Chapter 6 - THE FINAL STAND AT THE PRISONThe air tore from Hayes’s lungs as he slammed into the concrete floor. The silenced pistol flew from his grip, skidding across the grit into the shadows.
"Ivy! Get out!" Carmine bellowed, pinned beneath Hayes as the larger man fought back wildly, throwing vicious punches into Carmine’s already wounded side.
Hayes screeched in rage, bringing his elbow down hard onto Carmine’s face, dazing him. Hayes scrambled toward the fallen gun, his fingers reaching for the matte-black barrel.
I didn't hesitate. I sprinted across the room, brought my heavy leather boot up, and kicked the gun deep into the dark water of an open drainage trench running along the cellblock floor.
"You miserable bitch!" Hayes screamed, leaping to his feet and lunging toward me.
He caught me by the hair, throwing me backward against the cold brick wall. Pain exploded behind my eyes, vision swimming with bright white spots. Hayes slapped me hard across the face, his heavy signet ring splitting my cheek open, sending me crashing onto the floor beside the computer setup.
He grabbed my hair again, pulling my head back, pulling a heavy silver hunting knife from his belt. "I don't need the money anymore! I just need to erase you!"
Suddenly, a blinding flash illuminated the dark cellblock, followed by a deafening gunshot that shook the dust from the ceiling.
BANG!
Hayes froze. A look of absolute shock washed over his features. He slowly looked down at his chest, where a smoking hole had opened up through his expensive navy suit coat.
Behind him stood Carmine, holding the silver snub-nosed revolver I had dropped when I entered the room. His hand was steady, his jaw set like granite, despite the crimson blood soaking through his entire shirt.
"I told you," Carmine growled, his voice echoing through the stone halls like thunder. "Nobody damages what is mine."
BANG!
Carmine fired a second shot. Hayes collapsed to the ground, lifeless, his greedy eyes staring blankly up at the rotting ceiling of the old prison.
Silence descended upon the room, thick and suffocating, broken only by the sound of heavy rain outside and Carmine’s agonizing gasps for air.
The revolver slipped from Carmine’s fingers, clattering against the concrete. His knees buckled, and he collapsed onto his side, his face pale as paper.
"Carmine!" I screamed, crawling across the floor on my hands and knees to reach his side.
I pulled his heavy shoulders into my lap, pressing my hands hard over the deep bullet wound in his side. Blood oozed through my fingers, warm and relentless.
"Stay with me! Carmine, look at me!" I sobbed, tears washing clean streaks through the dirt and blood on my face. "You can't die! You hear me? You paid my debt, you saved my life—you don't get to die in this terrible place!"
Carmine lifted a bloody, trembling hand, his weak fingers brushing against my tear-stained cheek. A faint, sad smile touched his lips.
"You... you were never just a maid, Ivy..." he whispered, his breath growing shallow. "You were... the only real thing... in my miserable world..."
"Shut up! Stop talking!" I cried, pulling off my thick raincoat and pressing it tightly against his wound. "The FBI is coming! I sent the signal! They'll be here in minutes!"
"Too late... for me..." Carmine gasped, his dark eyes beginning to flutter shut. "The car keys... in my pocket... Take the tunnel under Cell 104... It leads to the river... Live your life, Ivy... Be free..."
"No! I'm not leaving you!" I screamed, pulling him tighter against my chest.
Sirens began to wail in the distance—dozens of them, screaming through the night air as federal vehicles closed in on the abandoned prison complex. Red and blue lights flashed through the rusted window bars, cutting through the darkness.
"Carmine! Open your eyes! Look at me!" I begged, pressing my forehead against his cold temple.
May you like
His head fell limp against my shoulder. His breathing stopped.
"NOOOOO!" my voice shattered the quiet of the night, echoing through the empty halls of the prison as heavy boots pounded down the concrete corridor toward us.
