Page 44 of Save Us

We smirk over her angry reaction, watching as she mutters God knows what under her breath and slams the door with venom. I then walk Rein to the front door where I smile awkwardly at him, not having ever fought with him before.

“Are we cool?”

“Yeah,” he answers with a long sigh, then throws his arms around me, “we’re cool, you stubborn asshole!”

Beth

Once Oliver and I returned to New York, I was instructed to bathe, then go straight to bed where he tucked me in and tried to reassure me with soothing placations and declaration of love. To my pleasant surprise, he didn’t try anything more than that. Instead, he curled up behind me and promised to never let anyone touch me ever again.

All the while, he whispered against my skin and peppered me with kisses, I remained silent and stared out the window as the surrounding wallpaper began to suck me back inside again. My senses seem to be back on full alert with the outside traffic deafening my ears, and the eerie long windows filling my mind with thoughts as dark as their wooden frames.

When I woke the next day, Oliver was already up and pulling me closer toward his chest, while wrapping himself all around my still fetal-positioned body. The clock is already reading nine o’clock, which is extremely late for a Monday morning, but I know better than to question it. Instead, I try to remain still and pretend I am asleep, but someone seems to have other ideas when they begin banging and shouting at the front door.

Without any words of warning, Oliver leaps out of bed, fully naked, and begins to rage about whoever it is that is daring to disturb us. When I try to get out of bed to follow, he puts up his hand and instructs me to wait here and get dressed and to not worry about anything because he will sort it out. He is suited and booted before I even have a chance to walk across to the bathroom to brush my teeth.

Once outside the bedroom door, wearing my usual garb of a long-sleeved, shapeless top and a pencil skirt, I find Leo patiently waiting for me. I greet him in much the usual way at the same time as he begins to look over me from head to toe, seemingly checking for any fresh bruises that may have been caused under Oliver’s heavy hand. All the while he’s doing this, he asks me if I’m ok, if I’m hurt, and if I’m sure I’m ready to get up. I simply smile, trying to reassure him that I can at least function, if not a little robotically.

He sighs with an expression laced in skepticism before walking me down the eerie corridor and eventually down the stairs. Once there, we suddenly hear the maniacal screams of a woman coming from the living room. After a momentary glance at one another, we both appear to brace ourselves before in the direction of the commotion. We find Felicity laying into Oliver with enough ferocity to silence even him. Her fists are balled-up into weapons of mass destruction, her teeth are gritted together, and her eyes are narrowed into venomous slits. Her red, puffy face does nothing to help disguise the tears currently streaming down her face.

“Beth, please wait for me in the kitchen!” Oliver snaps at me with a stern stare.

“You!” Felicity turns on me before I can even complete his order. She immediately begins to point at me with accusation while marching toward me with determined, heavy footsteps. “I’m going to fucking kill you!” she screams as she quickens her pace into a near-on run, only stopping when she flies straight into the chest of my bodyguard, who steps in front of me as a physical barrier. Her anger doesn’t dissipate, however, as she throws fist after fist against his chest. Sadly, it looks a little pathetic given how big he is compared to her.

Eventually, when she seemingly runs out of energy, she slumps against him and breaks down into loud, uncontrollable sobbing.

“Felicity?” I venture, sounding strangely croaky because I know exactly why she is in this state and even I feel sorry for her.

“Shut the fuck up, you whore! You got him killed! You may as well have been the one holding the gun to his head!” she screams.

“Felicity, your brother was killed by gang members; it had nothing to do with my wife!” Oliver snaps at her as he marches over to haul her up by her elbow. She lets him, looking completely defeated.

“Oh, please! We all know who pulled that trigger!” she spits at him, even though she’s still slumping over as he proceeds to manhandle her away from me.

“After your brother attacked my wife,” he says through clenched teeth, and with just as much venom as her, “I removed Angela from the house. What happened to Chad had more to do with the copious amounts of drugs he was consuming without having the means to pay for them. The kind of shit he dabbled in is bound to catch up with you, Felicity!”

“You wait, princess,” she growls at me, thus completely ignoring my raging husband, “he’ll kill you eventually, he’s already come close. How long do you think it’s going to be until he takes his beatings just a little too far? Then I’ll come and spit on your grave; your real grave, bitch!”

Oliver doesn’t wait any longer before dragging her out of the room so roughly, I spy Leo having a silent battle with himself over whether he should intervene. When the front door slams closed and we hear Oliver instructing Pru not to allow her back inside again, he seems to relax, knowing that Felicity is now out and away from Oliver’s temper. Me, however? Well, I guess Felicity’s right; it won’t be long before he takes it too far with his temper, and then she’ll get her wish.

Oliver returns only momentarily to tell me that I am expected to have dinner with him tonight, and to be ready by the time he returns home from work. I can tell he would dearly like to let his frustrations out on me, one way or another. However, seeing as he’s only just got me back, I’m guessing he’s trying to rein it in a little, if only on a temporary basis.

“You want breakfast, sweetheart?” Leo asks with his soft, papa bear tone of voice, obviously sensing how upset I am. I simply shake my head and make my way out into the hall. Eating is the very last thing I want to do after that performance.

“I fancy a walk if that’s ok?” I grab my coat, already knowing Leo will say yes to me because he always does.

We’re soon heading out onto the already busy streets, making our way straight to the park without even stopping to look at the papers or to grab a hot drink. I had asked Leo to send a text to Kai so he will hopefully meet us at the same bench as before. After everything that has gone on during the last week or so, I suddenly need a friend, and although I consider Leo a good friend, it’s still too dangerous to lean on him.

By the time we get there, I’m beyond thankful to see Kai anxiously pacing up and down. His large, genuine smile makes me feel warm from the inside, and I can’t help running over to give him a hug, completely risking the consequences for a few indulgent moments. I almost laugh when he does the same thing Leo had done to me this morning, checking me over for fresh injuries and asking how I am about a dozen times or so. He finishes by running a finger along a faded bruise that still cuts into my jawline and tuts.

“How’s it going, Rose?” he asks me with eyes that are searching for the truth, not meaningless placations.

“Oh, you know, alive,” I laugh softly.

“Always a bonus,” he smiles back, and I almost want to hug him again. People rarely joke with me anymore and I’ve forgotten what it’s like to laugh at myself.

“I kind of spoke to Xander via your phone while I was away,” I confess as we sit down together on the bench behind. “As Angela, of course.”

“Oh,” he says with a frown, then stares down at the floor for a moment or two, looking confused over my admission.