The Escort

30 - Broken - Pt. 2

The dry thump of a lifeless body hitting the floor echoed in La Maison.

Michael's heart was beating hardly against his chest and the ringing that the loud gunshot produced in his ears was all he was able to process as he continued to aim the weapon to the spot where he had fired seconds ago.

His wide eyes moved slightly to his right and he choked at the sight of Laura, slumped on the floor. A small puddle of blood spreading slowly under her.

Someone's cough caught Michael's attention making him withhold the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes as he noticed Juliette trying to crawl out of the room. He walked over to her and stomped on her back, pushing her down against the ground to hold her in place.

With one foot still pressing against her spine, he kneeled beside her and harshly pulled her head up by her hair making her cry in both fear and pain, since the wound on her neck, although superficial, was bleeding.

He brought his mouth next to her ear and, in a voice that perfectly reflected all the hatred he carried in his heart, he whispered. "U better save those tears, bitch, for what I'm gon do to u. U fuckin' over, u hear me?"

"Please let me go, please." The woman cried as he stood up, his eyes fixated on her pathetic self. "Stay there." He lowly demanded, but Le Bon resumed her crawling towards the door, so Michael raised his right hand, his eyes never leaving her face, and shot her right on the back of her knee, making her yell out loud in tremendous pain.

"I said stay the fuck there." He bluntly reiterated.

As Juliette collapsed onto the floor and cried, Jackson locked the door she was trying to reach before hastily making his way to Laura. He tucked his gun in his pants' waistband and sat on the floor to hold her as he nervously brushed her hair away from her face. "Baby... Baby please..." He shakily whispered through his tears as he placed two fingers on her neck to check if she still had a pulse.

*** Earlier that day ***

Laura hung up on Jensen, determined to finally put an end to Juliette's bullshit. She knew she was involved in Jermaine's death, she had to be.

After putting her phone in the back pocket of her jeans, she rummaged through the kitchen, looking for a knife. Once she found the sharpest one, she hid it in her belt and rushed out of the house.

She arrived at La Maison shortly after and stormed inside using her old key.

Hannah, Helena, Gia, and Star were lounging around the living room, and she immediately brought her index finger to her mouth, indicating them to remain silent before hushedly asking.

"Girls, I need y'all to leave for a couple of minutes. You know things went south with Juliette and I need to talk to her, alone."

Helena hurried to her and cupped her face "Laura we thought something horrible had happened to you! Little girl, what are you doing? Let us help you."

The younger girl shook her head and with a loving but not entirely honest smile, she asked them to leave again, to which they reluctantly complied.

Once the house was cleared, Laura resolutely made her way through the living room but was stopped in her tracks by the woman she was looking for.

"You little bitch, about time you decided to show your pathetic face." Juliette snarled and Laura took a step back.

"What the fuck have you done, Julie. What the fuck have you done to Jermaine..."