Page 77 of Judgment Day

Her legs were shaky, her body weak as she stood up and slid her arms through the sleeves. I pulled the shirt around her body, then buttoned it up with steady hands—blood-stained hands. Her eyes focused on the blood, and her chest moved in slow, calculated breaths.

“You killed her.” Her eyes found my face—a timid stare that fucking suffocated me. The quiet whisper in her voice splintered in my chest.

I thrived on fear. I’d become the god of the Brotherhoodbecauseof fear. Without fear, there was no obedience. And my stomach churned at the thought that this perfect angel might be afraid of me now.

I softened my voice and swallowed the jagged lump in my throat. “We need to go.”

FORTY FOUR

There wasn’t enough time.

We still had our whole lives to live.

There were still so many things I wanted to say, needed to say.

We were just getting started.

I wasn’t ready to let him go.

Those were the thoughts that swarmed in my mind for the last several hours.

I laid my head on his chest, closed my eyes and listened to his heartbeat. The only other sound was the steadybeepof the monitor next to his bed and the bursts of oxygen through a plastic tube flowing into Lincoln’s body. The room was bleak and cold, but his body was warm as I curled into it.

The bullet pierced Lincoln’s lung, causing him to suffocate and drown in his own blood. They removed the bullet and inserted a chest tube to draw out the air and blood so that the lung could re-inflate. That was hours ago, and he still wasn’t awake.

Back at the church, Grey had told me to hurry. He’d said we were running out of time. He’d asked me to trust him and I did. I trusted him with my life. I trusted him with Lincoln’s life. He’d killed the woman who once held his heart in order to save me. And I’d asked him to share me with another man. Sadie was dead. He’d left no doubt about that. But I couldn’t let her blood be on his hands alone. I couldn’t let him live with that after all the selfish things I’d made him do. And I couldn’t walk out of that church without closure. I needed it for what she’d done to me—for what she’d done to Linc. Grey had killed her. I wanted to make sure she went straight to Hell. So, I grabbed the gun off the floor. I’d pointed it at her chest. And I’d unloaded the entire clip into her defenseless body. I pulled the trigger, tears pouring down my cheeks and a yell roaring from my throat. Theclick, click, clickof the empty clip kept coming and coming, and I kept squeezing the trigger. Grey had wrapped his arms around me from behind, trapping me in his hold. His velvet voice had calmed my raging seas. “That’s enough, little dove,” he’d said. And then he’d loaded us into a local fisherman’s boat and saved us. Again.

“He’s going to be okay.” Tatum’s gentle voice floated through the room, pulling me away from the dark memory.

My eyes fluttered open. She was smiling—always smiling. Her skin glowed from the island’s kiss.And happiness.Her dark hair was pulled up into a high ponytail. Her long blue, spaghetti-strap dress floated with every step she took. She looked every bit the graceful ballerina she was. I was sure Caspian wasn’t far away. If there was one thing I’d learned about the Brotherhood, it was their overbearing, protective nature.

I sat up.

Tatum sat on the edge of the bed and took my hand. “He’s a fighter. My brother doesn’t know any other way to be.”

Guilt flooded through me, and my mouth went dry. “It should have been me. I should be lying in that bed with a tube in my chest.”

“Did you honestly think either one of those men were going to let that happen?”

I lowered my eyes to the floor. Leo had a big mouth. She had to know by now. Lincoln was her brother. This had to be weird for her.

“You must think I’m messed up.”

“We’re all messed up.” She squeezed my hand. “Love is messy. But it’s the messy moments, the ones we fight for, that make it worth it. I think you’re three people who were thrown into a messed-up situation, and you’re dealing with it the only way you can—with your hearts. I am not here to judge you because I can’t say what I would or wouldn’t do if it had happened to me. But I am here to tell you,you are not messed up. You’re a human being with a heart and soul.”

I looked up. “I’m supposed to be the wise one in this relationship.”

“I’m the wise one.” Her lips lifted in a smile. “You’re the horny one.”

My mouth dropped.

She arched a brow. “You were sneaking out of my room to give my brother blow jobs before I ever had my first kiss.”

“You don’t know that!”

“Is it a lie?”

I relived the memory in silence.

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