Star-Crossed

Chapter Thirteen

Yamac rushes to Sasha's aid, pulling the body off of her, then pulling her to her feet. "Are you hurt?" He asked. "Not physically." Sasha replied. Yamac's face is anguished. "Sasha, I'm so sorry." Yamac pulls her tight against his body, and his arms, Sasha lets the emotion go.

Yamac comforts her, rubbing her back, until tears dry out, though she's far from recovered. "What happened?" Sasha asked. "The buyer double-crossed us." Yamac said. "What? Baris swore the buyers were legit." Sasha said. "I don't know what's going on, but one minute we were loading crates, and then next I was fighting for my life." Yamac said.

Sasha steps back and looks at Yamac for the first time. He is disheveled, his clothes dirty and covered in splotches of blood. "Oh my God, are you hurt?" She asked. "No. But, Sasha..." Yamac said. "What?" Sasha asked. "They're all gone. Overboard. Dead, injured, I'm not sure." Yamac said.

"How?" Sasha asked. "Does it matter?" Yamac asked. "I think it does." Sasha said. "Sasha, I have to take care of all of this." Yamac said. "Yamac... you killed them?" Sasha asked. He hangs his head, and his voice is small when he speaks. "I had no choice." Sasha takes a deep breath and stands up straight.

"Let me help." She said. "I don't want you seeing what's up there." Yamac said. "You can't protect me from it, Yamac." Sasha said. It's clear Yamac wants to argue, but instead he takes Sasha's hand, stepping over the body on the floor.

Above deck, Sasha covers her mouth as she takes in the scene. From ways away, she can hear Yamac sniffling. He doesn't want me to hear him. But I want to show him I'm there. He's no murderer. He did this to protect me. He shouldn't feel so guilty. Sasha walks to where Yamac is surveying the other vessel, still tied to the yacht.

"What do we need to do?" She asked. "You don't have to do this." Yamac said. "We're equal partners. Tell me what to do." Sasha said. Yamac gives a sharp nod, his eyes bleak. He only ever kills as a last resort. This must be eating him up. "You did what you had to do, Yamac." Sasha places a hand on his shoulder and he stiffens.

"I know." Yamac said. "If you hadn't killed them, they would have killed us." Sasha said. "What's driving me mad is that exact scenario. If I hadn't turned around in time to see the attack." Yamac said. "They attacked from behind?" Sasha asked. Yamac nods. "We had everything loaded, and I thought everything had gone smoothly. I turned away, ready to come find you, but a movement alerted me. I got out of the way just as they tried to get me."

"How did you take them all on?" Sasha asked. "I don't think they expected me to fight back. They tried to come back one at a time, but that made it easy for me." Yamac said. "Didn't they catch on?" Sasha asked. "Yeah, but too late. The last couple tried to take off. I threw them overboard. Then I counted and realised I was still missing one. I heard you scream. My heart stopped."

Sasha grasps Yamac's hands. "I'm okay. You're okay. Now we just need to figure out what to do next." She said. Yamac nods and swallows hard. "Yamac, we're here. We're alive." Sasha places a hand on his cheek, reassuring. Yamac leans into her touch. "I don't know if I could have survived losing you." He said.

"You did what you had to do, and we're both still here." Sasha said. This time, Yamac gives her a slight smile. "And then there were two." He said. Sasha looks around, a thought occuring to her. "Wait... I think we're still missing one." She said. "What do you mean?" Yamac asked. "Where is Captain Demir?" Sasha asked.

Yamac looks at her, eyes wide. "I don't know... I haven't seen him." He said. "I wondered when you'd remember poor old Captain Demir." Yamac shoves Sasha behind him as Captain Demir walks towards them, pointing a gun at them. "Now let's sit down and figure out how you screwed things up so royally. Go ahead and have a seat."