Page 236 of On a Fault Line

“Rip off some of my shirt and make a blindfold for your eyes. You don’t need this image inside your head, Princess.”

Penny listens and once the fabric is secure and cutting off her vision, I hand her back her gun.

“Isn’t this romantic?” Tanner taunts.

Leaning into Penny’s ear, I whisper, “On the silent count of three.”

Taking a deep breath, I line up my aim and then use my free hand to line up hers, placing my trigger finger over hers.

One in the heart…

One between the eyes…

“Are you ready?” I ask her.

“Yes.”

Inhale.

One.

Exhale.

Two.

Inhale.

Tanner charges toward us in one last-ditch effort to survive, as Penny and I press down in unison on our triggers.

BANG-BANG.

* * *

Sirens echo in the distance, followed by the sound of police forces infiltrating the building.

“You’re going to be okay,” I say, trying to soothe Penny. I hug her to me, drawing circles on her back. Untying the strip of fabric, I release it from her eyes for her to see.

We are covered in sweat, blood, and tears.

Staring down at her, I turn her so she’s shielded from the horror scene in the hallway of bodily fluids and gunshot wounds.

“You’re hurt,” she says frantically, while craning her neck to see my wound.

“I’ll be okay.” I can already feel the stickiness from where the blood is trying to clot. “I’m way more concerned over you.”

She must be in shock. I know I’ve experienced a lot of gruesome things in my life, but I’ve never been this scared to lose someone I love.

“We need to get you a doctor.”

I smile down at her. “I’m fine, Princess. Promise. It was all worth it to end this once and for all.”

“It’s over? It’s really over?”

I kiss her forehead and then her lips. I just can’t help myself. For the last few hours, I’ve been running on adrenaline and hope, silently praying I would find her alive—that it wouldn’t be too late.

“It’s over,” I say with certainty.

“What about Dr. Radinsky? She needs help.”

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