"No."
The word leaves me immediately. Raw and disbelieving.
Her body hits the ground, one hand clutching her side. Blood pours through her fingers. Bright red and far too much of it.
"No, no, no, no, no,” I yell.
My knees slam into the dirt beside her. The battle seems to grow quiet as the men left standing realize what happened. There’s no missing a loud pop in the air in the face of the silence.
I glance up long enough to see Navarro stagger backward.
A bullet lodged in his shoulder. I have no idea who hit him but it doesn’t matter.
He’s still standing, still breathing. I lift my gun and pull the trigger without a second thought. It punches straight through his chest.
Ignacio Navarro falls.
And this time he doesn't get back up. He deserves so much worse. But I don’t care. Not in the face of my world shattering to pieces.
My attention returns to Liliana. Blood covers her hands now, her clothes. It’s all I can see. It makes me want to throw up.
I feel pure, unfiltered terror.
“Why the fuck would you do that, Liliana?” I ask angrily, feeling so many things at once.
“I’m sorry,” she says softly, her lips pulled into a small smile.
"Shh, just stay with me, little siren. I’m begging you,” I state, putting pressure on her wound.
“I thought you didn’t care about me,” she murmurs, breathing heavily. “You said I was dead to you.”
“I lied.”
My voice cracks. Her eyes fall shut and my heart clenches.
“Liliana!” I shout.
They flicker open again, beautiful twin pools of light.
“Just stay with me, baby. Please."
I look up at the men just standing there watching me. Matteo doesn’t move. He should already know what the fuck to do.
“I need a car!” I yell. “We have to get her to a hospital!”
Someone takes off running. Her eyes find mine. Still conscious and still so fucking beautiful it hurts.
"It's okay," she whispers.
The words nearly make me lose my mind.
"It's fucking not okay."
My hands shake as I try to stop the bleeding. There's so much blood. Too much.
"Why would you do that, Liliana?"
The question rips itself from my throat. Because I genuinely don't understand.
