Page 19 of Not Taken

It wasn’t hard to act scared when I suspected Sam was going to follow the history of TV mobsters who thought their calling was in drugs, death, and long soliloquies.

Sam kept himself beefed up, fought the same as Caleb and I. Wide jaw, thick skull, and tattooed hands meant for violence.

It was his smirk that got me. It contained the same depth of malice as Wyatt's, one that haunted my nightmares.

My body shuddered as the memory struck me. Her face crushed against an antique rug her grandmother gifted us on our wedding day, glassy eyes as Wyatt kept thrusting, not knowing the hand he had pressed against her head had cracked her skull and killed her.

Bile rose in the back of my throat as I tried to concentrate. Each man around us would have a gun, and they were close enough that the chances of hitting any of us were high.

Maybe the drain pipes could be ripped off of the wall, but we wouldn’t stand a chance. The best course of action would be to grab a gun and try to kill as many of the meatheads as possible. They had men stationed all around the depot. If Sam had us tied to the North wall, we might make it to the parking lot, get my car and run. But there was only one exit to the depot and the guards had walkie-talkies.

The best chance of escape was death. And I wanted to make sure Sam Donelli knew who I was and what I’d done before I went.

Sam was having too much fun playing with his gun. It was a standard pistol with a long silencer fixed on the barrel. And he looked too similar to Wyatt for me to not imagine how satisfying it would be to slice open his chest and watch him bleed. With him reaching for me, gasping, begging like his brother had as I rolled a knife through his intestines.

Sam held his gun between his palms, grinning as he lifted it, the floodlights casting his silhouette as he shot three silent rounds into the air before snapping his attention back to me.

“See that? You fucking see that? You’ve never seen me shoot a gun before, have you, Eli? You know why? Because I’m a fucking man, and I prefer you fuckers to die slow.”

I was still looking for a way out, but there were too many bulges in jackets, and some of the idiots around us thought shoving a pistol in their crotch was a good way to go about it.

It had been a long time since I’d come face-to-face with Sam. I’d been waiting for a chance like this for months. The reason I let Caleb fuck me in the beginning was to get to him. Until Caleb destroyed me with his lust.

“You scum bags don’t even deserve that.” Sam grit his jaw, and I caught a vein popping in his temple as I glanced out of the corner of my eye. “You guys think you're so fucking smart, don't you? Coming in here with your shiny jackets and your fucked up hairstyles, as if you can just waltz in like you belong here.”

Focusing on gentle breaths, I brought out my pain to keep myself alert. They could have easily shot me in the depot, so he must have a plan. I looked to Chalmers, whose shirt was stained with dried blood, and she already looked like she’d given up. Her shoulders sagged as she met me with a frown, mouthing a slow ‘sorry’ to me before her chin dropped to her chest.

I looked back at Sam, who was staring at me, but I could tell nothing registered. Just like last time we met, Sam didn’t have a single clue who I was. All he saw was the ‘rat’ who had infiltrated his base, not the man who had his entire life stolen away all because Sam wanted information from me and my wife.

I wouldn’t let him win. Even in death, I'd stand my ground against him.

“You gotta stop looking at me like that, or I’m gonna get ideas.” Sam did a sweep of my body, inspecting me from two metres away. “Besides, I’m saving you for something better.”

Sam’s eyes flashed as his lips drew into a grin. “I’ve let you scamper around in my house for too long. Vermin like you should have been exterminated before you even got inside. I knew there was something wrong with you when you first came. I can see it in the way you walk. You don’t know shit about this life.”

I took a shuddering breath, wincing at the damage they’d already done. I couldn't hold back anymore.

“I don't, do I?” I said, meeting his hard glare. “And you don't know shit about me.”

His pause was enough for me to continue. “It's been three years since Wyatt raped and murdered my wife. And I’ve been working you lot over for a year as well.”

Then it was my turn to smile as Sam's face slipped.

“Bruno was the hardest, you know?” I carried on. “I had to sneak into jail, and he fought like a motherfucker before I got a knife in his throat.” And then I beat him the same way they did to my wife, going at him so furiously I didn’t actually know when he died.

“What?” Venom sliced the air as Sam moved closer.

“Wyatt went too quickly.” I smirked as he waved his big, scary gun in my face. “You remember that? A year ago, when your brother died in a bar fight? He was too fucking drunk to realise what was happening.” I snorted. “And don't get me started on Carlos. You'd think he would have been more careful. Two weeks ago, died from an overdose, right? And you weren't even suspicious?” I laughed, a splatter of blood bursting from me, dribbling onto my chest. “I took out both your brothers and you didn't look at me once.”

“What!?” Jones shouted, his pipe clanging again. “What the fuck are you talking about!?”

He didn't know when to shut the fuck up. Was that really his priority right now?

“How do you think we found you!?” Sam said with glee as he pushed the gun straight between my eyes. “You thought you were so smart, sneaking about, gathering all your intel. We knew it was you all along. All the information you stole? Every bit of it was fake.”

“Oh, yeah? And you still left me to scurry around without stopping me?” I chuckled, shaking my head at the ridiculousness of my own life before snapping my gaze back to his. “Well, I'm right here, Sam. You finally caught me.”

I didn't drop my stare, hurling out every ounce of hate that had been festering in my heart since Martha was stolen from me. I could finally show them who I was, the person I hid from everyone but Caleb.

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