“There you are!” Eva crossed her arms as Tristan walked through the door; her brow furrowed tightly, “I already made sure that Jayce and Jessica already had gathered their things; you pack too.” She began to pace in that tiny hallway, her hands jerking to and fro, motioning wildly, “Another place just outside of the city, I found, closer to Argento territory. The area is less elegant perhaps, but it should keep everyone out of the crosshairs for now.” She bit down on her thumb, forward a few steps before turning around and stepping a few steps back.
There was no answer but a strange silence, “Tristan, are you listening?”
His hand never left the door, his fingers tracing the wood grains idly, his nails leaving pale scratches, “…I saw Paul.”
Eva blinked her hands moving down to her side, “Paul? He should be in jail.”
“Yeah…yeah he should be.” He bit his bottom lip, hard, feeling his teeth start to cut into the flesh, “But he’s not.” He let out a bitter, raspy chuckle, “He wanted to catch up.” He could his trembling return as anger crawled up his nerves again.
“Tristan, calm down.” Her left hand moved to gently guide his hand from the door, “This is a large reason for you to gather your things.” Her eyes looked towards the stairs, her lips pursed together before she sighed, “This was a fruitless endeavor. We clearly need to leave.”
He pulled his hand away from hers, his voice low and steady. “I am not leaving.”
“That’s not an option.” Her voice lowered, her eyes on him, “We are not safe here. You are not safe!”
His eyes narrowed, and he turned to face her, the taste of copper coating his tongue as he ground his teeth together, “That fucker is still alive.”
Eva grimaced, stepping back, “Whatever you are thinking, stop.”
“He is STILL alive, Evie! That fucker is alive and taunting me!” He looked down to the ground, his breath coming out in short, heavy huffs, his chest heaving as he struggled to fight off the bleak memories, “He won’t be for long.”
“Tristan, you are not going to kill him.”
“…Why not?” He stood up slowly, his eyes cloudy, his face still and expressionless, even as his heart raced, “Why shouldn’t I?”
Eva’s jaw was set firmly, her gaze level with his, “No one deserves to die. It is not our place to decide that.”
“You don’t think HE deserves it?” He stepped forward, his expression unreadable, the icy words tumbling from his mouth, “Even after he hurt me?”
“No. Of course not.” She said it as if it was the most obvious fact in the world, “It’s wrong, and it’ll break something in you.”
His heart was about to burst, his hands balled into tight fists, nails digging and cutting into the skin, once again he was trying to use the sharp agony to calm himself, “I’m not leaving this city. I’m not running.”
Eva reached out and took hold of his arm, her grip firm, “Tristan, you have to listen to me.”
He laughed softly and bitterly, his eyes down towards her hand, “No, I don’t.”
Eva shook her head, her eyes trying to capture his gaze, “We HAVE to leave! We don’t have a choice!”
“…I do…” He felt his heartbeat slow into a calm beat, a smile forming on his lips. He relaxed his hands and slowly pulled out his cell phone, looking at that last message. His fingers traced over it before he nodded to himself, “I’m going to make my choice.” He jerked his arm away from her, her grip no longer holding him back.
“Where are you going?” She stepped forward, reaching out to take hold of him as he opened the door, “It’s not safe!”
He gripped the phone tightly in his hand, releasing a deep and long sigh, “I don’t care.” He stepped out of her reach, gazing forward into the upcoming storm, “There is someone I need to see.”
He stepped outside, ignoring any protests as he shut the door behind him. He looked up towards the clouds, his eyes reflecting the dark gray skies above him, as he began to walk into the rains waiting embrace.
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