Page 69 of Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

“Logan’s dead,” he hisses. “And it won’t be over ’til you are. This is all your fault. I planned meticulously. There was an order. All the other girls cooperated. You were supposed to die, and then I’d have Elise.”

He steps closer. I put my hand up in a feeble attempt to stop his progression, as if my will would be enough, because my strength sure won’t be.

“You couldn’t die like the others, could you, bitch? And I lost my in. Oh, I waited and watched. Waited and watched. Nothing for months. Then you take off in the middle of the night. The new plan had sucked, but this. You handed me you on a fuckin’ plate. Stupid, stupid woman takin’ off.”

He lunges and I stumble back, my head hitting the wall. His hands go around my neck and he begins to squeeze.

“I knew when I got you…” Fingers dig into the skin at my throat. I can’t catch a breath. “Everything would fall into place.”

My lungs burn from lack of oxygen. My head feels cloudy.

“Elise is here. And she’s mine.” His fingers give one last painful squeeze. Gold spots pop in front of my eyes, then darken to black.

“My name’s Livvy, what’s yours?”

“Gage…”

“I love you, Liv. I’m in love with you…”

“You don’t call me Chaos, to you I’m Gage…”

“I’ve wanted to marry you my entire fucking life…”

My eyes begin to droop and there’s no way for me to open them again.

“Gage,” I whisper his name in my head. My last goodbye.

“No.” A voice screams and I don’t know if it’s real or in my head, too. Then Houdini’s hands are torn from my neck. His large body hits the wall across the tiny space. “Breathe, Liv.” Tender touches brush down my cheek. “Breathe, baby.”

And I remember my airway no longer has fingers digging in, constricting. I suck in a ragged, painful breath, filling my lungs to max capacity. The double vision begins to clear. There’s a thud, and two men begin to roll around on the tiled floor throwing punches.

I blink.

Gage. My Gage. He’s come for me. Somehow he knew to come for me. He has his hands fisting Houdini’s ears, lifting the maniac’s head and smacking it against the tile, cracking it at the point of impact.

Houdini manages a heavy punch to Gage’s chest. The punch stuns Gage and might have knocked the wind out of him. I don’t know what to do—what am I supposed to do?

Back and forth. Back and forth. The men trade punches. Blood and spittle flying everywhere. I don’t know who’s winning.

“How did you get away?” Gage swings. The punch connects with Houdini’s ribs.

“So fuckin’ stupid.” Houdini spits out blood as he swings his return aimed at Gage’s jaw. Gage leans far enough to avoid the blow, but it lets Houdini regain his balance enough to swing again. “Superficial wounds and playing possum. If you’d have actually checked for a pulse, you punk-ass bitch…” This punch hits Gage’s shoulder.

Gage swings wide and backhands Houdini.

“You’d have put a bullet in my brain,” he finishes, and I see him pull something from his cut. It glints in the light. “Now I’m gonna put one in yours.”

“Gage,” I shriek his name, though it comes out hoarse and gritty. I sputter a cough. My man knocks the gun as it discharges, puncturing the hollow metal stall door to crack the wall tile above the toilet. It happens fast, but I see it when the door swings open.

The men wrestle for the gun. Each vying to turn it on the other. Both of Gage’s hands have Houdini’s wrist and he’s banging it against the wall. Houdini’s grip slips and the gun drops to the floor.

I blink.

The men continue to fight.

The gun.

On the floor.

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