Love and Hate (23 page)

“Claudia, go.” Donovan says
calmly while he grabs the gun from my hand and he pushes me away.

“No! What is going on?!”

“Claudia” I turn to see my dad.
“Dad what are you doing?”

“They’re in charge, your dad and
him.” Donovan points the gun over at my dad.

“Donovan!” I yell at him.

“Tell her I’m lying. Tell her I’m
lying!” Donovan screams.

I look back at my dad. Please
don’t tell me it’s true.

“Dad.”

“I did what was necessary.”

“Are you responsible for my
brother’s death?” Donovan says.

“Your brother is responsible.” I
turn to see Judge Winthrop. “There was a meeting at the house that night of the
party and your brother heard everything by accident. He shouldn’t have been
snooping around.”

“My brother was just a kid!”
Donovan screams still pointing back and forth between the judge and my father.
“And as far as I know he was a better man than both of you.”

“Dad.” I tearfully say.

“When they told me the Pierce boy
had heard everything, I told them to leave him alone. I did.” My father says.

“But I stepped in and made the
decision for your father.” The Judge chimes in.

“But you still go on like it’s
nothing.” Donovan says. “Attacking my whole family, knowing that you were a
part of it all. Your hatred for my father was more than my brother’s life.”

“Yes.” My father simply says. I
see so much regret in his face right now, but I don’t even pity him. I don’t
even know who this man is.

What do I do? What do I do? My
father is responsible for so much pain and hurt and my boyfriend wants to kill
him? What do I do?!

“Donovan, listen to me. I know
what my dad did was wrong, but you can’t do this.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s not what anyone
wants. It’s not what I want. It’s not what your family wants. And it’s not what
your brother would have wanted. I need you to let it go. We will let the police
handle it. The real police.” I look to my father with nothing but anger at this
moment. He looks at me with sadness and embarrassment, but right now I could
care less. “I mean come on if there are good criminals there are a good cops,
right? Just put it down. Dad you tell him to do the same.”

“Put it down Dan.”

“Henry”

“Damn it! Dan! Put it down!”
Winthrop slowly lowers his gun. My father continues looking at me. “I’m sorry
Claudia.”

I don’t even want his apology
right now.

I look back at Donovan. “Donovan,
please.”

He looks at me with tears in his
eyes and his jaws clenched.  I just don’t want him to do this. I know he won’t
come back from it. We won’t come back from it. Of course I don’t want him to
kill my father, he is my father, but enough is enough. This has to stop. All
the killing and lies. All the hate, it has to stop.

Finally Donovan lowers his gun.

Thank God.

He looks at me with nothing, but
sorrow, and all I need to do is grab him and get us the hell out of here, away
from it all.

“Screw this” I turn to see
Winthrop lifting his gun back up towards Donovan.

 “No!” I scream.

I move in front of Donovan
without thinking and face the judge as he pulls the trigger. The sound of the
gun shot doesn’t even come close to the pain I feel in my stomach.

Donovan

What happens when the love of
your life jumps in front of a bullet for you?

Nothing, but pain and misery.

I catch her as she falls in my
arms. I lay her down gently holding on to the wound in her stomach. There is so
much blood.

I see her eyes, her gray
beautiful eyes. They are darkening, just like Christian’s did that night.

“Claudia, hold on.” She shakes as
I hold on to her.

“Freeze! Put the gun down!” I
hear the police run in, but I can’t see them. All I see is her, staring back at
me. She gives a sad smile.

“You’re gonna be okay.”

She raises her hand and presses
her cold palm against my cheek. She rubs the side of my face with her hand.
“It’s okay.”

It’s like Déjà vu when she says
that. No.

“You can’t leave me. You can’t
die.” I tearfully say.

“I love you.” She whispers before
closing her eyes.

“Claudia. Claudia!” I shake her
but she doesn’t move.

Oh God. Oh God. I look up to see
the cops staring at us.

I see Henry Stonem standing near
us shaking staring at his daughter in my arms. I see Winthrop being handcuffed.
I look over to the stairway and see Emile with blood coming down the side of
his face staring at me in shock.

With so much pain in me, I get
now why Romeo killed himself. You can’t imagine living your life without her.
You can’t imagine going on and breathing without her. You can’t imagine any
world where she doesn’t exist. That’s what happens when you find a love like
that and lose it. You don’t know how your going to survive.

So now you would think I would
want to grab the gun next to me and shoot myself… but I’m not. I’m going to get
her out of here like I planned all along.

I slowly stand while picking her
up. I hold her upper back with her head rested upon my shoulder and hold her
legs up with my other hand. I look at one of the officers in front of me. He
looks at me with pity and moves out of my way. I walk through the other
officers and step outside the door. I see people outside with other officers. I
carry her through them all. I want them to see. I want them to see what happens
when people let hatred take over.

They all look at me with pity and
despair. I than see Jade crying hysterically. I see Ella next to her with tears
in her eyes.

I look to my other side and see
my parents. They look at me with broken eyes, shocked at what I am holding.

I see the ambulance pull up in
front.

I walk towards it. My mother
places her hand on my left shoulder and walks with me. My father walks next to me
on my right.

I feel nothing in the end.

I am nothing without her.

Epilogue

Donovan Pierce took the large, sealed, brown
envelope from Henry Stonem.

“Thanks.” Donovan said.

“You’re welcome.”

Donovan rose up from his seat and
started for the exit, where the guard was waiting.

“Donovan.” He turned around to
face Stonem   who stood up in his orange jumpsuit. “I never told you this, and I
know she would want me to…… I’m sorry … for everything.”

Donovan glanced at the envelope
in his hand then back at Stonem. “It’s okay. We both suffered a loss.”

Stonem watched Donovan as he
walked away and waited for the guard to open the door.

Donovan headed through security
and received his belongings. Once he got outside he took a deep breath. He felt
as if he had been holding in the pain and hatred for Henry Stonem in the prison
where he now resided.

Henry Stonem was sentenced to
twenty five years in prison for embezzlement and conspiracy to commit murder.
Henry Stonem gave the police info of every scam he, detective Anderson Raines,
detective James Garner, and Judge Daniel Winthrop were involved in. Winthrop received
the same sentence.

As Donovan drove an hour back
home he thought about everything that had happen in the past year. His thought
of his brother, family, and Claudia. He thought about everything he had with
Claudia and how her love saved him from himself.

Once he reached home he was
greeted by his mother and Millie who were fixing a family dinner. His mother
smiled at the sight of him.

“Hey.” She says.

“Hey mom.” She walked up to her
son and kissed him on the cheek.

“How was it?”

“Hard.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah. Where is everyone?”

“Your father is in his office and
the kids are outback.”

Donovan left the kitchen and headed
towards his father’s office. He entered the office and saw his father, Roman
Pierce, staring out the window into the sun with his hands in his pockets.

“I got it.” Roman turned to see
his son holding up the envelope.

Donovan handed it over to his
father. Roman opened it and pulled out the sheets of paper. There it was, the
evidence linking Roman to the death of Eddie Valentine. Stonem promised that he
would leave them alone and give them the rest of the evidence that could leak
to Mickey Valentine.

“You didn’t have to go alone.”
Roman said looking up at his son.

“Yeah, I did.”

Roman gave his son a tight smile
and nodded his head.

He placed the documents back into
the envelope and laid it at his desk. Donovan tilted his head to the side
watching his father who looked as if he had more to say.

“I know I don’t say it much
Donovan, but… I just want you to know that I’m very proud of you and the man you’re
becoming… and I love you.”

Donovan smiled at his dad. Lately
his father had been taking the initiative in expressing his feelings towards
him. Donovan laughed to himself because he knew who was responsible for that.

“I love you too dad.”

As Donovan walked away, Roman
remembered to inform him of his day.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you.”
Donovan turned around to his dad. “We bonded today.”

Donovan smiled again.

“I’m glad to hear that dad.”

He left his father’s office and
headed towards the back. Once he got there, he was greeted by Emile and Ella.

“Hey.” Ella said to him. “How was
it?”

“It was hard, but every things
okay now.”

“Dude, Jade's coming over.” Donovan
laughed at his friend’s information. “What can I say man, chicks dig gunshot
wounds.”

Emile smiled broadly and carefully
patted his arm that was still recovering from the bullet he encountered two
months ago.

“Come on midget.” Ella said
pulling Emile. “Your girl is over there big brother”

Donovan looked across the huge green
lawn to see her.

The love of his life, Claudia
Stonem.

 Claudia walked in her sundress
while the wind blew through her hair. She smiled at Donovan and waved at him.
Donovan could never get enough of looking at her. Once they reached each other
he placed a gentle kiss upon her lips.

“Hi.” She spoke against his lips.

Donovan released his embrace.

“Hello. My father said you bonded
today.” He laughed.

“Yeah, we did. Your mom and I
cooked too.”

He arched his eyebrows and gave
her a look.

“Okay, maybe your mom cooked and
I made the salad.”

They both laughed as they gently
pressed their foreheads together. They closed their eyes to savor the moment.

Claudia had survived that night.
Once her father was arrested she didn’t have any family left. Since she was
eighteen she wasn’t put into foster care, but she didn’t want to stay at that
house by herself. The house was nothing, but painful memories for her after
that day.

Donovan asked his family if she
could stay with them and they gladly accepted it. Claudia was having a perfect
summer with the Pierces. They were finally getting back to being a family. Donovan
and Claudia are about to start NYU together in two weeks along with Emile and Jade.
Everything was perfect for them. Donovan would never lose her again.

“How is he?”

“Not good I guess. I can tell he
wants to see you.”

“Maybe sometime in the future I’ll
be able to forgive.”

Donovan rubbed her cheek with his
thumb. “You will.”

The family sat at the dinner
table along with Emile, Jade, Jason, Dina, and Claudia.

“I would like to make a toast.”
Roman Pierce said raising his glass. Everyone joined him.

 “We have been through a lot in
this family. We have been through pain, loss, and suffering. But in the end we
still remain one. We remain the Pierce family, strong and unbreakable. So I
would like to toast to family which is everyone at this table.”

Everyone joined in taking sips of
their drinks.

Donovan nodded at his father
thanking him for everything he had done. Roman nodded back. It was their way.

Under the dinner table, Claudia
reached for Donovan’s hand and locked her fingers with his. He looked at her
with nothing but love and so did she to him.

The Pierce family enjoyed their
meal and celebrated the blessing they had received while remembering the loved
ones they lost.

Claudia and Donovan changed
everything that year. There was no longer any hate surrounding them. There was
only just the pure formality of freedom, happiness, and love.

The
End