MARRY YOUR KILLER
Chapter Fifty-Four: The Warehouse
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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 had almost ended.
Jay stood at the edge of the trees. Keifer was beside her. Freya was behind her. Lyra was in the shadows. Percy was on the roof with Aries. 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. "The car is inside. No movement. No lights. They could be waiting."
Jay's hand went to her knife. "Then let's not keep them waiting."
She walked through the door.
---
The warehouse was empty.
The car was there. Black. Windows dark. Plates covered. But the men were gone. The weapons were gone. The lights were off. The only light came from the floodlights outside, white and harsh, casting long shadows across the floor.
Jay walked to the car. The doors were open. The seats were empty. She looked inside. Nothing.
"She's not here," Keifer said.
Jay looked at the warehouse. At the shadows. At the crates. At the stairs that led up. "She's here. I can feel her."
Percy came down from the roof. His face was pale. "There's nothing up there. No one. Nothing."
Freya was at the back. "Empty."
Rakki was at the front. "Empty."
Lyra was in the shadows. Her voice was low. "There's something here. Something we're not seeing."
Jay walked to the center of the warehouse. She looked at the floor. At the dust. At the marks. At the trail that led to the stairs.
"She's here," Jay said. "She's here."
---
They found her at the top of the stairs.
Ella was lying on the floor, her face pale, her eyes closed, her hands at her sides. Her dress was white. Her hair was spread around her. She looked like she was sleeping. She looked like she was dead.
Aries was there first.
They dropped beside her. Their hands were on her face. Their voice was shaking. "Ella. Ella, wake up. Ella."
She didn't move.
Aries's hands were trembling. Their face was white. "Ella. Please. Please wake up."
Care was there. Her hands were on Ella's neck. Her face was calm. Her voice was steady. "She's alive. She's breathing. Her pulse is weak, but she's alive."
Aries's hands were shaking. "What's wrong with her? Why won't she wake up?"
Care looked at Ella's eyes. At her pupils. At her face. "They drugged her. Something strong. She needs a hospital. Now."
Aries held Ella's hand. Their fingers were shaking. "Ella. I'm here. I'm here. You're going to be okay."
Ci N was there. His phone was in his pocket. His face was pale. "I'll get the stretcher. I'll get—"
"Ci N," Care said. "Stay with her. Keep her warm. Keep her breathing."
Ci N dropped beside Ella. His hands were on her arm. His face was white. "Ella. Ella, it's Ci N. Aries is here. We're here. You're going to be okay. You're going to be okay."
Aries didn't let go of her hand. Their face was wet. Their voice was low. "I love you, Ella. I've always loved you. Please wake up. Please."
---
The shot came from the shadows.
Jay heard it before she saw it. The crack of glass. The whistle of air. The sound of something moving too fast, too close.
She turned. The man was behind her. His gun was raised. His eyes were on her. She didn't have time to move.
Care moved.
She was there before Jay could think. Her body was between Jay and the gun. Her arms were open. Her face was calm.
The bullet hit her in the back.
She fell. Her body was light. Her face was pale. The blood was red on her white shirt, spreading fast, blooming like a flower.
"Care!" Jay screamed.
She caught her. She was on the ground, Care in her arms, the blood warm on her hands.
Care'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."
Care smiled. It was small. Tired. Real. "I always save you."
Her eyes closed. Her hand went limp.
"Care!" Jay screamed. "Care!"
---
Cole was there.
He dropped beside Care. His hands were on her back. His face was white. His voice was steady. "Care. Care, look at me."
She didn't move.
Cole's hands were shaking. His voice was cracking. "Care. Please. Please look at me."
Care's eyes opened. Just a slit. Just enough.
"Cole," she whispered.
He kissed her forehead. His face was wet. "I'm here. I'm here. You're going to be okay."
She smiled. "You're annoying."
He laughed. It was a broken sound. "I know."
---
Ci N stood up.
His face was pale. His hands were steady. He looked at Care on the ground. At Cole beside her. At Ella on the floor. At Aries holding her hand. At the blood that was everywhere.
"I'm a doctor," Ci N said. His voice was low. "I was a doctor before the war. Before everything. I can help her."
Percy looked at him. "You're a doctor?"
Ci N dropped beside Care. His hands were on her back. His face was calm. His voice was steady. "I need pressure. I need light. I need my bag."
Felix was there. His bag was in his hands. "I have it. I have everything."
Ci N's hands moved. Fast. Precise. The hands of someone who had done this before. The hands of someone who had been trained.
"She's losing blood," Ci N said. "But the bullet went through. It missed her spine. It missed her heart. She's going to be okay."
Cole's hands were on Care's face. His voice was low. "She's going to be okay."
Ci N looked at him. "She's going to be okay."
---
The fight was not over.
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. Grace and Denzel were at the side, their fists bloody.
Percy was on the stairs, his gun drawn, his voice loud. His face was hard. He was fighting for Ella. For Aries. For all of them.
Jay moved through the warehouse. Her knife was red. Her face was calm. Keifer was beside her, his gun drawn, his eyes sharp.
They found the man at the back. The one who had shot Care. His gun was empty. His hands were up. His face was white.
"Please," he said. "I was paid. I didn't know—"
Jay's knife was at his throat. "Who paid you?"
"Keizer. Keizer Watson. He wanted you dead. He wanted all of you dead. He's been planning this for years. He—"
Jay's knife pressed closer. "Where is Yuri?"
The man's eyes were wide. "I don't know. He was supposed to be here. He was supposed to bring the girl. But he didn't come. He didn't—"
The man stopped. His eyes went wide. His mouth opened.
Jay pulled her knife back. "If you're lying—"
"I'm not lying. I'm not. Yuri disappeared. No one knows where he went. He took the girl and then he—" The man stopped. His face was pale. "He let her go."
Jay stared at him. "What?"
The man's voice was shaking. "He was supposed to bring her here. He was supposed to hand her over. But he didn't. He brought her here and then he left. He left her here. He didn't—"
"Where is he now?"
"I don't know. No one knows. He's gone. He disappeared. He—"
The man stopped. His eyes were on the door. His face went white.
Jay turned.
Yuri was standing in the doorway. His hands were empty. His face was pale. His eyes were on Ella. On Aries holding her hand. On the woman he had taken. On the woman he had let go.
"Yuri," Jay said.
He didn't look at her. He was looking at Aries. At the way they were holding Ella's hand. At the way their face was wet. At the way they were whispering her name.
"I didn't hurt her," Yuri said. His voice was low. "I would never hurt her."
Percy was there. His gun was drawn. His face was hard. "You took her. You drugged her. You—"
"I saved her." Yuri's voice was steady. "Keizer wanted her dead. He wanted to break Keifer. He wanted to break all of you. I was supposed to bring her here. I was supposed to hand her over. But I didn't."
He walked toward Ella. His steps were slow. His hands were empty.
"I took her. I brought her here. I kept her safe. And then I left her here. Where you would find her. Where she would be safe."
He stopped in front of Aries. His face was pale. His eyes were red.
"I love her," he said. "I've always loved her. And I would never hurt her. Never."
Aries looked up. Their face was wet. Their eyes were sharp. "You took her. You made us think she was gone. You made us think—"
"I saved her." Yuri's voice cracked. "I saved her because she asked me to. She asked me to choose. She asked me to be better. And I did. I chose her."
Aries stared at him for a long moment. Then they looked at Ella. At her pale face. At her closed eyes. At her hand in theirs.
"She asked you to choose," Aries said.
Yuri nodded. "She asked me to be better. And I'm trying. I'm trying to be the man she deserves."
Aries looked at him. Their face was calm. Their eyes were not. "She loves you."
Yuri's face went white. "What?"
Aries squeezed Ella's hand. "She told me. Before all of this. She told me she loved you. She told me she was going to tell you. She told me—" Their voice cracked. They stopped.
Yuri dropped beside Ella. His hand was on her face. His voice was low. "Ella. Ella, I'm here. I'm here. Please wake up. Please."
---
Aries put their hand on Yuri's shoulder. "She's going to wake up. She's strong. She's always been strong."
Yuri looked at them. His face was wet. "She asked me to choose. And I chose her. I chose all of you. I'm not going back. I'm never going back."
Percy lowered his gun. His face was white. "Yuri."
Yuri looked at him. "I've been working for Keizer for years. Since I was a child. He took me in. He trained me. He made me what I am. I was supposed to break Keifer. I was supposed to destroy everything he loved."
He looked at Ella. At her face. At her closed eyes.
"But she changed me. She made me want to be different. She made me want to be better. She made me—" His voice cracked. He stopped.
Percy knelt beside him. His hand was on Yuri's shoulder. "You saved her."
Yuri looked at him. His face was wet. "I love her."
Percy pulled him close. His arms were around him. "I know."
---
The ambulance came at dawn.
Ella was on a stretcher. Her face was pale. Her eyes were closed. Ci N was beside her, his hands steady, his voice low. Felix was with him. Aries was beside her, their hand in hers, their face close to her ear.
"I'm here, Ella. I'm here. You're going to be okay."
Care was on another stretcher, Cole beside her, his hand in hers. His voice was low. "I love you. I love you. Please wake up."
Yuri stood at the door. His hands were empty. His face was pale. He was watching Ella. Watching Aries hold her hand.
Jay walked to him. She stood beside him.
"You saved her," Jay said.
He didn't look at her. "I almost lost her."
She looked at him. "You chose her. You chose us."
He looked at her. His face was pale. His eyes were red. "I chose her."
She took his hand. "Then come with us. Help us end this. Help us find Keizer. Help us stop him."
He looked at her for a long moment. Then he nodded. "I'll help you. I'll help you end this."
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END OF CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR