Page 37 of Real Shadows
I studied the mess she was, but even with the unrealness of our situation, there was no denying the beautiful spell she had me under. Most of my life, Fallon’s been the only beauty in a picture of despair and hopelessness. Maybe if I were a better person, I’d let her go. But I wasn’t, and there was no question if whether I could live without her or not. People threw that phrase around like it didn’t hold real meaning, but I couldn’t live without a connection to Fallon. She was leaving here with me.
Period.
“Fallon, are you really ready to kill a man?” I asked. “Because that’s what you’re going to have to do to keep me from getting to you.” It was the truth. The police werenotgoing to take me away from her. “Because that’s the only way this ends.”
Chapter 23
Fallon~
The gun shook in my hands.
Through the tears, adrenaline, and fear, the unsteady hold of the gun in my hand was fact. I’ve never held a gun before, and I sure as hell have never pointed one at anyone. And for all that he’s put me through, I didn’t want to shoot Thomas. Maybe if he had been some random stranger, but knowing who he was, I couldn’t live with that on my conscience. Besides, the police were on their way.
I hadn’t expected Xander to start a fight, and after getting over the initial shock of it all, I had raced towards the bedroom, grabbed my phone, then dialed 911. I had screamed Xander’s address into the phone and then threw it on the bed while still connected. There was no way I was going to answer some dispatcher’s stupid questions while Xander could still be in danger. No matter the fact that Xander and Thomas were equally matched, there was still a gun accessible to Thomas.
I had run back out into the living room and looked for that fucking gun. As soon as I saw it, I raced for it and the relief nearly brought me to my knees. And while I had no business holding a gun in the state I was in, there was no way I was giving it up until the police got here. At least, that was the plan until Thomas uttered those words that terrified me to the core.
I didn’t want to shoot him.
“Thomas, please,” I begged. “We…we can…” I didn’t know what we could do. I knew he needed to go to jail. I knew he should be punished for everything he’s done to me and for threatening to kill Xander, but I was being assaulted with memory, after memory of the sweet boy who had been so nice to me during those ugly, early years. Thomas was going to go to jail, and I felt wretched that the very idea bothered me.
“I love you, Fallon,” he said, matter of fact. “I’ve always loved you. You’re going to have to kill me for that to cease. Nothing matters outside what I feel for you.”
“Fallon,” Xander’s voice broke through Thomas’s declaration of love. I turned to look at him. “If you’re not going to put the gun down, go outside and wait for the police.” He gave me a soft nod. “Put the gun on the ground and wait for the cops.”
Did he not understand?
“I’m not letting him out of my sight,” I bit out. “I…”
“Fallon,” Xander snapped, “if the police come in here with you holding a gun on us, they are going to go after you. Go outside or put the motherfucking gun down!”
Movement on my left had me switching my attention from Xander to Thomas. As a testament to his insanity, he was smirking at me. “Yeah, Fallon,” he taunted. “Listen to Xander. Put the gun down.”
“Ignore him, Fallon,” Xander instructed. “He won’t get to you. I won’t let him. I swear it, baby.”
I could feel my arms trembling and I knew with every passing second, I was putting us all in danger, but I didn’t know how to put the gun down. The unknown had me terrified. Intellectually, I knew Xander was right, but emotionally, I couldn’t put the gun down.
Was this shock? What this fear paralysis?
I heard the sirens and the sound set off a chain of events I had been hoping to avoid. My knees weakened, and in my fall, Xander rushed towards me and that gave Thomas the opportunity he needed to come at Xander from behind.
“Xander!” I screamed, but not fast enough. Xander took a blow to the side of his head, and the gun fell out of my hands as I instinctively reached for him. I was officially that stupid woman who gave into the emotion of the situation and put both me and Xander in danger again.
Before I could get my bearings, Thomas grabbed my arm and now it was me standing next to him with a gun to my head. However, the only thing my mind was processing was that there was no way Thomas was getting out of here with me alive. There’s no way the police were going to let him walk away with me. And there was nothing stopping him from killing me and then himself in a crazy bid to be together.
“Thomas, the police-”
“Are going to either let both of us go, or neither of us,” he said, confirming my thoughts.
Just then, Xander was standing, staring at us, blood dripping down the side of his head. It shocked me that he was able to stand, but I did notice he swayed a bit coming to his feet. This was all my fault. I should have just listened to him, but instead, I let my fear take over and now we were right back where we started, with Thomas having the upper hand.
“I’m sorry,” I wept. “I’m so sorry, Xander.”
“Police!” Xander turned towards the front door while Thomas just chuckled.
“In here!” Xander answered before turning back to face me and Thomas. “He’s got a gun!”
“I also got the girl,” Thomas quipped and there was no uncertainty to his mental state anymore. He had to be crazy for none of this to faze him. And had there been even a remote chance of confusion, his next words cemented it. “Come on in!” he yelled for the police.
