I woke in a strange room.

When I opened my eyes and finally looked around, I realized it was the room Zell and I had used when we fake-fucked. God, I hated that room. No telling how many sick fucks used it to get their rocks off.

I groaned as I sat up. My chest was killing me, and I felt lightheaded. I remembered getting shot, the burn as though someone had stuck a cigarette into my skin, but I didn't remember going to sleep or anything after Zell shouted that Saffron had shot me.

That fucking bitch.

My ears perked up when I heard yelling coming from down the hall. Standing was easier than sitting up, and I swayed slightly as I caught my balance and then exited the room to see what all the commotion was about. I feared it had something to do with Zell, but when I got out into the hall, I heard Ricardo telling them about a service elevator, and then my mother said she was trying to poison my father. My own mother.

Zell and my mother rushed to me, Zell reminding me that I had been shot because of how hard she squeezed me, and then my mother announcing that she had come out of hiding so she could kill my father.

"Yeah, do you really think antifreeze is going to work?" I questioned.

"It will work if he drinks it," Mom replied.

"We need to do something else."

"And what is that?"

I thought for a moment, bringing Zell against my side. "Well, seeing as this place is a disaster and—is she dead?" I pointed at Saffron.

All eyes turned to Zell, so I looked at her too. "I shot her after she shot you."

"You did?"

She shrugged. "You did it for me."

I wrapped her in my arms, not caring about the pain that radiated through my entire body when I did it. "Thank you, princess. That means a lot."

"So, Frankie, what do you suggest we do?" Jackie asked.

"Oh, right." I let go of Zell, but kept her against my side—she was keeping me upright. "So, seeing as this place is a disaster, why don't you"—I pointed at Ricardo—"call my father and tell him most of the truth."

"Most of the truth?" he questioned.

"That Zell and I showed up, and Saffron shot me, but it was you who shot her."

"You think he'll come rushing over?" Ricardo asked.

I lifted my free shoulder. "Tell him you don't know what to do with her body, and I'm bleeding out. I'm sure he'll want to be the one to finish me off for betraying him last night."

"And then what do we do?" Mom asked. "I mean when he arrives."

"Well, I think once he gets here, he'll realize his time is over. The bitch is dead, his office is hopefully burned to a crisp at the warehouse, and the woman he's been keeping captive at a cabin is here."

"And what if he pulls his piece?" Ricardo questioned.

"Then you and I need to be faster."

"Then maybe I should be the only one in the room," Jackie suggested. "It would throw him off."

"Yes." I snapped my fingers, liking that idea. "Then I'll come in and finish him off. He doesn't know where I was shot."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Mom asked.

I lifted my free shoulder again. "I have to. It's the only way."

Ricardo called my father as planned. "He's on his way."

"Perfect." I let go of Zell. "Mom, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Of course," she replied.

We walked into the room I had woken up in, and I closed the door. "We should hurry since we don't know where he is."

"Okay? What do you want to talk about?"

"Where the hell have you been?" I questioned.

She stared off as though she was collecting her thoughts. "Long story short, I was tired of being in the background, and I thought I saw you following in his footsteps. I couldn't watch you—"

"But I wasn't," I argued.

She cupped my cheek. "I know that now, and I regret the way I left. Maybe things would have turned out differently if I'd stayed."

"Where did you go?"

"Oddly enough, I just went to a hotel around the block from our apartment."

"Really?" I balked.

"I had to detox."

"Detox? Detox from what?"

"Pain killers."

I had no clue. I knew she drank, but I didn't realize that she was addicted to pills. "Seriously?"

"Remember when I hurt my back a few years ago?"

"Yeah. When Dad pushed you?"

"Yes, I've been taking them ever since then."

"And now?"

"As I said, I detoxed. My head is clear now."

"And you're okay with us killing your husband?" I never thought I would ask my mother that question. Killing was in my blood, but I never thought it was in hers.

"For what he has done over the years, I have to be. He can't be stopped otherwise."

"I know." We didn't know which cops were on his payroll, and in the end, him not breathing would be the best for everyone.

"Are you really okay with killing your father?"

I nodded slowly and sighed. "For what he's done over the years," I echoed her, "and what he did to Zell and Jackie, I have to be."

"Well then, we better get back out there and get a solid plan before he arrives."

"Right." I started to walk away, but she stopped me and brought me into her arms. I didn't know when she last embraced me, but I welcomed it even though it hurt.

"You know I love you, right?"

I smiled tightly. I had always questioned it. "And I love you."

We walked out of the room and joined everyone in the sitting room. I went straight for Zell and wrapped my arm around her shoulders. For someone who had been through so much in twenty-four hours, she was really holding it together or at least she was too busy to process everything. I needed to be there when she did fall apart. I wanted her to know that even after everything, we would overcome it all. We were in it together. I had killed for her, and she had killed for me.

Ricardo walked up to me and handed me the gun that my father had given me the night before. It was ironic that he was going to die by it. "I think we should get the girls out of here," Ricardo suggested.

"Okay," I agreed. There wasn't a reason for them to be here. They didn't need to be involved in the takedown. They needed to be free.

"I'm going to give Erin my address and have her take them to my place once your father gets here. I'll give them the code to the service elevator so they can slip out, and once everything is finished with your father, we can get them help or whatever they need."

"Sounds good." I stuck out my hand. "And thank you for being on our side."

Ricardo looked at one of the girls—I didn't know her name—and then back to me. "Wasn't just for you."

"Ah. Good deal." I clapped him on the back. "Hurry and get them going. I might need you to buzz my father up if he doesn't have his elevator key on him."

"Okay." Ricardo left and gathered the girls.

"Mom," I called out. "Why don't you take Zell—"

"We're not leaving you. And I don't think you should be in the room when he arrives."

"Right," I agreed. "Jackie, that will be you and Ricardo. Maybe tell him I'm in Zell's room or something. He won't know the difference."

"Okay, let's get ready," Jackie said.