I smirked. “She was right. You are more afraid of losing your power than you are of what we can do.” I circled the bed, sword still at the ready. “You are a fat, lazy bastard who rests on the laurels of others.”
“I worked my way to this position.”
“I don’t care about that either. I want you to know that you’re going to die. And you should thank one little old lady that I didn’t come in here like a one-woman army as I did at your other camps, killing anyone who had a black soul. You are the head of this snake, and it’s time to remove it.”
“No,” he choked out. “No, please. I’ll give you anything you want. Please.”
“You think I trust the word of a horrible man like you? You brought that woman here to make her perform sex acts on you, on the threat of what? Her husband being killed? Her children being taken away? Being dishonorably dismissed from your army?” I laughed. “No. I don’t trust your word. I know you pressed the emergency call button on the side of your bed. Only dishonest cowards would install a button to call for help. You know everything you do is wrong, and you need others who follow without question to keep you safe.”
“They’ll be here in a minute, and you’ll be dead.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m afraid you have that backward. You’ll be dead, and I’ll be gone.”
“I’ll give you anything.”
I stared into his piggy eyes, his skin ruddy and sweating, making his stench worse. “The one thing I want, you could never give me.”
“I can! I have unlimited resources.”
“I want my lovers back.”
He stared at me. “I’ll pay them.”
“They’re dead. Just like you.”
With a simple flick of my wrist, his head rolled on the pillow and stayed there, staring unblinking at the ceiling.
I’d made it out of there with ease, the soldiers only then starting to rush out toward the silent alarm.
There was little chance that anyone would deeply miss that man. His black soul was just as dark as Lebedev’s had been.
The cool morning air felt cleansing in a way. I wasn’t satisfied with my revenge. There was more to be had. But the space where Rilen and Roran had been was there, and I took strange comfort in that. The places they’d been would always be with me.
I wasn’t done mourning, but that would come later. When I felt my revenge was finally enough.
The black marble façade stood silent in the morning. Dozens of flowers were pressed into the grate on the door, with letters and an unusual amount of tribute plaques. I looked up and saw the words,Familia Duarte, above the door.
The reliefs around the door bore the silhouette of a woman with her hair pulled back in a bun. The words here were not those of family, or even of the Jesus person that was so popular. These were the words of the workers. The simple people who wanted, as Teresa had said, to live and let live.
I feel that dreams burned my life
But if these flames could illuminate the road
To happiness for Argentinean people
I will keep the hope for glory.
The only I wanted is to serve
Those humbled and workers
I will come back and be “millions.”
-Eva Peron
As uplifting as those words were, I felt something more there, something I didn’t have time to explore.
I realized after a moment how tired I was. I decided the dead could always use company and sat down across from theFamilia Duartetomb and just rested.
For the first time in days, my mind wasn’t a jumbled mess of confusion, hate, fear, and revenge. I was just… there, sitting with the dead.
The silence was quite lovely as the sun rose slowly through the cool crisp day.
“Are you fucking kidding me? Could youpossiblybe any more stereotypical?”
I whipped my head around.
Gwen.
