Page 62 of Traitor

But none of that matters right now. All that matters is that she's here.

She twitches.

My body goes still. My blood roars.

Then, suddenly, a gun is pointed at my fucking face.

She moves fast, ruthless, unforgiving, her aim deadly, her expression blank. Cold. Hard. Empty.

I swallow hard, my jaw locking. I feel like prey.

Ely

There's someone in my bedroom. Watching me. I feel it before I even see the shadow.

Every hair on my body stands on end, instinct screaming at me. My fingers twitch toward the gun under my pillow, my heartbeat steady even as my pulse slams against my ribs. I don't panic. I don't hesitate.

In one swift motion, I turn and aim. And my breath stops.

Bones is here.

In my fucking bedroom. In my home.

The sight of him is like a bullet to the chest. Painful, unexpected, lethal.

A smirk tugs at his lips, but his eyes tell a different story. He looks wrecked. Worn down. Like he's been running through hell and back.

"Surprised to see I'm not rotting away in prison?" His voice is low, taunting, but there's no real bite behind it. Just something broken.

I don't lower the gun. "No. Just disappointed."

His smirk falters, his throat working as he looks up at the ceiling like he's praying for patience. "Fair enough."

I inhale slowly, my grip steady. "Are you here to kill me for ratting you out? Because if so, I'll have you know I'll put a bullet between your eyes first. Your brothers can take me out after, doesn't matter. If I die, at least I take you with me."

His entire body stiffens, and then his eyes soften.

Fucking soften.

"I'm not here to kill you, Ely," he says, voice quieter now. "I couldn't, not even when I thought you betrayed me. I'm here to apologize. However you want it. In whatever way it takes for you to forgive me."

Something cold and dead twists inside me. Forgiveness. The word is almost laughable.

"Forgiveness is not an option. If you're not here to kill me, then why have you come?"

His jaw tightens. "Because I still love you, Ely."

A bitter laugh rips out of me before I can stop it. Sharp. Hollow. Painful. "It's all about you, isn't it? Well, I don't love you. Not anymore. I left you behind years ago, and I don't intend to go back. I have someone else now and it's him I love."

He exhales, slow and controlled, like he was expecting it. Like he's been rehearsing this moment in his head for years. Maybe he has.

"I know there's no one else. I got all the info before getting here. Lots of hook-ups," his eyes get dangerously dark, "but no one permanent."

Fuck. Of course he would be prepared.

He rises from the chair, and I pull the safety on my gun with a click that echoes in the silent room. If I shoot him right now, no one would hear. My house is far enough from the nearest neighbor that I could cut his body with a chainsaw into tiny pieces in my backyard and no one would see or hear a thing.

"Not one more step, Bones."

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