Page 49 of Shadows of the Past
My gaze shifts to Vera, and that’s where I make my mistake…because her eyes are empty now. The light that once burned there is gone. She looks at me and nods slightly, and I know what she wants. She wants me to pull that trigger and end this.
Aleksandr chuckles behind me as if enjoying every second of this torment.
“I need a minute alone with her,” I say sharply, my tone leaving no room for argument.
For the first time since entering this house of horrors, something flickers in Ivan’s eyes, a hint of pride maybe, and he gestures for everyone to leave.
As soon as the door shuts behind them, I rush to Vera’s side and cradle her face in my hands.
“Vera,” I whisper urgently, “I’ll get you out of here. Akim and I will figure something out—”
“You’ll take that gun,” she interrupts flatly, “and free me in the only way you can.”
Her voice is devoid of emotion, but her words cut deeper than anything Ivan could ever say.
I stare into her eyes desperately, trying to understand how she could ask this of me—how she expects me to end her life.
“I won’t survive if you don’t,” she murmurs softly. “If anyone touches me again… Maksim…” Her voice breaks into a sound so full of despair it nearly shatters me.
I can’t imagine a world without her, a tomorrow where she doesn’t exist on this earth, and she knows it without needing an explanation from me.
She takes the pistol from my hand and places it against her temple before positioning my hand over hers.
I shake my head as tears stream down my face because reality crashes down on me like an unbearable weight. I can’t lose her.
“If by some miracle I would survive after they’re done with me,” she whispers brokenly, “there wouldn’t be anything left inside.”
I want to tell her she’s stronger than this, that she can endure anything, that she has to endure for me. Because without her…I have no one left.
“You’ll find someone someday,” she whispers faintly through trembling lips, “someone who would choose hell here with you over heaven anywhere else.”
A bitter laugh escapes me because no one will ever choose me. They’ll all leave, they’ll all find freedom, and I’ll stay behind in their shadows.
“When the time is right, take his heart out for me,” Vera whispers as her nose brushes mine gently. Her bottom lip trembles as tears pool in her bloodshot eyes.
My head shakes again because, no matter what happens, I can’t do this to her. Not her. Never her.
She takes a deep breath before whispering, “I love—”
Before she can finish those words that would break what little resolve remains in me, I pull the trigger.
I couldn’t let her say it because if she had…there would’ve been no way for me to grant her wish. No way for me to let go when all I wanted was for her to stay alive, even if what followed wouldn’t truly be life for her anymore.
Her body slumps sideways into my arms as warmth leaves her skin slowly but surely. My hands tremble as they trace every freckle, every scar, every delicate line on her face, trying desperately to memorize them all because I took them away forever.
I failed her. We should’ve left sooner, we should’ve found another way, but now…now it’s too late.
I don’t know how many minutes pass, but eventually, I hear the door open and footsteps behind me. Their breathing is heavy, and then someone starts clapping. Of course they do. That’s what these people are, monsters who applaud pain and death.
I look at her face one last time, and whatever was left of my heart shatters into pieces.
Without a second thought, I grab the knife from the back of my jeans and turn to face Ivan, Aleksandr, and the three men who stood by and watched her suffer.
Boris is first on my list, the one who touched her, the one who stole the light from her eyes.
He sees me coming but isn’t quick enough to react. The blade plunges into his stomach, and I drag it diagonally across his abdomen. Within seconds, his intestines spill onto the floor.
“Look me in the eyes while you bleed out like a pig,” I growl, my voice unrecognizable, hardened and foreign, even to me.
