Mafia // Ryan Blaney

eighteen // the final fight

In a mere matter of hours, this will all be over. I'm ready for this to be over.

"Guys make sure we have everything. Every gun needs to be in this bag, loaded, and ready to use," Erik said, placing his in the bag. Everyone followed suit.

"Do you really think we'll need all of these?" I asked William.

"It's hard to say. We don't know how many of them there will be. They could've grown since we left. It's better for us to be over prepared than under," he replied.

We went over the plan one more time. Go in, find cover, shoot, kill. The guys get back to work, and I just stand there and take it all in. A month ago, I had just moved to a new school and knew no one. Now I'm here about to risk my life for these guys that were complete assholes to me when we met.

The guys finish packing and come join me, forming the worst looking circle I've ever seen. No one said anything. We just enjoyed each other's presence.

"What now?" Chase asked. We all just looked at each other.

"Can I say something, you know, just in case?" I blurt out. The guys all nod. I grab Ryan's hand and squeeze it a little before letting go.

"I just want to say thank you. Not so much for getting me involved in this fucked up mess, but because now I have five friends. If it weren't for you guys, I probably wouldn't have any. We've been through so much in such a short time, both good and bad. You brought out a side in me that I never knew existed, and I don't regret anything since moving here to High Point. No matter what happens today, I love you guys." I feel the tears coming to my eyes, but I push them back. I don't need them thinking I'm too weak for this and trying to keep me from going. Again.

"We love you Kacey. You are the last person we ever would've expected to become friends with, but we can't picture going into this without anyone else by our sides. I know it was hard for you, but we are so proud of you. We wouldn't be able to do this without you," Chase says, walking over and giving me a hug. One by one, the rest of them followed suit.

This moment right here, I wouldn't trade for anything. I wish it could last forever.

--

When we pull up in front of the warehouse, we don't do anything. We stay in the car for a few minutes. There are so many things running through my mind that I can't concentrate on what's about to happen. Ryan sat next to me in the backseat on the ride over, holding my hand the entire time. Deep down, I know he's just as scared as I am. He'll never admit it though. I glance over at him and find him already looking at me.

"I'm so scared, Ryan," I whisper.

"It'll be okay. I promise you everything will be okay. We'll come out of this and finally be able to be with each other," he replies, squeezing my hand. I place my head on his shoulder for e brief moment before sitting back up.

"Alright guys, let's do this."

We all file out of the car, with Bubba grabbing the bag. We remove our weapons and place the bag on the sidewalk next to the car and prepare ourselves for whatever is waiting for us inside.

"Everyone ready?" Chase asks. We all nod. "On my count. One. Two. Three!" Chase throws the door open and we storm the building, guns at the ready. I run to take cover, and there's smoke everywhere. I take a deep breath before popping up and firing a few bullets. I hear someone scream, and I smile a little. I crouch back down to reload, before popping up and firing all the rounds in my clip.

"Kacey!" Erik yells. I spin around and see someone holding their gun to my chest, point-blank range. I freeze. I don't know what to do. If I move even an inch, I'm dead. Someone screams, the gun goes off. I look down and I'm not bleeding. Another shot is fired. The enemy is down. I look to my right, and I see Ryan.

"No!" I scream, falling to the ground. I'm practically on top of him, trying to stop the bleeding. It takes both Chase and William to pull me back to my feet.

"We've got Ryan. You three finish this," William says, taking over for me.

I feel the anger building up inside me. I take the biggest gun I see next to us, look back up, and I see Austin and Ty standing there, laughing. I raise the gun up and fire. Ty's down, and Austin takes off running. I fire two more shots at Ty to make sure he's dead, then take off after Austin.

"Kacey where are you going?" Bubba yells after me. I ignore him and keep on my chase.

I'm only a few feet away from Austin when I toss my gun to the side and lunge forward, tackling him to the ground.

"You beat the shit out of me for no fucking reason. Now it's my turn. Only this time, you won't make it out alive." And I start punching. Tears are streaming down my face, but I keep going. I beat him until his face is unrecognizable. There's blood all over the place, and I feel the life leave his body. It doesn't matter. I keep beating.

"Kacey, it's over. Get off him!" Erik yells, pulling me off Austin's lifeless body.

"I'm not done," I reply, ripping myself from his grasp. I pick my gun back up and keep going. "This isn't over yet."

I set off for Pops.

I look down and I'm covered in blood. I find Pops just as he's about to sneak out the back door. I lift my gun and shoot him in the leg, causing him to fall. I run over to him.

"Did a little fucking girl just shoot me?"

"You're fucking right I did. Just like I shot Ty. Oh yeah, and I returned the beating Austin gave me back to him. You wouldn't even be able to recognize him. You're the reason Ryan's on the brink of death. It's over, Pops. Face it, you lost. Your life is about to end, and you'll never be able to hurt anyone ever again." I raise my gun back up and aim it at his head. Without hesitating, I fire. I stare at his motionless body for a minute before running back to Ryan.

"Ryan," I cry out, tears still running.

"Kacey," he replies weakly. He lifts his head just enough to look at me. I fall to the floor and put his head in my lap.

"You're going to be okay. Remember, everything is supposed to be okay. Austin's dead. Ty's dead. Pop is dead. We'll get you help. You can't leave me."

"There's nothing they'll be able to do, and deep down, you know that. You saved me. Not only from them, but from myself. They almost killed you tonight. I owed you for saving my life. It was my turn to save yours. I just –" he coughed, and some blood came up. "I just want you to know how much I love you. I'm sorry I can't keep my promise to you. When your time comes, just know that I'll be waiting for you with open arms. I love you Kacey Anne Marie Roberts."

"I love you too, Ryan Michael Blaney." I watched his eyes close, and his chest rise and fall one last time. Just like that, the love of my life died in my arms. I let out a sob, not caring who heard me.

Ryan's gone. And he's never coming back.