Page 83 of Taken By Sin
My life has been so limited, so terribly small until I met you.
You’ve made my world a book and I can neverthank you enough for that.
But I can’t do this, I can’t live this life. By doing so you’re just chaining me to danger. In this way, you took me in with open arms and locked the door behind me, Sin.
I can never watch you bleed out on a kitchen counter again.
I will love you for the rest of my life.
Don’t come looking for me, please.
Love always, Magnolia
The words scald my fingers as I write them, but it needs to be said. I rest it on top of a copy of Romeo and Juliet that I bought for him.
I grab my coat and slip downstairs, forgoing the crowd and walking to the security room where I know Maxwell will be. I can’t stay here. I can’t stand to be under his watchful eyes, to be trapped in the life he’s chosen when I’ve already made my choice.
Max looks shocked by my appearance. “Are you okay?” he stands.
“Yes.” I nod. “I just need to get out ofhere.”
He places a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Done. Where to?”
“I don’t know,” I laugh without humor. “Please, Max.”
Outside, the air feels sharp against my skin, but it’s strangely freeing, as though I’m shedding something heavy with every step I take. I walk quickly toward the car waiting by the driveway; Maxwell is in the driver’s seat, his stoic face offering no judgment.
But as I reach the gate, about to slip into the world I’ve chosen for myself, I hear it—the sound of footsteps, fast and heavy, the unmistakable presence of Sin closing in on me.
I freeze.
“Magnolia,” his voice calls out, rough with desperation. “Stop.”
I don’t turn around, but my heart stutters. I want to turn. I want to run to him, to tell him I’ve made a mistake. But I can’t. I know I can’t.
“Please,” he says, his voice strained. I hear him getting closer, and finally, I can’t stop myself from turning.
He’s there, standing a few feet away, his expression dark and fierce, but beneath it, there’s something raw—something pleading. His chest rises and falls from the exertion of running, his jacket slightly askew, his hair falling out of place. My note is clutched in his hands.
“Magnolia, please,” he says again, his voice breaking slightly. “I can’t let you go. I can’t lose you. I’ll go with you, wherever you want. Just—just don’t leave me.”
I swallow, the words lodged in my throat. I take a step towards him, nodding my head. “So, you’ll give it up.”
His eyes darken, a flash of anger and hurt crossing his features, but then it softens, and the vulnerability in his eyes hits me like a wave. “I don’t care about this,” he says quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. “I care about you, but I can’t walk away from this. It’s not that easy.”
My breath catches in my throat, the weight of his words crushing me, but I stand firm. I have to. I can’t let him drag me back into a life I know will destroy us both.
“I’m not asking you to leave everything, Sin. Now, I’m asking you to let me go.”
There’s a silence that stretches between us, thick and painful. I can see the anguish in his eyes, the desperation clawing at him. He steps forward again, his hand reaching out like he’s trying to close the space between us, but I hold up my hand to stop him.
“This is the only way,” I whisper, my voice shaking.
His hand drops to his side, his entire body deflating as the realization hits him. “I can’t lose you,” he whispers, the words like a broken record, and for a moment, I see the man he could have been—if he weren’t bound by blood, by loyalty to a life he never wanted but inherited all the same.
“I’m sorry, Sin,” I say, my voice thick with unshed tears. “But I can’t save you. You have to save yourself.”
“Ican’t.”