TAINTED LOVE ▸ BILLY RUSSO

chapter twenty-four - yelling

We walk out of the bank and see Jake approaching us. He hadn't vanished in the morning and never showed up.

"You're late, you son of a bitch!" Billy yells as the others get in the car.

I don't, I look at the man walking in our direction. The person walking in our way was limping, Jake wasn't limping yesterday.

"Get out of here, Jake. Right now!" Billy yells again.

"That's not Jake."

"Russo!" I hear Castle calling.

He takes off his mask and opens his jacket, revealing the skull in his collet. Billy stands there, looking at him, dumpfoolded. In his head, Frank was still his best friend, he never killed Maria and the kids and I never had it in me to tell him.

"You should have stayed in your hole, Bill." He screams and I grab Billy, pushing him out of the way as Frank starts shooting. 

"Get yourself together. You think about it later." I grab his face. "Castle's gonna shoot to kill, you need to run."

I let go of him and start shooting in Castle's direction.

"Get out of here!" I yell at the car Billy had gotten into.

"Get it, Stacy!" He yells back.

"It's my turn, Billy." I keep shooting at the other man.

"You'll die-"

"I don't know how to die." I assure him. "Go!" I tell the driver and the car starts.

Bullets are flying around as I try my best to stop Frank to reach his car.

"You wanted to meet me?!" He yells.

"How's your leg?" I yell back. "We had a deal, Frank!"

"Deal's off!" He finally reaches his car.

Instead of keep shooting at me, he drives off, following Billy. I run to a stopped car on the street, pointing my gun at the driver.

"Out." I order and they do as I say, crying and running away as I get into their car and drive after Castle.

Not long after, I hear shots and Frank's car, which was in front of me, gets off the road. I stop mine only to see Billy with an automatic rifle.

"You did this to me Frank?!" He yells as he shoots his gun and I try my best to hide from his anger not wanting to be caught in the crossfire, deciding that Billy should have this. "I said, you did this to me?!" He repeats.

"You're damn right I did!" Castle screams back as the police cars approach but none of the two move.

Billy was screaming at the top of his lungs, hurt by his friend's actions. Bullets keep flying for our guns, especially when the cops gets closer and try to shoot back.

Suddently, a car pulls down close to us, shooting in the cop's direction.

"Down, down!" Bobby screamed and we both ran towards him. "Let's go! Billy! Get in! Stacy!"

We get in the car and the man drives away as bullets keps flying in our direction.

Billy didn't say a word the whole way to the other men. Two of them were questioning his decisions too much, so he shoot them dead. Quickly telling the others to get out of his sight.

I knew the look in his eyes, he felt betreayed. The same look he gave me when he found out who I really way. Years ago.

"You knew." He states and I stay quiet. "You knew and you didn't told me!" He yells in my face and I try my best not to flinch. "All this! All this was Frank Castle!" He points at his face. "How could you hide this from me?!"

"What did you want me to do?! You couldn't deal with it! You can't!" I yell back. "Look at you! Don't blame me for this! This is not my fault!"

"You played me! So well!"

"Oh common!" I say sarcastacly.

"It's my life we're talkng about! You can't just keep it from me!" He keeps yelling and getting angrier. "If I can't trust Frank! I can't trust anyone! Why does he hate me?!"

"You want the truth?!" I yell back at him. "You know his family would be killed and you did nothing. That's why he hates you!"

"I- I- No!" He yells. "You're lying!"

"Why would I lie? You want the truth? You let his family get killed and now everyone has to deal with what you did but you!"

"You lied to me. This hole time!"

"I didn't lie to you, Billy." I say steadly and he looks at me, walking in my direction.

He grabs my face roughly, pushing me against a wall. Hard.

"You never told me." He squizes my face thighter and I look at him. "You never said anything."

"I did it for you." I say as best as I can. "Everything I did, I did for you."

His grip gets looser and I reach to touch his arm, making him breakdown and start to cry.

"You look kinda hot with all the scars." I say softy into his hair and he chuckles under his breath. "I'm sorry, for keeping this for you, but I had no choice."