The lady in Red (REWRITTEN!)

Chapter 46

   As I stepped forward, my steps faltered. I felt my heart in my throat. My stomach churned. There was a strong stench of blood in the air, and the fear was even more intense. In addition to the priceless look on Kapoor's face, he was also fighting for his life. Instead of paying attention to him, I focused on Reece. It was the look on his face that mattered most. A flash of surprise flashed across his face. I was just as perplexed to be here, making my presence known just as he was. I stood in front of Reece, feeling all eyes on me, watching me.

"What are you doing here, Catherine?" Reece asked, his eyes glittering with a dangerous glint of danger. I stared at the gun in his hand and swallowed. I was not concerned about how or why I got here, or why I was still here despite the things I had seen. The most important thing was how I would get him back to me. There was no sign of the Reece I knew. He held no boundaries, and his finger was just a few seconds away from pulling the trigger as the gun in his hand trembled. That was how quickly I understood what the new him held no boundaries for. Despite his struggles with words, Kapoor behind me persevered. The man spat on the floor.

"You!" Neither Reece nor I diverted away from each other, but Jason behind us reacted quickly. He hit Kapoor on the side of the head with his fist. Kapoor grunted piteously. As soon as Reece grabbed my hand and squeezed it, it was like we were the only two in the room. It all became a blur around us. No words were needed from either of us. The expressions on our faces said it all. By the way, his jaw tightened, I knew he didn't want me here. My gut feeling told me he didn't want me here seeing him like this. At this point, Kapoor was seething at me and I turned around to face him.

"Please...Catherine. Tell him to let me go. He's a monster! He's...he's going to kill me," Kapoor pleaded. His eyes were filled with genuine fear. The hammering of my heart in my chest nearly caused me to pass out. When I didn't look away quickly enough, Reece grabbed my face and turned me to face him. His gaze turned my blood into ice, and I was visibly shivering.

"How did you find me?" He growled, unintentionally. When he realized he was scaring me, he regained his composure and softened his features. Seeing his rage in his eyes nearly caused me to combust.

Sincerely, I whispered, "I followed your men." In a dire warning, Reece glanced past my shoulder, who I assume was at Jason, and narrowed his eyes at him. The latter was not visible to me, but I realized Jason felt guilty for not being careful. This was not his fault. My search for Reece had become a mission because I had become restless. Initially, I did not understand my feelings and emotions when it came to Reece, but I understood very quickly why I was feeling the way I was feeling every time he was away from me. As I reached out to touch his cheek, he grabbed my wrist faster than lightning, preventing me from touching him. I gasped when his fingers came into contact with my skin. The usual warmth wasn't there. Despite his touch, there was no warmth in my blood. It was icy cold, freezing my blood. Under his touch, I shivered as his eyes flashed toward me in a way that seemed unsettling.

"Dean! You're going to do this over this whore?! Let me go!" I winced at the word thrown at me, and Reece's eyes turned into slits.

"Jason, get her out of here." Jason was quick on his feet as he rushed towards me to grab at my arm. I stubbornly shook his hand away. Reece's eyes flashed with anger as he gripped my face with both of his hands and leaned forward.

"Go home. This isn't the place for you." Where there was calm, there was also a storm brewing and I could hear it in his voice. My stubbornness only served to hinder my well-being, but I could not move an inch from where I was. It was as if I was held firmly in place by a gravitational pull from him.

"Please, don't do this," I whispered as tears rolled down my cheeks. Kapoor laughed menacingly somewhere in the distance. It was overwhelming fear that made him go insane, hatred and anger infesting him. He had no idea what would happen if he continued hurting me like this. Despite Kapoor's carelessness, I feared for him. Reece was like a ticking time bomb, and Kapoor was only making things worse for him.

"They're going to find you, you know? I know your history, and soon everyone will. If I die tonight, you die with me!" Kapoor's laughter turned into a scream, and I couldn't turn around fast enough to see what Jason did to him. My head was obstructed from turning as Reece tightened his grip on my cheeks.

"Now's your chance to leave," he spoke, dangerously calm, warranting a final warning.

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Not yet! But you will! You will! They will find you and—"

"Enough!" Reece shouted. I nearly jumped, my heart stopping for a moment from his sudden outburst. A deathly silence fell over the room. Confusion swept over me as I struggled to grasp the reality of the situation. Suddenly, Reece looked at me, and before I knew it, my face was buried in his chest. The sudden impact of his chest hitting my face made me gasp. He held me tightly in place, preventing me from moving.

"Reece—"

"I wasn't able to finish what I started. There was much more damage I intended to inflict on you than I deemed fit. As for you getting a quick death, consider yourself lucky." Quick death. I don't remember how I registered the words that were said in a moment, but I understood their meaning right away, and I almost collapsed. I fisted both my hands on his shirt, pleading with him not to do this silently. My silent pleas went unheard. He raised the hand that held the gun, and I closed my eyes.

"Wait! Wait!" Kapoor shouted. As I held my breath, my eyes tightly shut, the echo of his voice filled the room. And then a loud bang bellowed across the room, indicating my worst fear had come true. The gun fired. My ears rang, and my vision became blurry. A second gunshot ensued. Again and again, until there was nothing left in the magazine. I clung to Reece as the final sputter of agony left Kapoor's mouth. I felt bile rise in my throat.

"Dump his body somewhere. You and I are going to have a talk later, Jason. Jake, you too."

"Yes, boss," both of them said, in unison.

"Get me out of here, Reece. Please," I mumbled against his tear-stained shirt. My balance was quickly slipping, and my ability to stay conscious was waning. 

"Let's go home, baby."