The light in the room was only the intermittent glow of gas lamps, dancing with the smoke of gunpowder. The floor smelled of iron... and disappointment. No one was in their proper place anymore. Chairs were upturned. Papers were scattered. Everything pointed to an end... or another beginning.
William sat on the floor, pressing on a wound on his shoulder, but he still smiled. His gaze was lost, not in the pain of the body, but in the confusion of the heart.
🃏 William (in a hoarse voice):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNoAsDmsav8
"You know, Elizabeth? I didn't expect you to drop me... but to hold the knife in your hand."
Elizabeth was standing, blood on her forearm, but it wasn't her own. Her hand didn't tremble, her eye didn't well. But she was teetering between triumph... and emptiness.
♠ Elizabeth:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡls28OZfny5
"I learned from the best... but I didn't want to end it like this."
🃏 William (looking into her eyes):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ZeAyHnlDl
"We could have been allies, you know?... if we weren't reflections of the same flaw."
♠ Elizabeth (in a low voice):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWpuAU0m8OW
"And that flaw... is that we can't trust anyone."
In the corner of the room, Madeleine sat quietly on a slumped chair, watching the scene, leg over leg, as if watching one last play.
❤️ Madeleine:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVmmcnh29We
"Nice, isn't it? A poetic ending. Blood, betrayal, half-baked love, and words worthy of a grave."
♠ Elizabeth (turning her face toward her):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8xxIAF8jQ
"You're not out of the game yet, Madeleine."
❤️ Madeleine:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9jGYqH8DwG
"And I don't claim to be. But you won the round. As for the war... who knows who's starting it again."
...
Then John enters, his face covered in dust and light blood, his eyes searching only for her: Elizabeth.
♠ John:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBG2exyT1OR
"It's over?"
♠ Elizabeth (shaking her head):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMUkYcUOvLS
"Nothing ends... but it changes."
John approaches, looking at the wounded William, then at the weapon in Elizabeth's hand.
♠ John:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv603gNOHXM
"Did you... kill him?"
♠ Elizabeth (looking at William):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV9BxOFwsQw
"No. I couldn't. And I don't want to."
🃏 William (with a wry smile):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR3knRyfq35
"That's what makes you different. And maybe... stronger."
♠ John:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0C9gHhtebD
"What now? The council is over, Terence's men have fled, and the past is all but destroyed."
♠ Elizabeth:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3tQnhzZn4L
"We start over. We fix what we can. And we let the rest burn."
❤️ Madeline:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhOcP0w6TCT
"And do you believe fire purifies?"
♠ Elizabeth:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ44gcl9MetK
"Rather, I believe some of the ashes are fit to be replanted."
…
In the final scene of the chapter,22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoLYGyfcV6C
Sir Terence's body is carried out of the palace.22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLfD09QIBX7
William is taken to a treatment room, but he doesn't ask for anything. He only asks for a pen and paper.
He writes:22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe6WMrkHkMS
"To you who read me as I read papers,22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhxXjZni0C1
You were the paper that is revealed only when the table is turned."
He signs it: - William
...
At the top of the palace, Elizabeth stands before the window, looking down at the city below... the city that had consumed her, then given her victory.
♠ Elizabeth (to herself):22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6QtWsYAyIE
"I have lost many things... but I am no longer afraid of falling."
Then, she closes the window. The wind begins to howl again.
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