OUTCAST: A Stepbrother Romance (26 page)

D
id
he mean that they’d kill Nash and they... they wanted me to watch?

N
ash tightened
his grip on my arm, as if he was telling me to keep calm.

N
o
, that wasn’t it.

T
he way
he rubbed my fingers with his... the way he tried to savor my touch, my feel... the was his hand shivered even if it was clutched... the look of resignation on his face...

I
t was
as if he was saying goodbye...

T
ravis stepped forward
, still groggy from the blow that Nash dealt him. He grabbed my arm and tried to bring me towards their group. Nash cut him off and shoved him. Then, Travis punched him on the face. Nash’s knees buckled, and he was left kneeling on the ground. I tried to scream, out of distress and horror and helplessness, but no sound came out of my mouth. Just air... empty air filled with forbearance and fright.

“
A
n eye for an eye
,” Travis uttered in ridicule.

“
T
ravis
... please... keep her safe...” Nash struggled to plead. “For the sake of everything we’ve been through... you were my frie...”

T
ravis didn’t allow
him to finish. He kicked Nash’s face, causing the father of my child to collapse on the soil.

T
wo gang members
went to where he was and picked him up.  Nash could barely stand, as his captors had to carry his weight with their arms.

“
B
ring
that fucking traitor to me,” the General ordered.

T
he two men
did as they were told.  Soon enough, Nash - beaten and barely conscious - found himself face-to-face with the leader he once followed and admired.

T
he General mocked
him with a hysterical laugh.  Then he slapped him repeatedly.  Hard slaps.  In rapid succession.  Each slap produced a thumping sound that echoed around the abandoned space behind the condemned building.

I
begged him to stop
.  But the General just gave me a scorned look before continuing with Nash’s humiliation.

H
e ended
his barrage of slaps with a strong punch to Nash’s gut.

N
ash crumpled
, but the men lifted him up.  He then started to spit out some blood.

“
Y
ou chose to leave us
?” the General angrily asked him.  “You fucking chose to leave us?  We treated you well.  We gave you what you needed.  We accepted you like family.  And you had the fucking audacity to leave us?”

N
ash didn’t answer
. He couldn’t. He was too beaten and weak.

T
hen the General
pointed his gun straight at Nash’s forehead. He cocked it and seemed like he was about to fire.

“
N
o
... please... no,” I begged, sobbing and desperate for him to spare his life.

“
S
hut up
, crab bitch!” the latino guy screamed.

J
erome approached
me with his gun in hand, holding it by its barrel, ready to strike me with its handle. Travis swiftly came between us. He pushed Jerome away and they snarled at each other.

“
S
he’ll watch him die
,” Travis said. “Isn’t that enough suffering for her?”

J
erome gave
him a middle finger again before walking away.

“
B
ring
this traitor by the river,” the General ordered the two men who were carrying Nash.

“
W
hy not just pop a cap in
his head right here, boss?” the latino male asked.

“
I
t’s a little past ten
,” the General answered. “The dam has just been opened. Let the currents carry his corpse to the next state.”

T
he latino guy
nodded in agreement.

“
W
ell
? What are you waiting for?” the General irately questioned. “Get his ass by the river so we can put a bullet in his head already!”

T
he gang members
started to march towards the river which was just at the end of the empty lot. Travis dragged me with him. I tried to escape his grasp, but his grip was strong. I tried begging for Nash’s life, but the only word that I managed to say was
please, please, please
... repeatedly, stammeringly, desperately.

H
e didn’t listen
.

A
s soon as
we arrived by the riverside, I saw the two men bring Nash towards the edge of the concrete bank that separated water from land. Just as the General has said, the currents were strong. They were always strong that time of the evening, as Phillux Dam was opened to supply water to the cities east of Placerville.

T
he two gang
members extended Nash’s arms apart. He looked like he was crucified against the cold, damp air. The General approached him, still carrying his gun. He pointed his barrel on the bridge of Nash’s nose.

“
A
ny last words
to the brothers you abandoned, traitor?” the General scoffingly asked.

“
N
o
...” Nash struggled to say. “Not to them.”

T
he General looked
like he was taken aback by Nash’s response.

“
T
hen who would
you want to receive your last words, traitor?” the General queried.

“
H
im
...” Nash replied, looking straight at Travis.

T
ravis released
my arm and pushed me towards one of the men who quickly held me. He walked towards Nash with deliberate steps, as if he was taking his time, as if... as if... as if he was thinking...

A
glimmer of hope
...

I
t was
at that moment when I figured it out. Travis and Nash were friends. They joined the gang together, and they’ve been friends even before that. They have been friends for years. They have surely discussed this kind of a scenario before... and they have made plans for it. Travis was just putting up a facade of blind loyalty to their group so that they won’t suspect anything. But he and Nash... they have an endgame in mind. Travis would help Nash escape... and in so doing... would help me and my baby escape as well.

T
ravis had to
.

H
e was his friend
.

H
e
is
his friend
.

H
e stood
in front of Nash. Nash gave him a smile, and Travis didn’t seem to reciprocate his warm gesture. Nash whispered something to him... something which I failed to hear. They were too far away. I couldn’t even read his lips.

P
erhaps it was their plan
...

M
aybe Nash gave
him the go signal to begin their escape...

T
hey had
a strategy to get out of there... it’s how it should be... it’s how it should work...

A
great weight
crushed my heart when I saw what happened next.

T
ravis got mad
... really mad... at what Nash told him. He punched him on the face. And then he... he...

H
e drew
his gun and fired on Nash’s chest.

I
t was quick
. Without warning. No one saw it coming. Not Nash. Not the gang members who surrounded them. Not the General who started cursing.

I
saw
the life escape from my brother’s face. Every ounce of strength left his body, and the two men who were holding him suddenly found it difficult to keep him up. I saw blood trickle from the side of his mouth. I saw his eyes surrender to his inescapable fate...

B
ut before they fully closed
, he looked at me... longingly... lovingly... sadly, as if he was apologizing for failing me, for failing to raise our baby with me, for failing to witness how our child would grow up...

O
ne last look
...

O
ne last look
that I would never, ever forget...

T
ravis grabbed
Nash’s collar and screamed at him... furiously... as if he hated him for something so deep and tortuous.

T
hen
, Travis kicked his chest so hard that the two men who held him lost their grip. Nash’s body went flying from the edge of the bank, down to the cascading river below. I saw the strong currents carry him away... to the darkness of the horizon... away from my sight... away from me...

Forever...

I
wanted to scream
, but I couldn’t. I no longer cared for my wellbeing. The fear has been replaced by immense sorrow, one that made me hope for something unbelievable... something miraculous... to happen, to quell the pain I was feeling, one that made me wish that I was the one who was shot instead of the man I love, one that made me wish for an end to my own life...

A
n end
to my own life...

I
can’t wish
for that...

I
was carrying
another life inside me... a life that was more helpless and powerless than I was...

I
must live
...

N
ot just for me
...

I
struggled
to free myself from the grasp of the gang member who was holding me. I used my other hand for leverage, pushing my body away from him. He just tightened his clasp and I failed to escape.

“
W
hat the fuck
did you just do, Travis?” I heard the General ask with rage.

“
T
he fucking leva
said something I didn’t like,” Travis answered, as he walked back towards the group, all the while avoiding their leader’s gaze.

“
H
e was mine to kill
,” the General reminded him, still seething with fury.

“
H
e’s dead
, alright?” Travis snapped back. “You wanted him dead, now he’s dead. It doesn’t matter who killed him. The motherfucker’s dead.”

“
Y
ou don’t understand
,” the General responded. “He was mine to kill. His treachery was an insult against me. Me! You have deprived me of justice. Now, I will have to get even some other way.”

“
W
hat do you mean
?” Travis asked worryingly as he finally looked at the General.

T
he General
just smiled at him.

“
B
oys
,” the leader began to order, “bring me the girl.”

T
he man
who held me pushed me forward, towards the General who was smirking. He grabbed my hair and pulled me down until I was kneeling in front of their leader.

T
hen the General
pointed a gun on my forehead.

I
closed my eyes
.

I
prayed so
hard for Nash to come to my rescue, only to have my heart broken yet again upon realizing that he was gone, swallowed by the river and carried downstream towards Newtown.

H
e was gone
.

I
was alone
.

A
nd I was
about to join him.

M
y hands were still trembling
. My body was shivering incessantly. I was afraid. I was very afraid. But somehow, I felt that I wasn’t afraid for myself. I was afraid for the baby inside me... defenseless and fragile and vulnerable. I wanted to protect my child. He was mine. I was his mother. And what kind of a mother would I be if I can’t even keep my baby safe?

I
heard
the General’s laugh, frenzied and taunting and evil.

“
S
he has
nothing to do with this... with us!” Travis screamed at him. There was distress in his voice, one that was painted with torment and impotence.

“
T
hat traitor’s
life was mine to take,” the General told him, angrily still. “You stole that from me. Hers is the only logical replacement.”

“
T
his is not
how we work!” Travis yelled again.

“
I
am
the fucking leader of this group!” the General adamantly responded. “I’m the one who tells you how we work. And
this
is how we work!”

“
D
on’t do this
...” Travis begged, the anguish in his voice was almost tangible.

I
heard
the cocking sound of the gun’s hammer.

I
felt
the tip of the barrel press harder against my forehead.

I
heard
the General’s laughter once more, almost delirious, almost deranged, reverberating in my ears.

H
e was going to shoot
. And in a second it will all be over.

T
hen I heard
a thud on the ground beside me. I opened my eyes to see Travis, wrestling with the General, his hands pinning his leader’s to keep the gun away from me. There were punches thrown. Travis even bit his adversary’s ear, and the General let out a primal scream of pain.

T
he men surrounded them
, unsure about what to do. There was a mutiny in their ranks, one that they seemed to be unaccustomed to. Perhaps, in previous times, the General took over, telling them what should be done. But at that moment, their leader was pressed against the ground by one of their own... one who didn’t leave them... one who didn’t betray them... one who actually killed a
traitor
they loathed so much.

F
inally
, a couple of them decided to stop the brawl.

B
ut before they
could be separated, around five or six gunshots were fired from a distance. The men were stunned into silence. Travis and the General immediately stopped their fisticuff to determine where the sounds came from.

T
he next few
words informed them that their reign was about to end.

“
P
olice
! You are surrounded! Put your weapons on the ground or we will open fire!”

A
cacophony
of expletives were spoken and screamed. The men knew that they were cornered. They knew that resistance would be futile, and even fatal. They didn’t have any choice.

T
hey threw
their guns on the ground and raised their hands in surrender.

T
ravis stood
up and did the same.

T
he General was
slow to get up.

“
F
uck that motherfucking traitor bitch
,” he cursed.

“
H
e called the blues
... before going here, it seems” Travis replied with resignation. “It’s all over now.”

T
hough my heart
was still reeling from the tragedy that happened, I was compelled to wonder. Nash called the police? He chose to go to jail just to save me?

M
ore than three
dozen policemen swarmed the scene, quickly surrounding the gang members. They cuffed them up and made them lie face first on the ground as the officers searched them for hidden weapons.

T
wo of the
policemen approached me and helped me up. They led me towards the main road, where an ambulance was waiting.

“
A
re you alright
, Miss?” one of them asked.

I
was still to stunned
, too traumatized, by what happened that I couldn’t speak. So I just nodded.

T
hen I saw
a familiar figure running towards me.

I
t was Finn
, and he had what looked like the entire basketball team behind him.

H
e gave
me a tight hug as soon as he reached me.

“
T
hank God you’re okay
, Andrea!” he said, almost tearfully. He was sincerely relieved to see me safe. Given everything that has happened and Nash’s loss, I found his genuine care very comforting. I hugged him back, tightly as well, and tears began to flow from my eyes. Soon enough, I was weeping uncontrollably.

“
F
inn
... Nash... my brother...” I told him, almost incomprehensibly between my snivels.

“
W
hat happened to him
?” he concernedly asked.

“
H
e
... he got shot,” I started to cry harder as soon as those words escaped my mouth. “He fell on the river.”

“
S
hit
!” Finn cursed as he quickly moved away from me. He went to the first police officer he saw and started to narrate something I couldn’t hear... probably about Nash’s condition.

T
he members
of the basketball team surrounded me. Some rubbed my back. A couple gave me embraces. All of them had that look of relief and solicitude on their faces.

“
B
e brave
, Andrea, it’s almost over,” one of them said.

“
E
verything will be okay now
,” another added.

“
W
e’re here for you
,” someone reassured me.

I
found
their gestures and words very touching. These were some of the people who, just a few hours ago, witnessed my humiliation in school... the revelation of my pregnancy... that I was carrying a child whose father wasn’t Finn, their teammate. Yet, there they were, risking life and limb just to be there, just to ensure and assure my safety.

F
inn went back
to where I was and told me that he informed the police about what happened to Nash.

“
T
hey’re radioing the divers
,” he said. “They will find him, Andrea.”

“
B
ut
... the currents... they’re too strong... he may be miles away by now,” I failed to contain my fear.

“
T
hey will find him
,” Finn tried to reassure me. “We just have to have faith right now.”

A
few minutes later
, when the shock from the events that transpired started to die down, I began to wonder what Finn was doing there. The last time I saw him, he was lying on the ground from the knee that the General planted on his midsection. How did he find me? How did he know where I was? So I asked him.

“
I
saw
you ride with that stranger,” he answered. “So I called your house. Your...
brother
... answered,” he struggled to say that word as he didn’t want to remind me about Nash given his uncertain predicament. “He asked me to describe the man you rode with. Then, he started to get really angry and nervous. He gave me some instructions...”

“
W
hat instructions
?” I questioned.

“
H
e told
me to call the police and lead them to an address he gave,” Finn replied. “I asked him if he’ll go with us. He said that he’d take care of some matters first.”

M
y heart sank deeper
into despair. If Nash only went with Finn and the police, he wouldn’t have... he wouldn’t have...

“
O
h Andrea
...” Finn noticed the sorrow that possessed me. “Finn was a good man,” he said. “Finn
is
a good man,” he quickly corrected himself.

I
just bowed my head
, wishing against hope that he was indeed alright.

“
A
nd he is
as tough as tough can be,” Finn added, holding on to his jaw to remind me how Nash punched him at the precinct a week ago. “I know that for a fact. If anyone can survive that river, it’s your brother.”

O
rdinarily
, I would’ve found comfort in his words.

B
ut Nash was shot
. I saw him lose consciousness before Travis kicked him into the river. He was bleeding just below his left chest... so very near his heart...

T
ears began
to trickle down my cheeks once more. Then, I heard the most familiar voice in my life...

“
A
ndrea
!” my dad called out as he ran towards me. Aunt Susan was following him, though lagging a few steps behind.

“
D
ad
!” I yelled as I ran towards him, as well. We hugged each other tight as soon as we met. Aunt Susan caught up and joined our embrace.

“
O
h my sweet
, sweet daughter...” he said, tearfully too, as kisses rained my head. “Thank the Lord above that you’re alright!”

“
D
ad
? How did you know...” I wasn’t even able to finish my question. Aunt Susan immediately responded.

“
T
he police called my cell
,” she said. “We were so worried about you, Andrea.”

O
h no
.

H
ow would
Aunt Susan be able to handle the news about Nash?

I
didn’t want
to tell her... but I had to...

“
A
unt Susan
,” I hesitantly began to say, groping for words as I swallowed a big lump in my throat. “Nash... he...”

“
W
hat about Nash
?” she asked. Dread started to devour her. “Was he here? Where is he?”

“
H
e
...” I tried to continue, but stopped as I began to sob wildly once again.

H
er eyes began to swell
, as if she had an idea about what I wanted to say, though she didn’t want to accept it.

“
T
ell me Andrea
, I need to know,” she pleaded.

“
H
e
... he got shot...”

M
y stepmother began to wail
. My dad tried to console her, but she just pushed him away. She collapsed on her knees, covering her face with her hands as she cried and cried. I haven’t finished telling her what happened, but somehow, I felt she already knew that something terribly bad has happened.

A
mother’s instinct
.

I
knelt beside her
. I embraced her, trying to soothe her grief, but she pushed me away as well. She wanted to be alone. She wanted to process everything that transpired. She wanted some time to hope... that he was alright... that he was unharmed... or at the very least, that he was alive.

“
A
ndrea
, what happened to Nash?” my dad asked.

“
H
e
... he got shot, dad,” I answered in between my sobs. “He fell in the river.”