Chapter 13 by Fathiah Zarafi

Time seemed to tick by slowly as my impending doom approaches. There was no way I could escape now; I was on the second floor. Even if I jumped down the window, my ankle would buckle under the pressure and I would lose my walking ability completely. Their voices grew louder as Mary Anne and Tristan entered the house, not yet noticing the gaping attic door. I gazed around the room frenziedly as my fight-or-flight instinct took over my body. With flight out of the way, I did the only thing I was able to. I hid in the closet.

The sense of déjà vu hit me instantly. Flashes of the faithful night of my family's deaths stumbled into my mind as I recalled being in the exact same position. Only this time, Father was long gone and unable to protect me. I bit my lip anxiously when footsteps began ascending the stairs. A startled gasp followed shortly after.

"Mom, Adele's gone!" Tristan shouted. I heard her rushing up the stairs before screaming in anger and frustration.

"I can't believe this!" she shrieked, "How can little brat escape again? Did you tie her like I told you to?"

"Of course I did, Mom, I'm not stupid," he replied hotly.

"Well don't just stand there, find her!" Mary Anne barked. The house soon grew quiet as doors slammed and engines rumbled to life.

I didn't know whether to remain where I was hidden or try my luck at yet another escape attempt. I closed my eyes and inhaled a few deep breaths in order to remain clam and regain the strength I needed to overcome this. The images of my family flashed behind my eyelids, along with Chayton's. I knew I had to fight for them and for all the hardships they had been through, especially Father. My fingers gripped the saw tightly in my hand as I slowly pushed the door of the closet open.

My heart couldn't possibly beat any faster as I ran towards the front door. My hand palmed the knob but a thought made me halt all actions. If I escape through the front yard, I could stumble into Mary Anne or Tristan coming home. So I resolved to divert my route and sprinted to the back door. I was already in the backyard after prying the door open but I suddenly found myself face to face with none other than Tristan.

We both froze as we gaped at each other in shock. I was the first one to snap out of the stupor and rushed back inside. My heart thundered wildly as I raced to the front door. I felt the cool metal of the knob in my hands but I was yanked backed forcefully by my hair.

"Let me go!" I screamed in pain as I tried to escape Tristan's clutches.

"You are getting on our nerves!" he growled, dragging me back. The roots of my hair felt as if they were going to separate from my scalp when his grip on my hair tightened. I slashed my saw blindly at him and he cried out when the blades cut through the skin of his arm. Tristan's clutch on my hair automatically loosened and I ducked away from him instantly.

"Get back here!" roared Tristan.

My breaths were coming in heavy pants as I threw the door open and stumbled out. I had just reached the green lawn when my neck was suddenly restricted and tugged backwards. I clawed at the piece of cloth wrapped around my neck, gasping for air. In the process, I accidentally dropped the saw on the grass when I reacted on instinct. The heels of my shoe couldn't catch a grip on the wet grass and I was pulled back to the house. Tristan slammed the door behind us with his foot before leaning down to whisper in my ear.

"Do that again and I swear to God I will kill you with this cloth," he threatened. I struggled to breathe as the cloth squeezed my airway.

"You—won't kill me," I choked out. Truthfully, he wouldn't. Not without Mary Anne's permission. His face scrunched up in anger as he struggled with himself. The cloth around my neck tightened further and I could see black spots dancing across my vision. I opened my mouth to inhale whatever air I could possibly take in but nothing came out except for chocked gasps. Tristan finally loosened the cloth and I collapsed on the floor, gasping for breath. Each inhalation of air burned my deprived lungs. My vision tunneled for a few seconds before finally reverting to normal.

From my position on the floor, I noticed the rug Tristan was standing on. Thinking quickly, I pulled it from underneath his feet, causing him to lose his balance. Tristan came crashing down onto the floor while I leaped to my feet again. Once again I found myself running towards the back door since Tristan was blocking the front exit. I heard the front door opening followed by a startled choke from Mary Anne. My feet pushed faster as I desperately reached for the door.

A loud blast filled the room. I screamed and fell to the floor, clutching at my calf. Crimson blood was oozing out of a wound, staining my jeans and the ground below. Raising my head, I saw Mary Anne standing by Tristan with a gun pointed at me. Her gun slowly emitted smoke. She had shot my leg.

"You have been such a naughty girl, Alyson," she sneered in a sickenly sweet voice. I tried getting up to my feet again but the pain that shoot up my leg caused me fall once more, gritting my teeth in order to contain the impending scream.

"Save your breath, sweetheart," laughed Mary Anne. "You're not going anywhere with a crippled leg."

I kept hushed as she roused Tristan who had lost consciousness briefly when he hit his head against the coat rack.

"Tristan, wake up dear," she lightly smacked his cheeks. Tristan woke up with a grunt, rubbing at the back of his head. As soon as his eyes met mine, he sent a deathly glare at me. His jaw even ticked in anger.

"Can you carry that nuisance over there to her room? I shot her leg so she won't be able to walk anymore."

Tristan smirked darkly upon hearing his mother's words. "Gladly."

He advanced towards me and before I could protest, he had thrown over his shoulders. "Get your slimy hands off me!" I protested but to no avail. My poundings and kicking did nothing to him. Instead, he slung an arm around my legs to halt their movements.

Tristan kicked the door to my room open and threw my down on the floor. Stars burst into my vision when my head connected against the hard wood. I couldn't suppress the moan of pain that escaped through my lips.

"That's what you get for knocking me down," Tristan said nonchalantly. I leaned on my elbows and glowered at him.

"Where did your spine go, Tristan?" I mocked. "Are you even aware of all the secrets your precious mother has been hiding from you? Do you even know who you are?"

"Shut up," he spat, clenching his fists tightly.

"Do you know that we're related?" I paused, gawking at his reaction. Tristan's eyes widened momentarily before he quickly masked it. "Yeah, your father is my father. I wonder why Mary Anne never told you this."

"Shut the hell up," Tristan warned venomously through clenched teeth. I knew I was getting to his nerves so I egged him on further.

"Do you know that Mary Anne had an affair with my father? She even begged him to leave my mother. Talk about desperate, huh?"

"Shut up!" he roared, charging at me. I braced for the impact of his body clashing against mine, but nothing came except for the shouts of Mary Anne.

"Tristan, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Tristan regained his senses and panted heavily to control his rage. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and turned to Mary Anne.

"She was telling lies about you, mom!" said Tristan. Mary Anne's lips drew in a thin line as she ignored her son. Tristan looked at her in shock.

"Mom, tell me it isn't true," he gasped out.

"Oh go guard the door!" Mary Anne barked in response. Tristan looked as if he was about to defy his mother's order but after a few short breaths, he tore the door open and trudged down the stairs.

Mary Anne turned her attention to me. She had her gun clenched in her palm, the muzzle thankfully pointed to the floor. My gaze followed her as she moved to the desk and threw a thick bundle of papers on it.

"You see that? That is the paper work where you will sign your agreement to transfer all your inheritance to Tristan," Mary Anne explained. She stalked towards me and pulled me to a standing position. I groaned loudly when the pain from the gunshot wound resurfaced.

"Sign it," she ordered. I shook my hand free from her clutches and held on the edge of the table for support.

"You're so stupid if you think I'm going to sign that," I laughed.

"You're so stupid if you think you're going to live," she retorted. I heard the unmistakable click of Mary Anne cocking her gun before feeling the sensation of cool metal pressing against my temple.

"If you kill me, you won't get a single cent of my money," I stated calmly. "Even if you do pull that trigger and cover up the cause of my death, you'll go in and out of court, trials after trials before you have the chance to get your grubby hands on my father's property."

Mary Anne's face twisted in anger. I saw her raising the gun above her head before bringing it down directly on my face. A whole new level of pain spread over my cheek as I plummeted to the floor. I tasted the familiar metallic taste of blood that ran down my mouth. Mary Anne elevated her hand once more to strike and I closed my eyes to prepare for the assault.

"Freeze!"

My eyes snapped open immediately. Mary Anne's hand froze in mid air as she slowly turned around. I knew that voice but my mind was tired and slow after the attacks.

"I said freeze! Put your hands in the air! Drop your weapon to the ground, now!"

The gun flopped onto the floor with a hard thud as she did what she was instructed to. I glanced around her to witness the salvation to my misery. James had his gun pointed at Mary Anne, clad in a full suit. He slowly approached Mary Anne and kicked the revolver away from her reach. His eyes finally landed on mine and saw the state that I was in.

"Do no move!" warned James once more before crouching down to inspect me.

"Are you okay?" he questioned concernedly. "Are you seriously hurt anywhere?" Before I could answer, Mary Anne suddenly roared and ran towards James. Caught of guard, he was thrown back when she tackled him. The force of the impact caused James to be thrown out of the window next to him. Glass rained all over me as I stared in horror to what I had just witnessed.

"James!" I screamed, "No!" I scooted over to the broken window, ignoring the glass that penetrated through my clothes and scraping my skin.

"Do not even think about it." Once again I felt the cool metal, this time pressing against the back of my head. "If I go down, I'm taking you with me."

Tears were falling down my cheeks shamelessly, stinging the open wound that was left earlier. My eyes closed on their own accord as I anticipated the pull of the trigger that would ultimately end my life. True to the old folk's tale, my life did flash before my eyes. Father, Lucy and Sarah appeared behind closed eyes. Chayton's sunny smile and warm personality made its way into my mind's eye too. What saddened me the most was the fact that I will never get to experience life with Chayton.

Please don't forget me.

The trigger was pulled.

I tumbled to the ground, crying out in pain that had stretched across my left shoulder and down my arm. I buried my face on the floor, sobbing out in pain as it washed over the whole of my body. My left arm was weak and I could feel blood trickling down the length of it, pooling on the floor.

"Adele, run!"

My head snapped up upon hearing that voice. With much struggle, I swiveled my neck around to witness Chayton holding Mary Anne down. He looked at me in desperation, pinning down her hands with much difficulty considering her size was much bigger than his.

"Go, Adele! Run!" he demanded.

I used the desk as a lever and struggled to my feet. With only one arm, it took me a huge amount of effort to pull myself up. It was a much greater effort to maintain my balance. I swayed on my feet a couple of times before I caught myself on the wall. I witnessed with wide eyes when Mary Anne pushed Chayton away and reached for her gun. Her movements were as fast as lightning; I suddenly found my roles reversing with Chayton. He was kneeling on the floor and had a gun pressed against his head. Mary Anne's face was furious and crazed.

"You know what would be better? Me blowing off the head of this boy," she laughed maniacally. I averted my eyes to Chayton; he was mouthing words at me. I frowned as I tried to process them. Swat. Five. Minutes. The SWAT team was coming in five minutes. Gazing at the gun digging into Chayton's temple, I knew I had to distract Mary Anne somehow. I refused to have anyone dying in my arms again, not anymore.

"Wait, Mary Anne," I called out, "Before you do anything, think about why you're doing this."

"Why?" she guffawed, "I despise you. Let me rephrase that; I despise the blood running in you. I had suffered so much because of your dimwitted father. There is nothing I enjoy more than killing his spawn."

"No, you don't. You loved my father and still do. You're just still bitter about the fact that he broke your heart and build a family with another woman."

"Stop talking like you know me!" shrieked Mary Anne. She shoved the muzzle harder against Chayton. He winced at the pressure but the bravery on his face never wavered.

"I don't but your letters have told me enough," I said carefully. "If you loved my father like you claimed you do, why didn’t you wait for him? Why did you accept Ronald's proposal in the first place? You broke his heart too."

I could see the tears glistening in her eyes though she fought to keep it at bay. "I was forced into it. It wasn't my choice! Your father shouldn't have walked away that night; he shouldn't have left me to rot in this dump!"

My ears picked up noises downstairs. Mary Anne was too overwhelmed to notice and I decided to pressed further. I gulped loudly before continuing.

"He loves you too but you need to understand. My father accepted the fact that—" I paused mid sentence when I noticed a tiny red laser on her chest, "that you two weren't meant to be. Now it's time for you to understand it too."

"I've understood completely," she cried histerically, "I carried his bastard child for nine month! I even betrayed Ronald for him! Isn't that enough to love me?"

Mary Anne cocked the gun and secured her finger around the trigger. Chayton's eyes widened and I lurched forward to stop her. "No, Mary Anne, please—"

My protest died on my lips when Mary Anne suddenly lowered her gun. My gaze followed hers when she dropped her eyes to her chest. Blood slowly trickled down her chest, seeping into her pink blouse. Mary Anne gazed at the flowing crimson in disbelief before collapsing on the ground. I couldn't tear my eyes away from her quivering form. Her frantic eyes met mine and I could see the regret and sadness in them. For the first time, I felt pity towards the woman. I was brought out of my thoughts when Chayton wrapped his arms around me gently, careful to avoid my wounded shoulder.

"Come on, Adele. Let's get out of here," he spoke softly, steering us away. "The police will clean up the mess."

I was still in shock as I limped around Mary Anne's whimpering self. Chayton supported most of my weight when he slung my good arm around his shoulder and took tiny steps to avoid injuring me further.

"I'm so glad you're okay," murmured Chayton, pressing his lips to my hairline. I could only offer him back a weak smile. True to his words, a group of SWAT members rushed up the stairs and into the room. They adorned ski masks, body armors and had shot guns perched on their shoulders. I silently wondered where they had been ten minutes ago or I would have been free out this misery.

My mind was so blurry from the loss of blood that I didn't register the angry shouts of the police. Suddenly all the pain of the bullets Mary Anne fired at me diminished, only to be replaced by another set of agonizing pain. I could no longer hold myself up; I slumped to the floor abruptly. The pain slowly extended from my back to the rest of my body. I was too weak to even cry out. I vaguely heard Chayton's frantic calls of my name and his face was a blurry mess in my vision. My eyes focused on the river of crimson surrounding me before everything faded to black.

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