"Don't worry," Jan said, her voice calm but firm, the kind of unwavering tone that could cut through panic like a lighthouse beam through fog. "I'll handle everything legal. Mira's mother is detained. She's facing many years. Mira's sentence will also be longer, her mother confessed that she was the one who told her to hurt you. Apparently, they planned this together. She's been spying on both of you for quite some time, tracking your movements, listening, watching. They were calculating this and mapping it out.''
I swallowed hard, the weight of her words pressing down on me like a physical force. My hands trembled slightly, gripping the edge of the chair as if it could anchor me. Relief battled with revulsion in my chest.
"Thank you, Jan," I said finally, my voice barely above a whisper, rough with emotion. "Thank you for everything. But... I don't ever want to hear their names again." The words felt like a vow, a line drawn in the sand, a boundary against letting the horror creep back in.
Jan gave a small, almost imperceptible nod. She didn't press, didn't try to offer comfort I wasn't ready to receive, she simply stayed beside me as a steady presence in the storm. Her calmness felt like an anchor, even as the panic and guilt swirled inside me.
I noticed her pull out her phone, scrolling quickly through her contacts before pressing a name. She called Margot, her voice calm and reassuring as she told her she'd arrived at the hospital. Margot had been calling me too, constantly, but she still hadn't shown up, which struck me as strange. I frowned, and before I could ask, Jan glanced up, as if she'd read my thoughts, and spoke first.
"Margot can't get into hospitals," she said quietly, almost apologetically. "She literally can't. She has... awful memories here. She wants to be here for you, you know, but she just... can't."
I forced a small, shaky smile. "It's okay, Jan. You're here."
"He will be fine," Jan added, her voice soft but firm.
But I knew she didn't—couldn't—truly know that.
Hours crawled by, each update from the medical team a tiny spark of hope or a fresh wave of fear. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I turned to Jan. She was, after all, a lawyer; if anyone could help me bend the rules just enough to see him, it would be her. With her by my side, I asked to be allowed next to him.
The door opened, and I stepped in. The sterile smell of antiseptic hit me immediately. The rhythmic beeping of machines filled the room, loud and relentless, echoing in my chest. There he was—weak, vulnerable, surrounded by tubes and monitors, yet stillalive. For the first time since the shooting, the dam I'd been holding back broke, and I actually started crying.
I knelt beside the bed, my hand reaching for his, trembling as I clasped it gently. His skin was warm but fragile beneath my fingers. I leaned closer, my lips barely above a whisper.
"Please, Ryder," I whispered, my voice splintering under the weight of everything I couldn't say. My fingers tightened around his, willing warmth into his skin, willing life back into him. "We both know you're a fighter—God, you've always been a fighter. So keep fighting now. Fight for your life, for mine as well. Don't leave me here alone." My forehead pressed gently against the back of his hand as tears slid down my cheeks, hot and relentless. "Please... come back to me. Please. I can't lose you. Not like this. Not when I still have so much to tell you."
I felt a subtle twitch in his hands, the faintest shift, and my heart skipped into my throat, soaring all at once. My voice caught in a breathless whisper, almost pleading, ''Please, my heart... don't let go. Come back to me, Ry. Bring me back the man I love, the man who made me believe again. Let me see those caramel eyes.''
Chapter 31: The Bridge Between Worlds (Ryder)
The fields stretched endlessly before me, rolling hills painted in green and gold, the sky alive with colors no earthly sunset could ever hold. Purple bled into crimson, crimson into gold, and everything shimmered like a dream half-remembered. I walkedwithout knowing why or for how long. Time didn't exist here, it justwas. The air tasted sweet, like spring after rain, and somewhere ahead, water sang as it fell, calling me closer.
When I reached the edge of the waterfall, I sat down, the mist kissing my face. For the first time in forever, the ache inside me eased. It was quiet—too quiet—and yet, somehow, I felt... seen.
Then I heard some footsteps. Soft. Familiar. I turned and the world stopped.
"Mom?" My voice broke, fragile, unbelieving. "Dad?"
My mother's smile glowed brighter than the light around us. "Sweetheart," she breathed, her voice exactly as I remembered—gentle, safe, home. The sound of it shattered me. A sob tore from my chest as I stumbled forward. "Mom... oh my God—Dad..."
They opened their arms, and when I reached them, everything in me collapsed. Their embrace was warmth and forgiveness and everything I'd been chasing in the dark. My father's hand rested on my shoulder, solid, grounding, and my mother's fingers brushed through my hair like I was a boy again.
"We've been waiting for you," Dad said, his voice trembling with pride.
Mom pressed her forehead to mine, her whisper breaking through my tears. "We've missed you so much, sweetheart. You've carried so much pain, but your heart... it's still so pure. We're so proud of you."
The waterfall roared behind us, but all I could hear was their voices and the sound of love I thought I'd lost forever. I shook my head, clinging to them desperately. "I miss you bothso much," I choked out. "Every single day. It never stopped hurting."
Mom cupped my face in her hands, her touch softer than air. "Oh, Ryder," she murmured, eyes glistening. "We know. We've seen every tear, every night you tried to be strong for everyone else."
Dad's arm wrapped around my shoulders, steady and sure. "You did good, son. You fought through things that would have broken most men. You never gave up, even when it felt like there was nothing left to hold onto."
I shook my head again, sobbing harder. "I tried, but I failed so many times. I hurt people, I made mistakes—"
"Shh," Mom hushed gently. "You were human. Youlivedand you loved—God, Ryder, you loved so deeply. That's what matters."
I buried my face in her shoulder, the scent of her hair just as I remembered, lavender and home. "I don't want to leave you again," I whispered.
Her arms tightened around me, trembling as if she could hold back eternity itself. "My baby," she whispered, her voice breaking on the words. "Oh, my beautiful boy... if love alone could keep you here, I would never let you go. I would give anything—everything—to have more time with you. To see you wake up in the mornings, to hear your laugh fill the house again, to watch you grow into the man you've become. I'd trade every moment of my heaven just to have one more day with you."
