Anneliese
*One Hour Earlier*
Iwatch as Flynn walks out of the room to the bunker just as Elle walks in. He just told me he loves me. I mean, I’ve known he does for years, but when we got into that fight in college after only going out for two months, I ran. I’ve kept him at arm’s length ever since. Not because my feelings didn’t match his own, but because of what he told me. My Papa had worked his tail off to keep me out of the mafia lifestyle, so when Flynn told me that night that if they ever needed him, he’d go work for his brothers without question, I got scared.
I knew he was right, and I was never mad at that. I threw the wall up because if I didn’t, I knew I would have told him it was okay. Flynn Byrne would wreck me if I let him, andnot on purpose. No, he’d never hurt me on purpose, but the effects that this life has on you just do that sometimes.
“You okay, Annie?” Elle flops down beside me on the couch and throws her feet up on the coffee table in front of her.
“I think so. He, uh– he’s going to take me on a date once we get out of here.”
Elle and I are not extremely close, but we’ve been more friendly ever since she found out that my older sister is actually her biological sister. Yeah, it’s a mess, but she and Lelonie have a decent relationship now. My sister and I have been thick as thieves since she was adopted into our family when I was a kid. So, I see more of Elle now, and we talk about our lives while acting like it isn’t odd that we share no parents but the same sister.
“Oh yeah? It’s about time you agree and put that poor boy out of his misery. He’s been pining after you since freshman year of college.”
I can’t help but smile. His friends have no idea that we’ve ever been more than ‘right person, wrong time’ to each other. They have no idea that for two months he held me every night. We shared every thought and kept secrets between the two of us. What Flynn and I shared was more than they could even comprehend, and now as I sit here thinking about what later today or tomorrow has for us, I have no idea why I was even so scared.
“Something like that. I’m going to give us a real shot.”
“Good, soak this in. It may just be the core memory you guys tell at your wedding or when you’re rocking your grand babies.”
I’m about to ask her about Sully when the sound of Declan yelling my brother’s name has my arm hairs standing on end.We both stand and sneak into the control room together. Maybe we could be real friends after all this. Zach is silent at our backs, but I can feel his presence. We watch from the back of the room as Natasha and Declan go back and forth. That’s not what captures our attention, though. No, that would be my soon to be ex boyfriend holding a gun that’s trained on Sullivan.
Without another word Elle spins around, and with her light little gymnast feet she silently sprints out of the room and down a tunnel. I only war with myself for a split second before I’m running after her. I hear Zach murmur a curse as he chases me chasing her. I can’t let my sister’s sister go solo on a suicide mission. I’m going to stop her. I don’t even want to think about what Lee will have to go through if something happens to Elle. They aren’t besties, but they’re still sisters.
I catch up to her right before she shuts the bookcase and shimmy my way through at the last second. It effectively shut Zach in the tunnel.
“What the hell are you doing? Go back! Flynn will kill me when he finds out.” Elle whisper yells.
“And my sisterandSully will kill me if I let anything happen to you. So we both go back or we both go in. It’s your choice.” I hiss back.
She thinks on it for a few seconds before conceding, “Fine, but let’s go before Zach opens this and snatches us both back by our ponytails.”
Elle presses a handgun into my palm.
“I can’t use this. I don’t know how.” I panic as quietly as I can.
“Flick off the safety, aim, and shoot anyone who aims a gun at you. Got it?”
My hands shake slightly but I nod anyway. We silently follow each other out of the room and down the hallway until we’re just out of sight from Sully and Flynn, who are standing in front of the second story banister. They can’t see us, but I can clearly see them and what’s happening below. Natasha is giving some sort of dramatic monologue that I’m not paying attention to. What I do pay attention to is the gun in Calvin’s hand that’s aiming straight at Sullivan.
Of course that has Elle springing into action. Without pause she runs and throws herself in front of Sully. He hasn’t even registered that she’s there before I watch Calvin move his gun to aim at her. The next thing I know, I’m throwing myself in front of Elle and a blinding pain rips through my stomach. I hear two more shots, but I have no idea what’s going on because I’m free falling from the second story.
They say that falls to your death are the longest falls of your life, and as I go hurling towards the ground, I must say, they’re correct. In the seconds before I hit the ground, I see Sully cradling Elle and Zach falling not far behind me. I wonder where Flynn is.
My body crashes to the ground and any breath I’d fought to get into my lungs is forced out by the impact. The pain is so severe that black dots dance in my vision, threatening to take me. My body is warm all over, and the next thing I know, Flynn’s face appears above me. The copper taste in my mouth makes me turn my head and spit it out. That’s when I see Zach laying beside me, unmoving. His eyes are open, but it’s clear to see that he’s gone. I want to cry, to shield my eyes and yell for someone to help him, but nothing more than a quiet whimper pushes past my lips.
“Baby? Anam cara can you hear me?” I see the tears comingdown his cheeks, but my body won’t cooperate to reach up and swipe his tears away.
I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out.
“I love you, Anneliese. Do you hear me? Don’t you dare leave me! I love you!” His voice sounds like he’s screaming underwater for me.
I’m dying and I know it. I wish my siblings and parents knew how much I loved them and how sorry I am. I just didn’t want my sister’s sister to die. I just wanted to protect her. Even as I struggle to take my last breaths, I know. I’d do it all over again if it meant saving Elena.
As the darkness swallows me up, Flynn’s smile is so clear in my mind that it gives me the courage to go. I’m not scared at all when Zach meets me on the other side. We’ll watch out for everyone until it’s their time to join us.
Jakob
