After 100 Twisted Games Goodbye Ex-Husband Chapter 09
I’m Dead
Bella put on a humble face. “You roll the dice, Hazel. Fair and square. If you roll an odd number, you go first.”
I didn’t hesitate. Rolled the dice. Odd number. I’d go first.
I heard Julian’s breath hitch. His fists clenched tight.
His nerves gave it away. The bullet was in an even-numbered chamber.
Bella’s face went pale. She stammered, “No, no! Best two out of three!”
I laughed bitterly. Didn’t stop her.
Bella cheated somehow. Rolled odd numbers twice. Now *she’d* go first.
“I’m first, so I’ll start.”
Julian said nothing. Just, “Get on with it.”
Bella smiled flirtatiously at Julian. Held the gun to her own chest. Pulled the trigger.
Click. Empty.
—
The gun passed to me.
I weighed it for a moment. Then laughed coldly.
This wasn’t the fake gun from last time. This was real.
Real gun. Real bullet.
“What are you waiting for?” Bella’s eyes sparkled with smugness.
“Are you scared? Did you only agree to play to make Julian happy?”
Julian’s face darkened. “Hazel, it’s your turn.”
I still didn’t move. A bodyguard spoke up.
“Miss Hazel, once the game starts, you can’t stop. If you refuse, you’ll face punishment.”
“This is round one hundred and one. The punishment is the sum of all one hundred previous punishments. Are you sure you can handle that?”
My lips curved into a bitter smile. My heart felt like a wasteland.
What a joke. Julian and Bella probably made that rule up on the spot.
He just wanted to watch me suffer.
Because I hadn’t fallen apart after losing the last round. Hadn’t cried and begged him on my knees like a dog. Hadn’t groveled for him to stay.
He’d been betrayed before. So he only wanted someone who’d love him enough to die. But even that couldn’t fill the black hole in his heart.
He was incapable of love.
I looked at Julian. A mocking glint in my eyes. My voice barely above a whisper.
“Julian, I’m asking you one last time. Do you really want me to keep playing this game?”
Julian’s body stiffened. His pupils trembled. After a long pause, he said, “Hazel, a game is a game.”
The last thread in my heart snapped.
The sea wind whipped my hair around my pale face. I looked fragile. Broken. Beautiful.
I gripped the gun. Pressed it to my chest.
“Julian, this shot is to repay you for covering Nana’s medical bills. For letting her stay with me for three more years.”
Click. Empty.
Julian frowned. Didn’t understand why I’d bring that up now.
The gun went back to Bella. She was confident, but still put on a frightened, brave act.
“Julian, I love you. As long as I can win, I’m not afraid to die!”
Click. Empty again.
Julian’s eyes softened for a moment. Then he looked at me.
I didn’t hesitate. Before pulling the trigger, I spoke again. “This shot is to repay you for three years of affection.”
Click. Empty.
The gun returned to Bella.
Julian’s expression grew darker. His unease grew. He bit out, “Hazel, just play the game. Why are you saying all this?”
Bella fired her fifth shot. Breathed a sigh of relief. Looked at me with pity. “What are we going to do now? I won again.”
—
Finally, the sixth shot.
I stood. Walked slowly to the edge of the cliff. Faced Julian directly.
The guards tensed. Stepped protectively in front of Julian.
But I just pressed the gun to my chest.
“This shot means we’re even. From now on, we owe each other nothing.”
**Bang!**
—
The deafening gunshot rang out. Blood exploded from my chest.
My hand went limp. The gun fell.
My body tilted backward. Fell like paper.
In that moment, I saw Julian running toward me like a caged animal. Screaming my name.
“HAZEL!”
