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“Then how can I let him go if I don’t know that I’ll see him again?”
“You don’t have a choice. Death is the end, Nala,” Jakub says as he steps into the room. “Nothing more.”
Christy draws in a jagged breath, her head snapping around as I draw my gun and point it at my brother. “Don’t even think about it.”
Jakub glances at me before his gaze falls to Christy briefly. He’s wearing his silver mask, a half moon shape that curves around his nose and mouth.
“I’m not here to fight with you. I’m here to pay my respects. Lower your gun, Leon, or keep it aimed at me. Either way, I’m coming in.”
“Leon,please,” Nala says, her eyes wide and brimming with more tears. I’m hurting her with my actions. I look at Christy in that moment. I’m not sure why, for reassurance, guidance perhaps? She meets my gaze, unreadable.
“You so much as look at Christy the wrong way and Renard isn’t the only one who’ll die tonight,” I warn Jakub, lowering my gun.
“Noted,” Jakub retorts, striding towards the old man’s side. He stands on the opposite side of the bed to Konrad and Nala. “Are you in pain?” he asks, his voice neutral, almost clinical.
“No more than you,” Renard replies knowingly.
Jakub barks out a laugh. “I’m just fine, old man.”
Renard draws in a ragged breath, wheezing as he tries to ward off death’s pull, his cloudy eyes settling on Nala. “I must speak to The Masks alone, but before I do I have one last thing I want to say to you child.”
“What is it, Grandfather?”
“You were a gift, and a perpetual comfort to an old man who didn’t deserve it. My only wish is for your happiness. Everything I’ve ever done is with you in mind. Remember that when I’m gone.”
“Grandfather,” Nala whispers, sobbing now as she clings onto Renard, as though her determination alone will be enough to keep him in this world.
Jakub watches the interaction and despite his blank expression, I know he feels as uncomfortable by Nala’s grief as Konrad and I do. For years our father’s beliefs—Malik’sbeliefs, because I refuse to refer to him as my father for a moment longer—have been beaten into us, warping our views to match his. We’ve been taught that grief, love and empathy are weaknesses,sinseven. Only now am I beginning to understand that isn’t true. Don’t get me wrong, these feelings hurt like a motherfucker, they make me want to turn on myself, on someone else. They make me want to inflict pain, wreak havoc, do damage, but I’m able to control those impulses just enough to not carry through with them. Why? Because of Christy. Because she makes me want to be better, do fucking better.
Renard pats Nala’s back. “I don’t want you here when I leave. Please, go now. There are things I must say, and you do not need to be burdened with them.”
“I love you, Grandfather,” Nala says between tear-swollen breaths as Thirteen gently peels her off him.
“As I love you.” Renard coughs, his chest rattling as death clambers into every crevice and crack, filling his lungs like concrete. He looks up at Thirteen with a pained expression. “Thank you for what you’ve done for me, for them,” he whispers.
Thirteen dips her head, squeezing his hand before gathering Nala in her arms. “It’s time to go, Nala,” she says gently.
“Thirteen, Three requires your attention this evening. Take Nala with you,” Jakub instructs.
“What happened to her, brother?” Konrad asks.
Jakub scowls, shaking his head. “Not important.”
“I won’t leave Christy.”
“You will do whatever the fuck I say, Thirteen! You’re here for the Numbers. Three needs you, so do your fucking job.”
Thirteen looks at Christy, her expression filled with concern.
“You should go.”
“But—”
“Go!” Christy insists. “I have Leon.”
I have Leon.
Who knew three simple words would have so much power. Like an adrenaline shot straight into my veins, those words fuel my resolve to keep her safe from my brothers,from me.
Konrad's mouth drops open in shock and Jakub glares at Christy. I know that look. He wants her so fucking bad he’s sick with it. Sick with fucking jealousy that he’s refusing to acknowledge because that would mean admitting he feels, and that’s something he’s not ready to do. May never be ready to do.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Thirteen says, squeezing Christy’s arm as she passes by her.
Christy nods, wrapping her arms around herself as Thirteen guides Nala from the room, leaving her alone with a dying man and three feral wolves who could turn on her in an instant.
