AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What's there to talk about?” he barks out.
“Why did you pull away?”
“You weren't supposed to see them. You weren't supposed to take it off. Why did you take it off?” His voice shakes and he wipes his eyes.
“I wanted to see you, all of you.” I step closer and he shoves me away, stepping under the moonlight. The scars stand out more but it doesn't change my view of him. He's still the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Even more so with the added imperfections. Pretty things also have their flaws and it makes them more unique. I'm as transfixed on him as before.
“How about now?”
“I still do. My mind hasn't changed. I think you're beautiful. I have scars too, remember? I showed you them. I'll do it again if you need me to.”
“I have a feeling you're the type of guy used to telling people what they want to hear.”
“Normally, yes, but with you, I find myself only wanting to tell the truth and it's getting dangerous.”
“Then tell me who you really are,” he demands in a low voice.
“Why does that matter now?”
“It always mattered,” he croaks out. “How do you know my father and were you sent to kill me all along? That's right, I know about you being a hitman, so don't bother denying it. The blood on you in the shower. The guns you had in your house. The man you killed for me. You have the same look in your eyes my dad has, too. The one of a killer.”
“I was there that day, you know.” I grab onto his hand and he doesn't pull away. “I was the one who shot a gun through the window, hitting that guy in the back of the head. He was my first kill, and I knew right then, he wouldn't be the last. After seeing him hurt a child, I knew I wanted to go after all monsters like him. That's what Santiago Morales is, a monster. I've been after him for years, but he is never alone, and it was never the right moment.”
“What do you mean you were there that day?” His brow furrows. “And what man are you talking about?”
“I think you know. I didn't know it was you. I thought you were just some boy off the streets they were tormenting for information. Turns out they were there to use you as a way to send a message to your father.”
His mouth gapes and his eyes widen. “You were the boy in the window that day. You stared at me after the man fell to the ground. You were the last person I saw before everything went black. I used to dream of you.”
I gently stroke the skin of his wrist. “And I used to wonder what happened to the boy whose life I saved. I wondered everyday if what I did made a difference, or if you just ended up back in the same situation, under a different man's knife.”
“And here I am, walking right into the arms of a man with a gun.”
“Yeah. Kinda funny how life works out, huh?”
“Wait.” He presses a hand to my chest when I try to close the small gap between us. “So you have only been using me to get to Santiago?”
I shake my head, running my fingers through his hair. “No, I have been using you to get to your father. Santiago is a bonus.”
His face contorts. “Why my father?”
“A lot of people want him dead. Why is that such a surprise?”
“You aren't anything like those other people. Your motives are different,” he says, looking away from me.
“How do you know?”
“Lucky guess.” His shoulders lift and he's on guard, attempting to match my height.
Taking a deep breath, I run a shaky hand through my hair. “When I was only ten years old, your father took everything away from me.”
“My father takes things from a lot of people and it was my grandfather doing the taking before him.”
“He destroyed my family, our home. He left us with nearly nothing. I was too small and helpless at the time, but I'm not now. I had to watch my family burn. I wanted him to witness his whole world erupt into flames the way I did.”
“So, you came after me because you thought I was helpless?”
I shake my head. “You are a lot of things, sweetness, but helpless isn't one of them.”
