Page 89 of Save Me

I blink. He’s going to die.

Then my phone is being ripped from my hands.

“No, my love! No.”

My breathing picks up, and I can’t stop it. I scramble for that ringing numbness again. This can’t be happening. This has to be a bad dream. This can’t be happening.

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

This can’t be happening, and yet it is. Arthur is melting against the far wall like butter on fresh pancakes. I’m naked as a jaybird, and Maddox almost called the cops.

My heart races. Not because Arthur is dead but because Maddox is freaking out. My sweet, kind boy is scared.

Again.

Cheese and crackers, I gotta fix this. Also, freaking succotash, it’s hard to breathe.

My heart flips as I put the gun on the dresser, facing Arthur and grabbing Maddox’s arms. I squeeze, hoping he’ll face me. “Mads.”

His gaze slowly melts to mine, and his green eyes are wide.

“We can fix this.” I give him a reassuring smile, and a bolt of pain cramps my stomach hard. It comes out more as a wince.

“We need to call an ambulance.”

A slew of responses enters my mind–most of them insults towards Arthur and some of them apologies for not following through on my plan to kill him before–but when I open my mouth, Maddox keeps talking.

“I killed him. I fucking killed him.” Maddox’s chest is heaving.

I glance backward. Arthur is still breathing, but his eyes look distant, and the sound is bubbly. Maddox probably shot him in the lung. He’ll more than likely die, but it might take a bit.

I say, “And I said we can take care of it. You were protecting me.”

“I killed him.” Maddox’s voice is strained. “I’m a murderer.”

My gut twists at the sheer amount of guilt in Maddox’s gaze. It’s contorting his entire face, and all I want is to ease the creases around his mouth and eyes.

Then an idea hits me, one that could take those lines away easily, and apparently, the line between my brain and arm is shorter than the one between my brain and mouth because I pick up the gun, aim at Arthur’s head, and squeeze the trigger. After the explosion of noise, I drop the sights and check.

Yeah, got the turd in the forehead.

I put the gun back on the dresser. “You didn’t kill him. I did.”

Maddox stares blankly. I slide my hand down his arm and hold his hand. We stand there together, naked, staring at Arthur’s body. His dead body, because fuck him.

My ducky towel is there on the floor between us, and I consider grabbing it, but I don’t want to move away from Maddox. I also wonder where Princess went, though if I had to guess, it was right under the bed as soon as the gun went off. I bend my knees to check, see a lump, then stand upright again. I’m not leaving shell-shocked Maddox alone with the loaded gun.

Slowly, the reality of what I did settles over me. Discomfort twists in my gut for the briefest moment, and then I feel peace. I feel the same hint of a feeling I felt when I beat Tyler’s dad and the same sliver of peace I felt when I contacted Logan to get rid of Arthur. It’s satisfying to know this is the correct way. If you beat on the ones who can’t protect themselves, I beat on you. Only this time, the feeling is so much better because I didn’t take from Maddox without his permission. I just…helped him finish what he started.

Now I have a dead body in my bedroom, and it’s bothering Maddox. So I gotta figure out what to do with it.

Immediately, I know who to call.

“I’m gonna get my phone.” I squeeze Maddox’s hand, but he doesn’t respond. When I move in front of him, he jerks back like I slapped him, eyes unfocused until they meet mine.

“Sorry.” I creep to the bedside table while keeping an eye on him and also holding back another wince. I’m gonna be bruised to all crap after this, but I’ll survive. I hope Maddox isn’t hurt.

I’m back at Maddox’s side in an instant and dialing Logan’s number.