Petals

Samuel went silent and the glass of water he was holding shattered as it hit the floor. He never thought it would have come to this. His throat closed up, and the floor seemed to sway beneath him. He thought he had fooled them once and for all, and that he would never have to see him again. He heard the door being busted open, and he knew someone had sealed his fate.

Nadia was always the only one who Samuel trusted enough to know about all of his secrets. Emphasis on was. He had selfishly kept one secret from her. That secret was that he slept with a woman from his office. His secretary. An “everyday office scandal” as Samuel so eloquently put it. He knew the poor girl want to keep her job as his secretary, which is why he never worried about her finding out. Of course, Nadia found out long before her plan was put into motion.

What Nadia did know was that Samuel used to be involved in a hardcore ride-or-die gang called The Skeleton’s Blood. She knew all the member’s names. Rico, Tin, Chameleon, Alley, SnapTooth, Bloodhound, Tango, Karma, Gunner (Samuel), and the ringleader, Mace. She knew about his history of selling and buying drugs. She knew about every heist he ever pulled, every person he ever bribed, and every person he ever killed. She also knew that wilting roses were their calling card for revenge. She had heard every story about how he killed some of the biggest kingpins they had beef with. Every single one started with how he’d sneak into a space the target is most likely to be found, and put wilting roses in the center of the area.

She had helped him forge a new identity and start a new life. She helped him pay off all of his debts so had the snipers off his back. She payed for him to go back to school. Nadia and Samuel had started a family of three together, and one was on the way. They had a happy life together, and everyone saw them as the perfect couple.

Nadia was four months pregnant when she found out about his little office affair. She was told over email by his secretary, who was trying to apologize for what she had done to his family. She cried in secret for two months, slowly beginning to see the signs of his disinterest in her. He spent more time at the office and less time at home. He barely spoke to the kids. He hadn’t even said “I love you” once in the past month.

As anyone would, Nadia became angry. She had saved this man from a life of crime and given him exactly what he claimed he’d always wanted. Brought him into her house, gave him food to eat, water to drink, and a well paying job. She has sacrificed her life, other’s lives, everything to support this man.

So there Nadia sat, sipping her morning tea, smiling to herself. As the children played in their rooms, Nadia watched the wilting flowers that sat on the kitchen counter. She peacefully listen to the sounds of her husbands muffled yells in an attempt to struggle. After Rico and SnapTooth dragged him out with a gun to his head, she began to rub her belly. She felt the baby kick as there were gunshots fired just outside her door.

She silently vowed that she would take care of her children so they wouldn’t grow up to be like Samuel.

Nadia shivered as her blood went ice cold when she heard more gunshots, closer this time. She feared the worst, and she was right to do so. She cautiously stepped into the hallway where her kid’s bedrooms were.

Loud sobs could be heard from outside the house as Nadia dropped to her knees. The blood spilling from underneath the doors. Wilted rose petals morbidly decorated the hallway, forever burning this day into Nadia’s memory.

Mace exited one of the rooms, seeing a pregnant woman curled up on the floor crying. He held no remorse in his eyes as he finished what Samuel had started.