God of War: Chapter 35

My eyes slowly peel open at the loud, constant sound of a beep…beep…beep…

My head lies on the cool surface of the steering wheel as the wind howls outside the car.

I slowly straighten, my foot shaking on the brake pedal and my heart thumping loudly in my ears.

The lorry I nearly collided into drives in the distance, its bright red beams casting a halo on the otherwise quiet, dimly lit street.

I somehow clipped or hit a pole, and now I’m stopped in the middle of the road. The lorry driver must’ve swerved past me. There’s some damage to the car, but it’s nothing serious, and when I test it, it’s drivable.

However, I’ve obviously lost some time, because I have no recollection of what exactly happened and can only speculate.

Wait.

I fumble with my arms, touch my middle, and wiggle my toes. Everything is working. My breaths echo in the car, shallow and stuttered.

Is it possible that I died and became a ghost like in those paranormal films? Am I stuck here for unfinished business?

A knock comes on the window, slashing the silence with violent interruption. I jump, my heart nearly spilling at my feet.

When I look up, a sigh of relief pushes past my starving lungs as I open the door. “Ollie, you scared me!”

“Is everything all right?” he asks, his gaze flitting at the now-empty street, except for my car and his that’s parked by the side of the road.

“Yup. Nearly got killed by a lorry, but all is good.”

I stand up and my feet fail me. Ollie grabs me by the waist and steadies me against the side of my car, his hand stroking my mid-section in an uncomfortable rhythm.

He smells of cigarettes, alcohol, and overpowering oud cologne. A combination that brings nausea to the back of my throat.

“You all right there, love?”

“Um…yeah.” I subtly try to push him away, but his tenuous grip hardens on my midsection until pain explodes where his fingers apply pressure.

“You don’t look fine, Ava. You know what? Forget about the party. Let me take you home.”

“I can drive on my own. I’m fine.”

This time, I apply more strength to push him away, but he towers over me and grabs my chin, a menacing smile stretching his thin lips. “I said I’ll drive you.”

“And I said I can do it on my own.” I frown. “Let go of me, Ollie.”

“You know, that’s exactly your problem, Ava. You believe all men to be playthings that you flirt with a little and suck their money dry a lot and then expect them to leave when you ask them to.”

“I never asked for your money. I have my own.” My voice trembles at the end.

Even though I chose to go on the defensive, a nagging feeling dictates that I remove myself from this situation as soon as possible.

My mum taught me to always follow my gut and right now it’s demanding I disentangle myself from Ollie.

He barges into my space, his expression vicious. I’ve never found him intimidating before, but more of a pushy person who always tried his luck to get into my knickers.

However, the events are drastically different now.

I’m hyperaware of his height and width, and I faintly remember that he’s one of those gym bros who makes growing muscles their personality type.

His thighs brush mine, and I gulp, the sound getting trapped in my closing throat before echoing in the air.

Oliver’s smirk widens like a hyena that’s starting to enjoy the hunt.

“You still gave me mixed signals, and you know that. You enjoy it, right? Being an attention whore is your personality, after all.”

“I never asked for your attention.” I lift my chin. “Back the hell off, Ollie, and I’ll pretend this never happened.”

I’m totally cutting him from my life after this. All this time, I was blindsided and never noticed the nefarious edges tucked beneath his easygoing façade. I remember Cecy once telling me there were rumors he abused his ex-girlfriend. She said that so I’d keep my distance from him. Did I listen? No. Mostly because I thought it didn’t apply to me since I never saw him as more than a friend of the night.

Clearly, I was wrong and I honest to God need to listen to Cecy more.

“Pretend it never happened?” He barks out vicious laughter that tightens my stomach and disturbs the night. “Should I curtsy, Your Highness?”

“If you don’t release me this instant, I’ll destroy you until nothing is left. You’re messing with the wrong person, but I’ll allow you to back off.” I glare up at him, feigning nonchalance I don’t feel. “You do know I have an influential family, right?”

He lifts his hand and slaps me so hard, my head rolls back and a buzz ricochets in my ears. A metallic taste explodes in my mouth and I realize my lip is split open and I bit my tongue.

Before I can recover, Oliver turns me around and shoves me harshly against the car, then he pulls up on my skimpy dress. “Where’s your influential family now? Maybe they’ll be here to clean my cum off your dirty cunt. Let’s see if it’s worth all this hassle.”

Reality sinks in like a load of bricks and I blindly scratch at him. “Stop! Let me go, stop!”

“Shut your trap, bitch!” He lifts my head and slams it against the car.

The world swings and sways beneath my feet as my heels scratch on the concrete. The buzzing in my ears, the howling of the wind, and the blurriness of my surroundings feel as if they’re happening to someone else.

I can feel him harshly grabbing onto my breasts, but I can’t move. My breathing gets stuck in a stuttered choke, and I hear myself whisper, “Help…please…help…”

“I said.” He bangs my head against the car again. “Shut the fuck up, you damn cunt!”

Stars dance in my vision and my arms fall to either side of me. I can feel the fight being sucked out of me as the howling wind matches my barren insides.

Maybe if I stay still, it’ll be over soon.

Maybe I won’t remember it.

Maybe like I entirely forgot Bach’s Cello Suite No. 4 during the competition and even forgot why the hell I was there, who the people staring at me were, and my damn identity, I’ll forget this, too.

Forever.

It’ll be buried in the darkness like my consciousness and part of my degenerative brain.

If there’s a god out there, send a lightning strike to kill the bastard before he hurts me.

Please.

“That’s right, stay still and I won’t have to hurt you for long, cunt—” Oliver’s voice is cut off and I think the universe has pitied me and shoved me down into a state of numbness.

His weight disappears from behind me and I hear a loud thwack.

I blink the blurry moisture from my eyes and slowly turn around, my back gluing to the car. My lips ache, my head still rings, and my legs barely keep me upright and I have to grab onto the top of the car for balance.

But I see it.

In the middle of the dimly lit streets.

As the wind scavenges the large trees.

As my hearing sharpens and my body awakens.

Oliver is sprawled out on the ground, his body pinned beneath a larger figure.

It’s Eli.

The last person I expected to save me.

His fist grips Oliver’s collar and he unleashes a flurry of punches to his face. The sound of flesh meeting concrete echoes through the air as blood splatters onto his shirt, neck, and the ground below.

My ex-friend tries to speak, but only strangled gurgles escape his throat as Eli relentlessly drives his fist into his face over and over again. Each blow lands with a sickening thud, making Oliver’s features unrecognizable under the onslaught of punches and gushing blood.

I stand frozen in place, sweat beading on my back despite the cold breeze as I watch in horror. Oliver no longer resists or attempts to defend himself, his body limp and lifeless under the brutal assault.

Eli shows no emotion as he continues to punch and punch and punch. He seems almost robotic, as if he is on a mission that cannot be stopped. He doesn’t even seem to notice the splatter of blood on his own shirt or the lack of response from his victim.

A chilling realization surges through me like an electric shock—Eli couldn’t care less about what he’s doing. The indifference in his expression sends a jolt through my stomach, leaving me shaken and disturbed to the core.

“E-Eli…” My voice comes out as haunting as the sound of the wind.

He looks up, his jaw locked and his expression so cold, I feel the lick of ice on my skin. The contact lasts for a few seconds, but it feels like long minutes.

I’ve never seen him like this, so methodical in his violence, so frightening in his calm.

It’s as if I’m looking at a seasoned killer.

His gaze slides back to Oliver and he drops his head on the ground with apparent distaste, then proceeds to kick him in the ribs. “My first time murdering someone and it’s disappointingly not as euphoric as promised. If anything, I feel nothing.”

“He…he…he’s dead?” I whisper-yell, my throat closing around the words.

Eli rises to his full height, stares at his stained shirt with disapproval, and doesn’t dignify Oliver with his attention. “Looks like it.”

“Oh my God…oh my God, oh my God, oh my God…” My legs finally give out and I slide down the car and fall on the cold asphalt as the frigid hands of panic grip me. “Let’s call an ambulance. Maybe he’s alive.”

Eli stands before me, blocking the scene, the light, and every ounce of oxygen. “Why do you want him to be alive after he attempted to rape you?”

My breath hitches as I stare up at him. He looks like a cruel, unforgiving god. The god people prayed to during war times so they could kill and maim as many of the enemy as possible.

And he’d grant it. In a heartbeat.

“I…I don’t want him dead because of that.”

“You wouldn’t think the same if he’d finished what he started.”

My lips part at the reminder of my wish of lightning upon Oliver just before it was instantly answered.

Eli removes his jacket and crouches in front of me as he places it around my shoulders. That’s when I realize my dress’s strap is torn and I’m shaking so wildly, my teeth chatter.

“What are you going to do?” I whisper. “You’ll go to prison if this is found out.”

His expression remains the same—calm, icy, and terrifyingly controlled.

Why the hell am I falling apart when he’s like this? And I wasn’t the one who took a man’s life.

Even if I did wish doom on him.

“That’s where you’re wrong. If this is found out, we will go to prison, for I will report you as an accomplice.”

“But I didn’t do anything.”

“Let’s see whose version they believe. If you say nothing, this entire incident will vanish. We stay afloat together or we drown together. Is that understood?”

I nod once.

“Good girl. I was confident you’d keep a secret.”

My tremors turn into something entirely nefarious. I can’t believe I’m feeling hot and bothered at him praising me when there’s a dead body just a few meters away.

My moral compass seems to be taking the weekend off. I blame the alcohol and whatever pill I took earlier tonight.

This isn’t me.

“W-what will you do about…” I trail off and jut my chin in Oliver’s general direction.

“Don’t concern yourself with that. You need to promise me something to ensure the survival of our alliance.”

“What do you want?”

He strokes his thumb on my trembling lower lip. “Marry me and I’ll bury our secret.”