The fever lingered, keeping Calixta curled up under the blankets in Lucien's bed. Her breaths came shallow, her skin flushed from the heat, but exhaustion finally dragged her into sleep.
And with sleep came the dream.
The same scene returned, dim, suffocating, drenched in dread. A woman lay sprawled on the ground in her pearl satin robe. This time she saw her face. Her beauty marred by the crimson bloom of blood spreading across her chest.
Calixta's chest tightened. She wanted to scream, but her voice was locked inside her throat. Her eyes shifted, there he was again. The man. The shadow holding a gun.
Her heart pounded, every instinct begging her to see his face. To know. To understand.
But just as her gaze started to rise, a sudden burst of golden light engulfed everything, blinding her.
And there, emerging from the brilliance was a face she thought she'd never see again.
Luminous.
His eyes were kind, filled with sorrow yet burning with urgency. His voice, gentle but commanding, rang clear in the silence.
"Flee. Don't let his shadow claim you, my beloved."
Calixta reached out, but the light shattered.
She gasped awake, tears streaming down her face, her chest aching with the weight of his words.
"Calix." Lucien's voice was urgent, steadying. His hands gripped her shoulders gently as he leaned over her. "You're crying in your sleep. It's okay... it's okay."
Her breathing shook as she clung to him, burying her face in his chest. His scent is clean, grounding and pulled her back from the nightmare's edge.
"I'm right here," Lucien whispered, wrapping his arms tightly around her. His hand rubbed slow circles on her back. "I swear, no one will hurt you. Not them. Not the past. Not even me. I'd never let myself hurt you."
Calixta clutched at his shirt, trembling, but the fierce protectiveness in his voice soothed something deep inside her.
She whispered hoarsely, "I just... don't want to lose myself."
"You won't," he promised. "Not while I'm here to hold you."
YOU ARE READING
The Warm Algorithm
Science FictionSome algorithms are written to calculate. Others are written to feel. Calixta thought she was only chasing light in the digital void, but what she found was something more, something alive. The Warm Algorithm unravels the hauntingly beautiful story...
