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“Shall we begin?” the minister says, dragging me from my panic.
“Yes. Let’s get these two married,” Calvin drawls from beside me as he clamps a meaty hand down on my shoulder.
I glance at him, my gaze going to said hand before moving back to the fucker’s face. “Remove your hand.”
He chuckles as if I just told him a joke, then narrows his eyes at the minister. “Continue.”
The officiant shuffles on his feet before he clears his throat. “We are gathered here today to witness the joining of two lives, Xander Bishop Hastings and Stacey Louise Parkes.”
I drown out the sound of his voice, my eyes focusing on my woman on the screen. Although I am doing this to ensure Aria lives, it is still killing me inside. I have let them down. Failed them both. Betrayed them. And like an out-of-control freight train, I have no way of stopping it. I swallow around the lump in my throat, and I am man enough to admit that I feel tears burning the backs of my eyes.
At the sound of my name, my head snaps up. The minister frowns at me. “Can you repeat after me,” he grumbles. It’s not a question but an order. “I, Xander Bishop Hastings—” He is cut off, and his eyes widen, his mouth dropping open.
Pop.
Pop.
Pop.
Pop.
Screaming.
Fuck.
My startled gaze bounces around, mouth falling open when my father’s four guards drop to the floor. Blood pours from the gunshot wounds to their heads. I spin, shock my predominant emotion before a stunned smile curves my lips when I spot Ryker, Stone, and Zane standing with their guns aimed at someone behind me. I don’t even have to look to know they are pointing at my father.
Feminine screaming and shouts pierce the air before it goes deathly silent. My gaze moves to the floor where a cloud of white chiffon, lace, and tulle pools all around my legs and feet. Stacey. She sobs as she tries to protect herself. I grin. Not because I want her to be scared but because not five minutes ago, she was acting like the cat that caught the canary. With her lust-filled eyes and ego, she really thought she would become my wife. To be fair, I thought the same. But I don’t belong to her. I never did. And her mama really should have taught her about not taking things that don’t belong to her.
“And here I was, thinking you fuckers had turned on me.” I let out a bewildered chuckle as I stare at my friends.
Ryker rolls his eyes, his face blank. “That’s what we wanted you to believe, asshole. Now move so I have a clear shot of Calvin.”
I turn to face my father. He stares coldly at his men, dead on the floor as he slips his hands into his pocket. “You fucked up,” he says, his eyes coming to me.
I shake my head with an amused laugh. “No. You did. You didn’t really think that I would just roll over and follow your demands, did you?” He doesn’t need to know that I had no idea about the boys’ plans, and I was just in the dark about it as him.
A wicked smile curves his lips, and he tsks. “You don’t know me at all, do you, Xander?” My eyes shift to where he is pulling his hand out of his pocket. I frown when he palms something that looks like a cell but is too small to be one. “I always have a contingency plan in place in case something like this occurred. You see, all I need to do is press down on this button, and it sends a signal to my men in New York. As soon as I make the call, they will pull the trigger.”
“No,” I scream lunging at him, but it’s no use. He smirks before pressing the button. A bang sounds, and in the next second, his body is falling to the floor.
I should be relieved but all I feel is dread. He sent the signal. His men are going to shoot my princess. My eyes dart to the laptop, and I watch as Aria’s lifeless body drops to the floor before the screen goes dark. Something inside me breaks. I want to lay down and die right now. “Someone hand me a cell phone!” I shout, rushing toward Ryker. He pulls his cell from his jacket pocket, looks at the screen to open it and hands it to me immediately. My fingers fly across the screen as I punch in Aria’s cell phone number—that I know by heart—and hit dial. Bringing it to my ear, I listen as it rings…and rings…and rings. “Come on. Come on. Please be okay, baby,” I choke out. The call cuts off, and frustration slithers through me. I press down on the number again, and the familiar sound of ringing hits my ears. Again, it rings out, and I think it’s going to cut off, but then a masculine voice answers. It’s panicked. Upset. My heart constricts in my chest.
“Evan?” I say, my voice strangled. Aria’s brother was the only male in the room—it must be him. Before he can speak, I hear feminine crying so loud and so painful that it makes my legs buckle and my head spin. They got to her. They killed my princess. And it’s all my fault.
The cell slips from my hand as I vomit all over my shiny loafers. Dizziness takes over, and I think I am going to have an anxiety attack. It is the least I deserve, and I let it take me under. I fall to the floor as an animalistic scream hits my ears. I realize it’s me. I am screaming. My throat is raw, sore, but I need the pain. Welcome it. It’s the only thing that is keeping me grounded right now.
A hand grips my shoulder as a pair of shoes move into my line of sight. “Bishop?” I think it’s Ryker’s voice, but I’m not sure. Everything is white noise at this point.
Out of my peripheral, I spot the gun in his hand. Without thinking about it, I grab it from him and bring it to my head. I don’t want to live in a world where Aria doesn’t exist. It’s selfish of me to leave our son as an orphan, but I can’t be without her. I won’t.
Pressing the trigger, I hear it click, and everything goes black.
ChapterTwenty-Seven
ELENA
I never really thought about a moment like this.
