Soundtrack Exit Wounds Novels & Stories

The SUV barrels through the back roads of Apapa, headlights off, running dark. The driver, still nameless, still silent, takes corners like he’s memorized every pothole. Damian’s blood has soaked through my velvet jacket; the fabric clings wet and warm to my palm where I’m pressing it against his shoulder. His breathing is shallow but steady. Too steady. Like he’s forcing calm for my benefit. “Exit wound?” I ask, voice low. He nods once. “Clean through. Missed the artery. Hurts like hell, but I’ll live.”

The labels over the doors here were smaller and more cramped, as if the system didn’t consider these paths as “premium content.” JAX / JAX MARTIN – EARLY RELEASE. JAX – BETRAYAL EXIT. JAX – HEROIC DEATH. JAX – COLLATERAL. He stared up at the one that had his handle in caps. JAX – BETRAYAL EXIT. The glow around the frame was subtler than the Core Fusion door’s, but it was there—a faint, steady pulse, like a heartbeat under a shirt. “Yeah,” he muttered. “Of course that’s the one you want me to open, you voyeuristic piece of junk.”

did. The adrenaline was a toxic flood in my veins, masking the pain of the taser burn. I bypassed the main tunnels, taking a service stairs route I’d memorized from the floor plans. I burst through the stage-left door just as Kai struck the final, echoing chord. The silence that followed was more violent than the music. Kai stood up. He was drenched in sweat, his white shirt translucent against his skin. He looked toward the wings, where Ethan was waiting with a faux-embrace and a medical team.

The maid's quarters never felt so crowded. The venom Wendy had shown earlier was gone. She sat by my bed, tears streaming down her face as she tended to my wounds. "Does it hurt?" Her words were gentle, but her hands were not, pressing the cotton swab firmly into my injury. I clenched my teeth against the pain, shaking my head. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Chester watching my wound intently. He must have seen Wendy's roughness, but he stood by, hands in pockets, silently condoning her actions.

If indeed Afrah had spoken to Chris about what he thought they had spoken about, then he was definitely in deep trouble. As the cab took him back to the hotel, Adnan stared out the window solemnly, wondering if he wasn't re-enacting a scene from a sloppy romance movie Afrah had made him watch. Any minute now, the background noise would fade out, to be replaced by a sad and slow tune, most likely Alan Walker. The subtitles would probably show '(Sombre music playing)' at this point, and he'd be forced to lean his head against the glass and watch the streets of New York zipping past, random strangers hurrying about their business without paying any attention to the man watching them.

His hands were balled into fists so tight that the glass he held shattered, blood trickling down his fingers. My heart clenched at the sight. When our eyes met, his face twisted with pain, as if to say, 'Look what you've done to me'. I looked away, muttering, "Blood on a wedding day... That's bad luck." Lawrence went white as a sheet, and before I knew it, security was leading him away. … Two hours later, the wedding was over. Jack and I were beat. We headed home, only to find Lawrence waiting at our doorstep. He looked like he had been there for hours. As soon as he saw me, he lunged for my hand, but Jack sent him sprawling with a swift kick.

At that moment, though, he was exhausted. The contents in the thumb drive made him realize that everything felt like it was crushing down. His beautiful childhood sweetheart, Josie Law, was not the person she seemed to be. His wife, whom he thought would wait for him forever, had left him just like that. She even left him things that were enough to destroy him once and for all. There was one last file he had yet to open. Inside were just four words. [Don't look for me.] Xander knew what she meant. If he went looking for her, she would expose those lethal materials to the world.

Even if she tasted every hardship this world had to offer, it still wouldn't balance what I went through. Serena's eyes lit up with hope, as if she had grabbed onto a lifeline. "Really? If you see I mean it, you'll let me see Myles?" Benedict simply shut the door without another word. A vicious gleam flickered in Serena's eyes. She ordered her bodyguards to grab Casper. Casper looked at her like he didn't recognize her anymore. "Every bit of suffering Myles went through, you're going to feel it, too!"

Behind me, through the glass, I could hear the sound of everything falling apart. I turned my music up. Some gifts, you just have to return. THE END

I crawled out of the overturned car and, despite the paramedics urging me to get checked, I ignored them and hurriedly jogged to the venue. A large patch of skin had scraped off my forehead, and my knees and elbows were bloody. Nathan didn’t care in the least. He complained about my dirty clothes and my disheveled hair, but not once did he think to ask if I was in pain. I reached out to hug him, but he shoved me away. “Get away! Don’t get your filth on my clothes!” he shrieked. The disgust in his eyes stung. Stunned, I stood frozen, watching as he linked arms with Janine Beck and walked away without a backward glance.