Page 75 of Brutal Captivity

He slowly squeezes the trigger, and I close my eyes, preparing myself for the blinding pain, the sound of a bullet entering my skull, how I imagine it will feel when I die.

The gunshot tears through the room, an absolute explosion of sound that leaves my ears ringing. I brace for the impact, waiting for the cold dark of a bullet in my brain. But no pain comes. Is death this quiet? Is it painless? I force my eyes open. The smoke clears, and the ringing in my ears gives way to a sickening, wet thud beside me.

At first, I don't see anything but the ceiling. I'm staring up, waiting for the dark to take me, but the chime of the gunshot continues to ring through the room like a bell. I'm alive. Slowly, I turn my head to the left, my gaze landing on the gruesome sight of Altieri’s limp body, his eyes lifeless, the side of his head almost completely blown off by a bullet.

I quickly look around the room, trying to find someone, anyone else who could have been responsible for the man who lies bleeding beside me. I find the only other conscious person in the room. Callisto. Callisto still holds the gun, his entire body shaking.

“Callisto,” I whisper, pushing myself from the floor, slipping on blood before I finally find my balance, running to Callisto who collapses in my arms, fat tears streaming down his face.

“Callisto. Oh, Princess. You didn’t have to do that,” I say, running my fingers through his hair. I place my palms on his cheeks. “You didn’t have to.”

“Yes, I did,” he mumbles, crying harder.

“Okay, Princess. Umm… let’s get you out of this vest. How does that sound?” I wipe the tears from Callisto’s face. He is very clearly going into shock. With a shaky hand, I show Callisto the key. It takes me three tries to push it into the lock, clicking it open a moment later. I carefully push the vest off of Callisto’s shoulders, gently setting it to the side.

“I had to. I’m sorry. I couldn’t let him shoot you. I had to kill him. Oh god,” Callisto cries, pulling away from me to vomit on the floor beside me. I rub his back, running my fingers through his dark, sweaty hair. We don’t have time for this. Movement catches the corner of my eyes; Peadar is stirring.

“Princess.” I take Callisto’s chin in my palms, looking him in the eye. “I know you’re in shock, but we need to get the fuck out of here.” I glance over at Peadar. He’s going to yell for backup any second now, and then we won’t have time to get away.

“Okay.” Callisto’s voice is weak, but his nod is strong. I pull Callisto from the floor. I run over to the sliding glass door, finding it locked.

“Fuck.” I curse, hitting then kicking the door in frustration.

“There is nothing out that way. Just the cliffs and the ocean,” Callisto says, his white knuckles still wrapped around my gun.

“We can’t stay here. Cover your ears.” I don’t even wait to see if Callisto does it. I grab the gun from Callisto’s hand and shoot the glass twice. It shatters out into the darkness.

“Watts! Parsons! Get in here!” Peadar’s voice is rough, barely recognizable to even me. The sound of the gun firing in succession must have been what finally brought him to. Peadar coughs again, then he slowly stands. He is clearly looking around for the detonation device. A few seconds later, two men come bursting through the door across the room.

Callisto and I quickly step over the glass, avoiding the big shards jutting up. The cold air hits me, pulling the air from my chest. We’re now on a concrete patio, fairy lights strung up on the beams above us. The air outside carries the familiar, thick aroma of salt. Below, ocean waves smash into the jagged rocks, filling the openness with their steady roar.

A sense of urgency has taken over my entire being. I look over my shoulder to see men chasing after us. I grab Callisto’s hand, and we run off of the patio and into the yard. Shots are fired at us but somehow miss.

The light spilling out of the house eventually disappears, losing its battle to the looming darkness. The waxing moon provides just enough light for us to make our way through dozens of trees, dead grass and earth crunching quietly beneath our feet, but not enough to be quick. At least it is keeping us hidden in darkness.

My lungs burn from the cold air, my muscles already cramping, not ready for this amount of physical activity, but I push myself to keep going. Callisto grips my hand as we run, leading us further toward the sound of the ocean crashing against rock.

Peadar and his men are hot on our heels, ready to shoot as soon as they get us in their sights. It feels like we run for miles, when it's only a hundred yards at most. Callisto pulls hard on my hand a moment later, stopping me in my tracks.

“The edge,” Callisto yells, and it’s just in time because I start to teeter on the edge of a cliff, almost falling. I would have run headlong over it if Callisto hadn’t stopped me.

“What do we do?” Desperation bleeds through his question, his voice wavering with a sharp, sudden uncertainty. He’s looking at me for answers, his eyes wide and scared in the little bit of light that the moon provides.

I look back, not being able to see the house anymore, but the voices of Peadar’s men communicating are nearby, moments away from finding us.

“Is there a way around?” I ask, my eyes scanning the area.

“No. There is a fence all along the perimeter. It’s too tall to climb, and it’s electric. The only opening is the gate. We will never make it without either Peadar or one of Dad’s men grabbing us.” Callisto shakes his head.

“How cold do you think the water is? Are there rocks down there? Are you a strong swimmer?” I ask my questions in quick succession, peering over the edge. I can’t see anything. Just inky darkness that leaves an uneasy feeling in my gut. The unknown.

“Very. The current is also strong. I don’t remember if there are rocks. I can swim, but you can’t…” Callisto responds, his voice hesitant. He must know what I'm thinking. It’s our only choice. We can’t go back. The longer we stay here, the higher the chance of us dying. Time is running out, slipping through our fingers, back to being an intangible force.

The voices behind us are getting louder. Beams of flashlights move in and out of trees. We don’t have a lot of time to spare, but we never have. We seem to have somehow made an enemy out of time.

I swallow, my fear paralyzing me. I try to take a deep breath. Tell myself that everything will be okay. It’s a lie, though. Clinging to false hope and empty promises will get us nowhere in this.

Fear grips my body, threatening to stop my racing heart. I take a deep breath, my hand shaking in Callisto’s. I hate heights. I hate deep water. I hate the unknown. This is mixing all of my fears into one. I can’t even believe I’m considering it, but it’s our best chance at survival.