The gun goes off faster than I can blink.
I shriek as Liam sinks to the ground.
No. This can’t be happening.
“You shouldn’t have come after us,” Luca growls.
He never stops pointing his gun at Liam as he marches toward him. Not even as Jill has already run to safety and hides behind me.
Luca’s voice echoes through the woods. “This ends now.”
My nightmare has come to life.
Liam can’t die again. I won’t allow it.
Without a second thought, I bolt toward him and shield his body with mine. My hands are splayed wide open as I stand between them, protecting Liam from Luca’s wrath.
“Get out of my fucking way, Jasmine!” Luca growls.
“No,” I spit back, courage sweeping through my body. “Lower your goddamn gun.”
“Jas …” Liam mutters behind me, his painful groans making my heart ache.
“Shut the fuck up,” Luca growls as he tries to get closer.
“Don’t,” I say, shoving him away.
“He fucking tried to kill Jill, and you want to protect this bastard?” Now he points the gun at me. “You wanna die for him?”
“LUCA!” Jill screams as she tries to pull the gun out of his hand, but he holds her at bay with his other hand. “STOP!”
Despite the fact that he could shoot me down just as easily, I don’t sway from my position. I’m not afraid of death. Not as long as I’ve done the right thing.
“He let Jill go,” I say. “He didn’t hurt her.”
“He tried!” Luca barks back. “That’s enough for me.”
“Luca, she’s my sister!” Jill cries out in anger.
“Why did you come here?” I ask, trying to bargain with him. “I didn’t ask you to. You came here out of your own accord. And now you want to kill us both?”
“He took advantage of you,” Luca says.
“I chose to come here and be with him,” I reply.
“Because he threatened to kill Jill,” Luca says, peering at Liam underneath my arm. “Isn’t that right?”
I won’t deny the truth.
But time changes people.
Time has changed him. It’s changed us.
If only I could make them see.
“Why?” Luca says through gritted teeth. “Why would you protect a monster like him?”
“He’s not a monster,” I say through gritted teeth. “He’s wounded. Betrayed. Healing.”