Patient A-3

Chapter 47: Forever Hold Your Peace

Cierien

Present Time

I absorb the tension, taking in the silent standoff between Wrath, his gaze cold and calculated, and Avalyn, visibly shaky and scared, bracing herself for the worst. "I don't understand," she croaks out, confusion etched across her face like a plea for clarity.

Her eyes meet mine, and the weight of vulnerability tears at my heart. "It's okay, little bird. No one's going to hurt you," I assure her, desperate to offer a sliver of reassurance in the midst of uncertainty. "The plan changed, we-"

Wrath's scoff cuts off my words like a blade. "The plan never fucking changed," he snaps with a biting edge. "We know the cure runs through your veins, Avalyn. We heard all those nights your father dragged you down there to experiment with your blood. It wasn't difficult for us to piece it together, and this journal," he holds it up, "only confirmed it for us."

She stays silent, her features quivering as if she's on the brink of tears. "He played with our hopes, made us think we'd never attain it, but we're going to prove him wrong."

His next words only solidify what she appears to have already pieced together. We managed to break free and get to her parents. We compelled her therapist and devised a plan to make her believe she was indebted to us, manipulating her into surrendering her blood. We strategically distanced her from her friends, always keeping her within proximity of us. We succeeded in making her feel guilty for her familial ties to those who have wronged us. Now that Wrath has recognized the failure of our plan, he's resolved to drain her completely until the cure takes effect.

As he casually unravels the unvarnished truth, I feel resentment begin to build within me- not just directed at him, but also at myself for readily falling into line with it all. I should have been stronger. I was weak- afraid of losing my best friend. However, I won't allow myself to be weak anymore.

I watch her face wince with every revelation, and a pang of remorse has me stammering to make it right somehow. "I tried to get you to abandon us down there, Av," I confess once Wrath concludes. "I didn't wish for any of this, but on that second day you left us, the key was just too close. I couldn't not reach for it. The plan resurfaced the moment I broke free, but I took every precaution to shield you, my little bird."

Is that true? Did I take every precaution to shield her? Was it really my best?

Wrath shakes his head, and I sense the weight of disappointment and hurt. In this moment, it seems like I'm choosing her over him, and perhaps I am. "I never wanted to cause you pain. I wanted it to be your choice to share your blood with us. He was determined to take it by force, but I refused to let him." In the end, I'm betraying my closest friend, but she deserves to know everything. "I would never force you. I made him wait down there until he could come to terms with the new plan, ensuring it was done the right way- the morally correct way."

Her head tilts to the side and an unexpected laugh slips past her lips. "Morally correct?" she repeats. "It's not my choice if I'm being manipulated into doing it."

"I didn't anticipate feeling this way, Avalyn. You have to believe that every emotion I have for you is genuine. It was never to manipulate you. That part was all real. The plan is abandoned for me, baby. I don't want to be human; I just want to be with you," I plead, dropping to my knees before her. It's the truth, and I fervently pray to every god that she can see it. The only aspect we genuinely didn't plan for was the feelings we'd developed for her.

Tears stream down my cheeks, reflecting the anguish in her eyes. I wrap my arms around the backs of her knees, gazing up at her. "Y-You could be like us. We could c-change you to be like us. We could all be together," I admit, not hiding the desperation in my words. I need her to understand how much I yearn to be close to her. "We could be together forever, little bird."

Her hand snaps back, delivering a resounding thud as it smacks across my face. I lose my balance, landing on my bottom, while she steps forward. Wrath's hands seize my arm, roughly hauling me up and pushing me behind him. "We've dedicated too many years to this plan," he says softly, locking eyes with Avalyn. "I'm sorry, but we can't throw it all away for you, sweetheart."

"Well, go on, then," she urges, meeting his gaze and standing firm as she confronts Wrath. "This is what you've been waiting for, right? Do it. If that's what you truly want, then I want you to do it."

//

ahh very short chapter. ill get the next one up asap :)