If you only knew...

52.Pure anger

Ana's POV

As we sit in tense silence, waiting for Nate to arrive, I feel a surge of intense anger toward Lisa that I can't shake off. The sheer shock of what she did to Xavier lingers in my mind. What could have driven her to commit such a dark act? The thought weighs heavily on me: why would she want to kill him? It's clear that this was her intention. The reasons seem almost incomprehensible.

"I'm going to kill her." I shatter the stillness with a sudden burst of words.

"No, Ana, you can't do that," he mutters weakly, his voice barely audible.

"Oh, just watch me," I reply defiantly.

"Ana, if you kill anyone outside our missions, you'll end up in prison," he warns, attempting a smile that falters under the weight of his discomfort.

"But what she tried to..." I start, only to be cut off by a sudden wave of realization. "Damn..."

"Yeah, a mission gone wrong," he says softly, his breath shallow. "She's managed to cover her tracks well enough to play innocent." His voice trails off, and I can see the uneasiness etched across his face.

"That's just... evil!" I exclaim, my anger bubbling over. "I can't understand why she would even think of doing something like that to you..."

"You'll find out soon... I..." he stops, his breath coming in quick, heavy gasps, his body trembling under the chill. I quicken my hand's rubbing on his back, pulling him closer as I tuck his face into the warmth of my chest, offering him comfort against the cold he feels.

"Enough," I cut him off, my voice firm. "We'll talk about this later."

"Ana..." He hesitates, his tone shaky, "You don't really plan to... leave Marco, do you?" The sadness in his voice pulls at my heart.

"What kind of question is that?!" I snap, my shock morphing quickly into anger. "Did she tell you this?!"

He remains silent, his only response to bury himself deeper against my chest, his eyes fluttering shut as if trying to find comfort in my presence.

"Xavier! Look at me!" I gently tilt his chin up, forcing him to meet my gaze. "Why would you even ask that? I've already told you, it's you that I want."

"I just... have this feeling, Ana," he murmurs in a soft voice, tinged with a faint hurt. After a moment's hesitation, he musters the courage to ask, "Why did you call me... my love?" Avoiding my gaze, he conceals his face deeper against me.

"Because I love you." I quietly respond, my heart racing.

Before he can process my confession, Nate lunges forward, crawling toward us with a frantic urgency. The moment he spots my partner, a look of sheer terror washes over his face. He reaches us in a heartbeat, his voice trembling as he exclaims,

"Xavier! What's going on?! What happened to you?!" Panic laces his voice as he swiftly takes Xavier from my arms. His eyes widen in shock as he feels the icy chill radiating from his friend's quivering body. "This is bad! We need to get you to the car right now—you're freezing!"

"Nate, it's a complicated story, but I'll give you the short version: Lisa tried to kill him, and he ended up trapped in a freezing room. I barely got there in time to pull him out before it became a tragedy. Now, he's suffering from hypothermia and needs immediate warmth—or he'll need to go to the hospital." I explain, my voice filled with worry.

"Lisa what?!!" He gapes at me in surprise, his expression shifting from shock to resolve as he turns his attention back to Xavier. "We'll sort this out later. Right now, we need to get you out of here!" His voice is urgent as he grips Xavier's arm, pulling him through the tight passageway.