. . .
Dahlia
I watched as the man slumped on the ground, blood pouring out of the wound on his head. It was like his skull was crushed. He was most definitely dead.
I looked at Andros. He had a thick rod in his hand. His body was almost unmoving. His back was towards me. There were red marks on his torso, as if he had broken out of his chains.
Hedeon's eyes fell on me, but he didn't move. He didn't want Andros to know I was there.
But Andros knew. He turned.
Blood was splattered on him. It dripped down his hands and the rod. His head tilted his head. "Dahlia."
I was shaking. Or maybe the ship was shaking. No, I was the one who was shaking. I couldn't stop.
I felt Lucian stand behind me.
"Back the fuck away," he said to Andros, trying to push me behind him. I stayed where I was, shaking my head at him.
Andros looked at him, and then back at me. "Dahlia."
"Hey," I whispered. "Andros. Will you come with me?"
I, very slowly, reached for the rod in his hand. He watched my hand wrap around it. He let go.
I handed it to Lucian.
"Hey." I stepped forward. Hedeon was shaking his head. I extended my hand again, silently asking him to put his in mine.
He did.
I led him to his room. He laid on the bed with me beside him, the blood on him rubbing on me. And then, his eyes closed.
When I left as soon as I was assured he wasn't sleepwalking anymore, the body was gone and there was no hint of blood anywhere.
It was almost like it had been just a nightmare.
. . .
I threw up, holding my hair away from my face. I couldn't stop throwing up. I needed to wash the blood off me.
"Dahlia, baby, please open the door."
It was Lucian or Alexandre.
"Dahlia, open this door."
Hedeon.
I dragged myself up and opened the door, instantly running to throw up again. My throat burned. My eyes burned.
"Dahlia."
Lucian pulled my hair back, rubbing my back as I threw up. There wasn't even anything left in me to throw up but my body wouldn't stop.
I grabbed Lucian's hand, looking at the star on it. "I-I-"
"Shh." He picked me. "You're okay. You're okay. We're going to clean you up. You're okay."
. . .
I was sitting on my bed, wrapped in blankets, staring at the wall. I had stopped shaking and throwing up. I just needed to bleach my eyes now.
"I'm sorry you had to see that," Hedeon muttered, rubbing my back.
"Who did he kill?" I asked Him.
"Darling, you don't want to know that," Lucian said, he was sitting on my other side. Alexandre was standing in a corner, his eyes firmly on me.
"I want to," I said. "Who was he?"
"Just a worker," Alexandre answered. "He must have tried to stop Andros."
"How did Andros get out of the chains?"
"We don't know," Hedeon said. "He knows all the tricks, but while sleepwalking he usually isn't able to use them."
"So, what? Sleepwalking Andros is getting smarter?"
"That can't be good," Lucian said.
"What was the worker's name?" I asked.
"Daniel," Hedeon said. "He had been working with us for almost ten years."
"Does he have a family?"
Hedeon's jaw clenched. "Yes, two daughters who stay with his mother. Their mother died."
I let out a shaky breath, covering my face with my hands. Fuck.
"We'll take care of them financially," Lucian said.
"Money isn't enough for kids," I said quietly. "Is Andros still sleeping?"
"Yes," Hedeon said. "The door is locked. Five guards are stationed to make sure he doesn't escape."
Why did I feel that wouldn't be enough to keep him contained?
. . .
Hedeon Kozlov
Andros stared at the wall, his hands clenching and unclenching the knife in his hand.
"How is she?" He asked quietly.
"I think she is more upset about his daughters than anything else."
"He...he had daughters?"
"Yes."
"How old are they?"
"Andros-"
"How fucking old are they, Hedeon?"
"Ten."
"Fuck." He threw his knife away and gripped his hair. "Fuck."
He stood and paced the room. "There is no cure for this. I keep telling you guys."
"What would you have us do?" Lucian snapped. "We tried everything. There is no other option."
"There is one."
"Shut up," Alex muttered. "We're not putting you there."
"That's not your choice to make, is it?" Andros said, eyes on Vaness as she walked into the room and looked up at him. He sighed and extended his hand, letting her climb on him. "I'm not saying put me there permanently. But, it may work. Remove my thumbprint from the lock."
"No," I said. "No," I repeated when he refused to meet my eye. "It will only worsen your sleepwalking."
"But it will keep everyone safe. Especially Dahlia. And I won't be orphaning kids."
. . .
Dahlia
I set my arms on the railing. It was quite late at night, and I couldn't stop looking at the water. The first time I had been on a ship, I had been terrified of how the ocean looks during the night. It felt like a world of darkness.
It was still scary. But, after what I had seen today, it didn't feel that scary.
Daniel's corpse kept flashing in my mind. And Andros's bloodied body. It wasn't him.
It wasn't him, yet I was so hesitant about going to meet Andros. I didn't want him to punish himself, but I didn't know how to act in a situation like this. What was I supposed to do? Just pretend nothing happened? Pretend I didn't have another thing to have nightmares about?
I felt someone nudge at my legs. I looked down at Bobby who blinked up at me, meowing softly.
I picked him up and walked away from the railing. Even though Bobby knew better than to jump into the water, I didn't really trust him that much.
"Let's go sleep, hm?"
I walked inside. The hallways were empty. I had to make my way through five till I reached the one which had my, Monets' and Kozlovs' room. I sometimes saw people. But none of them really talked to me.
Everyone here was in hiding. To live on a ship, disconnected from the world, they had to be hiding from something scary.
They helped people. But they dealt with weapons too. They weren't angels, in any sense. But they could be. They had wings but those wings were tainted red.
I entered my room. Lucian was already inside with Vaness on his lap. Hedeon was there, too.
"Hey," I muttered to them. I had planned on just sleeping. "What are you doing here?"
"Just wanted to make sure you're okay," Lucian said. Vaness jumped out of his lap and ran out of the room, Bobby followed her.
I closed the door. They always scratched on it to let me know they wanted to come back in.
"I..." I shrugged. "I don't know what to think. I am okay."
"Come here."
Hedeon sat on the bed and patted his thigh.
I sat on his lap, digging my face into his chest. "I want to get it out of my mind, Hedeon."
"How can I help?"
"I..." I looked up at him and then Lucian.
Lucian tilted his head. "Of course."
Hedeon cupped my face and kissed me. "Let's go to my room. We'll make you forget, at least for a while."
. . .