Kiss Me Deadly

Chapter Twelve

"Holy shit. You stole his keys?" Leilani whispers with a bright gleam in her blue eyes.

I let out a weak snort at the surprised tone of her voice as I stick the key into the shackle on my wrist. I give it a twist and the heavy metal falls onto the mattress. I rub my raw wrist and smile. I may be way out of practice but I'm not an idiot. I don't take ass beatings for nothing if I can help it.

Once free, I lightly touch the tips of my toes to the icy cold floor. The muscles in my legs tremble at the thought of having to support me. In all honesty, I would rather lay back down on that hard ass cot than face the possibility of more pain. I'm so close to giving in to my body's wishes, but when I look at Leilani's face, I lose my pitiful thoughts.

Her baby blue eyes are so full of hope and innocence that I don't dare let her down. I refuse to let this life ruin her like it's ruined me. She deserves better than that.

I suck up my self pity and slide off of the bed, ignoring the way my torn up legs seem to be screaming and cursing at me. Ignoring the pain, however, proves to be easier said than done. Oddly, as I struggle over to Leilani's cot on the other side of the room, something Ryder once said to me comes to mind. I know the pain is hard, princess, but you can do this. Look it right in the eye and tell the pain to kiss your ass. Then do what you need to do.

What the hell, I think to myself, it couldn't hurt. So I take a deep breath and look my pain straight in the eyes and in my boldest, bitchiest voice, I tell it to go straight to hell. Then I turn back to Leilani.

I shove Antonio's key into her shackle -she only has one. Antonio must not have been that concerned that she'd escape- and unlock it. As they heavy metal falls from her wrist, she leaps up from the cot and throws her arms around my neck. I wince in pain and she quickly releases me from her embrace, whispering a sheepish, "sorry!"

I just nod to cover up the surprise from her hug. She'd seemed so bothered when she found out who I am, I didn't think she'd ever want to talk to me again, let alone hug me. I stand again and take a step towards the stairs but my knees buckle. Leilani catches me and drapes my arm around her shoulders, supporting my weight with her tiny frame. Together, we clammer up the stairs with hope of escape blossoming in our chests.

At the top of the stairwell with Leilani pressed up against my back and peering over my shoulder, I test the door knob. Unlocked. Tears of joy pool in my eyes as I thank whatever higher power is out there for my luck. 

Then I hear it.

A whimper from below.

Leilani turns to me. "There's someone down there," she says with frightened eyes.

"I know."

She gestures frantically. "We can't just leave her!"

Sigh. "I know."

Squeezing my eyes shut tight, I pinch the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger. Why can't anything just be simple for once?

With a pain-filled groan, I bring out the witch side of my powers. Then, with the last of my energy, I summon a gun into my hands and hand it to Leilani.

She holds it like it might bite her. "I don't know how to use this."

I do my best not to roll my eyes.

"Just point and squeeze the trigger." I frown and add as an afterthought, "and don't shoot yourself."

Determination flares in her eyes as she grasps the gun with more confidence. Then she frowns, "will this kill him? Antonio, I mean."