Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 156392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 782(@200wpm)___ 626(@250wpm)___ 521(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 156392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 782(@200wpm)___ 626(@250wpm)___ 521(@300wpm)
I blink the blurry moisture from my eyes and slowly turn around, my back gluing to the car. My lips ache, my head still rings, and my legs barely keep me upright and I have to grab onto the top of the car for balance.
But I see it.
In the middle of the dimly lit streets.
As the wind scavenges the large trees.
As my hearing sharpens and my body awakens.
Oliver is sprawled out on the ground, his body pinned beneath a larger figure.
It’s Eli.
The last person I expected to save me.
His fist grips Oliver’s collar and he unleashes a flurry of punches to his face. The sound of flesh meeting concrete echoes through the air as blood splatters onto his shirt, neck, and the ground below.
My ex-friend tries to speak, but only strangled gurgles escape his throat as Eli relentlessly drives his fist into his face over and over again. Each blow lands with a sickening thud, making Oliver’s features unrecognizable under the onslaught of punches and gushing blood.
I stand frozen in place, sweat beading on my back despite the cold breeze as I watch in horror. Oliver no longer resists or attempts to defend himself, his body limp and lifeless under the brutal assault.
Eli shows no emotion as he continues to punch and punch and punch. He seems almost robotic, as if he is on a mission that cannot be stopped. He doesn’t even seem to notice the splatter of blood on his own shirt or the lack of response from his victim.
A chilling realization surges through me like an electric shock—Eli couldn’t care less about what he’s doing. The indifference in his expression sends a jolt through my stomach, leaving me shaken and disturbed to the core.
“E-Eli…” My voice comes out as haunting as the sound of the wind.
He looks up, his jaw locked and his expression so cold, I feel the lick of ice on my skin. The contact lasts for a few seconds, but it feels like long minutes.
I’ve never seen him like this, so methodical in his violence, so frightening in his calm.
It’s as if I’m looking at a seasoned killer.
His gaze slides back to Oliver and he drops his head on the ground with apparent distaste, then proceeds to kick him in the ribs. “My first time murdering someone and it’s disappointingly not as euphoric as promised. If anything, I feel nothing.”
“He…he…he’s dead?” I whisper-yell, my throat closing around the words.
Eli rises to his full height, stares at his stained shirt with disapproval, and doesn’t dignify Oliver with his attention. “Looks like it.”
“Oh my God…oh my God, oh my God, oh my God…” My legs finally give out and I slide down the car and fall on the cold asphalt as the frigid hands of panic grip me. “Let’s call an ambulance. Maybe he’s alive.”
Eli stands before me, blocking the scene, the light, and every ounce of oxygen. “Why do you want him to be alive after he attempted to rape you?”
My breath hitches as I stare up at him. He looks like a cruel, unforgiving god. The god people prayed to during war times so they could kill and maim as many of the enemy as possible.
And he’d grant it. In a heartbeat.
“I…I don’t want him dead because of that.”
“You wouldn’t think the same if he’d finished what he started.”
My lips part at the reminder of my wish of lightning upon Oliver just before it was instantly answered.
Eli removes his jacket and crouches in front of me as he places it around my shoulders. That’s when I realize my dress’s strap is torn and I’m shaking so wildly, my teeth chatter.
“What are you going to do?” I whisper. “You’ll go to prison if this is found out.”
His expression remains the same—calm, icy, and terrifyingly controlled.
Why the hell am I falling apart when he’s like this? And I wasn’t the one who took a man’s life.
Even if I did wish doom on him.
“That’s where you’re wrong. If this is found out, we will go to prison, for I will report you as an accomplice.”
“But I didn’t do anything.”
“Let’s see whose version they believe. If you say nothing, this entire incident will vanish. We stay afloat together or we drown together. Is that understood?”
I nod once.
“Good girl. I was confident you’d keep a secret.”
My tremors turn into something entirely nefarious. I can’t believe I’m feeling hot and bothered at him praising me when there’s a dead body just a few meters away.
My moral compass seems to be taking the weekend off. I blame the alcohol and whatever pill I took earlier tonight.
This isn’t me.
“W-what will you do about…” I trail off and jut my chin in Oliver’s general direction.
“Don’t concern yourself with that. You need to promise me something to ensure the survival of our alliance.”
“What do you want?”