“I’m here, Ashleigh,” Ford says, and then all eyes are on him, like a target.
Tony takes a shot at Ford, but it misses. A warning shot. But I duck behind a pillar, just in case. My gun is ready, but for some reason, I’m so very, very calm.
“Stay where you are, Aston, or the next one goes through your head.” He extends his hand towards Ashleigh again. “Come on, baby. Just take my hand, Ash, and we’ll get out of here and go home.”
“Home?” Ash says, like she’s confused. “You’re dead,” Ashleigh says one more time. “I saw your grave. I went to Texas. I drove in a blizzard. I went to LA. I took a very long trip to go see your grave.”
“Empty,” he says. “It was an empty grave, I made sure you knew that. I made sure there was nothing in that grave so you’d know. I told you. I told you, Li Li. I’d never leave you. And in your heart, you knew I was alive, right? You felt me, you knew I was alive. You knew it was empty. I’d never leave you, Ashleigh. Never.”
Ashleigh starts to cry and Tony moves forward again. I’m not sure if I should stop him or not. When I look over at Ford I can feel his pain just by watching the expression on his face. She might walk away from him right now. He might lose everything.
She lets Tony approach this time and then he’s got her wrapped in his arms. “We’re leaving now,” he says in her ear.
“Ash,” the blonde woman I now recognize as Ashleigh’s sister calls out. “He’s a bad man, Ashleigh. He’s a bad, bad man. Please, listen to me. He’s a paid assassin, Ashleigh. He was never in the US military. OK? He was never a Navy SEAL. He’s a soldier all right, but not the kind who protects people. He’s a killer. I’ve been trying to tell you for years. Remember when I dated James? Tony’s brother? He’s bad too, but at least he knows better than to drag a woman into his world. Please listen to me, Ashleigh. Please do not let him take you, because you will sell yourself into this organization if you go. You’ll sell Kate into this organization. Is that what you want?”
Tony stares at Ashleigh’s sister like she’s the devil, and every second she speaks, I expect him to shoot. But in a weird way, he almost looks relieved. He looks down at Ashleigh, his eyes begging her to accept these things as true and still want what he has to offer.
Ashleigh starts to cry uncontrollably. “Why?” she asks, looking up at the first man she gave her heart to. “Why did you do this to me? How? How could you do this to me?”
Tony’s face hardens with her words. “I did this for us, Ashleigh. So we can be together! If I hadn’t died, then I’d still be a slave to the organization. And I’d never be able to have you and Kate.” He grabs her face and holds it steady, forcing her to look him in the eyes. “I did this for us! For our family. Say it back to me, baby. Tell me you understand. Tell me you know I did this for us!”
Ashleigh shakes her head. “I thought you were dead.”
“I’m not dead, Li Li. I’m not dead. We’re together now. Everything’s OK now.”
He grabs her hand and tries to lead her away, but she plants her feet firmly on the ground and resists. She pulls her hand free. “I almost killed myself.”
“Ashleigh—”
“I almost killed myself! I was almost locked away in a psychiatric hospital, that’s how depressed I was after hearing you were dead. I was going to fall asleep in a parked car during a blizzard. I wanted to die.” She backs away again and then her eyes search wildly until she finds Ford. He’s out in the open still, in full view of everyone. Just standing there, like he’s got a great big bullseye on his chest. “Ford saved me,” she finally says.
“I’d do it again, Ashleigh,” Ford says. “I’d never walk away from you, Kitten. Ever. Not for any reason. Never. We’ll do it together or we won’t do it.”
She turns back to Tony. “I’m married,” she admits in a calm voice. “I’m married to my soul mate. I’m happy. I’m happy I’m alive and I’m happy with my life. I can’t walk away from Ford. I’m not walking away from Ford. I’m not coming back to you.”
Tony reaches out, a pained look on his face. And then in one swift move, he’s got Ashleigh by the throat. He pulls her next to his body and a shot rings out.
Veronica, of all f**king people, is shooting at Tony. She hits him in the back three times, but he’s got armor on. The shots jerk his body, but he stays standing. Ford rushes towards Ashleigh, and I cover him, shooting at Tony’s feet. Ford grabs Ashleigh’s arm and swings her out of the way. Tony points his gun at Ford’s head, and then Ronnie shoots again, and a distracted Tony pops off several shots in that general vicinity.
I’m aiming, but Tony makes one more mad grab for Ash and she’s back in his clutches. The gun goes to her head. “I’ll kill her, Aston! Stay the f**k back, or I’ll kill her!”
Ford drops the gun I gave him back at the garage, his hands in the air. “You don’t really want to hurt her, Tony. If you love her, you’ll let her go.”
For a second I think Ford’s soothing voice will work, but then Ashleigh’s sister is running towards her screaming. “No, you bast—”
Tony fires several times and the woman takes a shot to the chest. She drops to the ground and then Bobby Mansi comes out of nowhere, his gun pointed at Tony.