𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐄 || j. daniel atlas

𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄

By the time Alena was off the boat, up the muddy bank, and away from the docks, the tears had come; they showed no signs of stopping. She had gone through her entire life with only a handful of people – her mother and the Horseman – for whom she would cry if they died. And now, her body trembled with utter sorrow and cold at the thought of what dreadful end would come to a man she had only briefly met.

Alena never thought herself capable of such feeling, but perhaps that's what happened when you found yourself actually belonging somewhere, to something, to someone. She belonged with the Eye now, of that much she was now certain. Such pain wasn't born from apathy. She'd never cried over the loss of a client, besides Merritt. But this past year had seen her, once again, torn from her mother, which she had allowed to drive a wedge between herself and Daniel, and now she was stranded in a foreign country with a sociopathic man-child and his repulsively powerful father.

She didn't stop to wipe her tears, even as she stumbled over roots and rocks, stubbing her toes, scratching her sensitive insteps. Bushes and tree branches caught on her dress and in her hair. Alena had kept left, following the dock after leaving the boat, not wanting to get caught by her driver. She figured that there would be a road or some form of path back to the city at the other end, but had ducked into a wooded area to stay out of sight.

Though she felt no pain in her feet or legs, eventually the cry of Alena's lungs became too loud to ignore. She pulled up short, but not fast enough to avoid the tree. She struck it so hard with her shoulder that a shock prickled down her arm, rolling off her fingertips like sparks. Wrapped her arms around the trunk to steady herself, Alena pressed her forehead against the bark, forcing her breath to slow down. She filled up her screaming lungs, held on for a few seconds, then expelled the air through clenched teeth.

Then, she heard chatter from somewhere nearby. Alena was fairly close to the treeline, but couldn't say how far she had run. She could have run in a circle for all the attention she had been paying to her direction. Reluctantly, she let go of the tree and took a few shaking steps towards the noise.

At first, Alena assumed it was a gang of youths, messing around by the water, until she began to recognise the voices. They kept saying one name over and over again; "Dylan!" She wasn't sure if she was imagining it, if her brain was so starved of oxygen that it had conjured some scrambled collection of memories to torture her further. Still, she made her way out into the open and spotted a very distinct fur coat and a hat balanced atop a balding head.

"Is that him?" Alena cried out, her voice thick with tears. She threw herself against a metal railing and stared down at the abandoned industrial jetty, on which four figures crouched over a body. "Is that him? Is he alive?"

"Allie? What the hell are you doing here?" Merritt stared up at her, eyes wide.

Alena looked around, saw some steps a few feet away. Dropping her purse and shoes, she held onto the banisters on each side as she barrelled down towards them. "Is he alive?" she repeated, shoving Lula and Merritt aside.

Dylan lay on the ground, seeming barely conscious as Alena collapsed on the ground beside him. She placed a hand on his neck, trying to find a pulse, but she was still trembling so violently that she couldn't tell his heartbeat from her own. Alena rested her head on his chest, ear pressed to his heart, and held her breath.

After a few seconds of desperate silence, she felt soft, rhythmic pushes against her cheek. She let out a crackling sigh and the rest of her sobs followed. "I saw them put you in the box," Alena croaked into Dylan's chest.

"Hey," came an equally throaty voice. A gentle hand landed on her ruined hair. "It's okay. I'm alive."

Alena lifted herself up. "But you were in a box." Then, she realised that the wetness of Dylan's shirt couldn't possibly be from her tears alone. "They...they dropped you in the water," she said, not daring to speak above a whisper. "I'm so sorry."