Black Hand

24

"Mama. I killed him. I ended him." I said out loud, looking up. A bullet flies over my head. I hold my side and try for the blood to stop. I gather myself off the ground and run inside the cabin seeking shelter. I take out my gun and aim it in front of me. Ready to shoot whoever it is. I just need to make it to my car. Then I can drive the fuck out. With one hand over my side and one hand holding the gun, I Ready to shoot whoever it is. But no one comes. Which doesn't make any sense. I killed Aziel. Unless he had his phoenix members follow him out here, no one should be firing bullets. Something felt wrong. But now's not the time to think about that. I'm losing too much blood. I honestly could be hallucinating the shot. I create a makeshift tourniquet and stop the bleeding for now. Leaving the cabin, I follow the busted up GPS, that somehow still works back to where my car is. I put the car key in the ignition, press the breaks so I can move the joystick to D and put my put on the gas pedal and speed out of there. But halfway through, the tourniquet comes undone and I pass out from the excessive blood loss. The car loses control. It goes off course. Other cars are honking, people are screaming with their windows down. Obviously, I fully hear none of this, but there is sound somewhere in the back of my passed out head.

I see this white light. And a face that materializes. Then a body. Mama. I go closer to her. Closer. I can hold her. I hug her. She hugs me back.

"Yoongi, honey you can't stay here. " Mama says. Her voice is distorted, not sounding like her. But it is her. I'm confused.

"Mama I stopped him. I stopped father. Please let me stay with you. Mama I want to stay with you."

"I'm proud of you. But honey, there's people there still with you that need you. I can wait. I'm always watching over you."

"No. Mama. Nothing matters. I wanna come to you."

"What about your boyfriend? You made a promise to him. You need to go back. You promised to get your father for this. And you did. Now fulfill your promise to Alexander."

Then suddenly I'm standing away from mama. Far away from her. From the white light. I reach out for her to grab onto me. Keep me with her. But she doesn't. Then she disappears. The white light disappears. I can hear rhythmic beeping. I hear multiple voices. All overlapping. But through all that I hear one distinct voice. Ace. I hear him telling me to come back. To him. To not break my promise. I feel his hand on my wrist. His hand through my hair. I start flapping my eyelids. Fighting against the heaviness of it.

But then suddenly, I shut down. My body lets go. The beeping stops. I stop hearing his voice. And I see mama again. I see the white light again.

A minute later, I find myself back to the side of the living. This time stronger. My eyes stay open. The first person I see is Ace.

"Hi baby. Hi." Ace pulls up a chair and sits next to me. "I thought I lost you."

I shake my head slowly. "No. Not in this lifetime." I move my fingers to try hold his hand. "I killed him. Father. I ripped his guts out."

"It's over." He rests his forehead on mine.

"I wouldn't be too sure." Namjoon says walking in. "Aziel might not even be the leader of EmberWing. I think we got it all wrong."

"No. Don't fuck with me." I clear my throat. I struggle to sit up. Ace helps me up. "EmberWing is my father's and now he's dead. End of story."

Namjoon hands me the iPad. "See for yourself."

The video is the abortion video he showed me months ago. But this time, the background is enhanced. I can clearly hear my father talking to someone. Taking direction. I killed my father. But not the actual leader of EmberWing.

- - -

Ace takes me out to a nice dinner a week after I got released from the hospital. We talk about what happened at the cabin and how I feel now that my father's dead. There's some part of me that wondered what if he let mama stay. If she kept her first son. Would I even be born? I know if I was, I wouldn't have met Ace. Our worlds would have been so different. I'd probably not be the leader of a mafia empire. Or maybe I would be, for EmberWing.

"I want to be mad at you for leaving me like that but I also know why you did it. I'm just glad you're safe." Ace takes a bite of his steak.

"Me too." I smile. "Ace, I'm sorry I said you make me weak."

Ace waves it off. "Babe, it's fine. We make each other vulnerable sometimes, but definitely not weak."

"Right..." I take a bite from my food.

Ace pulls out a box and sets it on the table, in front of me. I set the utensils down and look at the box, then at Ace.

"Ace...." I start to say. But Ace stops me. I open the box and inside are two beautiful silver rings. The engraving on the underside has our initials with the date we first met. I try to hold my composure but tears just started streaming down my face. Something in me, broke the second I saw the rings, the engravings. I wasn't much into marrying anyone, but these past years -- I had been with the same person, on and off -- and we click. We test each other all the time, but we also would die for the other. I push the table aside, and kiss him. He kisses me back.

"Is that a yes?" Ace asks, in between kisses.

"Yes you idiot." I take a ring out from the box and slip it on his finger and he does the same to me.