Page 116 of Blades of Obsession

Seeing her now hits me harder than I expected. Spending countless hours with her over my childhood, that’s what she represents for me. The time when I could run and play and the real world didn’t settle in yet. The time before my mom left, and my dad was a little nicer.

Jackie’s eyes find mine, and a cryptic smile plays on her lips. “Long time no see. After Jacob left for college, you stopped coming around. I guess I just wasn’t that important to you. Myson left town, my best friend was dead, and the person who I thought of as my daughter couldn’t even bother to stop by anymore. Oh, and—” She turns her attention back to John. “My ex-husband had also gotten remarried around that time. How many marriages have you had so far, John? Five? Six?”

I glance between John and Jackie, trying to make sense of what I’m hearing. They were married? They don’t seem like they’d be a good fit, or like they even belong in the same world, let alone together. Then again, any outsider would probably say the same thing about Blade and me, but somehow we work.

John’s face contorts with frustration. “You lost me because of your own actions.”

“Oh, bullshit!” Jackie shouts. Before I can even blink, she pulls a gun from her jacket pocket and points it at Cindy.

What the…

The speed at which everyone ducks for cover makes my head spin, but my attention is focused more on Blade grabbing my arm and yanking me behind him. I’m glad he has fast reflexes because if it were up to me, I’d still be frozen, mouth wide open in the line of fire.

Growing up, always going over to Jackie’s house, I would never in a million years expect her to even know how to use a gun. She was always the sweetest little woman ever. I guess I stopped going over because she reminded me too much of my mother, and seeing her hurt. Especially after Jacob left town and I had to deal with two heartaches.

John crouches behind his desk, his eyes peeking over. “Why the fuck didn’t you check her for weapons? Where is Francesco?!”

The guard is back in his spot, stumbling over his words, flustered. “S-she...”

Jackie smirks. “I promised to suck his dick later if he let me in. It’s easy to seduce your guards, John. You barely leavethem time to get laid. But I guess I did you a favor. Imagine if I were one of your real enemies. Now you know who to fire.”

The guard’s finger moves on the trigger of the gun he has pointed at Jackie, eyes squinting.

“Stand down,” John yells to him. “We don’t want any accidents or rouge bullets.”

Meanwhile, Cindy has been frozen in place this whole time, arms up, eyes popping out of her head. John didn’t even attempt to protect or cover her, just himself.

“I could’ve had everything! But no, John had to go and leave me for you, youwhore!” Jackie screams at Cindy, the gun waving around as venom leaves her mouth. “I spent years being the perfect housewife, raising his son that wasn’t even mine.”

“Jackie, let’s put the gun down. Maybe we can work this out with a check,” John says, trying to reason with her.

“You think I want money?!” Jackie shrieks. “My son is dead! Our son is dead! All the times you came home late and they both came up running to your legs, and you don’t care that they’re gone? He was all I had left!” Her voice cracks, but her eyes never leave Cindy, and neither does the gun. “So I will take the only person you have left. I already took Noah. Now it’s just this bitch left.”

Now I understand why John was hesitant all those months back to claim Frankie as his daughter. In this world they’ve built, when someone wants to hurt you, they go after your loved ones.

Cindy gasps.

“That’s right, bitch. I’m the one who put a hit out with my buddy Alejandro to kill your little boy Noah. Who did John think he was, moving on and having the perfect little happy family? John knew it. Which is why he was going to torture Aiden until he killed him. Except he didn’t kill him.” Her attention moves to John. “Why’s that, John? Why didn’t you kill him?”

I can feel Blade’s slight tremor beneath my fingers, so I place my hand on his arm and gently rub it up and down, trying to soothe his tense body.

Cindy shakes her head, tears streaming down her face as she chokes out the words, “No, no, no. My Noah.” Her head drops into her hands, shoulders heaving with each gut-wrenching sob.

This is one of the reasons I’m on the fence about having kids with Blade. I do want them, at least two, ever since I was younger. But what kind of life would I be bringing them into? A life of crime, a life where someone could hurt them for revenge, a life getting a call one day that their father isn’t coming home?

“What do you want? Besides to kill Cindy. Whatever you want, I’ll give you. So we can get this over and done with,” John pleads.

“I want her out of the picture.” Jackie nods her head at Cindy. “And I want things back to what they were before with us. And a new son, even if we have to adopt. Aiden can move in too. It’ll be like old times, but better.” She smiles, and in a sick and twisted way, my heart breaks for her. She’s trapped in the past, desperate to fill the void left by her sons being gone.

“Jackie, stop being ridiculous,” John hisses.

“Ridiculous?Ridiculous?!” Jackie’s eyes glint with wild intensity as if she’s teetering on the edge of madness. She lifts the gun and fires at the wall. The deafening crack of the gunshot reverberates through the room, and Cindy screams.

John, maintaining a calm exterior, stands up and begins to walk towards her slowly. “Give me the gun. C’mon, Jackie.” He holds out his hand as he stands in front of her.

Blade tilts his head ever so slightly—so subtle that I almost miss it—but it’s directed at the guard, who acknowledges it with a curt nod. So I can’t be imagining. Another silent exchange passes between them as Blade makes a quick handgesture. The guard narrows his eyes, and without hesitation, pulls the trigger.

The gunshot rings out, deafening and quick. The bullet slices through the air before it rips through Jackie and John. There’s no time for anyone to react. It pierces their chests before embedding itself in the wall behind them. They collapse to the floor in unison, lifeless and crumpling like discarded puppets.

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