Chapter 28 - The Edge of the Cliff
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I sprinted up the grand marble staircase, my wet shoes slipping against the polished stone, following the sound of wind howling through shattered glass.
I burst into the second-floor library.
The room was a disaster zone. Rare leather-bound books were scattered across the floor, antique chairs were smashed, and rain was pouring through a massive broken stained-glass window that opened onto a stone balcony overlooking the roaring sea below.
Standing on the rain-slicked balcony, illuminated by flashes of lightning, were two men.
Ethan was kneeling on the stone floor, his dark sweater torn at the shoulder, blood dripping from a deep cut above his left eyebrow.
Andrew stood over him, looking like a demonic specter in the storm. Blood poured from his broken nose, his eyes wild and unhinged, holding a heavy iron fire poker raised above Ethan's head!
"Say goodbye to your kingdom, Carter!" Andrew roared, raising the iron rod with both hands!
"ANDREW!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, stepping out onto the balcony into the freezing downpour.
Andrew froze. He slowly turned his head, his crazed eyes locking onto me through the driving rain. A terrifying, triumphant smile spread across his bloody face.
"Ava..." Andrew gasped, his voice raspy and breathless. "You came for me. I knew you couldn't stay away."
"Let him go, Andrew," I sobbed, the wind whipping my hair across my face. "It's me you want. Take me! Just leave Ethan out of this!"
"Ava, no!" Ethan coughed, pushing himself up onto his hands and knees, his grey eyes locked on mine with desperate panic. "Don't... don't look at him!"
Andrew lowered the fire poker slightly, stepping away from Ethan and taking a slow, predatory step toward me.
"You see, Ava?" Andrew purred, holding out his bloody hand. "In the end, it was always just you and me. Come here. Give me your hand, and we'll leave this place together."
I took a slow step forward, reaching my trembling hand toward his, drawing his attention completely away from the floor.
May you like
Behind Andrew, Ethan's eyes flashed with lethal intent.
Using the last reserve of his strength, Ethan lunged forward from the deck, tackling Andrew around the knees with the force of a freight train!
