There were two reactions I saw in the last chapter:

1) "Lmao."

2) "I will shove your keyboard down your throat until you shit out letters."

Love you guys, too <3

Cage Vickers killed Micheal. His best friend for years, one of his most trusted associates. The man who loved watching Disney movies, the man who helped Cage through everything, the man who bought me Captain America stickers....dead. Cage didn't even blink when the bullet went off, his hands never shaking, as he aimed a gun at Micheal and shot him dead without even giving it a second thought. Micheal was as good as dead before Cage even pulled the trigger.

Shock didn't even begin to describe what I was feeling. 

I absolutely lost it.

Kicking, screaming, crying...none of it helped. So I just stood there, my mind one big blank. I could feel the tears falling, I could see the clowns start looking around to find the source of the bullet, I could see Micheal's lifeless body bleeding out in the middle of the carnival. I could hear Nick speaking, a hand on my arm. And then all at once, my emotions took over.

Bawling uselessly, I took a seat right on the ground and cried my eyes out. The fact that Micheal was gone was a fact that I desperately wanted to deny. However, I could not. I saw it with my own eyes, saw Cage kill Micheal. I saw the real Cage Vickers tonight.

I heard my name being called, but it was just a low deep hum in the background. My world, as far as I was concerned, was gone with that one bullet. The clowns, finding nothing because we were so far away, gave up searching and left, taking Micheal with them.

To them, he was just another body that was going to end up in the ocean tonight. To me, he was a friend. A friend that I made in four days, but I came to love Micheal like a brother. And to have him so abruptly taken, by Cage Vickers nonetheless, was painful.

"November." The voice was right by my ear now. Fingers wrapped around my wrist and forced me to stand up, to see the man who could let his own friend die without giving it a single thought. In the darkness, I could only make out the basic outlines of his face but I knew every feature like it was the back of my hand, from the strict red lips to the cold green eyes. The carnival lights began to shut off simultaneously.

The show was over.

Micheal wasn't worth saving. His life had no value to Cage Vickers.

Angry, I glared at Cage. My tears weren't going to bring Micheal back. "Collateral damage." I whispered, my voice cracking. Nick and Heath were watching us from a good distance away. If they were upset about Micheal, their faces didn't show it. 

"No." Cage growled. "A sacrifice."

''Why did you kill him, Cage?" I shrieked. Without thinking, I punched him square in the jaw. The force of my impact did little to nothing. He didn't even stumble back because my punch was so weak. In fact, I think my hand hurt more than his jaw did. Cage closed his eyes and exhaled sharply, but there was no consequence to my action. "What reason could justify that? Why, Cage? Why did you have to kill- why?" My throat choked up and I couldn't speak anymore. 

Cage wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close. I was too weak to fight out of it. Taking deep shuddering breaths, I kept my hands at his chest so there was still some distance between us. Cage breathed deeply. "I had to."

"No, you didn't."

"November, I had to."

"No, you didn't Cage!" I snapped.

"We had an agreement." Nick spoke up from behind. "A suicide pact, of some sorts. If one of us were to be captured, the others agreed to kill him."

I was about to punch Nick, too, but Cage pulled me back.

"Listen to me." He bent his head down and spoke softly into my ear. "There was no scenario that could end well with this situation. They were going to torture the information out of him, if that's what it took. I've created an imperium for ten years. I cannot and I will not let anyone bring my corporation down. If killing my best friend is what it takes to retain that power, so be it. Micheal knew too much. There was absolutely no way I will have anything jeopardize that. If that doesn't make you feel better, then let me give you another justification. Romeo's men were going to torture him, November. They were going to put Micheal through hell and back and then send a postcard just to get the tiniest bit of information out of him. I saved him more suffering than you can imagine."

I knew deep down that what Cage said was right. It was probably a merciful death that Micheal got as a thanks after all those years. Cage's assumption about the torture thing was probably right. And he did come too far to let anyone bring him down. Even if that anyone was his best friend. But I still couldn't find it in my heart to forgive Cage for this.

"I am sorry." Cage said, and he sounded sincere. "I didn't want it to end like this. I had no choice. You have to understand where I am coming from. Micheal is dead because I killed him. I can live with myself, November. And I know that you can't. I won't ask for your forgiveness because I know you won't give it to me. But I also won't regret what I did. This is who I am, princess. I kill people who are close to me if they become...collateral damage."

Cage kissed my cheek gently. His bloodstained lips felt warm and wet on my skin. It was a strange, confusing action that I couldn't decipher the message of. Kissing was for people who loved each other. Cage didn't love me and I didn't love him. He couldn't love a silly teenage girl and I couldn't love a dangerous, heartless criminal. But they way he kissed me spoke differently. So much care and compassion from such an uncaring and uncompassionate man.

If Cage wasn't going to end this, I was.

I stared at his coat, soaked in scarlet blood. Who did he kill in the House of Mirrors?

"Take me back to Ivey." The demand was weak and soft coming from my broken mind. I didn't look at Cage, but he looked at me. And he said nothing, remained silent despite ruining life after life. Cage Vickers used silence as a response for things he didn't want to answer. I hated that. "Take me back home, Cage. If you can't give me that much....then let me go. Let me walk away. I can find my way back to Ivey. Please."

"November-"

I closed my eyes, trying hard not to cry again. "Please." I repeated. I had absolutely no drop of fight left in me. 

Cage didn't speak for so long that I began to think he wasn't even going to satisfy me with an answer, even if the answer was no. The direction of the wind shifted. Strands of hair blew into my face. The blood was quickly drying on Cage's clothes. He licked his lips and ran his fingers through his windblown hair, messing it up even more. After what seemed like an eternity, Cage moved back. The look on his face was pained. "Okay."

The word was so softly spoken that I thought I heard Cage wrong. I stared at him, thinking it was too good to be true. His eyes were downcast. He looked....defeated, in a way. The secrets of the night had taken its toll on all of us. Nick and Heath were long gone. The carnival was empty. No car drove by, no one arrived to disrupt the air that made breathing hard.

"I am done." Cage said quietly. The clouds suddenly shifted, revealing a moon as bright as the sun. It illuminated his intimidating figure, eyes dark and face white. I didn't trust myself to speak so I said nothing. "I am done with this, November. With you. With everything. Making you suffer...that was never my intention. I refuse to continue putting you through this because-" Cage paused, his voice straining. "-because it's not going to end well for either of us. I was wrong, November. I thought that you being here would change things. That you might have been able to save us, I suppose. That you could stop me from hating myself. And you're trying to, November, I see that. But it's destroying you more than you let me see."

"I was never trying to save you, Cage." I muttered. "You're too far gone to be saved. You already fell off the cliff. Tonight was a testament to that."

Cage's voice was bitter when he spoke. "You are too sentimental for your own good, princess."

"You're too corrupt for yours, Cage."

He exhaled sharply. "That mouth of yours will get the best of you one day. Micheal's blood will always be on my hands, November. I'll live with that so you don't have to. You can hate me all you want. Kick me, hit me, throw a fit...nothing is going to make me feel any worse than I already do. We are incompatible. You still have the innocence I once had. You're too precious for me to destroy you." Cage stepped closer. "So I will do the only thing I can....I will let you go. You don't ever have to see my face again, princess. Isn't that what you wanted?"

It wasn't anything close to what I wanted and I ached to tell Cage that, but I didn't. He already made his decision. We will walk on separate paths....unfortunately, those paths were already more entwined than we both wanted.

"What I want-" I chose my words carefully. "-is to see Romeo. Dead."

''And I will make sure that happens." Cage said slowly. "November-" He paused, watching me intently. It sounded like he had more to say but was struggling to say it. I felt the same way, too. There were so many things I wanted to tell him...how he made me feel, how much I hated him, how much I loved him. So many things and yet I couldn't bring myself to force the words off my tongue.

"Tomorrow." Cage walked back and took my hands into his own. "Tomorrow, you can go back to Ivey. Give me one last night, November." His fingers twisted through my own, pulling me closer. I felt lips press onto my forehead, and the familiar tingle came back to my stomach. "One more night and you can spend the rest of your life without ever seeing me again. Please. I need you here tonight. I'm-" The desperation in his voice was clear. "-sorry. I hurt you. I know you'll never look at me the same way again. It's another thing I'll have to live with."

This entire night was one big mess that I wanted to put behind me. In a way, I realized how much better my life was after spending four wild days with the Crows. But the same thought destroyed me at the same time. Micheal was gone and he was never coming back. Just like my parents. I made so many mistakes...what's one more?

Standing on tiptoes, I pressed my lips against Cage's.

He didn't kiss back immediately. I loved the feeling it gave me, a feeling of absolute recklessness. It was a part of me that I never knew I had. I was addicted to how his lips made me feel. even if I knew it was wrong. Cage's mouth moved hungrily against mine. He wanted it just as much as I did. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, breathing in the scent of blood and cologne and everything dangerous.

Teeth bit down on my bottom lip, a reminiscence of the first time Cage showed me the depth of what he was capable of. It was a gentle bite and his tongue soothed my burning lip roughly. There was nothing vanilla about Cage Vickers. Just dark and dangerous carnal desires. Kissing Cage gave me a feeling of complete vulnerability. I loved that feeling.

He turned his head, quickly breaking the kiss. 

Cage's breaths were heavy and laboured. The restraint he was holding back was clear in his eyes. I struggled to maintain my composure as well. He raised his head and looked me straight in the eyes. I saw the darkness and the frustration and all the things a girl like me shouldn't be playing with. Cage was dangerous. I'd established that. Now I needed to enforce it. But how do you stay away from something that makes you feel so...alive? Like I hadn't been living until this very moment. 

Cage pressed his hand down on my chest, feeling my heart race. He took a shaky breath. "Don't kiss me, November. Don't." The words were clear and concise. He meant it. "I can't- I can't do that to you. We're...incompatible. I don't deserve you, princess. After everything I've done, I don't deserve you. If we're going to stay away from each other, things like this can't happen. I don't have enough restraint to control myself. You'll get hurt."

His eyes showed all the emotions his face did not. This was a part of Cage that very few people have ever seen, if any. For a man like Cage Vickers to let himself be so vulnerable, I understood how valuable it was. How much I could...hurt him.

"It was a fun four days." I ran my fingers through his hair, knowing I'd never be able to again. His hair was as soft as I imagined. "Thank you for everything you've done. You're an asshole but...you're a nice asshole."

Cage kissed my nose. "You are one hell of a girl, November Jones. I will never forget you."

What if I just ended the story right here?

Oh my God, I'm just kidding. Many more chapters to come, I promise :)