“He’d rather be with friends than home with you. Don’t you see he’s not happy with you, Sophia?” The sound of pity was oozing out of her.
I punched her squarely in the jaw, and my fist crunched against her bone. Her head flew to the side, and I jumped from the bed and headed toward the door. She grabbed my hair before both of my feet touched the floor. I continued to move forward, my scalp throbbing as I tried to resist her attempt to stop me. She hit me in the side of the head so hard that I saw different colors dance in my vision. More tears formed in my eyes, and I fell back on the bed, dizzy from the impact.
I blinked a couple of times, but without my glasses, I couldn’t see worth shit. My eyes adjusted slightly, and the gun filled my line of sight. “I’m taking him with me. You’ll see who he chooses. Don’t move or try to fight me. I won’t hesitate to shoot you,” Lisa said to me, waving the gun in my face. My body trembled as I tried to slow my breathing.
I heard a key in the front door—Kayden.
“Sophia, are you still awake? You left the door unlocked,” Kayden said from the living room. My heart pounded as I heard his footsteps in the hall. I could see his figure enter the doorway, and he froze. I held my breath and tried to feel around the bed for my glasses.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Kayden said in a seething tone, his veins popping out on his neck. All I could do was sit there and stare. Every muscle in my body felt like rubber.
“You’re mine. You belong to me and with me, not Sophia. We’re meant to be,” she said, standing on the side of the bed.
“No, Lisa. We ended long ago,” Kayden replied.
“It can be like we were before. I know you still love me.” Her face grew red.
“I don’t love you anymore. I love Sophia,” he replied quickly as Lisa moved toward him. “Stop right there! You drove me mad and had me arrested. You ruined my life and played with my emotions for the last time!” Kayden yelled at Lisa.
She stepped closer to him, blocking my view.
“Lisa, please leave us alone…please. You have a boyfriend. You don’t want me or need me in your life,” Kayden said in a softer tone, probably seeing the gun for the first time.
“If I can’t have you, Kayden, then neither can she,” she yelled, pointing the gun at him.
“Lisa, this isn’t you. Put the gun down. Leave now, and we won’t call the police,” Kayden said.
“Without you, I am nothing.”
Lisa tried to kiss him, and my blood boiled. I lunged off the bed and landed on her back with a smack. I wrapped my hands around her neck and squeezed.
“Stop,” she said, gasping for air.
“No, Lisa, let go.” Kayden fought for the gun, trying to pry it from her grip. A large bang echoed through the air, and my heart stopped at the sound, but I felt no pain. Our bodies fell to the floor in a heap of human flesh. I gasped for air. My mouth was wide open like a fish out of water, winded from landing on Lisa’s back. She was crying.
“Kayden,” she yelled. “Get up, Kayden!”
Kayden was lying on the bedroom floor, a red spot growing on his shirt. She fucking shot him. I covered my mouth, trying to hold back a scream. She killed my Kayden. I’d finally found a man who loved me the way I wanted to be loved, and this vile bitch took him from me forever. She still hovered over his body, crying and touching his face. She kissed his cheek and pleaded with him to wake up. Bile rose in my throat.Quiet. Be quiet.I grabbed a large crystal candle holder from my nightstand and tiptoed behind her.
“You bitch,” I yelled, bringing down the candle holder on top of her head. Her body slumped over him. I didn’t know if she was knocked out or dead, but I didn’t care.
I grabbed my phone, dialing 9-1-1 as I kicked her body off his. His breathing was shallow, but he was alive. “Kayden, hang on. Help is coming,” I pleaded with him. “I love you, Kayden. Don’t leave me.” I sobbed in a shaky voice. My hand shook as I stroked his face, and my lips quivered as I kissed him. I loved him, and he couldn’t leave me.
“Sophia…” Kayden said in a shaky voice as I rested my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.
“Oh, Kayden! Help is coming, stay with me. Fight, Kayden, please,” I begged him. I bit my lip and stared into his beautiful green eyes, the same ones that had captured my attention the moment I saw him.
“I love you, always,” Kayden said in a trembling voice. I whimpered as his eyes closed. The color and liveliness he had brought into my life was slipping away from me. I rocked back and forth a bit, mumbling and trying to hold him in my arms.Where the fuck are the paramedics?Helplessness and despair sucked the air from my lungs.
I yelled and sobbed as I heard the paramedics rush through the door. I sat back on my feet, rocking and watching them work on his body. Everything moved in slow motion. I heard the men talking, barely able to process the words, Kayden’s heartbeat sounding on the machine.
“He’s critical, but alive.” My heart fluttered in my chest hearing those words, and I bit my bottom lip.
“She’s alive,” said a paramedic, checking Lisa’s pulse.
I hadn’t killed her, but she would’ve killed me. If she could shoot Kayden, I’d be a piece of cake. I sat with my knees pulled up to my chest and my face buried as I rocked back and forth. Tears were streaming down my face. Kayden couldn’t leave me—not now.
* * *
