Six(75)

I looked into his eyes. He meant it. He didn’t want to kill me right then. It was still going to happen, down the line, but what he said to me when he saved me still applied—he wasn’t ready to let me go. Whether that was due to feelings for me, or need for cover, I wasn’t sure.

My chest clenched, for unknown-to-my-rational-brain reasons. Did I really think what he said and how he said it and what it meant was sweet? In what world? In the f*cked-up one I was residing in?

The longer I stayed with Six, the more deranged I became.

We made our way down the hall where Marissa was frantically searching through a stack of files.

It was a hard thing to do on a regular day, but under a literal gun, the pressure was worse.

“Come the f*ck on,” Seven said with a sigh.

About two-thirds down, she was triumphant and handed the file to me.

There were so many questions in her eyes, so much confusion, but no fear of me. I wish I could tell her why I was there, but she was smart. Maybe she’d already figured it out.

I flipped open the file and scanned over the readings. Over and over I read the results, unbelieving the striking similarity.

“They’re the same,” I said. My memory was a little sketchy after so long away from the file, but they were close enough to where there was no denying it—whoever killed Three also killed Four.

“Shit.”

I turned to look at him, to say more, when Seven raised his gun at Marissa.

“No!” The file fell from my hands.

Six stormed forward and grabbed on to my neck again, then forced me backward, slamming me onto the floor. A shot rang out, reverberating through my ear, setting off a loud ringing.

My vision blurred for a moment and everything lost focus. Six’s hand was tight around my neck and I looked to my left to find a gun in his hand.

He shot. Not me, but a warning. Possibly the last one I would get. There was a turbulence and anger swirling in his eyes.

I craned my neck to the right…

Everything stopped.

Time. Breath. Heartbeat. Blood.

Empty green eyes stared at the wall, a bead of blood trickled down her forehead while a puddle formed beneath her.

“No! Marissa!”

Six squeezed hard, blocking me from screaming again.

I tried to calm down, but the tears wouldn’t stop.

She was my friend.

Seven aimed his gun at me, and I froze. Six snapped up to standing and pointed his gun straight at Seven.

“You need to let the stray go,” Seven said, eyes locking on Six’s.

“Not yet,” Six growled out.

Seven’s brow scrunched. “Don’t you see how it’s interfering and holding you back? It’s a helpless thing that’s only good to f*ck. Pets are frowned upon.”

“I still need her. You’re going to need to get some cover as well.”

Seven cocked his head. “Why?”

“If it’s like Cincinnati, we’re going to have a firefight getting out of here.”

“Cleaned?” Seven asked, his eyes growing wide.

Six gave a nod. “That’s my thought.”

Seven lowered his gun. “Fuck that. Nobody is getting rid of me yet.”

I glanced over to where Marissa had been standing, to where she was lying.

Dead.

All the late nights at the library, being lab partners, and going to parties together flashed through my mind. Her smile, her laugh. The day she came over after she found her boyfriend cheating on her. Graduation day when we sat next to each other, got our diplomas seconds from each other.

Never again.

Just like my memories, she was in the past. Only retrievable in my mind.

Another piece of Paisley’s life that was unattainable.

Pain spiked in my head as Six yanked on my hair. “Are you here?”

I nodded, shaking another tear loose.

It wasn’t over yet. We still had to make it out.

“Shit!” Seven cursed.

Six followed his gaze. There wasn’t a second’s pause before he snagged my hand and pulled.

We ran out and down the hall, bodies flashing by along with a blinking.

We ran, I realized, because something was wrong.

Adrenaline kicked into high gear, pulsing through me as the danger warning erupted into panic mode in my mind. Six pulled on my hand as we made it to the door, shoving me through in front of him.

We didn’t stop, didn’t slow down until we made it to the car. Key in the ignition, Six kicked it into drive as he slammed his foot on the gas. The car had barely lurched from the spot when I saw the fireball explode from the windows. The boom was a fraction of a second later.

The blast concussion shook the car and shattered the back window. I threw my arm up to block the flying glass as my body jolted, everything inside me giving a jump as we sped away.

I looked back and watched the spinning flames completely engulf the building.

It was then that a numbness spread through me.

Over the last two months, I’d changed and somehow forgotten how I got to where I was. How I was still alive and why.

How I was still breathing when so many weren’t.

Because I’d embraced my situation, the situation forced on me. Knowing I only had a short time left, I took it as an opportunity to check things off a someday list that suddenly became a bucket list.