Page 72 of Blazing Desires
“Just like you killed mum and Amélie.”
“Yes, but look how pretty this room turned out!”
He holds out his arms as if the sunroom would ever make up for the loss of their lives.
“I think you’re forgetting something important here, Anthony,” Blaze cuts in.
“And what is that?”
“I’m the one with a gun to your daughter’s head. You don’t believe that I won’t take her life?”
My dad chuckles, “Oh you silly boy. Were you not listening? I don’t fuckingcare.You’d be doing me a favour, honestly. Given how much of a whore her mother was, I’m not even sure she’s really mine.”
My heart is bleeding and pouring onto the light stone floor. The pain of his words creates a river of red, the lost blood replaced by numbness inside my hollow bones. I’m beyond hurt, I’ve been mutilated and maimed.
I don’t respond with words. I slip my hand into my pocket and hit the button to detonate the explosives. They don’t notice my movements while they spit vitriol at each other, me in the crossfire being torn to shreds by the shrapnel of their words.
Time moves slowly as I wait for the first bomb to go off and when it does, the sound of his empire being blown to pieces and consumed by fire helps to fill the void of where my heart once was.
Chapter 30
River of Tears
Blaze
The ground shudders and shakes beneath my feet.
Debris rains down from the explosions, hitting the glass roof and threatening to smash through. I would consider the sound to be pretty if it wasn’t the result of utter destruction. Instinctively, I go to cover Davina’s body with my own, to protect her should the glass ceiling break, but I don’t get the chance.
“Davina!”
Her name rips free from my throat in a roar loud enough to be heard over the chaos.
She pulls from my grip and that’s when I notice the gun in her hand. The holster on my leg is now empty and light from the missing weight of the cool metal.
“Davina!” I try again.
She’s staring right at me, her back to the flower wall and out of my reach. The gun I expect to be aimed at me for all the things I’ve said tonight is trained on her father. But gripped in her other hand…
No.
The sight forces me to hastily retreat towards the open doors with my gun outstretched at her to stop the others from taking me out. I no longer have her as leverage and the only reason I’mnot dead right now is because of her. My ears are ringing with white noise.
This can’t be happening.
My eyes flick to hers, and it might be for one last time. The desolation I see in them cleaves my heart in two, the consequences of my betrayal twisting around her like barbed wire and shredding her to the core. I see it now, the rivulets of blood carrying the pieces of her heart as they fill the room with red. Coating my hands.
I did this to her.
I take a step, not even contemplating why it might be a bad idea, it’s second nature to want to be near her, to protect her, to save her. But she doesn’t need saving, not anymore. She’ll save herself, even if it means taking everyone with her.
I won't survive alone again. If she leaves this earth then I no longer wish to exist.
I breathe past the rapid beating of my heart, sure that it’s audible over the booming going off through the house as the bombs continue to explode. My eyes plead with her to come back to me, to forget all this and get out of here. She shuts me out when her eyes leave mine. And in that moment, I know I’ve lost her.
“I’m sorry, my love,” I say only to her, not caring that the others are around but needing her to hear it.
“Run.”
