Page 143 of Deliria

Tumbling.

Both of us falling over the edge and to what could be both our deaths.

Scarlett

My bare feet slap against the cold floor as I give chase, my body screaming in protest, but my will overrides the pain.

The corridor is dim, the heavy scent of blood and fear following us like phantoms. I can hear his shallow panting ahead of me, frantic and feral.

He doesn’t look back; he knows better.

If he looks back, he’ll see what’s chasing him; vengeance incarnate.

I burst out onto the cliffside terrace, the cold night air shocking against my overheated skin. The waves below crash against jagged rocks, louder than the thundering of my pulse.

And there he is, his silhouette outlined against the almost haunting light of the moon.

“Scarlett, stop.” His voice cracks as he turns, his hands up in mock surrender, but his eyes hold their usual poison. “You don’t want to do this. You’re not a killer.”

My laugh is guttural, raw. “You made me one.”

With a burst of reckless energy, I throw myself at him, tackling him, and we slam into the ground with a force that jolts through my battered ribs, the metal tang of blood flooding my mouth. His grunt of pain is quickly replaced by a snarl as he thrashes beneath me, his fists hammering against my sides.

But I don’t let go.

I can’t.

Even if I die here, if it is this moment that kills me, then I will have it; I will claim it. I will ensure that my bastard of a husband dies with me.

We roll dangerously close to the cliff’s edge, the sheer drop yawning below us, filled with the merciless roar of the ocean. Alexander claws at my wrists, his nails cutting into my skin as he tries to shove me off, but I cling to him like his shadow.

Somehow, we both find our footing at the same moment, staggering to stand. His face twists with rage and something akin to disbelief.

“You stupid little bitch,” he spits, his words venomous. “You think you can stop me? After everything I’ve done?”

My jaw screams as I try to speak, every syllable slurred and thick, but the words come out anyway. “You’re not leaving here alive.”

Before he can react, I drive the heel of my palm into his nose, a wet crunch cutting through the icy air.

He howls, stumbling back but he recovers quickly, his instincts as sharp as ever. His retaliation is brutal; a punch to my temple that sends fireworks spinning behind my eyes.

I teeter back, my bare foot slipping on the cliff’s wet stone and for a moment, it feels like I’m falling.

I see him lunge for the helicopter’s railing; his desperation laid bare.

My body moves on its own, propelled by fury and adrenaline. I hurl myself forward and grab his ankles, yanking as hard as I can. He topples backward. We both go down, skidding across the uneven ground until gravity betrays us.

The cliff’s edge rushes up to meet us. For a second, I hear nothing but the wind and the violent pounding of my heartbeat.

And then we do fall.

The world turns weightless and infinite. I swear that moment lasts forever. We’re both caught up, both twisting and flailing as we pivot over those deadly rocks, as we dance around one another, as we fall further into that abyss.

I want to hurl more insults. I want to fight, to lash out, to hurt him. But I’m as helpless as he is, I’m as mute as him too.

The icy slap of sea water breaks our descent, the cold slicing through me like shards of glass.

The current pulls us under, a chaotic tangle of limbs and choking saltwater. It fills my mouth, fills my lungs. I gasp for breath. Panic claws at my throat as Alexander’s grip finds me below the surface, his hands a vice on my arm.

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