part0004

If he didn’t give a damn about me, he would’ve never tried to save me. He would’ve just picked up that gun and shot his father.

Mr. Arretti had been right there, and yet, Cole had let him escape, and it was all because he’d wanted to save me.

Sure, maybe he’d been returning the favor, since the distraction I’d provided had been enough for him to wrestle the gun out of his father’s grasp, but I was sure it was more than just gratitude.

We’d ended up in some kind of safe house, which I hoped Cole’s father knew nothing about. As people rushed around the room, I was still trying to process everything that had happened.

From what I could catch, Mr. Arretti’s men had grabbed him and helped him get away once Cole’s attention was on me, and then, when Cole and I had escaped too, everyone had pulled back.

Cole’s guys had managed to get their wounded here and were now trying to help them. I had no idea what was going to happen next, but I hoped Cole had a plan.

“Hey,” he said softly when he finally returned to me.

This damn house was more like a bunker, and we were in the basement, with only a dim light above us. But despite low visibility, I could still see the tiredness around Cole’s eyes.

“Are you hungry? Do you need anything?” he asked. “Sorry I couldn’t get to you earlier, but—”

I took a step forward and closed the distance between us, pressing my lips against his.

His mouth responded to mine and he deepened our kiss, but then he let out a sigh, pulling away from me.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“You should go,” he said. “It’s not safe for you to stay in town. You and your parents should just leave and not look back.”

“But you’re here. I’m not leaving you.” My eyes bored into his. “We’re in this together.”

“Ava, I’m so sorry you got dragged into this mess. I’ve never wanted for things to go like this.”

“Is this why you tried to push me away? Why you wanted me to believe you didn’t love me? Did you get me kicked out of school?” I’d been expelled, and I still wasn’t sure why, except I knew that someone was behind it.

His eyes widened. “Kicked you out of school?” He shook his head. “I don’t know anything about that.”

“Yeah. The principal claims she got some evidence that could get me in serious trouble if she handed it over to the cops, but I think she’s lying or bluffing. It’s some gang-related stuff, I think. But I’m sure someone bribed her or maybe even threatened her into doing it.” I shrugged.

“I don’t know. It was probably my father.” Cole let out a groan. “’And I don’t want you to be in danger because of me. My father and I are at war. It’s only a matter of time before we face each other again. I don’t want you to get caught in the middle of it again. You almost died today. If anything had happened to you, I would’ve never forgiven myself.”

“If I hadn’t shown up, maybe you would be dead right now. Why didn’t you tell me what you were planning to do? Maybe I could’ve helped you.” Or well, talked him out of confronting his father out in the open like that.

Although, I doubted it would’ve worked.

Cole had made up his mind and he’d had a plan.

“I know, and it would’ve been my fault. I trusted the wrong people. I thought that I could do something.” He ran his hand over his forehead. “I don’t know what’s going to happen next. I need to protect my guys, and I need a new plan. Some of my father’s men are wounded and some died, but we suffered losses too, and now we don’t even have the element of surprise. My father will retaliate with everything he has, and I don’t know if we can fight him right now. If you stay here, your life will be in danger. I can’t afford to be distracted.”

“I don’t want to be a distraction. I want to help you.” I didn’t want to run.

Maybe it was crazy, but how could I just leave Cole here in the middle of a war? What if something happened to him and I didn’t even know about it?

How could I go on with my life without knowing whether he was alive or dead? It would drive me insane.

And yeah, maybe there wasn’t much I could do since I didn’t even know how to shoot, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t take care of something else.

“Ava, please. I really don’t think that’s a good idea,” he said, getting hold of my hands and squeezing my fingers. “I’d want nothing more than to be with you, but I can’t. I can’t put your life at risk like that. It wouldn’t be fair to you, and I can’t focus on anything else except on defeating my father. Maybe once this is all over, I can come find you and then we can see what happens next.”

“No. I don’t want to go anywhere. Hell, my dad is still working for your father. I don’t think we can all just leave. What if your father sends assassins after me anyway? Won’t I be safer by your side? We can protect each other, and I promise I won’t get in your way.”

Cole closed his eyes for a moment, a pained expression crossing his face. “A car will be ready for you soon. One of my guys will take you home and make sure that you’re safe. You should pack your bags and get as far away as possible from here. If you’re out my father’s sight, he’ll forget about you, and he can’t hurt you if he doesn’t know where you are. I’m going to be his priority now. I don’t want him to use you to get to me. I can’t let that happen.”

“Dammit, Cole. I told you, I’m not going anywhere.”

“It’s possible you’re still in shock. After what happened today, it’s not a surprise,” he said. “Please think about everything that I said. You can’t stay here. I know you’re a fighter and you don’t want to give up, but this isn’t about giving up. This is just about doing what’s best for you. It’s not your fight. Okay?”

I pressed my lips into a tight line.

Maybe Cole was right. Maybe it was better if I wasn’t here, especially since I hadn’t been trained to fight like Cole and everyone else in this place.

But could I really leave?

Should I do it?

I had no idea.