With Fear or Without

58- When Lovers Part

The air turned stale and thick. Breathing was difficult, thoughts impossible.

Cleo watched with wide eyes as dark red blood poured through the wound in Spiros' chest. The thick liquid was the only thing that moved in the room. It was like when the music silences in a movie's climax, that pause in time at the top of a roller coaster, the deepest point of an inhale. The whole world hesitated.

The couple stayed close, face to face. Spiros' mouth hung open in a silent gasp, his eyes clouding as life poured out of his body. His hand hovered in midair, halfway to the black case. It stopped and reversed, feeling the puncture in his chest. Cleo had never seen someone so emotionally destroyed in her life.

Even Maedrian was crumbling, cracks appearing in her cool, collected visage. Her eyes brimmed with tears, a single streak coursing down her cheek. The flame that had erupted within her not minutes ago flickered and sputtered. But she stood her ground.

"I'm sorry, my love."

She clenched her jaw. She pulled back, the short dagger coming with her. The glow was dulled and blocked by blood.

It was the second time that night Cleo had stared at a blood soaked blade. She felt empty, hollow. She hated it, she hated watching it but she couldn't tear her aching eyes away from the tragic scene.

How could someone do that? Cleo felt no anger or frustration. She couldn't process what she was seeing. It didn't seem real.

The next few moments were foggy. After a minute of the world standing still, two people left the room. Cleo and her friends were free. Spiros had sunk to his knees. Then he tipped and collapsed onto the cold floor. The bright luminescence that lined his arms had faded slowly, and they were entirely out by the time his shoulders hit the floor.

Ambrose was the first to move. He stepped quickly and pulled Cassian into a fierce embrace. Cassian buried his face into his father's shoulder. He sucked in ragged breaths as they held onto each other. It would have been a heartwarming reunion if the last few minutes hadn't played out the way they had.

Behind Cleo, Charlie coughed and gagged, wrestling to stay in control of themself. Andy was beside them in an instant, trying to split her attention between her own feelings and Charlie's.

Without a word or a glance, Remie marched past Cleo and threw open the front door, disappearing into the lobby next door.

Ambrose and Cassian separated, looking desperate to say something, anything, to make it better. Ambrose just stepped back, mumbling something about getting help, alerting those who should be alerted.

Cleo felt anger kindle and burn inside her. Towards Maedrian. Towards herself. Towards everyone who was watching the man die before their eyes. She watched as the slow rises and falls of his chest faded and stopped.

Ambrose rushed across the room to the figure, stepping carefully and checking the pulses of each man on the floor; first Spiros, then Elijah Rose. Only good news for one of them.

Spiros was dead. There was nothing they could have done, not with Maedrian and Powell in the room.

Ambrose was the next to leave.

A hand rested gently on Cleo's shoulder and her anger suddenly poured off her like rain off an umbrella. Andy had stepped up next to her.

"You okay?"

How could she possibly answer that? There was no answer. No way to express the guilt and mortification she was feeling. The horrible images that she feared, burned into the backs of her eyelids.

"Yeah," Cleo said, her lack of expression unconvincing. "I'm okay."

Andy frowned. She opened her mouth to protest, but Cleo spoke first.

"Go and see that Nolan's okay, will you?" She felt bad sending her friends away like this, but she didn't think she could look them in the eyes right now.

Thankfully, Andy got the message. She didn't seem happy about it, but she finally gave in. She led Charlie, rigid and hyperventilating, out the door, leaving Cleo and Cassian as the only two left.

Cassian rubbed the front of his neck distractedly, his eyes fluttering around the room trying to avoid the floor as much as possible.

Cleo watched him for what felt like forever, words finally returning to her. Everything that had been said, each new piece of information came flooding back.

"What were they like?"

Cassian was startled by her words, more by the sound of someone's voice than anything else. He jumped slightly and looked at her for a few blinks before speaking.

"What?"

"What were they like?" Cleo repeated. "The others. Before me."

Cassian blinked. His words came in a rush. "Cleo, I never meant to lie to you. I wanted to say something. I tried to tell you before you left, but I just... I couldn't, I don't know. I'm sorry. I wasn't supposed to, and everyone told me not to, but I..."

"I don't care." Cleo dismissed his apology. Eventually she would get angry. Eventually she would feel the broken trust, she would demand explanations. But not now. "What were they like? June?"

Cassian shifted his weight. "There were two before you. June," his voice shook at the name, "was the second. The first was a boy named Ben."

When he paused, Cleo repeated her question. "What was she like?"

The faintest shadow of a smile appeared on his face. The devastation was temporarily cast away, thrown into the background as he reminisced. "She was... always present. She was always really, truly there, you know? Like she always really saw you. And she had the most contagious smile you've ever seen."

Cleo could feel that it was a touchy subject, but she wanted to know. She had to know.

"What happened to her?" she whispered.

Cassian lowered his head, his hair falling in pieces over his face. A shadow passed over him like a storm cloud overhead.

He sniffed and took a deep breath, lifting his head in false composure.

"We lost her."

It didn't take long for Cleo to realize that she wasn't going to get any more than that. Not after the night they just had.

So she didn't argue when Cassian suggested they join the others outside.

When they finally fled to the lobby, they found Andy kneeling with Nolan, Charlie pacing the room and shaking out their hands like they were wet.

Nolan looked more awake and conscious than he had when they left him. Physically he was better. Emotionally? Not so much. His head was in his hands and he was shaking.

Andy looked up as Cleo and Cassian joined them. It was obvious that Nolan had heard the news, the events that had occurred in the next room, and the look on Andy's face told them it hadn't been received well. Not that it was a surprise, considering Nolan's parents were now...

Cleo couldn't even imagine what he must be thinking.

Cassian walked forward, sitting with Nolan, who lifted his face just enough to reveal red puffy eyes and quivering lips.

"Tell me it's not true," he pleaded.

Cassian's silence was answer enough.

Nolan fell into his arms and the two boys embraced like brothers. They held each other tight like they were each the other's anchor to this world, like they would drift away if they let go.