PAST
"Don't fucking lie to me!"
Christian's fist drives into my jaw with enough force that my teeth rattle. Fucker can throw a mean hook, I'll give him that. Despite my mild fear I don't give him the satisfaction of showing it. These assholes don't operate that way. If I wanted to make it out of here alive, I had to hold my own. I sneer and try to act ten times tougher than I feel right now. It doesn't help that he has the clear advantage with the gun in his hand and me being unable to fight back since he tied my wrists.
"Fuck you." I spit blood out onto his shoe. He yanks it away and glares down at me with so much rage, I realize I went too far. Again, I don't give him the satisfaction. "It's not my fault your head is so far up your ass you didn't realize you were being conned."
"Don't fuck with me." He warns menacingly and slowly crouches down to my level. I'm on my knees in classic execution position which is exactly what he's about to do — execute me. I can barely hear him over the pulsing in my ears when he places the opening of his gun right under my chin. The metal feels cool against my sweaty skin and my heart only beats faster. I set my jaw tightly. I might die right now but he won't see my fear when he does it. "You're a fucking kid. You're disposable. Isn't that why mommy and daddy left you to die when their lab exploded?"
My breath leaves my flaring nostrils shakily. I don't remember that day because I was only a year old but his taunting still gets to me. He continues, knowing he's got me.
"And they did it all over again." He tsks. "Tried to con the Asesinos, got busted, and left their son to die. I almost feel bad enough to spare you."
He bends his head, his breath hot on my face. "Almost."
I snap.
I throw my head forward and butt my forehead against his. He cries out from the unexpected hit and falls back on his ass. I kick his gun out of the way and it slides to the other end of the floor. Before I can second-guess my actions, I take off running toward the gun and bend back down to retrieve it. The dumbass tied my wrists in front of me so I'm still able to grasp the gun. My hands are sweaty and they slip right out but I take hold of it again, clutching it tightly. I hold it up just as Christian stands and faces me.
"Stay there!" I warn. "I'll blow your fucking head off!"
His lip curls even as he holds his hands out in front of him. "I would bet all the money your parents tried to steal from us that you've never used a gun before."
He's right but he can't know that. It's like I said — if I want to make it out of here alive, I need to look like I know what I'm doing.
"That's a bet you'd lose and then it'd be your own people killing you." I smirk. "You don't think I knew what I was getting into when I did this favour for my parents? I come from a gang, too. They taught me well."
That's a lie. They didn't teach me shit. They don't even like me. The only reason I took this job is because my birth parents showed up at my door saying they needed me and threatened my adoptive parents when I refused. I did this job against my own will and everyone in the Vice Lords knows it. They hate that I'm soft.
Still, my lying pays off when Christian shifts his weight. It's a small tell but I recognize that he's uncomfortable; no longer as confident as he was a moment ago.
I click back the lock on the gun and Christian puts his hand up higher. His lips thin and I know he's trying to stay calm the same way I was moments ago. "Relax, kid. Killing someone isn't that easy. You do this and it'll haunt you for the rest of your life."
"I'll take my chances." I say just as easily. I'm lying again. This is the last thing I want to do and I'm trying to wrack my brain thinking of an alternative.
"Let's make a deal." He clearly reads my mind and I straighten my face out. Fuck. I gave myself away. "I'll give you some information that will help the Vice Lords when they're in a tight spot."
"You think I'm stupid?" I growl. "You would never betray your own like that."
"You'd be surprised." He shrugs. "A lot goes on behind closed doors."
If anyone could understand that, it's me. "No deal. Now shut up or I'll pull this trigger."
"You see," He takes a step forward. "I just don't believe you."
"And that'll be the exact thing that gets you killed."
"Oh? Brave words, kid. I was never this arrogant when I was twenty-years-old."
"Then it's a miracle you've made it this far." I scowl. I try and take a breath as discreetly as possible when I notice my hands start to shake. Christian takes another step toward me.
"You've got guts. I'm starting to admire your character. Pryce, is it? The Asesinos could use someone like you."
"Fuck. Off." I emphasize and take a step towards him too. "You really don't want to mess with me."
"I don't?" We're close enough now that I can see the bruise forming on his forehead from when I hit him. "If that was the case, you would have shot me by now."
"Now you're just asking for it." My index finger closes over the trigger and I start to pull it in.
Christian freezes, eyes trained on the gun. "Don't do it, Pryce."
"Then don't fucking test me." I hiss. "Back up. Back the fuck up!"
"Okay." He backs up, hands in the air. My shoulders start to drop when he moves out of the way to let me go and I have to fight to keep the relief off my face. That is until he looks over my shoulder and says, "Now."
I barely have time to prepare myself. Just as I turn my head to see who's behind me, it's swung back around by a punch to the cheek with enough force packed into it that it sends me to the ground. The gun clatters out of my hand and my stomach bottoms out when Christian kicks it out of my reach. "No!"
That was my only shot at getting out of here. I let myself become distracted by Christian talking out of his ass and didn't even realize I was being snuck up on. I'm about to die because of my mistake.
I try to scramble to my feet but a heavy boot knocks into my mouth and send me sprawling on my stomach. The same boots kicks my side and I cry out in agony at the sheer pain. I roll to my back and regret it immediately when the newest perpetrator straddles me and hits me with two swift punches to the face. I grab his fists and push up, trying to get them away from me. I'm able to identify the new guy as Marshall, one of Asesinos strongest and most lethal fighters. The dude is built like a building and is notorious for his lack of mercy. Just fucking great. There's no way I'm going to fight him off, never mind him and Christian who happens to have the gun now. I try to fight Marshall off even as my throat locks up tightly.
Why did I take this job? Why did I believe my parents when they said it was just a delivery and that it would mean a lot to them if I helped? Why did I care so much about pleasing them when they've literally left me to die? This is why I fucking hate emotions. They make you weak and vulnerable and the worst of people always find a way to take advantage of you. This is why I don't let anyone get close to me. Not even her.
I fight to keep her out of mind. She's the last person I should be thinking about. I don't know when my feelings changed and I started falling in love with my best friend but I knew the second I realized what I was feeling that I'd destroy us. I was right. Just look at what I've gotten myself into.
Desperation creates a new burst of adrenaline in my body and I let out a roar as I throw all my weight to the side, taking Marshall with me. Now that I'm on top of him I waste no time punching his face over and over until his fighting back visibly starts to slow down. I scramble to my feet and give him a taste of his medicine by stomping my foot down on his face — hard. There's a satisfying crunch of bone and Marshall cries out clutching his jaw.
In the next breath I'm airborne and my body lands on the floor with a thud a few feet away from Marshall. I push the huge weight off of me and Christian rolls off me, getting to his feet. I jump to mine and run toward him, my head butting into his gut as I propel us backward. His back hits the wall and he groans. I use the moment as a clear shot to pull away and punch him as hard as I can. He goes down and I kick him in the balls for good measure. A cheap shot but I need all the advantage I can get.
My eyes scatter around the room as I try to look for the gun and I run toward it when I spy it tucked away under the interrogation chair. I make a dash for it at the same time Marshall does and we grab it at the same time, wrestling for possession.
"Let go, bastard." He spits in my face.
I bring my knee up and catch him in the gut. It doesn't hurt him nearly as much as when I did it to Christian so I go back to yanking on the damn weapon.
"Don't make me do this." He warns and turns the gun toward me.
My blood runs cold. Pure desperation makes me act and I have to use all my strength to twist his hand and then the gun on him instead. I kick his side and move on top of him, grunting as I fight to stay on top. I yank on the gun tightly when all of a sudden, a huge bang rings out.
My hands instinctively drop the weapon to cover my ears and I fall off Marshall, rolling away to safety. When I'm far enough away that he can't get to me, I hurriedly inspect my body for blood or pain. I'm confused when there isn't any and look around to see where the bullet went.
"Marsh!" Christian cries out and crawls over to his friend. I look at Marshall and something akin to a cry leaves my mouth when I'm met with his lifeless and open eyes staring at the ceiling, a trail of blood trickling out of the hole in his head. Christian turns his lethal gaze on me. "What the fuck did you do!"
I'm paralyzed with fear. "I...I didn't..."
"Pendejo!" He launches himself at me and I'm forced to go back into survival mode, no time to dwell on what I've just done.
I turn my body away before he can make contact with me and ram the heel of my hand into his back, propelling him forward. He crashes into the wall and I move behind him, sending my foot down on the back of his knee with so much force my muscle cramps. He grunts and goes down, his leg bending unnaturally. He grips it tightly and his face contorts in anger and pain.
"Pedazo de mierda sin valor!" He pushes himself up on his elbow and I kick his face to send him back down. He lands on his stomach and I set my knee into his back to keep him in place. I know my way around fighting well enough to know the knock out places in a body. My elbow comes down hard on the back of his neck and in the next moment, his body slumps into a state of unconsciousness. I get back on my feet and don't waste another second getting the hell out of here.
My legs burn as they carry me out of the safe house that's hid away in plain sight. One might pass it on the road and think it's a barn, having no idea it's a torture unit for the Asesinos. I run along the hillsides and grow more and more frantic when all I see is grass up ahead. My lungs start to burn and my legs tremble with every push to carry me as far away from that hell-hole as possible. I don't even know if I'm going the right way but all I know is that I have to get the fuck out of here. Nothing but adrenaline keeps me going through the pain and exhaustion seeping through every bone in my body. It was nightfall when I was captured and based on how high the sun beats down on the land around, I would guess it's well into the afternoon by now. That means I was held captive for over twelve hours. I start to panic as the reality of what happened to me sets in. How the hell did I let this happen?
I almost cry out in relief when I finally spot a highway up ahead and I follow it all the way, running past the cars that honk at me and try and offer me a ride. I'll find my own way out of here. I don't trust anyone right now. I keep running despite my body protesting for me to stop and this time a relieved sob does escape me when I spy a gas station just up ahead. I look behind me out of paranoia but I'm not being followed. I make a beeline for the bathrooms and burst inside, ducking my head to check the stalls. When I'm sure there's no one inside, I lock the door and drag the large trash can in front of it for good measure.
I back up all the way to the other end and finally, finally, my legs give out from under me. I crumple to the floor with me knees and palms holding me up, my entire body shaking as my adrenaline starts to fade and my fear catches up to me.
"What did I do?" I whisper. I try and pull in a breath but my body fights it. Panic rises and makes my throat tight. My head spins and it feels like the room is spinning. A sob tears out of me. "What the fuck did I do?"
I sit up and pat myself down, my hand bumping into something hard on my thigh. My eyes widen and I yank my phone out of my pocket, unable to believe that they didn't confiscate it. That was an amateur move which means they probably did it on purpose. Why? I try to focus and think about why they would do something so stupid. Maybe they thought if I escaped I would try and call for help. Maybe...maybe they're tracing my location.
"Shit!" I roar and throw it on the ground. I stomp it into a million pieces and kick it under the sink. My hands go to my hair in distress and I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner. "I have to get out of here."
I kick the trash can away and unlock the door, hesitantly looking around to make sure nothing is out of the ordinary. The place is pretty much abandoned. I run to the call booth and realize I don't have any money on me to use it. I change routes and head inside the gas station instead. The bell dings above me when I enter and the store clerk looks up at me with a smile. It slips off her face instantly when she gets a good look at me. I don't even want to know how bad my appearance is.
"Sir." She comes around the counter toward me. She stops in her tracks when her eyes dip to my forearm, widening. "You're bleeding."
I am? I look down and suppress a groan when I realize she's right. I didn't even notice the cut that's slashed across my arm nor do I remember when I got it.
"I'll call the police." She reaches for the phone.
"No!" I bark and she jerks at the vehemence in my tone. I force myself to calm down. "I just need to make a call. Can you help me with that, please?"
"S-sure." She reaches for it again but this time keeps her eyes on me like I'm a wild animal. I guess I probably look like one. I take the phone from her with a tight smile and dial the number of the one person I can actually depend on.
"What's up, dick?" Nate answers cheerfully. I close my eyes. He sounds so fucking normal, like his world just didn't rip out from under his feet. I didn't even realize how much I've been taking my life for granted until it just became my living nightmare. I move to the back of the store where the coolers are for some privacy.
"I'm in trouble." I whisper and dart my eyes around nervously.
"Ash?" He loses the easiness in his voice and sounds more alert. "Asher, what's happening?"
"I fucked up, Nate. I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry." I plead with him. When I tell him what I've done, he's probably going to hate me. I'm probably going to lose my only brother.
"Hey. Take a breath, man. I'm here." I try and follow his instructions. "What do you need?"
"I need you to fly out to New York and get me."
"How come? Aren't you staying with your grandparents?"
"I was but then I told them I was staying the night at a friends and I lied and..." I can't bring myself to stay the rest.
"Where did you go?" He asks softly.
"To do a job for my my parents. For Nora and Mike."
Dead silence greets me and I have to push down the gravel in my throat. That's only the beginning.
"I can't tell you anything else. I can't risk anyone tracing the conversation. Just please come and get me."
"Okay, Asher." He sounds shaken and I don't blame him. "I'm booking a flight now. Go back to your grandparents and I'll come get you."
"Okay." I wipe my eyes and I'm grateful he's not here to see my tears. He's never seen me cry before. "Thanks, brother."
I end the call and air punctures out of my lungs. That was the easy part. Now I have to find a way to get myself cleaned up, catch a ride and hope I won't get double-crossed, and explain to my grandparents where I've been.
And then I have to admit to my best friend that I just became a killer.
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A/N
Holy smokes! Asher's story starts off with a total bang and I'm loving how intense and different it is from the other stories. There's a totally new vibe to this one that I'm seriously digging. I can't wait to see where this goes!
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Happy Reading :)