“I’ll get some wet cloths… and see if we’ve got anything she can take.”
I force myself to stand, back away, and leave the room. The second I step out; I drag in a breath like it might steady me.
It doesn’t.
Fuck.
This day is gutting me.
Aspen
Bryn…
Blood is everywhere. Her body limp in my arms.
No! Bryn!
I scream, but no sound comes out.
I run. I keep running.
There’s a shadow ahead; I stop. My body burns like fire, but my hands are ice cold.
“Doll.”
His voice.
I choke on a sob and break into a sprint.
Dante.
I run faster, desperate to reach him, but he keeps slipping further away.
No matter how hard I try, I can’t touch him.
“Dante!” I cry, begging him to stop, to wait, to see me.
A laugh echoes through the trees.
Then—
Gunshot. A scream.
“No! Bryn! Dante!”
I fall to my knees, lungs aching, heart breaking.
And then I see him, Roman.
Not his face. Just the sound, the shadow.
“Come to me, princess,” he groans.
Bile rises. My stomach twists. I gag.
I’m going to throw up—
“Aspen!”
