The gun goes off, a deafening crack as it discharges, one of the men in front of me falling to the ground, screaming as he holds his knee. For a single moment, I don’t move, watching the blood spurt from his leg, but there’s movement, a shadow, and I cut my aim in that direction.
“Stay the fuck away from me!”
“Everly?”
I freeze, every muscle locking tight, the gun shaking in my hands as that voice cuts through the chaos, a voice I know, a voice I buried, a voice that can’t be real.
My blood turns to ice, my breath catching in my throat, and I feel the world tilt, the chopper’s hum fading to a dull roar as my mind reels, refusing to believe what I’m hearing.
He steps out of the shadows, his silhouette emerging into the dim light, and I gasp, choking on a breath as my heart stutters, staring at his face, a face I mourned, a face I loved, a face I thought I’d never see again.
I shake my head, the gun slipping in my grip, my voice a broken whisper as I stumble back, my legs barely holding me up, the reality of him hitting me like a tidal wave, shattering everything I thought I knew.
“It can’t be… no.” My voice cracks as I stare at him in disbelief.
“It’s me, Everly.”
The gun falls from my hands, clattering to the ground, tears blurring his image. “Anthony?”
To be continued in Unleashed…
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