I had neverconvincedthe prisoner to admit to how the South had gotten my twin to turn against the North—againstme. And in that moment, I began to doubt that therewasanythingfor the prisoner to admit.
“Upset?”sheasked, a laugh creeping on the edge of her voice. “Dimitri, I did what I did to Father that day foryou.I wantedyou to befree, so you could make better decisions than those that came before us.But instead, it seems likeyou’recarrying onin their footsteps! Which means it was all fornothing!”
I watched as her eyeswatered, her emotions always getting the best of her. That was somethingI’dalways admired about her—how freely and how strongly shefeltthings.
It was something I wishedIdidn’tshare even a fraction of with her. If I couldhaveerasedthe complicated mix of emotions whirling around in my chest, I wouldhavein a heartbeat.
“Aviva,” I said gently, trying to calm her down, while also working to keep myselfcomposed—there was still hope. “I understandthere’sa lot going on, butsurelywe can work things out between us. I canhelpyou.”
“Help me?” she questioned.
Dumbfounded and confused, I said, “I can help bring youhome, Viva.”
A heart-wrenching feeling Ididn’tunderstand shot through my chest as I watched that hopeI’dseen earlier in her eyes go out as I spoke.
“Oh, twin,” she said softly, almost with a hint of pity. “I found my home. And it isn’t here.”
Maybe the prisoner had been right.
Maybe they hadn’t done anything to Viva to turn her against me.
Maybe she’d done this willingly.
And if that was the case, then she truly couldn’t be saved.
Finallyrealizing how differently we were approaching thesituation, butnot knowing how to make her see my side in the moment, I slipped into my usual, cold indifference.
Letting that numbness sweep through my heart and mind was the only reason I remainedupright.
“You’ve…changed,” I stated slowly, trying to wrap my head around this new reality—the reality that my twinwouldn’tbe coming home.
Viva nodded and took a small step forward. “Yes, Dimitri. And you can, too. Itdoesn’thave to be this way forever. We have the power to fix things.” She paused. “You and me, brother.”
My eyebrows furrowed as I thought about what she was saying.
What did she think was so messed up? What could be fixed, anyways, if shewasn’twilling to eventryto return home?
“We can put an end to this war,” she said softly, and I realized she was trying to keep me calm, as thoughIwas the one that needed convincing.
She genuinely didn’t understand.
I could tell by the look in her eyes that shewasn’tjoking, orpulling some cruel prank on me. Shetruly believedwhat she was saying to be true. Whetherthey’dbrainwashed her or not, this was her new reality.
And there seemed to be no going back.
At the end of the day, she truly was lost to me.
And I wasn’t sure anymore if I could get her back.
But until I could figure it out, she was one ofthemto me.
With that truth in mind, my emotionsswelled—anger, hurt, grief. Using that to fuel me, I conjured a ball of fire to my hand and aimed to strike.
“There is noweanymore, Viva,” I said with cold malice.
Then, I let the flames loose.
Chapter Ten
