Sweeping Him Off His Feet-Chapter 237: Old friend.

Swiftly, Augustine turned toward the voice. At the far end of the abandoned workshop, Reuben had his hands dug into Charles’s hair, pulling him forward. Charles was barely able to walk, his body drenched in blood.

"Please... Reuben, I beg of you... just let my man go. You don’t have to punish him... please..." Augustine pleaded, his voice shaking as he fought the urge to run forward.

"Shut the fuck up, Augustine!" Reuben yelled, his voice echoing through the workshop. "If you come any closer, Charles’s life will be in even greater danger," he added, a sly smirk twisting his lips.

Freda swallowed hard and rushed to the side of the fuel tank where Reginald had been kept. She knew the longer he stayed there, the slimmer his chances of survival became.

"Augustine! Please, help me! We need to get Reginald out of here!" Freda shouted.

Augustine glanced at her, torn, before his eyes darted back to Reuben. "Oh, fuck!" he yelled, rushing to her side.

Together, they pushed the heavy fuel tank, gritting their teeth as veins strained in their hands and necks. Once the tank was finally moved, Freda knelt beside Reginald’s lifeless body and held him tightly, her heart pounding with fear and relief.

"Freda, take... take Reginald to the car. I’ll be right behind you," Augustine stammered. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"No! I can’t leave you here," Freda insisted. "Reuben, just tell us what you want. Is it money? Fame? Companies? Anything... please, just tell us! And let Charles go so we can take him back to the hospital. He needs... please Charles needs medical attention."

"Oh, fuck you!" Reuben spat, a mouthful of saliva landing on Charles’s hair. "Do you think I care about money? How much could you possibly give me? I don’t need anything else. All I want is for Charles to love me," he explained, his brows arched, voice cold and intense.

Augustine swallowed hard. "But... Charles can’t do that," he whispered, stretching his right hand forward as he took slow steps toward Reuben. "Can’t you ask for something else?" Tears streamed down his face.

Reuben sighed. "All I need is for Charles to love me, as I have loved him. That’s why I kidnapped him... to save him." His words trailed off, then a hiss escaped his mouth. "Stop moving closer, Augustine."

Reuben suddenly uttered as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a gun. "One more step, and I’ll shoot your lover."

Augustine’s hands trembled. He swallowed hard, blinking rapidly, and forced himself to speak. "Charles loves me, but if you let him go, I... I promise that once he’s safe and treated, I’ll step aside so he can be with you. Please... don’t hurt him. I beg you."

"Pfff," Reuben let out a mocking scoff. "Do you think I’m foolish? Or do I look foolish to you..."

Before he could finish, the workshop door was pushed open.

A young lady stepped in, dressed in black leather pants, a leather jacket, and black leather heels. Her hair was pulled into a neat ponytail, and black sunglasses covered her eyes. She walked to Augustine’s side and paused, gracefully removing her dark shades to reveal eyes filled with hatred.

"Hello, Augustine. I heard you alerted the cops," she said.

"What! He did?" Reuben asked, clearly taken aback.

Augustine’s lips quivered in shock as his gaze flicked between the woman and Reuben. "Aubrey, why are you filled with such ev..."

"Evil, right?" Aubrey cut in, a sly smirk playing across her lips. "Well, if you’re really curious, the reason I’m evil is because you made me this way."

Augustine clenched his trembling fists, fixing his gaze on her. "We... we used to be friends."

"Yeah, not anymore," she replied coolly before stepping toward Reuben. "The cops will be here within five minutes. I need you to kill everyone here, then we leave. We don’t have time to waste."

"No... Nooooooo!" Freda and Augustine screamed simultaneously, their words trailing off in panic.

Aubrey, whose back had been turned, spun around to face them. "If I don’t kill you both, I’ll be in so much trouble," she purred, amusement in her voice. She tilted her head slightly at Reuben. "Please don’t make me repeat myself."

"Aubrey, this isn’t what we planned," Reuben said, panic flashing in his eyes. "You promised that if I kidnapped Charles, I’d have him all for myself."

"So?" Aubrey scoffed, wrapping her hands across her stomach. "Our plan has changed. Kill everyone. There should be no witnesses."

"But I..." Reuben started, but she cut him off. "If you can’t, then I guess Charles is yours. That’s all."

Following her words, she turned her back at Reuben and strode toward Augustine. Slowly, she pulled her gun beneath her leather jacket and with a swift and solid motion, Aubrey spun to face Reuben, who was lifting Charles’ limp body.

"Goodbye, sucker!" Aubrey shouted and fired, striking Reuben’s thigh.

"Arrrrghhh!" Freda yelled.

"Gush!" Augustine seethed, placing his hands on his lips as he tried to suppress a loud scream from escaping his mouth.

"You bitch!" Reuben cursed, letting go of Charles. "Motherfucker, this... this wasn’t part of the deal!" He seethed as he aimed his gun at Aubrey, intending to shoot her chest but unfortunately Reuben hand shook in pain and the bullet landed on Aubrey’s elbow.

Aubrey hissed, staggering back. With a cruel smile, she lifted her injured arm and fired multiple shots at Reuben. Bullets struck the floor, but enough hit Reuben which prompted blood to gush out from him as he fell.

Aubrey’s lips curved into a cold smile. "I guess it’s your turn," she purred in delight, ignoring the pain in her elbow as she turned toward Augustine, pointing the gun at his forehead.

"Aubrey... please don’t..." Augustine pleaded, stepping back with his legs trembling. "We’ve... come on, we’ve been friends for a long time."

"Friends? Not anymore," Aubrey said coolly, ignoring Augustine words.

"Please, Aubrey. Don’t do this. Let us go," Freda begged, supporting Reginald at her back as she began to walk over to Augustine side.

"...Pfft, Goodbye, old friend!" Aubrey spat and then... she pulled the trigger.