LOGINTristan’s POV“Please,” I whisper to Joseph, nearly collapsing on my knees out of nerves. “She… she has to know what I did. She has to be prepared because they will fight back!”“What did you do in there, Tristan?” Joseph asked, his voice shaking as he leaned back and tried to take a closer look at the room. “What did you do to him? Do you… do you know what he’s capable of?”“I very fucking well know.” I rub a hand over my face. “Listen. I hurt him. I hurt him real bad. But not bad enough to kill him—”“Well, that’s good to know, isn’t it?” His nostrils flared, his chest heaving in panic. “Okay. Fuck. This is bad. He didn’t come here alone. He has a bunch of men waiting outside for him. They’re going to storm in here if he doesn’t come out. And he’s not going to come out because of what you did.”“I know, but…”I trail off, realizing that I have no reasonable excuse to give him. And by asking him to help me, I’m also dooming him to pain and possibly death. Also his family.I start to
Elena’s POV“You haven’t slept.”Alexander puts his hand on my waist and steers me away from the altar.I was arranging the flowers for Mira’s wake. It’s today, and I’ve decided to take on the responsibility of planning it for her and the family. They’re still grieving, more than I am, and I know that it would be difficult for them to have to face this day.Uncle Marcus, Grandpa Harold, and the children are all at home. They have decided not to participate in it and I respected that decision. I didn’t want to bring them to a place where there could possibly be any danger, especially the kids.I didn’t even want to take Alexander here initially. I didn’t expect him to actually show up, though. He was still asleep when I left him in his apartment, and now he’s here, following me around and trying to get me to stop doing things.“I just need to make sure that everything is fine,” I tell him, fixing the urn. “I don’t want it to be a disaster. The priest has confirmed but he’s not here yet
Tristan’s POVSilence rings inside the room.Benjamin keeps his eyes on my fists, which are now unfurling because of his words. His stupid grin grows bigger, like he’s enjoying the show. It’s almost as though he can feel my heart racing inside my chest.I want to ignore it. I want to just attack him right now, to make true to my promise and hurt him the worst way I know how…But I can’t move.He takes that as his chance to walk closer to me, flexing his body like he’s interacting with a toothless lion. Dangerous, but nearly harmless.“You heard me, right, Tristan?” he asks. “I’m not kidding, you know. We can make all of this disappear. You can walk out of this prison as early as today.”For a second, I let myself dream.Walking out of this prison…How many times have I dreamed of that same exact thing?And how many times have I stopped myself from dreaming that, because I already resigned to my fate of staying here forever for a crime I didn’t commit?I can’t count. I don’t know where
Tristan’s POV“You shouldn’t be up at this hour.”I look up at the sound of the officer’s gruff voice. He’s not the same one who picked on me constantly. This was a different man. The same man who would take me out whenever someone visited. I’ve come to know his name. Joseph.He’s stern, but not an asshole. Which is why I should feel compelled to follow his orders, but I find myself just staring at him.Every time I blink, I see Mira’s face.Her smile. Her laugh. The way she’d touch me after a long day.Her anger.Her disdain.The fact that I will never see her again.I remember the first time I saw her. I remember thinking about how beautiful she was and how much I wanted her to be with me. The way I pursued her. I really thought I wasn’t going to get over her then, until Elena came to my life and it was all put in the past.But even with all of that, even with all the bad things that happened between us, Mira still tried to help.She lost her life trying to help me.How can I ever f
Elena’s POVNone of it feels real.The next day, I came to see Tristan again.But this time, he refused to come out. When I asked the officers why, they just said one thing.“He told us that you need to stop visiting. He doesn’t want to see you anymore.”I know why. It’s not because he doesn’t want to see me. It’s not because he’s being an asshole. It’s because Mira’s death has shown him what could happen to me if I continue to push this further.And like Mira, I know the risks.But unlike her, I am constantly surrounded by powerful people who would never let it happen.The guards at home have doubled. They have guard dogs now too. Cameras in every area, the whole street fenced and watched at all times. The kids are now being homeschooled, doing online classes just so they won’t have to go out. All trips outside have been kept at a bare minimum. All our offices here also got an upgrade in security.It’s difficult, dealing with all of it.Sometimes I feel like I can’t breathe.“When is
Third Person POVIt was pure impulse, Mira’s decision to go and see Ethan and her parents. Elena did warn her, even though she understood at the end.Mira knew the risks.That’s why she had written letters in her pocket that she started carrying around everywhere she went after the trial.She knew what could happen.But it had been more than a week since she’d seen Ethan. Seeing Elena with Liam and Sophie just stoked the fires of longing in her heart and made her want to see him more, everything be damned.Even after all the bad things she’d done, the people she’d hurt, deep down it all… she was a mother.And all mothers just want to cuddle their kids at the end of the day.She just didn’t know that it would come at the cost of her life.There she was, driving on the road to the safe house. She was still far away. She didn’t notice anything different in her surroundings at all—or maybe she just didn’t notice. Either way, she decided to call Ethan while on the way.“Baby, how are you?”







