“What’s happening?” Dom asked as I handed a gun to him. Quickly, my hands showed him how to use it.
“No time to explain. We need to run. Come on.” Tony pointed to the exit, where five guards came at us at once. He shot each one of them, but then unexpectedly, one rushed in and knocked Tony to the ground, but not before he pressed the alarm button.
The deafening sound of the siren filled the air, followed by the pounding footsteps of more guards. With shaking hands, I pulled the trigger and the guard fell lifeless beside Tony.
“Good job, kid.”
Dom, as weak as he was, held the two children in his arms as we sheltered them and kept on moving, but then about fifteen guards came running, and Tony cursed. He grabbed some weird device and said into it, “Luke, do you hear me?”
In a second, there was a reply. “Yes.”
“The alarm.”
“On it. There is an exit gate near the hall on your right. Follow it to a tunnel, and it will lead you out into the woods. Matias and I will wait for you there.”
Tony pushed us in that direction. We hurriedly moved forward, when out of nowhere, a guard I didn’t recognize grabbed Tony from behind and stabbed him with a knife in the back of his neck. The kids screamed. Tony dropped to his knees, and with one last glance at me, he fell forward. His eyes were still snapped open as he was pointing with his fingers to the tunnel. He held my gaze with his for several seconds, smiled, and with a final breath, closed his eyes as his body stilled.
Our hope.
Dead.
No!
Fuck no!
“Go, Dominic, take the kids and run to where we were told.” Beth and Ben were already inside the small tunnel. Dom shook his head reluctantly as the guard removed his knife from Tony’s chest, wiped it over his pants, and started to move toward us. “Go on, Dom. Go save the kids.”
“Brother!”
“No time, go!”
“Dominic,” Beth cried, and with that, they disappeared inside the tunnel as I faced the fucker who wanted to take it all away from us.
He laughed. “Kid, I fucked you once in the ass. You’ve got nothing on me.”
He was wrong.
He didn't know what it was like to be a kid stripped of everything and live in hell the majority of his fucking life. He didn’t know what it was like to be a kid whose mom was raped, his dad killed, and whose brother broke with each new day. The man had nothing on me.
I pulled the trigger, but he ducked his head, and the bullet missed its target. He launched himself at me, knocking me to the floor. We struggled. He forced me onto my back, pinning me to the floor with his weight. He was raising the hand back that clutched the knife, when a loud cry sounded. Out of nowhere, Dom jumped the guard from the side and they both fell, giving me time to scramble aside. I grabbed the gun from the floor near Tony’s body and fired at the guard’s forehead.
Relief washed over me as he collapsed. I didn’t even think how in a matter of minutes, I killed two people.
“Dom, come on. We need to go.” Dom didn’t move. Swiftly, I ran toward him, rolling him onto his back, and my heart stopped.
He had a knife protruding from his stomach. His shirt was soaked with blood.
“No, no, Dom!” I screamed, and he smiled weakly.
“Brother, this is the end. You need to live.”
“No, Dom, come on.” I removed my jacket, placing it over his wound to try to stop the bleeding, but it was impossible. His hand stopped me as he breathed heavily.
“Damian, you promised, remember? To leave me behind if it was necessary. Go.”
“It was never part of the plan. You and me together against the world, remember? Dom!” He shook his head, swallowed, and exhaled a breath.
“Damian, you’re the best brother, and I’m happy I can save you. Go. Please, leave me or my sacrifice will have been for nothing.” The familiar sound of shoes running was getting closer as he urged, “Go.” Tears ran down my cheeks. I understood nothing could save him anymore. I leaned down and kissed his forehead, closing my eyes. I squeezed his hand tight.
“You will always be part of my memories, Dom.”
He smiled shakily. “You will always be part of my heart, Damian. Go.” With one last look, I ran toward the tunnel as my heart was ripped in two.
After ten minutes, everything was over.
I was free, but my brother was gone.
As I cried silently into the pillow that night, I made myself a promise to kill every person who was part of the organization, and avenge my brother’s death.
He wouldn't rest in peace until I did.
''Damian, do you understand?'' Luke asked me once again while my attention was on the sand pit in front of us, where kids played without a care in the world. Their parents laughed along with them and snapped some pictures.