CROSS MY HEART // dystopian romance

13. what stitches can't fix

Turner is on the floor, fighting with another man who has my dagger in hand. He's overpowered, and he's losing. Despite the burning hatred I still feel towards him, what's left of my morals compel me to run to them.

Before I can get my hands on him, the man slashes Turner's back multiple times. I grab the man's hair and pull his head back to hold him steady, as I impale his body on my sword in one big effort.

He screams in agony, and I kick him so that his body rolls over to the side. I squat down, a knee on his bleeding chest, and I take my dagger back from his trembling hand.

"Your mommy never told you it's rude to steal daggers ?" I exhale, my body aching.

Growling sounds come closer, and I realize we don't have much time before Dead-Alives come join the party.

I get up, and Turner —who sat up so that his mutilated back doesn't touch the ground— looks at me, and I can see his eyebrow wrinkle and his silvery scar, lit by the burning flames all around us.

I hold out my hand for him to take, reluctantly. He hesitates, but we don't have time to hesitate. So, he takes my hand, and I help him get up as he winces in pain from the cuts on his back.

"Where are the others ?" he asks, panting, when suddenly a gunshot is fired, followed by a pained feminine scream.

My heart stops, and my eyes widen in horror when I notice Althea on her knees, covering her stomach.

"No !" Turner shouts next to me, rushing to get her. "Quick, we have to get out of here !" he keeps panicking as we try to get her to stand up.

"That way !" I point at a gap between the fire lines.

Big Ben looks exhausted, but also extremely concerned. He carries her in his arms and runs with us. Without even noticing at first, my first reflex is to hold Mihan's hand.

We flee the disastrous scene and the Dead-Alives arriving, and run as fast as we can. Mihan is crying and petrified, so we stop a second and I take him in my arms. He's a little heavy for me, but the adrenaline takes over.

"We'll see each other again, Elan !" Darian yells with a bloody face, after getting a wild beat down from Big Ben. "I'll make you all pay !"

We ignore his threat, and run away.

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        We wandered for what seemed like hours in the cold of the night, before finding a safe place.We found a small country village, deserted by any life. A few Dead-Alives were there, so I killed them all to make sure they don't follow us. We chose a big wooden house to stop in, and laid Althea on the dinner table.

I think my body might be broken everywhere, because I feel like a porcelain vase someone has dropped. But I don't really care. I don't have time to dwell on pain, because Althea is still bleeding out. And Mihan is still spiraling in panic.

"Mihan ! Look at me." I urge as I cup his head with my hands, forcing him to look at me, and not at his sister. "She's gonna be okay. Alright ? Big Ben's gonna stitch her up, okay ?"

At this point, I don't know who I'm trying to convince more : Mihan, or myself.

"Give me some space." Big Ben orders in a deep, grave voice that worries me. He must see it on my face, because he tries and explain. "I've done this before. I was a cop before The Falling. I've dealt with gunshot wounds."

He tells me to go look for first-aid kits and bandages, some tools that could be useful. I search the house in a hurry, and come back with everything I found.