BANG!
The gun went off. Tracy saw the brief flash near the end of the muzzle but it was too dark for her to see the bullet as it rocketed past and tore through the very edge of her upper arm. She immediately cried out and fell to the ground, a spattering of her blood spraying out onto the gravel below.
Mr. Hayes, whether through his prowess or pure luck, wrestled the man down to the ground and immediately climbed on top of him. By the time that Tracy was able to clamp and hand down onto her wound and stand up onto her shaking legs, Mr. Hayes had beaten the assassin into unconsciousness and was still going.
"Mr. Hayes," she screamed. "Mr. Hayes!"
He didn’t answer, but she still wasn’t close enough to reach him.
"Paul!"
Hearing her call him that name made him snap out of his blood-hungry trance. He grabbed the gun from where it had fallen and climbed up off of the man, never once taking his eyes off of him.
"Tracy," he cried. "Please tell me you’re okay."
She finally made it to the scene and looked down at the man as a steady pattering of her blood dripped down onto his jacket. Mr. Hayes had done a number on his face, but there was no doubting who it was.
Tracy snapped her head up at the sound of a car peeling out and scatting little rocks everywhere. It was John Tice and he was well on his way to being gone.
"What is it?" He asked, afraid to take even one eye off of his would-be assassin.
"It’s John. He’s getting away."
It came as no surprise to either of them. John Tice was the type of guy who got away with things because of his position, even if that meant throwing his hired help under the bus. It was nothing new, but it made Tracy wonder if they had maybe scared him enough to lay low. Maybe her restaurant wouldn’t be worth it to him anymore and they could go back to their lives.
"What about him?"
Mr. Hayes carefully engaged the safety on the gun and put it in his pocket.
"Are you kidding? He failed. If we are still talking about the same John Tice, he is as good as done. Come on. We need to go."
He took a few steps back but never turned completely around. Tracy gently grabbed his free wrist and walked around so that she could finally look at his face.
"Then what?"
He pried his wrist from her and raised his hand to cup her blood-flecked cheek. When he finally met her stare, Tracy could see the laid-bare emotions that he wanted to express, but for which words were inadequate.
"It doesn’t matter, Tracy. I love you, and I will fight from here to hell and back to make sure that you know it." He pulled her in a kissed her lips with a new-found tenderness that was a first for both of them. When he pulled away, Tracy could see the tear-stained trails leading from his eyes as he asked, "This might not be the best time, but I've never been more sure than I am right now. Will you be my wife?"
The question rocked Tracy more than any of the events leading up to it. She glanced over to the man, who was still motionless on the ground, and then turned back to Mr. Hayes. It was obvious that neither one of them had planned to make that leap so soon. She could see it in his eyes: the pleading desperation that comes only from realizing that he found the one thing that he couldn’t live without.
"Yes," she responded simply and fell into his arms. It was the one place that where she knew she would always be safe.
Mr. Hayes pulled her off of her feet with one arm and carried her away from the bloody scene with a renewed vigor to protect and provide for Tracy, no matter what the cost. As the sun began to rise over a distant tree-line to the east, it felt as if the dawn heralded not only the new day, but a new chapter in their lives.
Tracy closed her eyes and let him carry her to the car.
"Mrs. Tracy Hayes", she whispered to herself and smiled.
It was the most beautiful thing that she had heard in a long, long time.