Nothing Without You | Eric Coulter [2]

nineteen

Edgar's shot goes wide as my body slams into his.

We both go sprawled out on the floor with him pinned under me and I raise my fist, ready to deliver a blow to his face.

I'm not one for violence. In fact, there was even a time when I feared it.

But as I stared down at this man who held no qualms about taking the man I love away from me, anger boils in my veins. And since he hasn't bothered sparing Eric any mercy, I figured I wouldn't do the same for him either.

There's a loud crack that sounds as I bring my fist down on the scum's face and I rear my hand back to hit him one more time. But just before my fist connects with Edgar's face again, an arm wraps around my waist and pulls me off of him.

"Calm down, V," Tobias's voice speaks harshly in my ear, "You're not helping Eric's case right now. Calm. Down."

Edgar smirks at me as if he wasn't just cowering away from me like the little gutless shit that he was just minutes ago, and it infuriates me to no end.

"Eric's fine for now, but if you keep this up, you'll just be proving their case," Tobias says harshly in my ear, "I know it's hard, but let it go. They'll pay for this, just not right now."

I stop struggling in Tobias's arms knowing that he was probably right. And my brother eyes me for a minute, only releasing me when he was sure I wasn't about to attack Edgar again.

Knowing that he was safe, the coward raises to his feet with that idiotic smirk back in place and for a brief moment, I regret listening to Tobias. But it did give me a bit more satisfaction seeing his face all bloodied up from my attack.

"Are we going to finish this or what?" He eggs the crowd on, drawing cheers from his supporters.

"Wait," Mr Kang's voice echoes through the space, "I disagree. I don't think we should kill him."

"Neither do I," Tobias jumps in, stepping up until he's face to face with Edgar, "So, stand down. You can't do this unless all of us agree."

Roars of agreement sound from behind me, and without even looking, I knew that Lynn, Uriah and Zeke were among them.

"Quiet!" My mom finally chooses to speak up, "I'm afraid this isn't your decision to make, Mr Kang."

"And when has it been decided that it was yours?" The man in question shot back.

"I agree with Mr Kang," Johanna, who was previously the representative of Amity, pipes in from the sidelines, "This isn't a decision you get to make on your own."

"I yield to the wishes of my people," Evelyn says in her defence, making me roll my eyes.

"Bullshit," Tobias says at the same time, "The only wishes that you're wielding to are your own. Admit it, the only reason you so desperately want him dead is because you see him as a threat to your authority, don't you? You know that he has the ability to lead just as well as you do, if not better. You're scared that you'll lose it all to him, and the only way to make sure that doesn't happen is if he's dead."

Our mother scoffs at Tobias's accusations, but I don't miss the way her shoulder stiffens. If you'd ask me, I'd say my brother struck a nerve.

"I'm doing what's best for my people," She protests again, lamely. "Eric is not a threat to me, nor will he ever be. You think he can lead these people? Think again." She points a finger at Eric who struggles against his cuffs, "That man doesn't lead. He dictates."

"Sounds a lot like you're describing yourself instead," I snide and my mother snarls at me, her carefully put-together mask slowly starting to crack.

"This is ridiculous," Evelyn scoffed, turning to face the crowd like she truly gave a fuck what they think. "Look what he has done. He's turned my own children against me!"

"No," I speak up before Tobias could, "You did that all on your own, Evelyn."

A flash of hurt shines through her eyes, but I'm too pissed off to care if my words have wounded her.

Shaking her head, she mumbles under her breath, "I don't need to answer to any of you." Then, she looks up at Edgar and says, "Proceed."

I move to get to Eric before they could hurt him, but Tobias holds me back once again, forcing me to meet his eyes as he says, "Trust me."

"Stop!" Harrison steps forward in the next minute, placing himself between Eric and Edgar like a human shield. "You can't kill 'em if none of us agrees. We're leaders here as well, you're not the only one who has the authority to make these decisions."

Looking around, I noticed that everyone has formed almost a wall around Eric, and even Zeke, Lynn and Uriah had jumped out to help.

My mother tries to stand her ground, but after seeing that none of us were willing to budge, she shakes her head with a heavy sigh.

"Fine," She relents, "But there will be another trial held tomorrow."

My body stiffens up and I storm up towards her, shrugging Tobias's hand off of me when he tries to stop me again.

"Haven't you done enough?" I demand when I stop in front of her, "If you do this, there's no going back for us, do you understand me?"

"Really? I am your mother," She asks in disbelief, "And you would walk away from me for him?"

"I will do anything for him," I tell her, "Even if it means I have to lose you to have him."

"Wait!" Tobias's voice pulls my attention away from my mother. I turn to see that he has stopped the guard before they brought Eric back to his cell. "V," He calls, jerking his chin and Eric before directing the guards away to give us some space.

My legs immediately carry me towards Eric and I throw my arms around him the minute I reach him.

With his arms cuffed behind his back, Eric isn't able to return my hug but still, he turns his face into my neck and presses a kiss there.

"Are you hurt? Is your hand okay?" He mutters against my hair.

Pulling back I run a hand along his jaw and joke, "You should've seen the other guy."

Despite the situation, he gives me a heartbreaking smile and says, "Good girl." Before leaning down to kiss me.

"We'll get you out of this, okay?" I promise.

There wasn't a doubt reflected in Eric's eyes as he replies, "I know you will."

Then, before either of us could say anything more, the guards rip him away from me and I watch as they dragged him back towards his cell.

Before they disappeared down the hallway, Eric looks over his shoulder and mouths the words, 'I love you', and I quietly promised myself that I would say it back to him soon.