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SIENNA
Istared down at her body, my mind unwilling to fully understand what had happened. The light had faded from her eyes just minutes ago, and it still didn’t feel real. I knew Gemma deserved it—she’d crossed me. Betrayed me. In our world, you didn’t survive that shit.
Boots against the deck dragged me away from her body. Killian rounded the corner carefully, gun up. He stopped short when he noticed the body on the floor.
“Anyone on the lower decks?” I asked, emotionless. There was no use in mourning her right now. I still had to deal with Mateo. “Well?”
“Not that I saw. They could have just abandoned ship,” he replied, eyes sliding away from Gemma’s body coldly.
“Do you have an extra gun?”
He shook his head. “No, but there were a few left behind with the agents we took out.”
I started towards the stairs that looped around the side of the ship, heading towards the top and final deck. I doubted we would find more Aegis agents up there if they hadn’t already attacked us, but I needed to be sure. I wanted to scour this ship top to bottom just to be sure that we wouldn’t be surprised again. That we would be safe.
With Killian at my back, we went back to get a weapon before scouring the last deck, checking behind the doors, the small living room that overlooked the pool, everywhere. The ship was deathly silent. Nothing stirred. Apprehension made the hairs along my arms rise. Glancing up, my eyes caught on the light in the cockpit. It was the only place left to check.
He would be waiting for us.
Signaling to Killian, we headed upstairs, taking up positions on either side of the closed door. I held up three fingers, waiting for him to understand before starting the countdown. Just as my last finger went down, I kicked the door open, barging in.
The room was small, with only a steering wheel, the dashboard, and two chairs bolted to the ground. I went to the window and looked out. Nothing moved on the deck. The water stretched out until the city rose to greet it on the other side. I’d thought Mateo would be here, but clearly, I was wrong. And, if he wasn’t here, then that meant he had to be somewhere else.
A thud behind me sent me spinning, my gun snapping up. Killian laid flat on the floor, eyes closed. For a heart-stopping second, I thought he was dead until I saw the slow rise and fall of his shoulders. Mateo stood over him, gun aimed at me. He stepped over Killian’s body without a glance, his eyes locked on mine.
“It’s over, Mateo,” I snapped. “We took out your men. Your daughter.”
He didn’t even react. There was no sign that he cared his only daughter was dead. His lip curled. “Did it hurt to kill her?”
I froze.
“My, my, Sienna. I knew you could be ruthless, but I never thought you’d kill your own best friend.”
I knew what he was doing. His attempt to psych me out wouldn’t work. Not when it had finally sunk in that Gemma had never been my friend in the first place. I might mourn the loss of who I thought she was. But I wouldn’t mourn her.
And I wouldn’t let him distract me from killing him as well.
My gun jerked up to his chest just as his dipped, pointing towards Killian’s still form.
I stilled, stomach dropping. I could handle it if he took a shot at me, but Killian was out cold. Defenseless. And I couldn’t stop a bullet from here. I couldn’t let him kill Dante’s younger brother. I just couldn’t. I’d come here prepared to die in order to end this shit, but I wasn’t prepared for anyone else to die.
“What do you want,” I whispered, lowering my gun.
“Don’t you get it by now?” He cocked the safety. “It’s not about what I want anymore. You’ve become more of a problem than I’ve anticipated. Which just means that you have to die. All of you.”
“No.” My gun shot back up, trained on his heart. “You shoot him, then I’ll shoot you. A life for a life. You really want to die over a kid you don’t even give a shit about?”
Something close to amusement flashed in his eyes. Turning, he let his arms spread wide, giving me the perfect shot to his heart. “Go ahead then. Take your shot. But make it count because this will be your only chance. Then you’ll die, along with your hus—”
His body jerked backward, surprise flashing across his face. I fired again; shot after shot rang out in the small cockpit. He fell to the ground, still as stone. Blood spread across the wood beneath him, burning scarlet.
Footsteps thudded up the steps. Dante appeared, gun raised, ready to shoot. He stopped just before Mateo’s body, eyes skimming over his still form. We stood there, staring down at Mateo’s body. Heartbeats passed, and neither one of us moved. My eyes snapped to his, realization of what just happened finally hitting me.
Throwing myself into his arms, I buried my face into his chest, letting the tears fall. My body shook with adrenaline, with fear. With relief. Dante pinned me to his chest, arms wrapped around me. His thumb brushed along my jaw, tilting my face up to meet his as he kissed my tears away.
“It’s over, Sienna. You’re safe,” he murmured. “We’re safe.”
His words washed over me, chasing away the fear. The uncertainty. I knew he was right. Mateo was dead. Gemma was gone. Anyone and everyone who had been after us—they would never terrorize my family or me ever again.
