Crash and Burn (1)

i'd let her kill me

♚ ♛

MESHED WITH A DANGEROUSLY close roll of thunder, I heard Soren instantly. "¡Basta!"

It didn't matter what he said. I was already tumbling down over several bodies, slipping through arms and legs and hanging clothes. "Ah!"

Both of my arms were yanked back roughly, leaving me exposed for the harsh elbow that came flying at my chest.

Ouch. It knocked the breath out of me, sending me sprawling forward into the slow descent of strewn limbs and tangled clothing.

When my bare knees finally slipped along the dewy grass, I was already crawling towards the broken body silhouetted in front of me.

He was silent. Still.

Even as someone sent another sharp kick towards his body, he didn't react. There was no movement.

"¡Basta! Stop. Now."

The shift in the air was instant, as the dark command descended between all the moving figures.

A dim light poured over me and Mateo as everyone started to step away, realizing that their fucking Queen just jumped into the middle of a violation.

"Se acabó. Bastante."

A cry bubbled out as I slipped forward in the grass to grasp the blue jacket that was already spotted with blood. "No, no, no." I fumbled, climbing over his body and tugging at the torn shirt that he was wearing. "No..."

A dark shadow slid over the two of us and I knew it was him before he even uttered my name. "Lacey."

I bolted forward before he could grab me, grasping the dark, bloody bandanna that was still hanging around Mateo's neck. There was no reaction when I tugged at it. I forced myself to ignore the way my hands hook as I pushed it away gingerly.

I told him I wouldn't let him die. I told him I wouldn't let Soren kill him. I told him it was okay.

I could only press my fingers against his neck for a split second before those strong arms wrapped around my waist and ripped me away from him.

But I caught it.

It was faint, but it was there. A pulse.

"No, no! Soren, he's still alive!" I thrashed in his arms as he swung me out of the crowd and set my feet on the grass.

As soon as I was steadied, I was already shoving past him to get back to Mateo, adrenaline surging through me. My chest tightened painfully with the sharp movement. "He's alive!"

Breathe.

I only made it a step before Soren yanked me back again, pulling me into his embrace. Facing them.

Everyone was still, watching the two of us, but I could only focus on the broken, bloody body, lying in the grass. "Help him! We have to help him, he's still alive!"

Soren spun me around so abruptly that my vision jerked with the movement. I gasped in pain, my heart fluttering when he tucked me under his chin to still me. Everything stilled in that moment. The nausea, the pain, the tears.

Something slurred and strong came out of his lips, but I couldn't decipher it. I couldn't even hear it. His hands snaked up my back to run through my hair and the soothing motion somehow brought a wave of complete defeat.

Slumping in his arms in exhaustion, I let everything unravel. I let him tangle his fingers into my hair as I fisted his shirt and just cried.