side door.

The floral blanket is an insult to Lewis.

I wish I could have wrapped him in something a little more dignified.

But I step away from the van, suggesting to the men that I have something for them to see.

They descend the front steps with caution, one man’s gun trained on Danny, and the other two on me.

The man with ginger in his goatee steps forward and carefully pulls back the blanket. “Motherfucker…” he curses under his breath, before pressing a button connected to his earpiece. “Sir, please come outside.”

I’m shivering, but not from the cold.

The front door opens.

I hold my breath.

Lenny appears, stone-faced, ignoring me, ensuring not to make eye contact.

Raindrops stick to my lashes, curbing my vision. But I don’t need to see, for I know how the next thirty seconds are about to pan out.

Lenny slowly takes the stairs and walks to the van. His men step aside in a sign of respect. Or perhaps they don’t want to be close when he sees what’s in the back. He pulls back the blanket, and suddenly, it feels as if the world stands still.

He doesn’t move a muscle.

He simply stares at Lewis’s corpse.

The rain begins to pick up once again.

“Sir—”

“Shut the fuck up!” Lenny roars, never taking his eyes off Lewis.

He needs time to process this as real. I understand. When something so traumatic occurs, it’s your body’s natural response to go into self-preservation mode. It wants to protect your mind and your heart.

I was the same when I walked into my home and was greeted with smears of blood. And when I saw Nico, beaten and bloody, I didn’t want to believe this nightmare was real.

But as your mind processes what’s happening, a flood of emotion hits you, and that’s when you spiral.

I’m drenched, but don’t seek shelter.

I stand with Lenny, mourning his brother.

He turns over his shoulder, finally meeting my eyes.

His beautiful blue-gray eyes are now swarming with black.

I want to console him.

I want to beg for forgiveness.

But I can’t.

I am nothing but akin to a cat, bringing their beloved a dead bird as a gift. “Take my family…and I take yours.”

Lenny’s mask slips for a nanosecond. He understands loud and clear that I was the one who killed Lewis. I see hatred, real hatred, and this is what Gianna wanted.

Danny watches on, no doubt eager to recount all the horror to Gianna. At least we’ve provided a stellar performance.

But this isn’t fiction.

This is real.

We both knew sacrifices would be made, but when will this stop? How far will we go, selling our souls to the devil before it’s enough?

“You won’t win, Lenny. Your brother’s blood is on your hands. Give me back what’s mine, and all this will stop. Until then…I’m coming for you and won’t stop.”

Lenny tongues his cheek before he pulls out his gun and points it at me. “I can stop you. Here. Right now.”

“Go on then,” I challenge, casually walking toward him. “Do it.”

The rain soaks through my tennis shoes.

And my wet hair sticks to my face.

I look a mess, but I exude power.

Lenny’s gun never wavers from me as I stop only when the muzzle is pressed into my chest. This moment is where only he and I exist.

The rain encompasses us in our bubble, shutting out the real world and the atrocities it brings.

The pain in his eyes stabs at my heart.

I want to say so much.

But I’m a prisoner to silence.

However, with a simple nod, he sets me free.

“You’re about to lose everything you love,” he warns loudly over the punishing rain.

“Too late.”

Here we stand—together, but divided.

I want this to be over.

I don’t want this life anymore.

I know I need to fight, but this is a battle that I am fearful both Lenny and I will lose.

“I—”

My sentence dies in my throat. Just how I would have if not for Lenny shoving me to the ground to avoid the bullet fired from a gun that wasn’t his.

“I’m going to fucking kill you!” The gun it was fired from was Bria’s.

“Run!” Lenny mouths to me, offering me his hand.

Our eyes are frantically speaking where our mouths cannot.

I pick myself up from the gravel, yank out Lewis’s body, and dive into the back of the van.

Lenny orders his men to stand down when they raise their guns. Bria careens down the stairs, and as Danny madly reverses away, she aims and shoots, shattering the windshield.

We both duck for cover.

Bria continues shooting until the van spins around frantically, and Danny speeds away to safety.

I’m half expecting Bria to give chase like in The Terminator . But we’re in the clear.

Resting my head back against the cool metal door, I close my eyes and wish I were anywhere but here.