Chapter Fifty-Nine

Chapter Fifty-Nine
Suddenly I hear a knock at the door and my tears stop dead in their tracks. Hope floods my system when I realise someone might be able to save me from this hell.

Carter is quickly up on his feet, retrieving the knife and pressing it to my throat as he leans in and whispers in my ears, “Not a fucking sound, do you understand me?”

I stare at the door, hope and panic rolling through me. Help is just on the other side of the door and yet it’s never felt further away. Another couple knocks rap on the door, followed by a voice I never wanted to hear again but now couldn’t be more grateful for.

“Nalani? It’s me, Julian,” sounds his sorrowful voice. “I really hope you’re in there. I’ve been trying for days to reach you. I know you don’t ever want to see me again, I just…I just need you to know how sorry I am,” he sighs.

Carter fists the back of my hair painfully and as I look up I see the rage filling his eyes. If I don’t do something, he’s likely to kill me out of anger and I am not ready to die. I don’t want to die.

I force my tongue past my lips and do my best to wet the duct tape on my mouth to make it lose some of its tackiness and it starts to work. I feel a little space open between my lips and the duct tape and I seize what might be my only opportunity.

“JULIAN! HELP! IT’S CARTER!” I scream as loud as I possibly can.

Carter yanks my head back and presses the knife hard against my throat, his eyes staring down at me wild and furious. “You bitch!”

We both look towards the door when Julian’s large frame comes barrelling into the room, breaking the door clean off its hinges. He gets his bearings and looks down at me, his gemstone eyes wide in horror before he looks over and sees Carter, his hand gripping my hair and a knife to my throat.

“You son of a bitch!” he roars, a look of rage I’ve never seen before flashing across Julian’s face as he lunges at Carter, knocking him to the ground.

The two begin to wrestle around on the floor, things falling and shattering around them as I try to get free of my restraints once again. I press my mouth to my shoulder and with enough movement am able to get the tape off one half of my mouth. A new anxiety fills me as I watch Julian land several blows to Carter’s face before he finally stops moving.

Panting, Julian moves off him and crawls over to me. He assesses me frantically as he carefully removes the tape from my mouth. “Lani, I am so sorry,” he blurts out. “Are you okay? How badly are you hurt?” he asks in a rush, ripping the tape from around my ankles.

I take deep breaths, trying to calm myself down. I bob my head nodding, but it feels like I have little to no control over the action given how much my body is shaking.

“I’m okay. I’ve never been so glad to see you,” I sob in relief.

“Never thought I’d hear you say that,” he jokes with a comforting smile.

I cough out a laugh, but it sounds hysterical as the tears begin to fall again. Julian gently strokes my hair and manages to untape one of my wrists. As he goes to untape the other wrist, I notice Carter to the side reach for his knife on the floor and start to get up.

“Julian, look out!” I cry out in warning.

Carter lunges at Julian, knife raised in the air, “I won’t let you take her from me!”

Julian throws his arms up, grabbing Carter’s arms and tries to wrestle the knife out of his hands. I quickly get to work untapping my bound wrist and just as I finally get free, I see Carter get his hand free and plunge his knife into Julian’s stomach.

“JULIAN!” I scream in horror.

Julian’s face freezes in shock, staring at Carter in disbelief. The fury on Carter’s face is so contorted and unnatural he looks possessed as he twists the knife in Julian’s gut, making him groan and choke as he drops to his knees. I force myself to my feet, looking around the room frantically. I reach over, grabbing the toaster off the kitchenette and yank it out of the wall as I rush over and slam it against the back of Carter’s head. He buckles in surprise, dropping to his knees and I begin slamming it down on top of his head over and over and over again, my screams filling the air as every emotion erupts out of me.

The burst of energy seems to leave my body, and as I look down I realise Carter is lying face down, blood coating the back of his head and seeping into the floor while I’m knelt over him. I see the bloody toaster in my hands and drop it in disgust. I look at my shaking hands covered in blood, and I feel a sudden urge to throw up until a gargled sound grabs my attention.

I look over and see Julian, lying on the floor bleeding with a knife sticking out of his stomach. I crawl over to him, tears falling as I look him over.

“Julian, oh God,” I choke out, looking him over trying to figure out what to do.

“Ya tahun…” I hear a shocked voice gasp. I look up to see Amber standing in the doorway looking down at the scene with wide eyes.

“Call 911!” I cry out. “Tell them to send an ambulance and the police. HURRY!” I scream, tearing off my torn-up shirt and wrapping it around the hilt of the knife to try and hold it in place as I keep pressure around it.

“I’m on the phone with them now,” Amber informs me. “Yes, I’m still here. I also need a couple ambulances. Three victims, one woman with head injuries, a man stabbed, and another man with head wounds…possible dead.” I hear her say to someone before I tune her out.

I look down at Julian, tears making my eyes blurry as I keep pressure around his wound. He glances down at the knife and tries to reach for it, but I move his hands out of the way.

“Don’t touch it. You have to leave it in,” I tell him. I grasp his hand in mine and hold it tight. “Squeeze my hand, okay? It’s going to be alright, help is coming,” I stress to him, my voice quivering.

Julian nods, his eyes getting tired as he squeezes my hand. “This is all my fault,” he whispers.

I shake my head furiously, “Don’t say that. You saved my life,” I assure him, kissing his hand. “I can’t thank you enough.”

“None of this…would have happened…if I hadn’t…come into your life,” he chokes, letting out a cough that makes him groan in pain.

“Stop talking and save your strength, it’s going to be okay. You hear me? It’s going to be okay,” I say forcefully, not sure if I’m saying that for his benefit or mine.

We stare at each other, our hands clasped tightly together as I hear sirens in the distance getting closer and closer.