“You’re not going to shoot me, love.”
A lump formed in her throat and she tried she swallow past it. “You know what, Cameron?” He raised a brow. The only sign of his distress was the cut above his eye, the shadow of a bruise on his cheek, and the steady trickle of blood coming from his nose. “I’ve always hated you calling me that, and I’ve always hated you.” She pulled the trigger, making sure the barrel was pointing directly at his chest. The world stopped around her as she stared at Cameron, the smirk on his face triumphant. She pulled the trigger again and again, yet nothing happened.
Nothing. Happened.
A sob tore through her at the same time the gun slipped from her hand, tumbling to the ground.
“I told you you’re not going to shoot me.” He reached into his pocket and held his closed hand up to her. She knew what he had before he opened his palm and the bullets fell and bounced off the hardwood floor, as if mocking her. “Now.” His smile vanished and the evil she knew all too well hit her like a punch to the chest. “I’m going to use you harder than ever. I’m going to make you wish I had never found you.” He stepped closer until he stood right in front of her. She wanted to move, she really did, but he petrified her and she couldn’t do anything but stand there, staring up at him.
When she looked over at Adrian, a trail of blood slid down from his hairline, his face relaxed. How she wished things could have been different. Cameron picked up the gun and held it up. “Did you actually think I would leave a loaded gun where you could reach it?” He tsked and held the barrel between her eyes. There were no bullets in it, but it didn’t matter because even if there were she would have welcomed death. She closed her eyes, wishing everything could just end. He murmured things to her, things she blocked out because the ringing in her ears was too loud. Her pocket, she had it in her pocket.
The pepper spray was in her hands within a second and she placed her finger on the trigger. This was it, once she sprayed him in the eyes she needed to get her and Adrian out of the house, needed to call the cops. She needed to use those precious few moments to her advantage.
She opened her eyes, stared into the bottomless depths of Cameron, and then heard a sound that had her heart beating again. It was like the world was in slow motion around her. Adrian struggled to stand, the blood still trickling down his forehead. His face was pale, so very pale. He reached a hand to her and then closed his eyes, his other hand going up and cradling his head. There was movement to her side but she didn’t tear her gaze away from Adrian’s.
A gunshot rang and there was a moment when she wondered if Cameron had reloaded the gun and shot her. There was no pain like she expected there to be after being shot, but maybe there was no pain when death finally claimed a person.
As if the slow motion reel sped up, there was commotion in every direction. When the haziness in her brain dissipated she realized that her crummy living room with the broken pieces of her life scattered around was filled with men in blue uniforms. Turning back toward Cameron, she saw his lifeless body lying at her feet. Blood pooled from behind his head and she could clearly see a single gunshot wound to his temple. His eyes were open, staring at her. Even in death he was still watching her. Police officers had their guns raised and their mouths were moving. Although she could see that they were talking, no sound came to her. One of them stood in front of her, seeming to shout things at her, but all she could do was stare at him.
Slowly, as if someone were turning the volume up, the noise filled her ears. The blaring of the alarm was now silenced, but the yelling of officers all around her filled the void.
“Ma’am? Are you okay?” Blinking, she couldn’t find her voice to respond to the cop. Like a lightbulb turning on, she looked at the spot where Adrian had been lying, but it was now empty.
Panic seized her. “Where is he? Where is he?” Was that her voice sounding crazed?
“Ma’am?”
“Adrian, oh God, where is Adrian?”
“Brea? Move the fuck out of the way.”
The sound of his voice sucked all the air from her lungs. She turned toward the sound, saw him pushing his way past officers and medics. When he saw her he stopped. She didn’t waste another minute as she ran to him. He embraced her with open arms and she didn’t hold back her tears. This time she wasn’t crying because she was scared or in pain. This time she was crying because she was happy and right where she wanted to be. Right where she should be.
* * * *
After they had been cleared medically, the police had brought them to the station. The room they had her in was cold and as colorful as a sheet of notebook paper. The chair was uncomfortable with one of the legs uneven, causing it to rock from side to side every time she shifted. They had put Adrian in another room, and even though they said it was just for routine questioning, it felt like an interrogation.