Coward

Coward
Tatiana

The hatred in Oleg’s gaze cuts through me, his nostrils flaring as he rubs his hands over his face, and it’s enough to make my stomach lurch. But I don’t regret a single thing I said to him. I’d do it all again if I knew I’d hit a nerve. He can look all untouchable and arrogant if he wants, but even monsters have a weakness. Oleg’s ego is his.

He’s always thought he was superior to everyone else. That he got where he is today because of his skills and talent. But the truth is that he is where he is because he’s evil. He never cared about anyone or anything, as long as he could achieve his goals. If he had to step over people, kill them to get them out of his way, he wouldn’t even hesitate.

He deserves what’s coming to him.

It’s a shame I won’t be here to witness it, but Angelo will get revenge for Luca, and that’s  enough for me.

“You stupid bitch,” Oleg hisses through gritted teeth, his jaw tense as he stares down at me.

I brace myself for another hit, or maybe even a shot, but it never comes.

The next thing I know, the door to the office bursts open, and shots fly everywhere around me. I drop to the floor, crawling to hide behind the couch, protecting my head with my arms. 

I don’t see where Oleg went, but right now, I’m more concerned about protecting myself. I scramble to find my gun, but then it hits me. It's empty and I didn’t have the chance to reload. I need to crawl back over the couch to do so, but as I peak over, I’m astonished by the scene unfolding in front of my eyes.

Angelo is here, with Dice, Sal, and Kian, but there are other Romina men as well. I don’t even know when they arrived or how they are all still standing. Oleg is nowhere in sight. I can’t tell if he’s hidden behind a piece of furniture or if he managed to flee the room without anyone noticing.

I frown as I realize they are all engaged in a physical fight now, punches and kicks being thrown instead of bullets. Why aren’t they shooting each other?

Angelo is dodging hits from three different men who have him surrounded, and Dice and Kian are occupied with another group of Rominas. They’re outnumbered, but so far, they’re holding their own surprisingly well. 

I’m about to dive for my gun when I notice someone escaping through the door, unnoticed.

My heart jumps to my throat and my skin crawls as I realize it is Oleg, being the fucking coward that he is and running away from a fight.

Son of a bitch.

Determination and rage boil inside me, and my hand reaches for the knife on my thigh. 

No one seems to realize I’m still here, so I have a chance to get out of the room and go after Oleg without anyone stopping me.

Someone must have kicked my gun away, and I don’t have time to search for it.

Keeping my head low and hiding behind the furniture, I head for the exit. A gunshot echoes near me, and my ears ring, but I don’t turn back to see what happened and if someone was hit. 

I only pray it’s not Angelo as I cross the doorway and get to the hallway. 

There’s only one way out from here, so I head toward the stairs, constantly scanning my surroundings so I’m not blindsided by the enemy lurking around.

As I get to the top of the stairs, my stomach sinks to my feet as my eyes fall downstairs, on the foyer floor, covered with the corpses of men.

A movement to my left piques my attention, and I turn just in time to see Oleg escaping into the garden. I rush forward, doing my best not to stumble over the bodies lying on the marble floor, and chase after him.

I force air into my lungs, inhaling sharply as I turn my gaze away from the faces of those already dead. I know none of them is Angelo, but it’s still sad to see so many people losing their lives over…what? Greed? Money? Power?

Besides, my emotions are threatening to overwhelm me. Not only is Oleg escaping, but I also have no idea what happened to Angelo after I left the office. All I can do now is pray that he’s safe—at least as safe as anyone can be under these circumstances.

The night air hits my face as soon as I step out of the mansion through the side door. Fury consumes me as I spot Oleg heading for a car parked a few meters ahead. There’s no fucking way he’s getting away! Not if I can do anything about it.

I wish I had my gun with me now so I could at least try and shoot him from this distance.

“Oleg, you fucking coward!” I yell, my throat burning. I keep running, forcing my body to obey. He doesn’t look back, and I push harder, my legs screaming in protest beneath me.

I’m so close…

Just a couple more steps, and I throw myself at him as he reaches for the car door, slamming us both into the side of the vehicle. He stumbles, and before he can recover, I stick the small blade into his side.

He grunts in pain, lashing out with his elbow and catching me hard in the ribs. The impact is enough to steal the air from my lungs, and I stumble backward, bending down slightly and gasping for air.

Oleg hisses as he stares at me while pulling the knife from his torso. It doesn’t seem to have done much damage, but it gives me some satisfaction to know I have hurt him, even if just a little.

He tosses the bloodied knife to the ground and stares back at me, his eyes burning with fury.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” he spits, pulling a gun from behind his back and pointing at me.

Damn.

Now I’m done. 

The gaze he throws at me is deadly. There’s no way he’s letting me off the hook this time.

I must look terrified because a wide grin shows up on his face as he stares at me, evolving to a loud laugh that makes bile rise up to my throat.

I’m paralyzed, my feet stuck to the ground as if I’m glued to it.

“Scared?” he taunts, raising his brows at me in defiance. “You should’ve stayed by my side.” He takes a step forward, pressing the cold barrel of the gun against my forehead. My legs and hands are trembling aggressively, but I clench my teeth, unwilling to prove him right and show how scared I am.

“Any last words, sweetie, before I send you to meet your parents?” he adds, putting pressure on the gun to my head.

Panic climbs up my body, but I push it away, forcing a smile to curl up my lips as I stare back at his evil face.

“Yeah. Burn in hell,” I say in a low but firm voice.

Oleg smirks, cocking his gun. His breathing is heavy, but his gaze is calm.

I close my eyes, waiting for him to shoot me dead. Angelo’s face is the only thing I see as realization washes over me.

I’m about to die, and all I wish is that I could see his face one last time. It’s a bittersweet feeling knowing I’ll meet my family soon, but lose him in the process.

Having met him made me think it was possible for me to have a happy life. For the first time in my life, I could see a future where I could actually be happy with someone.

But God has a different plan for me.

It was good while it lasted, but now it’s time for us to part ways.

My only regret is that I never told him I loved him.

And now this amazing feeling will be taken to the grave with me. 

Bang!