Chapter 13
For a moment, my ears seemed to lose all function–everything around me fell into deafening silence.
It felt as if a scalding giant hand had slammed me into the ground.
I coughed up a mouthful of blood, my internal organs seemingly displaced by the impact.
Thick smoke billowed into the air, obscuring everything in sight.
Something warm trickled down my face.
I reached up to touch it, and my palm came away smeared with blood.
Joseph had been thrown by the explosion, lying sprawled not far from me.
I tried to get up, but my legs refused to support me.
With trembling hands, I crawled toward him, my knees scraping against the rough ground.
Reaching him, I checked for breath, praying desperately.
Thankfully, he was still alive.
Gunshots echoed again, faint but approaching fast.
Fighting against panic, I hoisted Joseph onto my back, staggering to my feet.
I stumbled forward, but armed men were everywhere, their shadows looming menacingly.
Forced to change course, I turned and plunged deeper into the forest.
I had no idea how long I ran. My legs gradually numbed until I could no longer feel them.
Finally, my strength gave out, and I collapsed to the ground.
It was then that Joseph stirred.
He struggled weakly, attempting to rise but finding himself unable to move.
His voice was faint yet urgent.
“Zoey… leave me. Go!”
38.8%
Chapter 13
Tears streamed down my face as I sobbed uncontrollably, shaking my head violently.
“No! We leave together! Both of us!”
He grabbed my ankle, his grip weak but insistent.
“Go… get help. You can’t carry us both out of here.”
I broke down, crying so hard that my chest ached.
“Joseph! We promised each other! You can’t lie to me!
“If you die, I will never forgive you!”
A faint smile tugged at his lips, only to be interrupted by a coughing fit that brought more blood to his lips.
“I’m not lying…
“Liars… are puppies…”
Choking back my tears, I forced myself to stand, dragging him to lean against a nearby tree.
Even as I wiped my face, the tears kept coming.
He gently squeezed my hand, his gaze steady but pleading.
“Go now… you won’t let me die, right?”
I nodded fiercely, tears blurring my vision.
“Wait for me! I’ll come back for you!
“You’ll be okay–I promise!”
He smiled faintly again and waved me away.
“Alright.”
I turned to flee, but before I could take more than a few steps, a thunderous gunshot shattered the air.
A powerful force slammed into me, knocking me to the ground.
Agonizing pain spread across my shoulder, leaving me breathless.
I’d been shot.
39.2%
Chapter 13
Terrified, I turned my head, only to see Joseph collapsing onto me.
Blood gushed from a gaping wound in his chest, soaking his white coat a deep crimson.
My mind went blank. Ignoring the searing pain in my own shoulder, I flipped him over, hands shaking as I pressed down on his wound.
“Joseph! Joseph!”
My cries were desperate, my tears uncontrollable.
He weakly raised a hand, clasping mine with what little strength he had left.
That simple action seemed to drain him entirely.
In a hoarse whisper, he said:
“I’m sorry…
“I love you…
“In the next life… please be my little one again, okay?”
His eyes held a kaleidoscope of emotions–reluctance, tenderness, resignation–all fading into stillness.
The light in them extinguished.
His hand slipped limply from mine.
I froze, staring at him in disbelief as overwhelming terror and heartbreak consumed me.
It felt like my heart was being scorched alive.
I coughed violently, blood spilling from my lips as my vision blurred.
Sweat drenched me as pain from my shoulder wound surged through my body.
Even so, I reached out, trying desperately to grasp him, to pull him back.
“Joseph…” I called weakly, voice trembling with fear and grief.
But my body had reached its limit.
Darkness closed in as I collapsed backward, slipping into unconsciousness.
