32. Chapter 28 #2
As for me, I continue to hold Zoe’s hand, stroking her knuckles with my thumb. In a strangely low voice, she recounts everything she has carefully hidden for years. A story of torment, humiliation, and fear. Everything that led her to take bloody revenge on Owen.
Everyone else stays quiet when she finishes, but Ash doesn’t.
She stands unsteadily, walks over to Zozo, and falls to her knees before her.
She buries her face in her lap. “I’m so sorry.
Please forgive me; I failed to notice. I’m sorry I didn’t defend you.
My God, I failed you so badly when my only goal was to protect you,” she manages to say between sobs.
Zoe’s hand rises uncertainly and finally falls onto her sister’s head.
She strokes her hair and tries to calm her down.
“Shh… It’s not your fault, Ash. You couldn’t have known.
I didn’t want anyone to know. You fought for us every day.
I fought too, to make that possible for you.
I’m alive because of you. You know that. It’s not your fault…”
“I’m a terrible sister. Please forgive me, Zoe.”
“I have nothing to forgive you for. I’m sorry too. I was jealous and lonely when you married Ryker. For the first time in my life, I was totally alone, and I kind of lost it. We’ll talk about this later. I promise.”
Ash raises her head and looks hopefully into Zoe’s eyes. “Just the two of us, like in the old days. As soon as my husband’s funeral is over, I’ll have plenty of free time.”
Even I’m smiling. She’s something else entirely.
Ryker stands up, grabs his wife by the shoulders, and sits her on his lap. “I’m not going anywhere, my Little Killer. No new fucker is going to polish my knife collection.”
Those words make me sober up. “I wiped the surveillance footage. No one saw Zoe. I don’t know how anyone could have found out. But Owen was part of Veirix.”
“So we can assume the threat came from them,” Theo states.
“I think so,” I agree. “I suggested we hide her, but Zoe here insists it’s pointless.”
“It makes sense to me,” Ash says.
“Any other suggestions?” Zoe rolls her eyes.
“We have to keep you safe. At all costs,” I say.
I stand up and start pacing the room. Some suggestions arise, but none of them sit right with me. Nothing will give her such boundless support and safety as…
The realization hits me like a bolt of lightning.
I know what we should do, and, surprisingly, I'm not afraid to take that step. On the contrary. This is exactly what I want. It's like a dream that suddenly appears in your life.
The conversation falls silent only when I return to Zoe.
Looking deep into her eyes, I kneel on one knee and take her hands in mine.
“Zoe Monroe. I’m probably not the best candidate, but I promise that for the rest of my life, I’ll strive to be worthy of it.
And our relationship started unconventionally, but everything has changed since then.
I’ve changed. Thanks to you, I’ve become a better person, a better man.
And even though, while sitting in that place, I swore it was impossible for me to ever fall in love, with you I didn’t stand a chance.
That’s the truth, Zoe—I’ve fallen in love with you.
Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? ”
Silence. I didn’t know it could be so terrifying. For everyone behind me, this is probably shocking. I don’t care. All that matters is what Zoe thinks.
She, however, sits motionless, not blinking. Not breathing. She swallows hard, like her throat has gone dry. “Eli? Did you just ask me to marry you to ensure my protection?”
“Yes. I mean, no. Both. Of course, if you become my wife, it will give you a level of protection you wouldn’t get any other way. No one would dare lay a finger on the wife of the Pact’s general. It’s the perfect solution. But that’s not all. It’s true that I’ve fallen in love with you, Raven.”
Three people behind me speak up at the same time.
“Raven?” It’s Ash.
“I told you the day would come when you’d eat your words,” Ry points out.
“That was almost romantic.” It’s Theo.
I don’t care what they say. All that matters is what the woman I’m kneeling before will say. But before she even opens her mouth, I know what she’s going to say.
I see it in her eyes.
“I can’t,” she whisper. “I can’t. Not like this. Because then I’ll never know… if it’s me, or fear.”
I can literally hear my heart breaking.
“Didn’t you hear a single word about how I fell in love with you?” Even to myself, my voice sounds like the whimper of a beaten dog.
“I heard every word, Eli. I’m in love with you too, but this isn’t right. I’d want you to ask me to marry you because you can’t imagine another day without me, because I’m your breath, and you want to grow old by my side.”
“But that’s exactly how it is. It’s all true.”
“But if I hadn’t been carrying out this stupid revenge, that person wouldn’t want me to pay for Owen’s death with my head. If it weren’t for that, you wouldn’t be kneeling before me right now.”
No, no, no!
I don’t know what to say; I’m at a loss for words. In a way, she’s right, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have made this step in a week, a month, or six months. I’ve only hastened what was bound to happen. This is our destiny. I know it for sure now.
And yet I can’t bring myself to say it out loud.
My heart’s breaking with every passing second. Doubt creeps into my mind, and the wounds from my childhood resurface. What if…
You screwed it up, Eli!
And this time, you have no one to blame but yourself.