Page 106 of Whispers of Obsession

I stare at my father with a mixture of rage and despair. I should have done more to protect Cora. I should have known he’d get her eventually.

I take a step toward her, and my father raises the gun I never even saw to her temple. Cora pales, sweat and tears falling and intermingling as she silently pleads with me to save her.

“Ah-ah-ah, I wouldn’t take another step if I were you. It’s so easy to pull a trigger, isn’t it, son? I wonder how many bullets are in this one? Think she’ll survive Russian Roulette twice?”

His falsely teasing tone, the smugness in his expression… I loathe this man. He’s always known where Cora was, has always known what I was doing with her, both as Slater, her stepbrother, and the masked man who encouraged her to embrace her darkness. He’s been watching us the entire time.

“What else did you do with this gun? Oh yes, I remember now…”

My father drags the barrel of the gun down Cora’s body, moving south to?—

I feel sick. I can’t watch. I have to stop him, but I can’t risk endangering Cora’s life. As the gun reaches her mound, I realize I’m out of time.

With a roar, I lunge at my father, fury coursing through my veins. I tackle him, the gun flying from his grasp as we clash violently. Cora screams around her gag and thrashes, trying to break free from her bonds as she watches the scene unfold.

My father and I struggle, our fists connecting with each other’s faces as we battle for control. Our rage and hatred for each other matches the depth of my love for Cora. And his obsession with her. It all comes to a head in this one, violent moment.

Suddenly, my father manages to break free of our tussle and lunges for the gun. I try to stop him, grabbing at his shirt and yanking him back, but I fail. He whips around, the gun aimed at me. For a second, I can see the fear in his eyes, the fear of losing control. But then, he laughs coldly, relishing in our pain.

“It’s too late. Playing god has finally caught up with the both of us. How is my sister by the way? You never did learn to stop loving the person you hate, did you?”

48

CORA

“You never did learn to stop loving the person you hate, did you?”

A sickening crack echoes across the room as the gun is fired, time slowing down. I scream as Slater’s eyes widen in surprise and pain. My heart feels like it’s being ripped out of my chest as I watch my love collapse to the ground, blood pooling around him.

I’m frozen in terror, unable to move as I watch, Sean’s maniacal laughter filling the room. He turns his attention back to me, his gaze softening slightly.

His words hang in the air, a cruel reminder of the twisted relationship Slater and I share. I try to break free from my bonds, but they’re too tight, and my efforts are futile. I’m powerless, stuck in this horror show my life has become.

Sean steps closer to me, a sadistic smile on his face. He reaches down and picks up the gun, chuckling at the sight of Slater’s lifeless body.

“It’s too late, Slater. Your little game is over.” He kicks him and I wince. “I won. And now it’s time for me to finally claim my prize.”

He laughs, the sound grating on my nerves. I feel sick to my stomach, knowing that I’ve lost Slater forever. Our complicated, twisted relationship is finally coming to an end, and it’s all his father’s doing.

Tears stream down my face as I realize, too late, that I don’t even care that he was the masked man. I didn’t get the chance to tell him how much I love him. And now it’s too late, now he’ll never know.

Sean moves back to me, staring into my eyes with a mixture of anger and lust. He raises the gun to my temple, and I close my eyes, bracing myself for the shot. It’s better than the alternative. At least he hasn’t touched me yet. I’d rather die than have his touch seared into my skin for all eternity.

Do it. Pull the trigger. Send me off to be with my love.

But before he can pull the trigger, there’s a loud crash from upstairs. My stepfather’s head snaps up, his eyes widening in surprise. He stumbles toward the stairs, pausing to give me a look that’s loaded with longing. Bile rises to my mouth, and I choke as I’m forced by the gag to swallow it back down.

“Soon. I’ve waited this long, another couple of minutes won’t kill me.”

The second he vanishes from sight, I break down. Silent sobs wrack my body as I cry for Slater. He didn’t hesitate to come for me. Didn’t care that I ran off on him, that my last words were said in anger. He came for me. He fought for me. He died for me.

A low pained groan makes me freeze.

It’s Slater.

He’s alive.

Just.

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