The gunshot is powerful, but it’s thatsound.
That sound of the shot in the air—it chokes me.
It is the reliving of the night that started my hell, as someone I shouldn’t have tried to be.
Yet, it is also the reliving of the night that led me to Reuben.
My fear is something I can’t control—something I know can’t possibly be real, yet still I can’t take a single step forward. I cower as I back away slowly, but when he raises the gun, my eyes widen—
Because I know the next shot will hit.
It will take everything away from me.
Xavier yells as he wrestles the barrel of the gun away and the shot goes wide.
He hits the man—whose face is no longer blending together with GeoffreyNash—and shoots him twice in the head.
“What’s wrong with him?” He snaps at Gabriel, who runs towards me to take a look at my wound.
I retreat into the wall and hiss before he can come near, forcing him to stop where he is and raise his hands in surrender.
Xavier walks towards me, shotgun still in hand and I growl, hairs standing on end—ready to pounce if he gets too close.
“It’s the gun,” Gabriel notices it quickly. “It’s freaking him out. Drop it quickly.”
Xavier doesn’t hesitate. He dismantles the gun in seconds; all its parts fall to the floor, and suddenly it feels like I can fucking breathe.
I shift into a man because I can’t control the trembling. I feel like I might lash out and hurt them if I don’t.
I also feel… tired. Like I’ve pushed myself too much.
This didn’t happen when I went after the Lesters…
The bird. Creating that much mass must have been too much for me.
Gabriel puts a jacket over me, to cover my nudity—people really are prudes no matter the time and place—but I don’t have time to thank him. I grab the gun at his side to shoot two men behind Xavier. Two headshots that put them down instantly.
Xavier’s eyes are wide as he whirls around, aware now of how close he brushed with death.
“This is the second time you’ve done that,” Gabriel snatches the gun out of my hands with a glare and my panic—that insensible terror—has receded enough that I’m able to shrug through panting breaths.
“Second time you’ve left yourself open.”
He clicks his teeth, “Still cheeky.”
“Still slow,” I retort without missing a beat and he watches me for a moment. There’s no hostility in his eyes as he reaches his hand out, to help mestand.
For once, I can’t find the bite to tell him fuck off.
His grip on my arm is firm as he helps me to his feet, and even though I know he has questions, I can’t find them in his eyes. He’s just… watching, curiosity filtering through his expression, as though he’s seeing me for a second time.
I tie his jacket around my waist for now, at least until I can snag a dead guy’s pants, but when I look up, my gaze meets Xavier’s.
The bad blood between us suddenly seems… distant. Separated by the wrong choices we both made along the way. Because of Reuben… we’re still woven tightly together.
Maybe that’s why I finally notice his hesitation, in the way he purses his lips and the way his eyes are shadowed.
As though he remembers and regrets the things he did.
