Page 79 of Rebellion of a Kingdom

“We can’t leave him,” I scream, “somebody fucking help him.” My throat is raw, but it’s like they can’t hear me.

“We’ve got to move, now!” Max snaps, looking between Asher and I with sorrow in his eyes. They are not fucking leaving him here to die.

“I’ve got him, brother.” Lincoln starts, eyes still focused on Asher, but Marcus shakes his head.

“No.” He snaps, “Logan’s got Jace, and now you’ve got my girl. Get them out of here. I’ll get Asher.”

The tears soak my face as he grips my chin and brings my face to his. “I got this, baby, go.”

I don’t get to respond before Lincoln is hauling me out of there. Jace, Logan, Zack, and Tyler quick on our tails. I do nothing but cry as I try to break free from his hold on me. Lincoln doesn’t stop, just strides out of the building and into the middle of a fucking battle. There are bodies everywhere and bullets fly past us, but Lincoln isn’t fazed. He remains focused on where we are heading, and all I can do is watch as we leave it all behind. I see familiar faces everywhere battling against the Donovan fray and fire bursting out of several of the buildings.

There are girls screaming and crying everywhere and for the first time ever. I don’t care about any of them. I know what they have been through, what they have suffered. But all I can think about right now is that we just left my best friend behind to die.

A thought passes through my mind that I never thought possible.

Too many Donovan’s will die today.

The Crows are retreating to the front gates, continuing to kill the remaining guards as they go. Some of them drag girls along with them. It’s fucking carnage. We pass Aiden and Killian who are covered in blood as they carry Connor O’Sullivan’s dead body. I can’t even let the guilt hurt me. It’s too much.

We make it through the gates and towards the trees as more of our guys start to join us and I desperately search for signs of Marcus and Asher, but all I see is smoke and flames. I feel dizzy and lightheaded, and I know the blood loss is getting to me and my flailing around isn’t helping. I collapse around Lincoln's body and feel him relax slightly as I calm myself.

“Superman.” I whisper and he looks down at me, “I’m going to lose him.” My voice cracks as the emotion and exhaustion starts to overtake me. I can feel myself starting to fall into a pit of nothing, but Lincoln's words pierce into it.

“It’s gonna take more than a bullet to destroy Asher Donovan.” His tone is strained, and I can tell he doesn’t believe a word he just said. Asher Donovan may be a force of nature, an angel among demons, but he is still only human. He’s saved me time and time again and his actions are finally catching up to him.

Elliot Donovan is dead.

Greg Donovan is dead.

Asher Donovan is dying.

Is this how it was meant to be? My punishment for so much chaos. I’m free and allowed to live, but my best friend has to die....

Crows continue to retreat out of the gates, running towards us and I see Max and his team coming in quick and fast too. Zack staggers beside us, with Logan holding up Jace. The only people missing are Marcus and Asher.

Is the payment for my sins that I have to lose them both?

The last thing I see before I fall into darkness is the Donovan compound perishing in flames like the true pit of hell it always was.

Always.

Epilogue

ELLE

Two months later…

The funeral was perfect, or as perfect as death can be. It didn’t heal the hole in my heart, but it allowed me to say goodbye. Goodbye. I fucking hate that word. It’s just so lacking for what it entails, but would any word ever be enough to let go of the people you love? To accept the fact that you are never going to see them again, talk to them. To hear them laugh or pull them in for a hug. They're just gone forever, and you're left behind to deal with the loss.

I stare down at the freshly tossed soil and think about how close I came to being in a box of my own. Not that I could ever forget. The scars and the dull pain in my side don't let me. The ache in my heart is a constant reminder as well. You'd think I'd be used to this feeling of regret considering this is the fourth funeral I've attended in the last two weeks.

First there was Mason’s. Max pulled out all the stops to ensure he was given the sendoff he deserved. One worthy of his bravery, commitment, and sacrifice. His death will always remain on my conscience. His loss is felt by all of his friends, but they know we are lucky there weren’t more. Owen escaped the same fate and it’s the only salvation for Max and his team.

Connor O’Sullivan was thrown an all-out Crow affair as his chapter said goodbye to him. His daughter Rebecca right there by his graveside. All of them paying their respects to their late president. I guess he's the ex-president now. Aiden was voted in a few days after everything went down. I'm not sure how successful the transition was, I'm not exactly high on the list of the Crows’ favorite people. If it weren’t for me, Connor would still be alive.

Sarah King’s funeral was the least emotional. Zack attended with me, but not for her, for me. Her last act doesn’t change a lifetime of betrayal for him. It doesn’t change it for me either, but I needed to go, needed to let go of everything she did and say goodbye.

There’s that stupid fucking word again.

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