Page 93 of The Broken Queen
He gestured toward me, but Scotty didn’t fall for it by looking over. “She doesn’t have a gun.”
Gio finally began lowering his weapon as if he were finally agreeing. “Fine, how about we both lower our guns then?”
Scotty watched him shrewdly, but I was still focused on how Gio said I was fast enough. He was telling me something. I didn’t have a gun, so the only thing I could be quick enough for would be grabbing the trigger switch. If I grabbed it before Scotty let go, then the automatic firing wouldn’t go off. Did that mean Gio planned to shoot him?
Gio was still lowering his weapon when Scotty had set his gun firmly down on the table, with a thud. It was that momentthat I caught the slightest movement above me, it was near the attic hatch of the gym. I wanted to follow him with my eyes to see what he was doing, but I was too worried Scotty would see where I was looking.
“How about we toss them,” Scotty offered, gesturing toward the firearm.
Gio’s jaw clenched tightly, but he didn’t react.
Scotty continued, “We’re going to count to three.”
Kingston was on his belly up on the upper ledge of the ceiling, near the windows of the gym.
“One.”
Gio’s gaze never wavered as he watched Scotty’s movements.
“Two,” Scotty drawled, and my heart began to thrash in my chest.
Gio finally lowered his arm, as though he was about to toss his gun to the ground. When Scotty got to three, he tossed his gun off to the side, letting it drop to the mat.
Kingston roared from his position, “Shoot him, Gio! The trigger wire’s been severed.”
Reaper’s ears twitched right as Scotty yelled, “Töten.”
Gio still had a hold on his gun, but as he raised it, nothing happened. Meanwhile, Reaper whined while pushing his ears back. “Töten.” He ordered once more. Again, Reaper’s ears went flat, but he didn’t go after Gio. He laid down with another whine.
Scotty faltered. I swung over to figure out what was happening and why Gio wasn’t shooting.
“Gio?”
His arm shook, but his trigger finger wouldn’t budge. That’s when I saw the blood leaking down through his dark sleeve, coating his fingers. The gun slipped, and he stumbled back.
I knew Kingston would take the shot; he’d take Scotty out. Except there was suddenly a new fear cracking open my chest. Henry walked into the room from the side door, where the lockers were, and his gun was aimed directly at Kingston.
No.
“You didn’t realize Gio had been shot.” Scotty chided, like I had disappointed him, “You also didn’t catch on to Henry being one of Markos’ men.” My eyes grew as my heart tried to catch up with what that meant. I stood from the table, feeling like I was moving in slow motion.
“I’ve trained you not to miss little details like that. Look what it’s done now. Why did you think I was so willing to toss my gun away?”
Because he had Reaper, and I stupidly thought he would assume his dog would attack us. I thought we’d had him. I assumed for once we’d have the upper hand, and I was so tired of losing to him. He’d taken so much from me, and now…Gio.When was he shot? Why was Henry aiming his gun at Kingston?
My voice cracked as I called his name again, “Gio?”
I was numb as I dropped to the mats and began to crawl over to him. My mom and dad were trying to talk around their gags, and I saw my dad’s wrist was bloodied. The small blade in his palm, that had been cutting through the plastic, was nearly through. Scotty must have forgotten he’d trained my dad first; he had to have known he had extra weapons on him.
My only focus was on the blue-eyed boy who had always been my sky and had brought me the stars. I placed his head in my lap as I stroked over his forehead. A tear slipped down my nose and landed on his face.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?”
He smiled up at me while reaching up to trace the tear. “I’m sorry I was mad. I know you don’t like it when I am.”
A sob caught in my throat as I held his cold palm to my cheek, but then reality hit me like a train, and I realized he’d been shot.
He was shot. He was dying in my arms while I was sitting there crying as he talked about meaningless things.
