MARRY YOUR KILLER
Chapter Fifty-One: The Shot
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The warehouse in Batangas was dark when they arrived.
The sun was not yet up. The sky was gray. The trees were black. The building rose before them, rusted and silent, the same warehouse where her uncle had stored the weapons, the same warehouse where Lyra had taken a knife in her side, the same warehouse where the war was supposed to have ended.
Jay stood at the edge of the trees. Keifer was beside her. Freya was behind her. Lyra was in the shadows. Ci N was in the van with Felix, his phone in his hand, his face pale. Percy was on the roof with Aries and Yuri. Rakki was at the front. Mayo and Kit were at the back. Grace and Denzel were at the side entrance. Care was at the van, her medical bag open, her hands ready. Cole was beside her.
Mica's voice was in Jay's ear. "He's inside. Forty men. Maybe more. He's waiting for you."
Jay's hand went to her knife. "Then let's not keep him waiting."
She walked through the door.
---
The warehouse was lit with floodlights.
The light was white. The shadows were sharp. The crates were stacked high, the same crates that had held the weapons, the same crates that had held the war. At the center of it all, a man was standing. He was tall. His hair was gray. His face was hard. He was smiling.
Victor.
He looked at Jay. His eyes were cold. "Jasper Jean Mariano. You look like your father."
Jay walked toward him. Her knife was in her hand. Her face was calm. "You should have stayed hidden."
He laughed. It was a cold sound. "I've been hiding for years. Watching. Waiting. Your father was weak. Your uncle was greedy. Jason was a fool. But I'm not."
He stepped closer. His hands were empty. His eyes were bright. "I'm going to finish what they started."
---
The fight began.
Men poured from the shadows. Freya was there, her knife moving, her face sharp. Rakki was at the front, her chaos banked into something cold. Mayo and Kit were at the back, fighting together, their voices low. Grace and Denzel were at the side, their fists bloody, their faces hard.
Percy was on the roof, his gun drawn, his voice loud. Aries was beside him, their hands steady. Yuri was behind them, his face cold, his eyes scanning.
Jay moved through the warehouse. Her knife was red. Her face was calm. Keifer was beside her, his gun drawn, his eyes sharp. They moved together, back to back, the way they had learned in the garden, the way they had learned in the war.
Victor was at the center, watching. His hands were empty. His face was smiling.
"You're strong," Victor said. "Stronger than your father. Stronger than your uncle. But you're not strong enough."
Jay walked toward him. Her knife was in her hand. "I'm strong enough."
He laughed. "We'll see."
---
Ella was at the entrance.
She wasn't a fighter. She never had been. She was the one who waited. The one who watched. The one who held the hands of the people who were hurt. She was the heart of the group. The soft one. The one who cried at weddings and funerals and sad commercials.
But tonight, she was at the entrance. She was watching. She was waiting.
The man came from the shadows. He was fast. His knife was in his hand. His eyes were on Jay.
Ella saw him. She saw the knife. She saw where he was aiming.
"Jay!" she screamed.
She moved. She didn't think. She didn't plan. She just moved.
The knife went into her side. She fell. The blood was warm. It was everywhere.
---
Jay turned. She heard Ella scream. She saw her fall. She saw the man standing over her, his knife red, his face blank.
She moved. She was across the warehouse before she could think. Her knife was in his throat before he could move. He fell. His eyes were open. His hands were empty.
Jay dropped beside Ella. Her hands were on her side. The blood was warm. It was everywhere.
"Ella," Jay said. "Ella."
Ella's eyes were open. Her face was pale. Her lips were moving.
"Jay," she whispered. "Are you okay?"
Jay was crying. She didn't know when she had started crying. "I'm okay. I'm okay. You saved me."
Ella smiled. It was small. Tired. Real. "I always save you."
Her eyes closed. Her hand went limp.
"Ella!" Jay screamed. "Ella!"
---
Yuri was on the roof when he heard the scream.
He looked down. He saw Ella on the ground. He saw Jay beside her. He saw the blood. He saw the man who was running toward them, his gun drawn, his eyes on Jay.
Yuri moved.
He was off the roof before Percy could speak. He was through the warehouse before Aries could move. He was in front of Jay before the man could fire.
The bullet hit him in the shoulder. He didn't fall. He moved. His knife was in the man's throat before the man could reload. He fell. The gun fell. The blood was black in the floodlight.
Yuri dropped beside Ella. His hands were on her side. His face was calm. His eyes were not.
"Ella," he said. "Ella, look at me."
Her eyes opened. Just a slit. Just enough.
"Yuri," she whispered.
"You're going to be okay. You're going to be okay."
She smiled. "You're bleeding."
He looked at his shoulder. The blood was red. He didn't feel it.
"It's nothing," he said.
She touched his face. Her fingers were cold. "You're lying."
He almost smiled. "I'm lying."
---
Percy was there.
He dropped beside Yuri. His hands were on Yuri's shoulder. His face was pale.
"You're hit," Percy said.
Yuri looked at him. "It's nothing."
Percy's hands were shaking. "It's not nothing."
Yuri looked at Ella. At the blood on her side. At her pale face. At her closed eyes.
"She saved Jay," Yuri said. "She took a knife for her."
Percy looked at Ella. At the woman who was always quiet. The woman who was always calm. The woman who had never raised her voice, never raised her hand, never done anything except be there.
"She saved all of us," Percy said.
---
Care was running.
She had seen Ella fall. She had seen Yuri jump. She had seen the blood. She was across the warehouse, her bag open, her hands ready. Cole was behind her.
She dropped beside Ella. Her hands were on her side. Her face was calm. Her voice was steady.
"She's breathing. She's breathing. I need pressure. I need light. I need—"
Cole was beside her. His hands were on the wound. His face was white. "She's losing too much blood."
Care looked at Yuri. At his shoulder. At the blood that was still coming.
"You're hit," Care said.
Yuri didn't look at his shoulder. "It's nothing."
Care grabbed his arm. Her face was sharp. "You're bleeding."
He looked at her. His face was cold. His eyes were not. "Ella first."
Care stared at him for a moment. Then she nodded. She turned back to Ella. Her hands were steady. Her voice was low.
"Ella. Ella, stay with me."
---
The fight was over.
The men were down. Victor was gone. He had slipped away in the chaos, through the shadows, through the door that no one had seen. The war was not over. It was just beginning.
Jay stood at the center of the warehouse. Her hands were red. Her face was blank. Keifer was beside her. His hand was in hers.
"Ella," Jay said. "She saved me."
Keifer pulled her close. "She saved you."
She held him. Her hands were shaking. "She can't die. She can't."
He held her. "She won't."
---
The ambulance came at dawn.
Ella was on a stretcher. Her face was pale. Her eyes were closed. Her hand was in Jay's. Care was beside her, her hands still red, her face calm. Cole was driving. The doors closed. The sirens started.
Yuri was in the back. His shoulder was bandaged. His face was pale. His hand was in Ella's.
Percy was beside him. His face was white. His hands were shaking.
"You should be in the other ambulance," Percy said.
Yuri didn't look at him. "I'm staying with her."
Percy took his hand. "She's going to be okay."
Yuri looked at him. His face was cold. His eyes were not. "She has to be."
---
The hospital was white.
The lights were bright. The walls were clean. The air smelled like antiseptic and something else, something that made her stomach turn. Jay sat in the waiting room. Her dress was red. Her hands were red. Her face was blank.
Keifer was beside her. His arm was around her. His face was pale.
"She's going to be okay," he said. "She's going to be okay."
She didn't answer.
Percy was in the corner, his face white, his hands shaking. Aries was beside him, their hand in his. Yuri was in the chair by the window, his shoulder bandaged, his face cold. But his eyes were on the door.
Ci N was on the floor, his phone in his hand, his face pale. Felix was beside him, his hand on Ci N's arm.
Freya was at the door, her arms crossed, her face sharp. Erdix was beside her. Rakki was on the floor, her head in Mayo's lap. Mica was at the table, her laptop open, her fingers still. Care was in the hallway, her hands still red, her face pale. Cole was beside her.
Grace was at the back, her fists still bloody. Denzel was beside her. Kit was with Mayo, their voices low.
They were all waiting. They were all watching the door.
---
The doctor came out at noon.
She was young. Her face was tired. Her scrubs were wrinkled. She looked at the waiting room, at the people scattered across the chairs, the floor, the walls.
"Family of Ella?" she asked.
Jay stood up. Her legs were unsteady. Her hands were shaking. "I'm her family."
The doctor looked at her. At the blood on her dress. At the blood on her hands.
"She's out of surgery," the doctor said. "The knife missed her kidney by an inch. She's lost a lot of blood. But she's going to be okay."
Jay's knees buckled. Keifer caught her. Percy caught her.
"She's going to be okay," the doctor said.
Jay looked at the door. At the hallway where Ella was waiting. "Can I see her?"
The doctor nodded. "She's asking for you."
---
Ella was awake when Jay walked in.
Her face was pale. Her eyes were tired. Her hand was in Yuri's. He was sitting beside her, his shoulder bandaged, his face pale. He hadn't left. He wouldn't.
Yuri stood up when Jay walked in. He looked at her. His face was cold. His eyes were not.
"She saved you," Yuri said.
Jay looked at Ella. At the woman who was always quiet. The woman who was always calm. The woman who had never raised her voice, never raised her hand, never done anything except be there.
"She saved me," Jay said.
Yuri walked to the door. He stopped. He looked back at Ella.
"You scared me," he said.
Ella smiled. It was small. Tired. Real. "I scared myself."
He almost smiled. Almost. He walked out.
---
Jay sat beside Ella. She took her hand. Her fingers were cold.
"You saved me," Jay said.
Ella looked at her. Her face was pale. Her eyes were bright. "I always save you."
Jay laughed. She was crying. She was laughing. She was everything. "You never fight. You never raise your voice. You never—"
Ella squeezed her hand. "I saved you."
Jay held her hand. "You saved me."
---
Percy was in the hallway when Yuri came out.
He was leaning against the wall, his face pale, his hands empty. He looked at Yuri. At the bandage on his shoulder. At the blood on his shirt.
"You took a bullet for her," Percy said.
Yuri looked at him. His face was cold. "I took a bullet for Jay. Ella was on the ground."
Percy walked to him. He stood in front of him. "You jumped off the roof. You ran through the warehouse. You didn't think. You just moved."
Yuri's face didn't change. "She was on the ground."
Percy took his hand. His fingers were warm. "You saved her."
Yuri looked at their hands. His face was cold. His eyes were not.
"She saved Jay," Yuri said.
Percy pulled him close. His arms were around him. His face was in his hair. "You saved her."
Yuri stood there. His arms were at his sides. His face was blank.
Then his arms came up. He held Percy. His hands were shaking.
"She scared me," Yuri said.
Percy held him tighter. "She scared all of us."
---
The days passed.
Ella healed. Yuri stayed. He sat beside her bed. He held her hand. He didn't talk. He didn't need to.
Care checked her bandages. Her hands were steady. Her face was calm. "She's healing. She's strong. She's going to be fine."
Ci N came every day. He sat in the corner. He didn't record. He just sat there, his phone in his pocket, his face soft. Felix was beside him. His hand was in Ci N's.
Percy came every day. He brought flowers. He brought food. He brought noise. He talked to Ella like she was awake. He told her about the garden. About the flowers. About the steps where she used to stand. He told her to come back.
Aries came with him. Their face was calm. Their eyes were soft.
Yuri was always there. He sat in the chair by the window. His shoulder was healing. His face was still cold. But his eyes were on Ella. They were always on Ella.
---
The tenth day, Ella was sitting up.
Her face was still pale. Her eyes were bright. Yuri was beside her. His hand was in hers.
"You're still here," she said.
He looked at her. "I'm still here."
She smiled. It was small. Tired. Real. "You took a bullet for me."
He looked at his shoulder. The bandage was white. "It was nothing."
She touched his face. Her fingers were warm. "It was everything."
He looked at her. His face was cold. His eyes were not.
"You scared me," he said.
She took his hand. "I scared myself."
He almost smiled. Almost.
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END OF CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE