That's what she'd been trying to tell me all those years ago, wasn't it?
The difference between simple revenge and true vengeance. Revenge isquick, reactionary—a response to immediate hurt. But vengeance? Vengeance is calculated.
Patient.
Willing to suffer longer to ensure the final retribution is absolute.
Those last pooling tears from those opened eyes that dare aimlessly upward slip.
"Please," I find myself whispering, the word emerging as both prayer and command. "You have to live. There’s so much I never said…so much we didn’t do…I…I didn’t get to apologize. Didn’t try to prove my loyalty the right way…please Verena. Please.”
To hear myself beg is an instance I haven’t put myself in eons, and yet, here I am on repeat, begging for this Ruthless Queen to take a breath again.
My arms burn with relentless effort, each compression sending shockwaves of exhaustion through overworked muscles.
Black spots dance at the edges of my vision, lungs screaming for oxygen I've forgotten to take in. The world narrows to the mechanical motion of keeping her heart beating —up, down, up, down— while frost seeps through my knees from the frozen ground.
The dog's mournful howls blend with the pounding of blood in my ears, creating a symphony of desperation that matches the rhythm of my hands against Eva's chest.
Sweat drips into my eyes despite the bitter cold, but I dare not pause to wipe it away. Each second counts, each compression might be the one that keeps death from claiming permanent victory. My vision blurs — from tears or exhaustion, I can't tell anymore.
"ARIES, dammit!"
The raw fury in that voice barely registers before strong arms lock around my waist, yanking me backward with enough force to send us both sprawling.
I curse, twisting and fighting against the iron grip, but my depleted muscles betray me. Through swimming vision, I watch Ren drop beside Eva; a syringe appearing in his hand like magic.
My breath catches as he drives the needle into her thigh with precise force, depressing the plunger with agonizing slowness. Every cell in my body screams to intervene, to take back control of this desperate attempt at salvation.
Before I can break free, Zander takes Ren's place in a fluid motion that speaks of terrible familiarity with crisis.
His hands find the proper position on Eva's chest, and he begins compressions. Each downward thrust carries enoughforce to make her body jerk, his raw strength barely contained as he fights to restart her heart.
"C'mon Moonflower," Ren urges, his usual playful tone replaced by a tone sharp with fear. His hands hover near her face, ready to deliver rescue breaths between Zander's sets.
"Breathe, Eva!" Zander's command cuts through the night air like a blade. "You're not fucking dying!" The crack of ribs beneath his desperate efforts makes me flinch, but he doesn't hesitate. The sound will haunt my nightmares, but broken bones can heal.
Death offers no second chances.
I surge against the restraining arms again, needing to help, to contribute, to do something besides watch helplessly as others fight to save her. The movement earns me a brutal shove that sends me sprawling onto frost-covered ground.
"Stop being a foolish motherfucker and sit!"
Theo's voice hits like a physical blow, making my blood run cold. I twist to face him, finding his expression twisted with a fury I haven't seen since that night years ago. His chest heaves with exertion, eyes wild with something between rage and terror.
"She's not Iris," he spits, the name striking deeper than any bullet. "She's not your chance at redemption!"
The words ignite something primal in my chest, sending me lunging at him with a roar of pure anguish.
"I KNOW SHE'S NOT IRIS!"
My scream echoes through bare branches, startling nearby birds into frantic flight.
Theo meets my attack head-on, both of us crashing to the ground in a tangle of desperate limbs and raw emotion. His hands find my throat as mine lock around his wrists, neither of us quite committed to real damage but unable to stop the violence born of shared trauma.
"Then act like it!" he snarls, face inches from mine. Moonlight catches the tears in his eyes, betraying how deeply this moment cuts. "Stop trying to die with her! Stop punishing yourself for past failures by refusing to accept help!"
Behind us, Zander continues his relentless rhythm while Ren counts out compressions in a voice grown hoarse with strain. The dog's howls have turned to desperate whimpers, the sound mixing with my ragged breathing as Theo's words hit home.
