AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But he’s going too far. He’s going to kill Franklin, like literally kill him, unless I make him stop. I’m not particularly worried about Franklin. He deserves everything he gets. But I am worried about Falcon. I’m concerned about what will happen to him if he goes too far.
I scream Falcon’s name, but it’s like he’s in his own little world, like he can’t hear me. The red mist has descended over him, and the only way I will get him to stop is to stop him physically. I keep screaming his name, but I know it’s useless.
I remember during his fighting career, he would go into a trance-like state, a place he called the red mist. He wouldn’t stop beating a guy who was still on his feet, even when it was clear he’d won the fight. Many times, his trainer had to jump into the ring and pull him away. Sometimes, Falcon recognized him and stopped. Other times, his trainer took a fist to the face before Falcon came back to himself.
That could happen to me, but it is a risk I’m going to have to take if I want this to stop. I rush to Falcon’s side as he pulls his fist back again. Franklin stands before him, barely conscious, swaying on his feet. His nose and mouth are a bloody mess, and both of his eyes are swollen shut.
I grab Falcon’s arm, and he swings away from Franklin, turning on me. He knows it’s me right away, his fist falling to his side, but the look of raw aggression stays in place.
“That’s enough, Falcon. You’re going to kill him,” I say, hoping he will hear me, really hear me, and pull himself back. “You’re going too far.”
He shakes his head.
“I’m in control, Elle. I plan to kill the fucker for what he’s done to you,” he says.
His tone is cold, but he’s completely in control. The red mist hasn’t taken him. It’s him here with me, and he knows exactly what he’s doing. I can’t let him do this. I have to find a way to make him stop.
“No,” I beg him. “Please don’t do that. I need you with me, Falcon, not rotting away in a prison cell. Don’t let him ruin what we have together. Please.”
I can hear the tears in my voice as I plead with him.
“Please,” I say again quietly. “Choose me, Falcon. Choose loving me over getting revenge on him.”
The tension leaves his body, and he relaxes. He nods, reaches out, and touches my face.
“Okay,” he says. “Okay.”
He turns away from me and turns back to Franklin.
“You are fucking lucky that I love my wife far more than I hate you,” he says. “The beating you just got? That was for her, but it wasn’t just for her. It was for Tracey Hanlon, Laura Marriot, Jenna Cunningham, and every other woman your dirty fucking hands have been on.”
Franklin blinks slowly at him. He’s still on the verge of flaking out, but I see the recognition in his eyes as Falcon says the names to him. The names of some of the other women he’s done this to. The women Falcon warned me about, and I dismissed.
“I need you to know two things,” Falcon says. “If the police come to my door with any questions about what happened here today, I’ll make sure you can’t talk anymore. And if I hear so much as a whisper of you doing this shit to anyone else, I swear I’ll kill you. See, Elle is upset right now, so I’m being the bigger man and walking away, but she won’t always be here. Don’t fucking test me on this. You got it?”
Franklin nods miserably.
“Fucking say it,” Falcon shouts.
“I hear you,” Franklin says.
“Good,” Falcon snaps.
He turns to me. “Let’s get out of here,” he says.
I nod, but before I begin to follow him down the dirt road, I turn back to Franklin.
“I should thank you really. You’ve shown me two things. I am capable of anything I put my mind to, and my marriage is strong enough to overcome anything.”
I move closer, aware that Falcon has stopped and is watching me. It won’t take much to set him off again, but I have to finish this. I spit in Franklin’s face.
“You fucking disgust me,” I hiss. “Oh, and by the way, I quit. I will expect my full severance package to be actioned tomorrow.”
Franklin nods again. I don’t think he’ll fight me on it. And I don’t think he’ll ever pull this shit with another woman again. He looks wholly deflated, a different person entirely to the brash, confident man I met at my interview. Good.
I turn back to Falcon, and he holds his hand out to me. As I slip my fingers into his, I feel it. That spark that I always felt whenever he touched me. He walks me briskly away from Franklin and to the end of the road where his car is parked.
