Chapter 6
I left the twins huddled together on the bed, both crying, and ran to the living room.
The window was shattered.
Glass covered the floor.
And standing in the middle of my living room was Vanessa.
She looked different.
Her hair was shorter. Blonder. Her clothes were expensive but tight. Too much makeup.
But her eyes were the same.
Cold. Cruel. Empty.
Luca stood between her and the hallway, his body tense, ready to attack.
“You had one deal, Vanessa,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “One simple rule. Stay away.”
Vanessa laughed.
It was a high, brittle sound that made my skin crawl.
“One rule? You gave me two million dollars and a one-way ticket to Florida and thought that would make me disappear? You thought I’d let my sister live happily ever after with everything that should have been mine?”
“None of this was ever yours,” I said, stepping into the room.
Her eyes snapped to me.
“There she is. Perfect little Sarah. With her perfect little family. Did you tell them, Sarah? Did you tell the twins what a whore their mother is? How she threw herself at you the first chance she got?”
“Get out,” Luca said. He took a step toward her.
Vanessa didn’t flinch.
She reached into her purse and pulled out a gun.
A small silver revolver.
My blood turned to ice.
“Nobody moves,” she said, her hand steady. “Nobody says a word. Not until I’m finished.”
“Vanessa,” Luca said, his voice now calm, controlled. “Put the gun down. Whatever you want, we can talk about it. You don’t have to do this.”
“Talk?” She laughed again. “Oh, we’re way past talking, Luca. You had me followed. You had my bank accounts frozen. You took back the house. The money. Everything. I have nothing now. Nothing because of you and your perfect little wife.”
“I gave you everything you asked for! You broke the agreement first!”
“Because it wasn’t enough!” She screamed the words, the gun wavering slightly. “It was never enough! I wanted her life! I wanted her husband! I wanted to be the one everyone loved! And I almost had it! If she’d just stayed gone like she was supposed to!”
She pointed the gun at me.
My heart stopped.
“Vanessa…” I said, holding my hands up. “Think about this. The twins are in the next room. They’re just babies. They don’t deserve to see this.”
“The twins.” Her lip curled. “Those little brats. They should have been mine. If I’d gotten pregnant that night instead of you—”
“That night never happened!” Luca shouted. “You drugged me! I never touched you! I never wanted you! I have never loved anyone but Sarah! Get that through your sick head!”
The words hit her like a physical blow.
Her face twisted with rage.
“Liar!”
“It’s true!” He took a step forward. “I never wanted you. Not then. Not now. Not ever. You’re nothing to me, Vanessa. Less than nothing. You’re a sad, pathetic little girl who hates her sister because she’s everything you’ll never be.”
That was the wrong thing to say.
Vanessa’s finger tightened on the trigger.
“Then if I can’t have you…” She aimed the gun directly at my chest. “…neither can she.”
Time slowed down.
I saw her finger pull back.
I saw Luca lunge.
I heard the twins scream again from the bedroom.
BANG.
The sound was deafening.
I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain.
But it never came.
Instead, I heard a grunt.
And a thud.
I opened my eyes.
Luca was on top of Vanessa, wrestling the gun away from her.
He’d been shot.
Blood was seeping through his left shoulder.
But he didn’t stop.
He twisted her arm behind her back until she screamed, then wrenched the gun from her hand and threw it across the room.
Sirens wailed outside.
The security team.
They burst through the front door seconds later, followed by police officers with their own guns drawn.
“Get her out of here,” Luca gasped, pressing his hand to his shoulder. “And make sure she never sees the light of day again.”
Two officers pulled Vanessa to her feet.
She was screaming, kicking, spitting.
“You’ll regret this, Sarah! You’ll both regret it! I’ll get out! I’ll find you! I’ll kill your babies while they sleep—”
An officer put a gag in her mouth and dragged her away.
And then it was just me and Luca.
And the blood.
So much blood.
“Luca!” I ran to him, catching him as his knees buckled.
He was pale. Sweating.
“‘M okay,” he mumbled. “Just a graze. Probably.”
“That is not a graze!” I pressed my hands hard against the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. “The ambulance is coming. Just hold on. Please, Luca, hold on.”
“Sarah…” He reached up, touching my face with his good hand. “The twins… are they…?”
“They’re fine. Scared, but fine. Just stay with me. Please. Don’t you dare leave me again.”
“Never,” he whispered. “Told you… not going anywhere.”
His eyes rolled back.
“Luca! Luca!”
The paramedics burst through the door.
They pulled me away from him, working quickly, cutting off his shirt, inserting IVs, shouting medical terms I didn’t understand.
I stood in the corner, covered in his blood, shaking so hard my teeth chattered.
Mrs. Pike appeared beside me, wrapping a blanket around my shoulders.
She’d heard the commotion and come up.
She didn’t say anything.
She just held me while I watched them load Luca onto a stretcher and carry him out.
“Mama?”
I turned.
Ash stood in the hallway, holding Lena’s hand.
Both of them were still crying.
Both of them had seen everything.
“Daddy’s hurt,” Ash said, his voice small.
I went to them, kneeling down, careful not to get blood on them.
“Daddy’s going to be okay,” I said, even though I didn’t know if it was true. “The doctors are going to fix him. He’s very strong, your daddy.”
“Is the bad lady gone?” Lena whispered.
“The bad lady is gone forever, baby. She can never hurt us again.”
I held them tight.
Outside, the ambulance siren faded into the distance.
Taking Luca with it.
Taking my heart.
I didn’t know if he’d survive.
I didn’t know if I’d ever get to tell him that I’d forgiven him.
That I loved him.
That I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him.
But I knew one thing.
Vanessa was gone.
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The nightmare was finally over.
Now I just had to survive the aftermath.
