Chapter 15
Expire
Edan turned completely around to face him. Theron's eyes were half closed and his arms hung to his side. It looked like he was sober enough to know what was going on, but the effects of alcohol were apparent in the way he stood. He stuck a hand in his coat and pulled out a gun. "Shit. GO!" Edan yelled. They all turned to run and Theron ran after them. As they turned the corner, Theron took a few pot shots. "What the fuck is he doing with a gun and what the hell did you do to piss him off?!" Geoff screamed at Edan. A bullet shot through Kaily's right shoulder and she fell to the ground. Geoff and Edan stopped and looked back. Edan tossed Geoff his keys and phone, "Keep going! Call Dominic and get my car. I'll go back for her." Geoff hesitated, but proceeded to run back to the apartment. Now wasn't the time for him to ask questions.
Edan charged past Kaily and straight at Theron, screaming the whole way. Theron stopped and raised his gun, aiming straight at him….and then a blur of red and white flashed in front of him. Kaily was on top of Theron, choking him as she knocked the gun out of his hand. She hissed as she barred her teeth. Light reflected off her eyes like a cat in the dark and she clawed at his face. Theron tried to guard his face, and she tore the flesh from his forearm. With his other arm, he reached back into his coat and pulled out a wooden stake. He lodged it into her chest and she let out a gasp. Blood dribbled down his hand as it gushed out of her wound. He kicked her off and dragged himself back onto his feet. "KAILY!!!" Edan screamed as he charged Theron. He threw a wild haymaker with his right and missed, then followed it up with a left uppercut. Theron sidestepped, leaving Edan's inside wide open for attack. He closed in and gave him a crushing elbow smash to his ribs.
Edan dropped down to one knee and held his side, but attempted to throw another punch. Theron caught him by the wrist from the outside and smashed in his elbow, dislocating it. Pain shot up his arm and up engulfed the left side of his neck and face. His eyesight faded to white and his ears started to ring. His breathing got hard and he fought to stay conscious. He tried to get up, but his legs wouldn't cooperate. All he could do was watch with hazy vision as Theron walked back toward Kaily's twitching body lying in a pool of blood.
Theron took his time as he took off his coat, unveiling all his concealed weaponry. There was an empty holster and two more wooden stakes strapped to his chest. On his back was his sheathed hunting knife. He rolled up his sleeves and sauntered over to the discarded gun, stepping over Kaily's crumpled body. He picked it up then walked back to Kaily and kicked her shoulder so she lied flat on her back. He knelt down next to her and pulled out a necklace of rosary beads.
"God of power and mercy, you have made death itself the gateway to eternal life. Look with love on our dying sister, and make her one with Your Son in His suffering and death, that, sealed with the blood of Christ, she may come before you free from sin. Amen."
He kissed the beads, put them to his forehead, then stood up. He tossed them onto her like discarded trash and shot her point blank in the chest. Edan watched helplessly as he pulled the trigger again and again. One by one the bullets perforated her chest. Her body jolted from the impact and blood began to gush from her mouth. She tried to let out a scream, but it was diminished to a gurgle as she coughed out more blood. Her eyes rolled back in their sockets as she stopped wincing in pain and resembled more and more a lifeless corpse.
Edan bit his lip until blood trickled down his chin and he pummeled the asphalt with his bare fist. Why couldn't he move? Why wasn't he strong enough? He didn't even stand a chance against Theron, not like Dominic. He had offered no protection to Kaily. He had only slowed Theron down for as long as it took to dodge his punches and toss him aside. He gritted his teeth and propped himself up with his one good arm. His head pulsed with an unbearable pressure and his ribs felt like they were grinding against each other as he stood up, pushing off with his legs and straining his neck and back to keep his balance. He ran into an impenetrable wall of pain, but he wasn't going to let that stop him anymore. It didn't matter. Pain or not, he was going to kill Theron for what he had just done. He stammered, step by step, wandering towards Theron's general direction. His vision narrowed, tunneling until all he saw was what was directly in front of him. Theron continued to perforate Kaily's upper torso until it was nothing but a bloody pulp.
Edan had managed to get close enough to Theron, his uneven footsteps camoflauged by the barrage of gunshots. Edan lunged forward and yanked the hunting knife from its sheath strapped to Theron's back. Theron turned around and was stood face to face with him. Without a word he slowly raised his gun, resting the end of the barrel on Edan's forehead. The tip seared into his forehead and was quelled only by the sweat that dripped from his brow. So this was it. No cathartic ending, no happily ever after. His knees shook violently, but he stood his ground and stared straight into Theron's souless eyes. No, not eyes but hollow pits. It was no longer Theron, but Death itself. Edan couldn't help but smirk, and Death replied with a chattering grin, "Are you prepared?" Edan smirked.
"My flesh is afraid, but I am not," he muttered under heavy breaths.
Death pulled the trigger. Edan's heart stopped, trying to wrench itself out of his chest, his ears burst with a ringing so loud it tugged at his temples and filled his sinuses, his breath shot out of his lungs so hard that he choked, and his vision exploded with a white so bright and blinding that he had almost forgotten what it was like to see. And then shapes started to form. They bled out color that mingled with each other, but the edges soon sharpened and Theron materialized, still holding the gun to his head. Click. The clip was empty.
Edan brought the knife up and slashed at the base of Theron's arm, causing him to drop the gun instantly. As Theron clasped a hand around the gash, Edan brought back the knife and with an upward jab, dug the blade deep into his solar plexus. Theron instantly exhaled and blood bubbled around the wound. Edan thrust down with the knife and ripped it out just as it had passed the navel. Blood spewed out like a fountain and his entrails plopped in front of him as he dropped to his knees. Edan towered in front of him and said, "Not a prayer exists that could bring you salvation…" He brought up the knife again and drove it into his temple. Red seeped through the whites of his eyes as Edan broke off the handle with a resounding twang, leaving the blade buried deep in his head, "…but pray to God I don't find you in hell." He watched as Theron let out a long breath and his muscles relaxed, broken by the occasional twitch.