Double Jinx (Wattys2017)

Chapter 36

I've felt a lot of pain during my years on this planet. My hand has been broken twice, my parents died, my heart stopped, I've passed out more times than I can count. The list could go on and on.

But in this moment, I was introduced to a new kind of pain, one deeply rooted in every nerve and every cell I contained. Time seemed to slow and Ace's body fell in frozen frames, as though it were an image flashing before my eyes second by second. But the moment his body hit the ground and a cloud of dust rose around him, everything sharpened to razor focus.

And time raced to catch up.

I slammed on the brakes, throwing the truck into park without much concern for whether it actually stopped moving or not. I shoved the door open and took off towards the house. It was still hot, I was still sweating, but nothing could have stopped me at that point. My eyes only saw one thing, the man I loved laying on the ground. Was he moving? Was he breathing? Was Holly crying louder? Why would she be crying louder unless ...

Of everything that has happened to me, all the terror and agony, this instance was the worse. Worse than all the pain, worse than all the lies, worse than the heartache. This moment far exceeded all others in a way unexplainable by words. This stone sitting heavily in my gut, the sporadic beating of my heart, they were both signs of a type of terror one only experiences once or twice in a lifetime. I felt it earlier while watching Bobby die, now I felt it again. But the thought of Ace's death, though he was no more important than Bobby, felt much more important.

My last words to him would have been an argument, my last view would have been restricted by bad news. I shouldn't have let things end like that, I should have talked to Ace before he left for Bobby's. It wouldn't have changed much, it probably wouldn't have changed anything. But whether it would or wouldn't mattered very little in this circumstance.

It's not fair, the way life takes advantage of the unfortunate. Ace has paid his dues by ten fold, as have I. We didn't deserve this anymore.

My legs carried me farther, faster. I couldn't shake the fear, I couldn't stop the blood rushing in my ears as I stepped onto the official property Ace's father once possessed. I haven't been here in so long but in this yard, despite the past ten years, nothing has changed. Still my hand was broken, still Ace lay in the dirt by the hand of an evil this would shouldn't know.

Vic and Roman finally noticed me, both their faces revealing shock at my presence. Holly quieted at my approach, her tear filled eyes meeting mine as I ran past her and Creston. He didn't look good. His forehead was cut, and his eye was beginning to swell. As if he had been hit with something extremely heavy. Holly clutched his shirt in her hands, she looked disheveled to say the least but otherwise appeared unharmed.

I wish I could say the same for Ace.

My knees gave out the moment I reached his body. But with my collapse came his movement. He curled inwards, his face twisting in agony. I searched his body in a dire haze, looking for any injury which may be life threatening. It took only seconds to see the bullet hole in the upper corner of Ace's chest. The wound was close to his shoulder, but also too close to his heart. I wasn't a doctor, I didn't know how lethal this injury was, but by the amount of blood seeping from the hole, I knew it wasn't good.

Blood, so much blood. Just like Elena promised. If she was right about this, did that mean she was right about everything else as well?

"Ace?" I squeaked out, grabbing onto his good shoulder and careful not to jostle his injured one.

His eyes opened at the sound of my voice, those stormy gems swirling in excruciating pain. His eyebrows furrowed together as an exasperated gasp passed through his lips, "What are you doing here?"