I Can Fix Him (no really I can) || Rafe Cameron

18. The Cost of Gold

Rafe's POV

The night's still, but my pulse pounds like thunder in my ears as I hold up the gun. John B, Sarah and Penelope- they're all here, staring back at me, waiting for something I can't name. My grip tightens as the anger floods in, hot and consuming. They think they can come here, wreck everything, just like that?

"What, thought we would just let you go, sneak around and steal from us again?" My voice sounds strange, even to me- colder, edged with something raw. Sarah's eyes are wide, pleading as she tries to talk me down, but I don't care. I'm done caring.

My gaze fixes on John B. He's the reason for all of this. He tore everything apart, took her from me- my sister, my family, MY penny. I raise the gun, aiming it right at him.

I pull the trigger.

The crack echoes around us as Sarah stumbles back, clutching her side. For a second, I just stare, disbelief flickering through me. This wasn't supposed to happen. I didn't mean to hit her. But the reality sinks in too fast, too heavy. John B is shouting her name, and he's helping her back into the car. But Penelope- she's still there, frozen, looking right at me.

She steps forward, her voice soft, shaky, breaking something inside me. "Rafe, you don't have to do this. Please...just let us go."

And for a split second, the fury falters, leaving something else. Something I don't want to name. She's the only person who ever tried to understand me, and here I am, a gun still warm in my hand, after shooting her friend, My sister. But before I can say anything, another gunshot rings out.

Pen stumbles, clutching her shoulder, and I turn, finding Dad standing behind me, the gun still raised. "Let them go, Rafe," he says, calm, like he's swatting a fly. "They're not worth it."

I stare, too stunned to move as Pen looks at me one last time, a flicker of disappointment- hurt- in her eyes. It's a look that twists something deep inside, the kind of pain that won't heal. And then, she turns away, climbing into the car before it peels off, leaving me standing in the dust.

"Dad, what the hell?" I whip around to face him, but he just shrugs, dismissing it.

"You're welcome," He says flatly. "At least they're gone. And we've got the hold back from the others."

"You shot Penelope," I snap, my voice rising. "That wasn't necessary!"

Dad rolls his eyes, his face hardening. "Don't be so sentimental. She's not that important."

My hands shake, rage flaring hotter than ever. "She is, Dad. You don't get it! She was- She's-" I can't even finish. My throat closes up, the words getting caught in the anger that's clawing its way out.

Dad's face darkens. "You're letting her cloud your judgment, Rafe. That girl's a distraction- a liability."

I clench my fists, the urge to punch something- to hit him- burning under my skin. "She was trying to talk to me, not John B, not Sarah. She doesn't see me the way you do, like some monster."

"And look where that got her," He snaps, stepping forward, eyes cold and unyielding. "She was in our way, Rafe. She's just like the rest of them."

But he doesn't get it. Pen was more than that. She was... she was the last bit of something real in my life, the only person who didn't look at me like I was just my worst mistake. And now, even that's gone.

"Maybe if you actually gave a damn about someone besides yourself, you'd understand," I mutter, the words slipping out before I can stop them.

Dad's hand comes down on my shoulder, gripping hard. "Don't be foolish, Rafe." You don't need her, or anyone else who'd make you weak."

I shake him off, stepping back, chest heaving. "You don't get it. And you never will."

His expression barely shifts, but there's something colder in his eyes. "Get your head on straight, or you'll lose everything we've built here. Don't let some girl-"

"She's not just some girl," I cut him off, voice hard, final. "Not to me."

We stand there, tension crackling between us like a fuse ready to blow.