The Author and Her Bodyguard

Chapter 45

The world turned red. Violent and angry. I turned into She-Hulk. I felt powerful and terrifying. I felt like Ara— no like myself. Strong, determined, and proud of everything I had become and everything I had made. "And guess what? FIRST DRAFTS ARE ALWAYS TERRIBLE! And that's okay! I used to think I was a sucky writer. I used to think people would hate my stories and that would make me break. But you three tried to kill me over it and I am still here, writing stories. And I will keep writing stories for the rest of my life! I'm not afraid of critics anymore! AND NEWS FLASH! It's not my fault that your acting skills suck so bad that I figured out you tried to kill me as soon as I saw the three of your faces!"

Kristie's eyes grew darker. My time had run out. She walked over to the table and plucked up the large vase she brought. A weapon in disguise. "It's time to finish this," she said, her voice emotionless. She walked over and raised the vase above my head, glaring at Amy and Belle to follow. After a beat of hesitation, they did. Shadows of people I had known for years, bolting me to the bed.

"Stop!" I shouted, determined to fight them off. "NO!"

The vase shattered, glass scattering in the brilliant morning light, sending a thousand sparks of rainbow across the floor. Suddenly, Kristie was across the room, shocked. Amy and Belle jumped back, their faces pale.

I turned as Aiden walked out of the shadows. His black wavy hair swept across his face and framed his strong jaw. His sharp blue eyes oozed a confident and powerful aura of protection as he stood next to me, his posture territorial. Even with the sense of danger, I took a moment to appreciate how utterly attractive he was when he was in his element, taking control of a dangerous situation like this.

Aiden had been so quiet that I hadn't realized he had walked run into the room until he had all but chucked Kristie three feet. I had a strange sense of deja vu as I took him in. The sight of him in action reminded me of the moment we met next to the lady's restroom. It felt like a lifetime ago.

Aiden flexed his fingers, apparently not quite finished being my bodyguard yet because his eyes were glued to Kristie, a hard expression on his face.

"The lady said stop," Aiden said, sitting down casually on the very edge of my bed, making it clear that if they even tried to breathe in my direction, he would break every bone in their bodies.

"What took you so long?" I let out an unsteady breath.

"Had to make sure they confessed to everything," he said eyeing each of them. "Did you get it?"

I nodded. "Thanks for helping me piece it together." 

In the weeks since Aiden had been removed as my bodyguard, he had done some digging into who was after me. But he hadn't been able to warn me before the girls took action. 

Even though Aiden hated the idea of leaving me alone in a room with them, we knew it would tie things up quickly if I could get the girls to confess to what they had done. They had taken the bait, visiting me in the hospital when I was most vulnerable to see how injured I was.

I picked up my phone from the nightstand where it had been recording our conversation and waved it. "Thanks for the confession." I let out an uneasy breath. "Weren't you girls confused that no one had come to check on me since you got here?" The nurses had been hard to convince to stay out especially after Aiden had set off my heart monitor three times. Hehe. 

"We'll go," Amy suggested quickly. Belle nodded. It was pointless, but I didn't blame them for wanting to run. They really didn't have any other option besides turning themselves in.

Kristie stared at Aiden, looking torn. "We can't. She knows—" Belle and Amy bolted for the door, intent on letting Kristie die in the room by Aiden's hands. But before they could make it through the doorway, they each hit the ground in a flash.

Someone stood above them, having knocked both girls to the ground in a quick move. The large figure blocked their exit. Kristie stared at her friends groaning on the ground and held her hands above her head in surrender.

"You weren't kidding," the man at the door said to Aiden. "Most interesting person we've ever watched." Then he offered me a wave, his face coming into the light. "Still pretty spry even in my seventies!" Brandon said, shooting me an amused grin.

My mouth laid open in shock. "Woah... maybe you should have been my bodyguard after all."

Brandon's round belly moved as he laughed. "Nah. I think I'll leave that to Aiden. You are too much work for me."

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Thank you for reading chapter forty-five! I hope you are enjoying the story! Or are at least curious to see where it goes! Add this story to know when the next chapter drops!

UPDATE DAYS - THE FINAL CHAPTER DROPS TOMORROW!

Things are starting to wrap up. But there are still a few things that need to be clarified...

Tate! We need a Tate update! Will he be okay?

And of course, what will happen next between Aiden and Laliana?

CHAPTER QUESTION - Laliana has learned that criticism although it's hard, isn't going to stop her from sharing her stories. How have you grown in a way that you are proud of?