Page 96 of Eternal
“From what?” I asked, lifting my head to look at him.
He hesitated, his eyes flicking to Mama, who was still walking with the baby. “From people who aren’t kind,” he said finally. “But you don’t need to worry about that. Mama and I will always protect you. Always.”
I nodded, but my chest still felt heavy. I missed the way Mama used to be, before she started pulling out the flowers and locking the doors. Before she started looking out of the window eating her nails. Before she started drinking weird bottles.
“Do you think she’ll like the irises again?” I asked, my voice small.
Papa smiled and kissed my cheek. “Maybe someday,” he said. “Maybe we’ll plant them together when she feels better.”
“Promise?”
“I promise, solnyshko.”
I nodded again, even though I wasn’t sure if I believed him.
He then carried me toward the staircase, and I glanced over his shoulder at Mama.
She was staring out the window again, her arms wrapped tightly around baby Eren.
I missed her.
I missed the way she used to laugh when I picked irises for her, and the way she’d braid my hair while telling me stories about the desert and the flowers that grew there.
“I’m her iris, forever…” I whispered to myself.
Volk kissed the top of my head, holding me a little tighter, like he knew exactly what I was thinking. “You’re forever the most beautiful iris.”
28
AZRA
“Hold Back The Time” by James Bay
Present
Katarina is the most annoying, loving, person alive.
I eat too much. I can’t train. All I can do is stretch under her watchful eye like I’m some invalid. A private nurse checks the wound every few days, mutters about how well it’s healing.
And every night, without fail, Damir texts me:
Send me a picture.
Of the cut on my cheek. Of the deep wound on my stomach.
Like he has any right to ask. It wasn’t his fault. It happened on our last mission. A mistake, nothing I couldn’t handle. But that doesn’t stop him from acting like it’s his burden. Like my body is another thing he’s been ordered to maintain.
I didn’t think anyone could be more irritating than Viktor, but Damir is proving me wrong.
I pull the blanket tighter around me, pressing my fingers into the worn fabric. Katarina is preparing dinner for tonight because Viktor is supposed to come later.
Two weeks. That’s how long I’ve been benched. Two weeks of nothing while Damir handles the easier jobs alone. Do I trust him? Not enough. Do I think he’s a good soldier? Yes.
But none of that matters right now.
Because if I don’t act fast, I’ll lose Donovan’s trail again.
I flip open the journal, skimming past the entries I already know by heart. My mother’s handwriting stares back at me, slanted and rushed, smudged in places.
