Page 151 of The Devil Can Be Kind

I choked on a sob as understanding made me realize the depravity of the situation. Of the man before me.

I am going to die today.

Whether it was a primal instinct or perhaps an unconscious recognition of the inevitability before me, the second those six words materialized in my mind, a deep-seated sense of tranquility eclipsed the unrelenting chaos inside me.

If I was going to die today, I was going to die beingme.

Not a pawn in a battle amongst men.

Not a spectator to my own past trauma.

I was going to die with the truth on my tongue and the love of one incredible man in my heart.

I wasn’t going to be afraid anymore.

“I don’t need to be saved. I chose this,” I said softly the moment he pulled away.

He paused, fixing me with a maniacal look. “No! It’s not true!” he shouted, viciously shaking his head from side to side and releasing my face.

I didn’t flinch this time.

“I was never yours, Ricardo. You drugged me, strangled me, andrapedme on that beach when I was eighteen.”

“Liar!” He thundered, pulling back his elbow and striking me across the face.

My head whipped to the right. Stars danced across my vision and my ears rang deafeningly. My body collapsing to the side. I took in a ragged breath, trying to steady myself as the world tilted around me.

When my vision grew steadier, Ricardo was pacing backwards and forwards again like a wild animal.

I let out a painful breath, “I wasn’t yours to take that night.”

“SHUT UP!” Ricardo bellowed. I felt the impact of his boot as it slammed into my back, winding me instantly and pushing me violently into the stones.

I struggled to find my voice—my breath.

But I would. I would not be a pawn in this game of chess any longer.

“I have only ever belonged to one man.” My breathless voice was a mere whisper on the breeze. I pushed myself slowly onto my knees. “A man that is kind. Who loves fearlessly. Who is loyal and brilliant and a better man than you will ever be?—"

“SILENCE!” Ricardo screamed, darting toward me and striking me again across the face.

Blood flowed into my mouth and the world tilted and ghosted before me. My eyes fluttered closed as I temporarily blacked out. When they re-opened, my face was against the stones and my body was painfully twisted to the side.

I knew the end was near when Ricardo’s form loomed over me, engulfing me in his shadow. The barrel of a gun pointed straight at me.

But I wasn’t afraid anymore.

I smiled as tears trickled down my face and I thought of the only person in the world I never wanted to have to leave.

“I’ll see you on the other side, my love.”

I love you, Marco.

When the bang rang out, I didn’t even flinch.

MARCO

Everything around me blurred into obscurity as I ran throughthe gardens toward the distant shouts of a man on the brink of sanity. A skin splitting crack rang out amongst the night air, and I too found myself slipping into madness as I sprinted to the source of the noise.

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