Ascension

Twenty-Six

The gun slipped out of my fingers and hit the floor with a loud clank. The thunderstorm outside was raging. My eyes looked down at my shaking fingers. The same fingers that held onto the gun. The same fingers that managed to pull the trigger. The same fingers that led to two of the men's deaths. I killed two men.

A normal person didn't say that every day.

My bottom lip quivered, I didn't cry. My whole body felt like hello, wobbly, and unstable. I fell to my knees and breathed in heavily. A piece of fabric fell to the ground in front of me. Dirty and covered in blood, I realized it was Gavin's shirt. He braced himself against the wall, his upper body completely bare now. My lips parted as I noticed the seeping blood pooling down his chest, his entire body all the shades of purple and red from the beating he took.

I slid the shirt over my half naked body. My mind went in endless circles as my cells were at a constant dance party; while a spastic drum line was stuck in my ears. I killed not one but two people today. My nerves felt so blurry, wondering if time would go by faster because I wanted out of this. If I was going to be somewhat sane after this, I needed it.

It all fades away when a hand touches mine. I looked up. Gavin cupped my cheeks and brought my forehead to his. His entire body had been beaten so severely, I wasn't sure how he was moving right now. His shoulder was horrendous, it was going to take longer to heal than the gunshot wound. His face was slightly swollen.

"Gavin..." I managed out and choked back a cry. "I'm so sorry." And then I let it out. I cried. I cried like a baby. I had messed up again. So many emotions poured out of me. Anger. Sadness. Rage. I wasn't able to handle these overwhelming feelings, I had no time anymore.

He pulled into his broad chest, he tightened, but held me firmly. As disgusting as we both were, neither of us cared. It was freezing, being merely covered in a broken down and split open tee shirt, you'd think you'd be shivering madly, but his warmth surrounded me.

"You're okay."He whispered and cradled the back of my head. "I'm sorry I let him touch you like that, Dani. I am sorry I couldn't do more."

"Is this how it always ends?" I ask.

I was met with his silence and a raging storm.

"No." He stammers. "I won't let this happen for you again. You should have ran."

I leaned back and contemplated his words. "You both would have died." His body slipped away from mine and he fell back against the wooden beam. How he was functioning right now was beyond me. "I couldn't just run away knowing he was going to kill both of you."

"You have no idea what he would have done, Dani." He whispered only as loud as he dared. "You should have left."

I straightened, glaring at him. "What is wrong with you?"

His eyes narrowed. "Nothing is wrong with me." He then points around the room. "Cameras. If we're lucky they no longer work, but for all we know - they know what you look like now. They know who you are. The only advantage we had against the world was them not knowing what you looked like - but if those work, we're screwed."

"You don't know that, Gavin."

He growls. "Your optimism isn't helping right now."

"Can't you just be grateful that we're alive, Gavin?" I raised my voice and shifted over to Sofia, checking her pulse. It was strong. Not weak. She was going to be okay. I stroked her hair and met those serpentine eyes again.

"Grateful?" He chuckled lowly, "you call this grateful?"

"Yes, yes I am grateful! We're alive!"

He stood to his feet with one solid motion and now I was looking up at him. "Sofia is hardly conscious, Daniella." His voice was like thin ice, pointing to her body that laid limp against me. "Instead of letting him end the pain I already accepted, I was nearly beaten to death with a pipe. You came out here and you better thank God you weren't raped."