Blood and Water

Blood and Water
Maya's POV

Isabella laughed when I pointed the gun at her.
"Really, Maya? You're going to shoot me?"
My finger was on the trigger, but something held me back.
"Why not?" I said.
"Because you're not a killer."
"I've killed before."
"In self-defense. That's different."
"Is it?"
"Very different."
Isabella took a step closer to me. The gun was inches from her chest now.
"Pull the trigger," she said.
I stared at her.
"Go ahead. Prove you're as dangerous as you think you are."
My hand started shaking.
"Maya," Vincent said quietly. "Put the gun down."
"No."
"You don't want to do this."
"Yes, I do."
But I didn't. Not really.
Isabella was right. I could kill to protect people I cared about. But I couldn't kill just because I was angry.
"I thought so," Isabella said with a smile.
That's when everything went wrong.
While I was focused on Isabella, her three men moved fast.
One of them hit me in the back of the head with his gun.
I went down hard, and my weapon skittered across the floor.
"Maya!" Marcus shouted.
But before he could help me, the other two men had their guns pointed at him.
"Nobody move," one of them said.
I tried to get up, but my head was spinning from the hit.
"Stay down," the man who hit me said.
I stayed down.
Isabella walked over and picked up my gun.
"Much better," she said.
"Let her go," Dante said.
"I don't think so."
"This is between us. Leave Maya out of it."
"Maya is the whole point of this."
"What do you mean?"
Isabella looked around the room at all of us.
"Did you really think this was about you four? Did you think you were important enough for all this trouble?"
"Then what's it about?" Adrian asked.
"It's about her," Isabella said, pointing at me. "It's always been about her."
I managed to sit up, even though my head hurt.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you're worth more than all of them put together."
"Why?"
"Because you're Ivan Volkov's granddaughter. Because you're going to inherit everything when he dies."
"I don't want to inherit anything."
"That doesn't matter. The will is already written."
Vincent stepped forward.
"Isabella, we had a deal."
"We did. And I'm keeping my part."
"Then let Maya go."
"I am letting her go. I'm taking her home."
"This isn't her home."
"It will be."
Isabella nodded to her men.
Two of them grabbed my arms and pulled me to my feet.
"Let me go!" I struggled against them, but they were too strong.
"Maya!" Luca started toward me, but the third gunman pointed his weapon at Luca's head.
"Don't," the man said.
Luca stopped.
"Good," Isabella said. "Now we can leave."
"You're not taking her anywhere," Marcus said.
"Actually, I am."
"Over my dead body."
Isabella smiled.
"That can be arranged."
She turned to Vincent.
"Kill them."
Vincent went pale.
"What?"
"You heard me. Kill all four of them."
"Isabella, that wasn't part of the deal."
"The deal changed."
"I can't kill them."
"Then your men can."
"Isabella—"
"Vincent, these four men kidnapped your daughter. They turned her into a killer. They corrupted her."
"That's not—"
"They deserve to die."
Vincent looked at me, then at the four men who had become my world.
"I won't do it."
"Fine," Isabella said. "Then I'll do it myself."
She raised my gun and pointed it at Dante.
"No!" I screamed.
Isabella's finger moved to the trigger.
That's when the FBI finally broke through.
The office door exploded inward.
Black-suited agents poured into the room.
"FBI! Everyone on the ground!"
Gunfire erupted from everywhere at once.
Isabella's men started shooting at the agents.
The agents shot back.
Vincent dove behind a desk.
The four heirs scattered for cover.
And I was still caught between Isabella's men, who were trying to drag me toward the window.
"Let me go!" I fought against their grip.
One of them backhanded me across the face.
"Stop fighting!"
Blood filled my mouth, but I kept struggling.
Through the chaos and gunfire, I saw Adrian moving like a ghost.
He appeared behind one of Isabella's men and snapped his neck.
The man dropped, and his gun clattered to the floor.
I broke free from the other man and dove for the weapon.
But Isabella was faster.
She kicked the gun away before I could reach it.
"Nice try," she said.
More gunfire. More shouting.
An FBI agent went down, blood spreading across his chest.
One of Isabella's men screamed and fell.
The air was thick with smoke from all the shooting.
"Maya!" Marcus called out. "This way!"
I tried to run to him, but Isabella grabbed my arm.
"You're coming with me."
"No, I'm not!"
"Yes, you are!"
She started dragging me toward the broken window.
There was a rope hanging down from the roof.
An escape route.
"Help me!" I screamed to anyone who could hear.
But everyone was too busy fighting.
Isabella had almost gotten me to the window when Vincent appeared.
"Let her go, Isabella."
"Vincent, get out of my way."
"I said let her go."
Vincent had a gun in his hand now. One of the fallen FBI agents' weapons.
"You're going to shoot me?" Isabella asked.
"If I have to."
"For her?"
"She's my daughter."
"She's not your daughter. She's Ivan's granddaughter. That's all she's ever been to any of us."
"That's not true."
"Isn't it? When did you ever treat her like a daughter? When did you ever put her first?"
Vincent's hand shook as he held the gun.
"I'm putting her first now."
"Too little, too late."
Isabella pulled out her own gun and pointed it at Vincent.
"Drop your weapon."
"No."
"Drop it, or I kill her right now."
Isabella pressed her gun against my head.
I felt the cold metal against my skin.
"Vincent," I said quietly.
"What, sweetheart?"
"Thank you for trying to protect me."
"I'm not done protecting you yet."
"Yes, you are."
I slammed my elbow back into Isabella's ribs as hard as I could.
She gasped and loosened her grip.
I broke free and rolled away.
Vincent and Isabella both fired at the same time.
Vincent's shot hit Isabella in the shoulder.
Isabella's shot hit Vincent in the chest.
Vincent fell backward, blood pouring from his wound.
"Dad!" I screamed.
I crawled over to where he had fallen.
His eyes were wide, staring at the ceiling.
"Vincent? Vincent, look at me!"
He turned his head slowly.
"Maya?"
"I'm here."
"I'm sorry. For everything."
"Don't talk. Save your strength."
"No time for that."
Blood was coming out of his mouth now.
"Maya, listen to me."
"What?"
"Your real mother... she's not dead."
"What?"
"Agent Chen... she's not your aunt. She's your mother. Your real mother."
The words hit me like bullets.
"That's impossible."
"She's been protecting you... this whole time... from Ivan."
"Vincent—"
"She loves you, Maya. Remember that."
His eyes closed.
"Vincent!"
But he was gone.
I sat there holding my fake father's body while gunfire raged around me.
Isabella was on the ground too, bleeding from her shoulder but still alive.
The FBI agents were winning the fight.
The four heirs were still alive, still fighting.
And I was in the middle of it all, covered in Vincent's blood.
"Maya!" Dante called out. "We need to go!"
"I can't leave him!"
"He's dead, Maya! We have to move!"
I looked down at Vincent one more time.
Then I stood up and ran toward the four men who had become my family.
But we were too late.
More FBI agents poured through the door.
"Nobody move!" they shouted.
We were surrounded.
Trapped.
Finished.
That's when Agent Chen walked into the room.
My fake mother.
My real mother?
She looked around at all the blood and bodies.
Her eyes found mine.
"Hello, Maya," she said quietly.
"Mom?"
"We need to talk."
Before I could answer, she pulled out her gun and pointed it at the four heirs.
"You four are under arrest."
"On what charges?" Dante asked.
"Murder, kidnapping, drug trafficking, and about fifty other crimes."
"And Maya?" Adrian asked.
Agent Chen looked at me.
"Maya is coming with me."
"Where?"
"Home."
"This is my home now," I said.
"No, it's not."
"Yes, it is."
Agent Chen's face was sad.
"Maya, these men are criminals. They've hurt people. Killed people."
"So have I."
"That's different."
"Is it?"
"You were protecting yourself. They chose this life."
"I chose it too."
"No, you were forced into it."
"Was I?"
Agent Chen stared at me for a long moment.
"What have they done to you?"
"They showed me who I really am."
"This isn't who you are."
"Yes, it is."
Agent Chen raised her gun higher.
"Step away from them, Maya."
"No."
"That wasn't a request."
"I don't care."
"Maya, don't make me choose between saving you and arresting them."
"Why can't you do both?"
"Because you won't let me."
She was right. I wouldn't let her.
Because these four men weren't just criminals to me anymore.
They were my family.
My real family.
And I wasn't going to abandon them.
"Maya," Agent Chen said one more time. "Last chance. Come home with me."
I looked at her.
Then at Dante, Marcus, Luca, and Adrian.
Then back at her.
"I am home."
Agent Chen's face crumpled.
"Then I'm sorry."
She turned to the other FBI agents.
"Kill them all."