MY TOXIC TAURUS

CHAPTER 8

Veronica tried to keep calm as her breath got deeper and heavier by the minute. She could feel her heart beating so fast it felt as though it would break out of her chest and her palms got all sweaty as she also frantically tried to break free from the ropes tying her to the chair. She had no idea what was going on around her and all she could think of at that moment was Ethan and the gunshot she had just heard.
Ella saw no one outside or downstairs and knew she had to look in the garage. She however got scared as she suddenly began to think of the possibilities that Veronica had come with the police and she would be arrested. As far as she knew, Jake had probably been shot by them and she could not risk it. She hid in a tiny store room under the staircase and mistakenly locked herself in it. She instantly regretted following Jake's plan despite knowing they were both amateurs and knew nothing about kidnapping people. If she stuck to her blackmail plan, she would never have gotten herself in this mess and would definitely have her money already.
Veronica felt as though something was stuck in her throat and she had this pain in her chest. She barely realized that she was crying at this point when she heard a familiar voice
" Veronica, breathe. You need to breathe."
She then remembered the pods she had in her ears and in a few moments, Ethan rushed into the room towards her with the most worried look on his face. He knelt in front of her untying her knots while trying to help her calm down. He maintained eye contact with her the whole time reassuring her.
"It's okay. You're okay, I'm right here with you. Take deep breaths everything's fine..."
The minute he was done untying her, she jumped onto him with a hug as she cried still.
"I thought I lost you."
He pat her hair comforting her but not long after he knew they had to leave. Veronica grabbed everything on the table, including Ella's phone knowing she had to make sure there was no way she could blackmail her again. She felt a bit lightheaded and recalled about the sedative they had given her. It was starting to take effect and she told Ethan about it who then decided to carry her to the car. He drove off at full speed and Ella in the store heard the sound of the screeching tires as she tried to get the door open. When she did, she looked around and found Jake unconscious with blood flowing from his forehead and in panic, she called an ambulance with his phone and left him there.
Veronica was asleep throughout the drive back home. She was still engulfed in terror with the day's incidents from having a gun held to her, thinking Ethan was dead and her panic attack, the second she had experienced since her first on her last Christmas season.
When they got to her place Ethan opened the door first and carried her to her bedroom. Thankfully Cassie had not randomly showed up today to look for Veronica and she had not called either as was her habit. He would not be able to explain everything to her without making her completely blame him for everything.
He stayed with her worried that she could wake up and get even more traumatized if she was alone. He was on the other hand used to guns and a but of violence. After all he had been raised by an army soldier and it was not the first time he had handled guns or heard the sound of a gunshot. He could understand why Veronica panicked especially since she had a gun at her back. That must have triggered something that the gunshot only made worse.
She woke up later that night and found Ethan seated on her couch with her car keys, house keys, phone and a bunch of other things on her table. Ethan had Ella's phone in hand going through it and he was a bit startled when he noticed Veronica in the room. He switched it off and placed it on the table alongside everything else.
Veronica sat beside him without a word still trying to piece up her memories from what could have been the craziest day she had ever had. She then asked him the one question she had in mind.
"If Jake did not shoot you, does that mean you..."
"No. No one was shot," he said.
"We were fighting for the gun and shot it in the air but no one got hurt. He was just unconscious when I left him."
"I'm glad you're okay. You really had me worried."
He had to admit, it felt good knowing that she cared about him even though most of the time she tried to act like she did not.
"Is that why you had a panic attack? Coz you thought I was shot?"
"I thought you were dead dummy ..."
He laughed a bit at her statement, "it would take more than a bullet to get rid of me Veronica."
She smiled and looked into his eyes realizing that she was scared of losing him. She still cared about him more than she could imagine and he was right, it was not easy getting rid of him. They stared into each other's eyes trying to decipher what was going on in each one's mind.
Ethan felt drawn to her and they both didn't realize how close they had gotten till he kissed her. He noticed that she was caught by surprise and pulled back to look at her perhaps seeking some unspoken approval from her. He did get it though when she kissed him back with her hands in his hair and for a moment, it was just them. Both of them and nothing and no one else mattered.