Page 59 of The Bargain

And I failed.

Finally, having crossed the entire length of the Montgomery manor, I emerge onto a deserted stone porch. Pumpkins and brass lamps outline a small side courtyard, the sky above a deep azure expanse scattered with tiny silver stars. They seem so unfathomably far away that I feel suddenly microscopic, so insignificant my entire existence might as well be nothing more than a brief, passing shadow.

The cool night air touches my cheeks and I realise they are wet with tears.

“Fuck,” I whisper, shaking my head.

How could so much change in so little time? Ophelia used to crawl into my bed in her little black tutu, pressing an armful of ghost books into my chest for me to read aloud. I used to be the first person she’d run to in every room she walked into; the one she went to whenever she was upset or angry. When her dark hair grew long and knotty, only two people were ever allowed to brush it: Dad, or me.

And now…

Now I might as well be a stranger. No, worse than a stranger, because Ophelia would probably prefer to go to a stranger for help than speak even one sentence to me. And I don’t even know why. It’s like one day, I went to sleep, and when I woke up, my sister had stopped loving me.

Thick tears drop from my eyes, disappearing into the night air. I feel suddenly exhausted, mortified, bruised. So hopeless I could die from it.

I wish I’d never come here. The party feels like the belly of a repulsive, replete beast, devouring everything inside it, and I walked willingly through its jaws. The entire night is a disaster, a mess, a tragedy. I don’t even know why I came.

Fingers brush lightly against my waist; I know it’s Elias before I turn around, though I couldn’t say how. I can’t bring myself to look up at him, head tilted stubbornly down, but he doesn’t force me to. Instead, he wraps his arms around me, hugging me into a warm, hard body. His entire presence feels like a lifeline thrown into a thrashing sea storm.

“You alright?” he says into my hair.

I nod against his neck. His skin is wet from my tear-stained cheeks. He’s no longer wearing the plastic mask, and there’s a warmth exuding from his body that smells almost metallic, like hot machinery.

“That fucker hurt you?” he asks into the silence. He doesn’t sound angry, just quietly curious.

I shake my head and straighten myself. He meets my gaze, but doesn’t release me from his embrace. His eyes are dark and questioning, somehow completely free of judgement, and, for once, amusement.

Maybe that’s what makes it so easy, in the end, to tell him the truth.

“I had a fight with my sister.”

My voice comes out small and sad, pathetic even to myself.

“Your sister’s here?” He frowns down at me. “Isn’t she a little too…”

“Young?” I shake my head. “She’s not supposed to be here.”

“You know what it’s like being a teen,” he says, sliding a hand up and brushing away my tears in a casual motion. “Rebellious phase and all.”

“That’s not the problem.” I swallow hard against the lump in my throat. “The problem is that it’s my job to keep her out of trouble.”

“She’s not gonna get in trouble,” he says. “Your cousin’s here, have you seen the size of him and his mates? Nothing’s gonna happen to her on their watch.”

“Dimitri’s not actually my cousin,” I say, sighing. “And he’s going through this weird thing right now. I don’t even think he can look after himself, let alone Ophelia.”

He shakes his head.

“Nah, you’re wrong.” I glare at him, but he grins, tugs at my cheek with his thumb. “I mean, you’re right that he’s weird, and this whole thing with his fiancée seems toxic as hell, but that doesn’t mean he’s not keeping an eye on his favourite non-cousins.”

I scoff. “How would you know that?”

“Because he’s been busting my ass all night about what it means to be worthy of a girl like you, making sure I treat you right and detailing all the unpleasant things he’d do to my corpse if I caused you to shed so much as a tear.”

I think of Natalya and wince. “He’s preaching about treating girls right?”

Elias lets out a small laugh. “Well, yeah, that’s what I said.” He tucks loose strands of my hair back behind my ears and tilts my face up to his. “Point being, love, that your little sister’s going to be just fine, alright?”

For some reason, his words melt away the lump in my throat, and a strange warmth spreads over me, like something hard and cold stuck inside me has suddenly melted. The sadness and worry lingers but the tension seems to drain from me, leaving a sense of hollow exhaustion in its wake.