Page 76 of Domino
“If I can’t have you, that greasy piece of shit sure as hell isn’t going to have you either,” he hisses.
“Ryan, no. Please don’t. Don’t leave Cole without a mother,” I plead.
“Like I give a shit. I’ll find some other bitch to take your place. Maybe I’ll find one who’s better in bed than you. Shouldn’t be too hard to find somebody who does more than just lies there staring at the ceiling.”
“Maybe if you were actually interesting or good in bed, I wouldn’t look so bored.”
I know I shouldn’t antagonize him. But if I’m going to die out here anyway, then I’m going to speak my mind and make him feel like an asshole.
“You dumb bitch,” he spits.
Ryan raises the rock above his head, and I grit my teeth, waiting for him to bring it down on my head. But a pair of shots ring out and I watch as Ryan’s body twitches and jerks. A moment later, a pair of scarlet spots blossom on his chest. He looks down at them in disbelief, the rock above his head falling harmlessly behind him and hitting the ground with a hollow thud.
Though my body protests and I bite back a scream of agony, I scramble to my feet to find Max stepping out from behind a tree, his gun raised as he walks toward me. Or rather, as he limps toward me. I see the bullet wound in his leg, the fabric of his already-dark jeans is wet with his blood, and there’s a ragged gash in the thigh.
Ryan slumps to the ground, then falls onto his back, his wide eyes open and staring up at the sky above him. I want to think in those last few minutes he had in this world, he was using them to reflect on himself and his life. On the decisions he’s made and sees the error of his ways.
More than likely, though, he’s simply ruminating on what an evil bitch I am and how I ruined his life. But what he refuses to acknowledge is his role in… well… anything. There was not a responsibility that Ryan could not dodge. Especially when it came to examining himself.
Max pulls me over to him, and after slipping his gun back into his belt, he produces a knife, quickly cutting through my bonds. I flex my hands and roll my wrists, trying to restore them to something close to fully functional. Though given the bumps and bruises that cover my body, I wonder when I’ll be anywhere close to fully functional as a whole again, too.
“Where’s Cole?” I ask, a sliver of panic in my voice.
“Derek’s got him,” he tells me. “He’s in good hands.”
I nod. Even though I don’t know Derek, the fact that Max is vouching for him makes me feel better. I fear for my son and for what’s happening to him. His nearly catatonic state in Ryan’s car terrifies me, and I’m desperate to get him to a hospital and checked out.
But then, I glance at the body on the ground beside the stream. Ryan is looking up to the heavens through wide, unseeing eyes, no doubt looking into the great beyond. I know I should feel a pang of pity for him. Maybe even a twinge of sadness given how long we were together. But when I look at the lifeless body on the ground before me, all I feel is… nothing. I feel not one trace of emotion for the man who fathered my son, the greatest gift I could have ever received.
“What should we do with him?” I ask.
Max waves him off. “We’ll call Singer. Let him know what happened and where to find the garbage if he feels like picking it up.”
My laugh is grim, but at least it’s a laugh. The sound of Max’s cellphone ringing is impossibly loud in the otherwise silent vacuum of the forest. He quickly digs it out and answers the call.
“Yeah,” he says.
I watch as he pales and an expression that’s part grief and part fury crosses his face. He’s troubled and is having difficulty processing whatever it was he just heard on the other end of the line.
“Yeah. On my way.”
He disconnects the call and puts the phone back into his pocket. He looks down at Ryan, then stares off into the distance for a moment, his face clouding over.
“What is it?” I finally ask.
He pulls himself back to the present and looks at me for a long moment. The emotions scrolling across his face are thick as is his voice when he speaks.
“That was Monk. We have to go. Prophet’s been shot.”
Epilogue
Domino
Ashley and I both got looked at when we got to the hospital. Thankfully, the bullet only grazed me rather than going through my leg. A few stitches and I’m right as rain again. Ashley escaped serious wounds, and for that, I’m thankful. I’m glad I got to her in time because I really can’t imagine my life or my future without having her in it.
Both of us are sitting in one of the bays in the emergency room. Derek’s out in the waiting room with Cole, who had started to come out of his shell with Derek now that the danger had passed. The catatonia or whatever it was had worn off, and he was starting to laugh and giggle again, which I’m glad for. I know it’s a massive weight off Ash’s shoulders. I think it says a lot about the resiliency of children. Also, having somebody who’s as mentally on par with a four-year old, as Derek is, certainly helps.
I’m itching to get up to Prophet’s room. I’m eager to see him and verify that he’s actually all right. But Singer’s been in our emergency room bay for the last half hour, questioning us about Ryan. He’d already gotten most of the story from Missy and Mark, and we’re just putting the final touches on the story of how a dead body ended up inside town limits.
