[A/N: Hello my lovelies! Here is the next installment! Can you believe we're already nearing the end? Because this story was was based off a single movie, it unfortunately won't be as long as TMATS, which was inspired by a series. I promise you, you're going to want to stay with me till the end! I love you all and hope you enjoy! -K 🖤]
[🌿This chapter contains swearing, angst, and sexual insinuations and references.🌿]
***
I watched silently as the final bags were situated together, all gathered from the upper portion of the mountain. Santi had allowed me to sleep for another hour, but violently shook me when I started wheezing.
From my position leaning against a jutting rock, I could finally see the ocean at the bottom of the mountain and past a valley of green foliage. Our journey wasn't finished, but we were certainly close.
"How late are we to meet the guy with the boat?" Santi suddenly questioned, his boots crunching as he neared me. He knelt and removed his gloves, immediately holding his knuckles flush against my forehead and cheeks. His jaw tightened as he realized how warm I had become, even though my skin had lost a significant amount of color.
Ben followed Santi towards me, glancing towards the body of water that seemed to ridicule us. "Five days." He confessed, crouching next to Santi and gently rubbing my knee in comfort.
"Jesus. You think he's still there?" Santi questioned, turning to Ben before shuffling around in his bag. He retrieved an extra shirt, tearing the fabric, and abruptly doused it with water from his canister. He unzipped my jacket slightly and carefully held the damp cloth against my feverish neck, softly running it over my cheeks and forehead.
I closed my eyes at the feeling of the cold material and how it cooled off my wildly heated skin. Whether it was from my previous illness or the fact that I was bleeding out, I didn't know, but I was undeniably scorching. However, I begged Santi to not remove my jacket as I continuously suffered chronic chills.
"How does that feel, sweetheart?" Santi whispered, brushing my hair away from my sweating forehead. "Is this okay?" He was awfully terrible at hiding his concerned expression, and the way he intensely searched my face only made me more nervous about my condition. I slightly nodded in affirmation, enjoying the feeling that the cold fabric was providing, and his hands that were caressing my skin.
"Pope." Ben cleared his throat and motioned for Santi to stand. Santi laid the fabric across my forehead and stood to meet Ben's gaze. They conversed in hushed voices, but I could interpret what their whispers were saying. "She doesn't look good at all."
"I know, I know. She's bleeding out faster than we can clot either wound." Santi scratched at his head frantically as he considered the different outcomes. "I've listened to her breathing and...her lung-it's close to completely collapsing."
Ben removed his hat and rubbed his face with irritation. "Pope... What if... What if she can't make it to the boat?" His lip quivered as he crushed his hat in his trembling hands. "What if we have carry two bodies-the Davis siblings-back home?"
A silent tear slipped down my cheek as I remembered that I would have to start planning a funeral when I was state-side.
If I even made it that far.
"Benny, don't say that. She's going to pull through, okay?" Santi clapped Ben on the shoulder. "She's a fighter. (Y/N) will get through this." He confirmed, also reminding himself to have faith that was easily slipping away as did my energy. Santi knelt back down to me, noticing my stray tear, and wiping it away with his thumb. "I promise you, my love, I'm getting you home." He declared with a low whisper, removing the cloth that was already drying.
He began to unzip my jacket and I started to shake my head in denial, needing the warmth of the annoyingly orange coat to satisfy my freezing limbs.
"Baby, I need to check your bandages." He returned, sliding my zipper down carefully. "Fish, you got any more gauze in your med kit?" He inquired, already knowing that Will had used most of the supplies with his own wound.
"Let me check." Fish called out, swinging his backpack over his shoulders and heading in our direction.
Will, several feet away who was previously joined by Fish, sighed and removed his binoculars "I can't see shit." He mumbled, standing to his feet and shaking his head in negation. "We need to get one of us down there. Think one of you can make it there and back?"
I glanced past Santi towards the open body of water, heavily doubting my ability to successfully venture that far.
I would only slow them down.
Benny nodded from his position standing before me, "I'll go." He was determined as he hurriedly walked behind Will to retrieve his pack and his assault rifle for the treacherous and perilous journey ahead.
"Your Spanish sucks, Benny." Will countered, watching his brother situate himself with the necessary items that would assist him in his efforts.
"I got it." Benny resolutely stated, grabbing his rifle and swinging it over his shoulder. He began to dig into a duffel bag of money, removing several stacks and securing them in his pockets.
Santi stood from his kneeling position and I tried to reach out for him, panicking that he was going to join Benny. I already didn't like the idea of Ben venturing off on his own. "It's okay, I'm not leaving you, (Y/N)." He consoled, strutting towards Ben. "You sure? Three?" He was referring to the millions of dollars that Benny had stashed into his pockets. Benny confirmed with a hum as Santi removed a map from his large thigh pocket. "You're looking for the Hijo Pródigo." He offered the map towards Benny who nodded in acceptance.
Ben began to trod away from us, but he suddenly turned and pointed at me. "Keep them in line. They're a rowdy crowd." He smiled, watching as I faintly smiled in return. He would always attempt to make me happy in the worst of situations. "Pope, don't let her be running off now."
Santi chuckled as he walked back towards me. "I don't know, man. She's been pretty wild recently." Fish was kneeling and released a curt chortle of laughter as he searched from the remaining supplies of his med kit.
"Benny." Will directed, causing Ben to face him in expectancy. "Watch your six." He commanded, which only made my chest hurt more than it already incessantly was.
Those were almost the exact last words of my brother.
Even he didn't heed his own words.
I held at my chest, gasping for a breath that wasn't there. "It's alright, I'm here, baby." Santi immediately kneeled and supported my neck, relieving some of the pressure and allowing oxygen to enter my working lung.
Benny turned around, glaring at Will in remembrance of the transgressions he had committed against his best friend and against the men around them. "You watch yours." He returned before walking down the jagged and uneven terrain of the mountainside.
"Here, Pope. This is the last of it." Fish lowly declared, ushering a final sheet of gauze in Santi's direction. They looked at each other, silently conversing about the dire and desperate measures that they might be forced to revert to in the absence of necessary supplies.
Santi nodded and glanced back down to me. "I'm going to raise your shirt now, okay?" He explained, opening my jacket and waiting for my nod of affirmation. I did so and relaxed against the rock as his hands gently lifted completed soaked shirt.
It wasn't from sweat, as Santi gravely noticed, his fingers staining with scarlet as he held my dampened shirt in his hands.
"Here, Fish, hold this." Santi directed, rolling my shirt above my chest and offering it to Fish for him to hold out of the way. Fish accepted and averted his eyes as my chest was exposed. Although I was still wearing my bra, due to my incessant requests to keep it on, he was respectful and turned his head towards the ocean as Santi began to unpack the thick gauze from my side first.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Will questioned, approaching us and Santi huffed in frustration at hearing his nearing steps.
I winced as Santi peeled away the sticking gauze. "Yeah. Leave, Miller." Santi gritted, rubbing his fingers over my abdomen as I tensed in agony. "It's alright, my love." He soothed, circling his fingers and lovingly looking into my frantically searching eyes.
"I just want to help." Will pressed, watching as Santi removed the gauze completely, leaving a large crimson patch along my side. The wound from Benny's knife was still draining the blood that was leaking into my lung.
Santi gritted his teeth and slowly glanced over his shoulder. "Haven't you already done enough, Miller? Leave her the hell alone." He threatened, pressing his palm against the wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding. "I'm not warning you anymore."
I weakly covered his hand with my own as I whimpered, the pain from the pressure becoming more prominent and uncomfortable. Blood seeped through his fingers and dripped steadily onto the rocks.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart... I'm just trying to help." Santi stated, his voice full of emotion. He quickly wiped the affected area with an antiseptic wipe, removing the blood that decorated my skin. He accepted the sheet from Fish and gently removed my hand as he pressed the gauze onto my wound, it immediately soaking with scarlet.
"Maybe I can just-" Will began, but was interrupted by Santi in a fiery passion of indignant anger and poisonous venom lacing his tone.
"You know what, William? I am so fucking sick of you." Santi faced Will who had crossed his arms. "I have so many reasons to break your goddamn neck, and the only reason I'm not, is because my girl needs me right now. I suggest walking away, because no one, not Fish, not your brother, and no fucking god is going to be able to stop me from beating the absolute shit out of you." He huffed, tightening his jaw and staring William down intensely.
Will sniffed and cleared his throat, walking away as Santi had instructed him to do.
Fish chuckled and glanced at Santi out of the corner of his eye. "Really, Santi? 'Your girl'? It took you fucking forever." He laughed and sighed, observing Will as he sat and pouted silently. "You have no idea how happy I am knowing that you're not marrying that douchebag, (Y/N). I don't know why you ever chose him in the first place."
Because I never felt that I deserved anything else.
Santi grinned, releasing the tense expression of his face. He eyed my blushing cheeks as he used medical tape to secure the gauze on my skin. "Hell yeah, she's my girl. Ain't that right, baby?" I playfully rolled my eyes, knowing his words were true.
And I didn't want to be anyone else's.
"(Y/N), I think you'll find Pope here keeps his promises more than others." Fish suggested, still staring off into the distant blue of the ocean. "I thought you two would have admitted it years ago, or at least you, Angel. Before Will even proposed, you even told me that you thought you were in love with Santi." He giggled, causing me to frown immediately and Santi's hands to abruptly cease their assignment.
I had mentioned that secret to Fish years ago, under the guise that my secret would be safe with him under the seal of best-friend-confidentiality. I was concerned about dating Will and having feelings for Santi simultaneously.
And I believed I was never good enough or deserving of Santi's unobtainable love, which was why I accepted Will's proposal, to distract me from the fact that I could never have what my heart truly desired.
Fish shrugged and smiled. "Good thing it's all in the open now. That was fucking torture watching you guys love each other at a distance and forcing yourselves to hate each other. At least you don't have to eye-fuck each other anymore. That made me nauseous."
"Oh, come on, Fish!" Santi chuckled and nudged his shoulder with his elbow. I released an agonizing chuckle, clearing my throat after. "You're fucking crazy. Get going, go give William a ton of shit now. Stop talking our ears off." He suggested, watching Fish stand to his feet.
"Actually, yeah. I wanted to give him a piece of my mind. Maybe fuck up his face with my boot." Fish grumbled, trotting away towards Will who wasn't prepared for what Fish had planned for him.
Santi began to assist me in sitting up now that Fish had left us alone. "I have to clean your back now, so what I want you to do...is straddle me." He whispered into my ear. I returned a confused expression and he smiled, shaking his head. "I'm going to hold you against my chest so you don't have to lay on the rocks anymore."
"Okay..." I finally and verbally agreed, wincing as Santi helped me to sit up fully. He turned himself slightly, his back facing the guys and adjusted his my thighs around his legs. He softly guided my chest against his, and I immediately relaxed into this new position that offered relief for my lower back and for my wounds.
Santi had purposely turned away from Will and Fish to avoid prying eyes, and so that I wouldn't have to expose my back that I was severely self conscious about.
I rested my face into his neck and tried to breathe his scent deeply, slightly wheezing as I did so. With a gentle running of his fingers, he raised the back of my shirt and began to work on removing the gauze that was taped to my back, and that was failing to clot the pervasive blood flowing from the bullet wound.
"You told Fish you loved me before Will proposed?" He suddenly questioned, peeling the gauze away carefully.
"You...told Tom...you had feelings for me...eight years ago." I returned, attempting to infuse my words with obvious sarcasm.
Saying my brother's name only filled me with sorrow.
Santi grinned and use antiseptic wipes to clean the blood as well as the skin surrounding the wound. "Okay, you got me there. We've both been keeping secrets." He chuckled, his laughter fading away. "What...What did Ben mean when he said that you loved him as teenagers?"
I held onto Santi's shoulders and sighed, wanting to leave that memory in the past. In order to continue anything with him, I was going to be absolutely truthful because he deserved my honesty. "Before I dated Will...I was best friends with Ben, still am. I grew up with them. As a teenager...it was easy to fall for him..." I shrugged weakly. "But I knew that I never wanted to...jeopardize our friendship based on my feelings. He never...admitted anything and... So, I...had to move on. It hurt but...every broken heart led me to you." I returned, playing with the curls on the nape of Santi's neck as I laid against him. "I'm sorry...for leaving and not...telling you."
"I hate that your heart was broken, but I'm happy we found our way back to each other. Please don't apologize, sweetheart. You did nothing wrong. You never deserved anything that son of a bitch did to you and was him that drove you away." Santi responded, wiping my skin with his left hand and holding me flush against him with his right hand that was on my lower back. I tried to shift my hips to a more comfortable position. "You have to stay still, baby." Santi suggested with a slight strain in his voice.
"Sorry..." I returned my head to his shoulder, silently listening to his breaths as he cleaned my skin. My fingers continued to roam the back of his neck as I released the rest of my tensions while Santi attempted to heal me.
"Baby, you have nothing to apologize for." Santi sighed and reached for his bag. "But I do. I have no more gauze so... I have to use my extra shirt." He removed the rest of the shirt he had previously torn and his water canister that he had filled from a small fresh water reservoir up in the mountains. "Here, drink this, darling." He offered, guiding the bottle back towards my hands.
I accepted, wrapping my arms around his neck and unscrewing the lid. I groaned as Santi forcefully pressed the material against my back. With a trembling hand, I raised the water to my lips and began to drink gingerly.
Santi generously taped the fabric down onto my skin, pressing it flat against my back. I winced, uncomfortably moving and gripping onto his shoulders. I returned the lid back to the bottle and laid my cheek against Santi's, feeling the comfort that his scruffy facial hair offered.
"Okay, okay... All done. All fixed." He whispered, tossing the tape aside and holding my back softly within his palms. He affectionally encased my scarred back, trailing his fingertips delicately down my spine in adoration. I shivered, due to my fever, and from the heat of his hands that traveled down my back. "You're so beautiful, (Y/N). I know it's not the right time, but... You deserve to be reminded everyday." His lips caressed the shell of my ear and I quietly hummed in return. "Have you...eye-fucked me before?" He whispered quietly into my ear, not wanting to embarrass or violate the sanctity of private and sensual conversations that were for our ears only.
I blushed and buried my face into his shoulder, groaning and painfully chuckling. He chuckled and tenderly caressed my back. "Maybe...a few times. Sorry..." I quietly admitted, never before feeling so nervous or giddy to converse about something so private with the man I loved.
Santi hummed and kissed my cheek that was exposed next to his face. "Then you'll have to forgive me too, because..." He blushed, and grinned widely. "I might have...a few times too." I smiled in return, feeling his fingers guide me to his face. His lips gently pecked mine, not forcing anything drastic or unexpected.
Santi then returned my shirt, straightening the wrinkles out from the back of the fabric. "Thank you, baby..." I responded with a wheeze, feeling more exhausted and more weakened than before, although my heart was beating quite fast from our conversation. My hold around his neck loosened, releasing his hair.
His lips found my cheek, pressing intentionally and full of affection. "I know you're tired, but you cannot go to sleep. Do you hear me, (Y/N)? You've lost a lot of blood and you're going to feel extremely tired, but you can't close your eyes on me." He directed, cradling me against his toned chest. "You have to stay awake. Hey..." He shook me slightly, "What would you like for dinner when we get home? Your choice. We can go out to eat, or, I can make you something special. What do you say? I can make your favorite."
I smiled, imagining a candle lit dinner situated on Santi's beautiful dining room table. My eyes closed as I continued to remember the house and the gorgeous and detailed craftsmanship that was dedicated into its creation.
Even considering his kitchen made me ecstatic, as the graphite and dark colors were secret details that I dreamed of for the kitchen I had always desired.
Hearing my name be repeated as a fervent and incessant prayer from his lips only suggested that I submit to the rest that beckoned me closer.
With Santi and his home, the home of my dreams, comfortably residing in my mind, I could only dream of what our future would consist of once we shared it together.
If it ever came to pass.
***
I suddenly jolted, waking myself from slumber and gasping in fear of the night terror that often plagued my sleep. Santi's arms were around me, securing my back against his chest as I sat between his legs. He had returned my jacket and had even placed his own gloves onto my hands to protect them from the dropping temperatures.
Night was approaching swiftly as the sun was disappearing behind the mountains. The sounds of animals frequently called out from around us, reminding us that we were in unfamiliar territory and that nature would continue despite our presence.
Santi was leaning against the bags, quietly breathing as I rested back against him. Upon hearing my distress, he had immediately responded with affirming and calming words, his lips stamping into my temple in reassurance. "I'm right here, baby. You're okay." He whispered, nuzzling his nose into my cheek softly.
Fish's voice called out from behind us as he laid against the opposite side of the bags. "I'm gonna say something. Are you listening?" He blankly stated, not referring to anyone specifically.
"Yeah." Santi responded, leaning back onto the bags and guiding me to return to my resting position. My limbs felt heavier as did my eyelids, but I feared that neither would have any strength to move by the time the sun rose in the morning.
My eyes glanced to a massive bag only a few yards away. It didn't contain money, but something far more precious and absolutely irreplaceable.
I feared that in trying to always be like my big brother, I too would soon be confined to a bag and hauled like a sack of money.
"We gotta get back on our game." Fish quipped, sighing and glaring up towards the cloudy evening sky. "Enough of this. It stops now. You understand?" He mentioned, referring to the tensions and distractions that would prevent us from reaching our final goal: home.
Santi cleared his throat and I could feel him nod behind me. "Copy that." He affirmed, rubbing my arms that lay motionless in front of me. The raising of his chest and the comfort of his heartbeat calmed me immensely, and I rested into his torso again.
Fish responded quickly with a simple, "Good." He too, unbeknownst to everyone, was terrified about the circumstances. He feared that they would inevitably be carrying two body bags down the mountain and be planning two funerals upon their return.
He silently prayed to whoever was listening that they all made it safely, and that no one else would be zipped away and carried like the money that was flung over their backs.
Silence followed, allowing the animals to resume their conversations and echoing quips. I coughed painfully, and Santi sat me up immediately. "Shhh... It's okay. Here, look at me." Santi rubbed my back softly as I struggled, then turned my face towards his that was perched over my shoulder. His eyes suddenly fell to my lips in worry. He carefully pressed his thumb against the corner of my mouth, wiping away at something I couldn't see. "Beautiful as ever." He strained, concealing his trembling voice, hurriedly wiping his hand onto his pants.
He softly kissed my lips, but I had no energy to reciprocate his gentle pecks. He nodded in understanding, swallowing harshly and laying back against the duffel bags behind him. He carefully guided me with him, situating me onto his chest.
"How many people do you think you've killed?" Will interrupted the silence, sitting at the far end of the bags, and causing Santi to tense behind me in frustration and confusion.
Fish scoffed and faced the direction of Will's presence at the end of the line of bags. "What?" He questioned in disbelief, unsure of what Will was implying or why he considered it appropriate to mention it now.
"You heard me." Will uttered, clearing his throat and situating himself more comfortably against the bags. Santi's arms tightened around me as his breathing increased in agitated huffs.
"As many as I had to." Fish responded with a small voice, laced with sadness and regret. He sighed in dejection and made himself more comfortable, rubbing his arms to reinstate the warmth that had been lost to the cold environment.
Santi grumbled from behind me. "Why would you ever wanna know that?" He gritted, leaning his head against mine as I shivered from my condition. The jacket and gloves were hardly helping at this point, and I found myself becoming more cold as the seconds passed.
"Forty-three." Will returned with little to no emotion. Fish cringed at hearing the confession and Santi released an impatient groan.
"Jesus!" Santi responded, facing in the direction of Will. He sniffed and bent his knees beside me, caging me within his embrace and protecting me from the elements and from Will, who he deemed to be a threat.
Will cracked his knuckles. "Confirmed." He finished, causing Fish to rub his face in agitation and Santi to scoff sarcastically.
Surely they weren't condemning him for the number. Taking a life wasn't easy. Every life that I had taken, took something away from me in return. Whether it be my sleep, my peace, my happiness, my hope, my confidence, or the will to live in general, having a high kill count meant that more had been taken from me because of the my transgressions.
Will's high number didn't compare to mine in the least, and I feared that if I admitted my hidden sins to Santiago, he would remove himself from me and cast me away, back into the pit I had spent two years crawling out of.
Santi squinted at Will in utter disdain and judgment. "You keep count of everything, huh?" He asked Will, wrath invading his body and his tone. I could feel his body heat increasing rapidly as his muscles tensed in preparation.
Will grunted in affirmation and Fish followed with another question. "How's your sleep?"
"I guess better than it should be." Will clicked his tongue and settled backwards and further into the bags.
I was more than jealous that Will found sleep to arrive so easily. The only way I could truly rest without suffering was by being too weak to stay awake.
Silence infiltrated our cold camp as everyone processed the conversations previously. I nuzzled against Santi, desiring more warmth and comfort from him as my chest throbbed with insatiable pain.
Suddenly, Santiago sat up, positioning me upwards with him. I curiously tried to angle my neck toward him, unsure of what had inspired him to do so.
"You know, I find it real fucking funny that you pay more attention to dead bodies than you ever did your fiancée." Santi spat angrily, holding me closely to his chest. "And how the hell can you sleep, knowing what you did to her?"
"Excuse me?" Will retorted with irritation, and I could see his shadowed figure abruptly sit up from his position a short distance away.
Santi grumbled, his chest vibrating with vehement rage. "You heard me. You're the reason she left. And you're the reason she suffered for years. All the shit she's been through- It all fucking comes back to you, Miller." Santi positioned his hands under my arms and gently raised me, removing me from between his legs, and setting me back against the bags.
"Santi?" I whispered, watching as he stood up and rolled up his sleeves with harsh movements.
Fish was the next one to interject, realizing the sudden derailing of everyone's moods and the heightened tensions. "Guys, guys, maybe we should just take a breath, okay?"
"Shut the hell up, Frank." Will growled, standing to his full height. "Let's hear what Santiago has to fucking say next." He grumbled, his breaths becoming more erratic and uncontrollable.
"How long?" Santi questioned, blocking me from Will as he glared over at us. I glanced up to Santi, unsure what he was interrogating about and nervous about what the events were leading to.
Will scoffed in sarcasm and chuckled. "What, you mean in inches? Why don't you ask 'your girl'? She'll be able to tell you." He menacingly sneered as his eyes flickered to my laying figure.
My cheeks burned in a furious blush, pissed and irritated that Will continued to mention our private, sexual encounters and experiences that were only supposed to remain between us.
I wonder how many other men he had described those encounters to.
The thought made me nauseous and I had to cover my mouth, fearing I would vomit at the consideration.
"I'm going to rip your fucking tongue out, Miller!" Santi pointed his finger at Will, approaching him swiftly. He harshly gripped Will by the collar and shoved him against the bags roughly. "Don't fucking talk about her like that. She doesn't deserve you treating her like this." He muttered, his hands shaking with tumultuous wrath as his eyes blazed at Will. "She never did."
Fish was also prepared to attack Will, simultaneously feeling aggressive that Will effortlessly allowed himself to say such vile and horrendous things.
"How long did you fucking cheat on her?" Santi angrily questioned, observing Will's nervous demeanor. "And don't lie to me, Miller. If you believe that I won't shoot you where you stand, you're a goddamn idiot ten times over again."
Will swallowed harshly as Santi slammed him against the bags again. I wanted to sit up and beg them to calm down, but watching Santi become more protective as the minutes passed inspired me to keep my mouth closed.
"Seven months." Will whispered, his eyes submitting to the rocks he was standing on. "I-I..." Santi gripped Will's throat after his admission.
Santi and Fish both gasped and grumbled in shock as I cowered further against the bags.
"Seven fucking months?! You remember that and not her birthday?!" Santi questioned, his voice shaking with unbridled and uncontrollable anger. "What's her favorite book?! What's her favorite song?! Do you know why she prefers roses to daisies?! Why she keeps her records in alphabetical order by artist?! Did you know that she sacrificed her own happiness by only keeping a few of her collectibles out because she knew that you didn't care for them?!" Santi slammed Will backwards again, eliciting a huff to escape his captive.
Fish had hurriedly maneuvered around the barricade of bags to approach me, reaching for my hand to extend comfort. "Hey, Angel... is that true? Was it seven months?" I nodded at his questions, closing my eyes as the memories flooded back in unwanted waves.
"Where's her goddamn library, Will?! Where's her fucking garden?!" Santi continued to berate Will and breathe roughly as years of pent-up and displaced anger rose quicker than he could calm himself. "Did you know she wanted those things? Did you know on that day, her birthday, when she found her wedding dress... I prayed so fucking hard...that she would realize what a fucking mistake it would be to chain herself to you for the rest of her life." Will was clawing at Santi's hand around his neck to no avail. "When I saw her in that dress... I wanted to be you, Will. I wanted to be in your shoes. I wanted to be the one she was returning home to day after day. But now, after knowing what I do, and what I'm about to find out, I promise her and myself that I will never fucking be anything like you. I will be so much better than you and actually worship her like she should have been from the goddamn beginning."
My eyes watered at hearing Santi's promise and all of the questions that he hurled at Will, which weren't responded with any answers.
But Santi knew the answers to them all.
"William Miller, you are the stupid motherfucker to walk the earth. You deceived us for years, all starting with that fucking day we realized (Y/N) was gone. That woman that entered the house," Santi gripped Will's face, painfully squeezing his fingers into his cheeks, "That wasn't the fucking maid, was it?" He sneered, tightening his hold and threateningly closing the distance.
Will rapidly shook his head negatively and Fish stood up in realization.
"I would fucking kill you right here. But I want you to live. You know why?" Santi questioned, causing Will to shake his head negatively. "Because I want you to witness (Y/N) living the life she always deserved. I want you to see her truly happy, something she never would have been with you." Santi leaned into Will's face, his eyes ablaze. "And I'm going to give it all to her, the home, the library, the garden, the love...as the husband you were never intended to be."
With a sickening crack, Santi rammed his fist into Will's face relentlessly and repeatedly.
And I prayed that he wouldn't stop.