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):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYjDdqGnjh4
"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:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoOTCgXk5Ir
"I learned from the best... but I didn't want to end it like this."
🃏 William (looking into her eyes):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIEjTY7K9wi
"We could have been allies, you know?... if we weren't reflections of the same flaw."
♠ Elizabeth (in a low voice):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKtH2Fh5DgS
"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:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe3llRE7hum
"Nice, isn't it? A poetic ending. Blood, betrayal, half-baked love, and words worthy of a grave."
♠ Elizabeth (turning her face toward her):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbijLFy3N5
"You're not out of the game yet, Madeleine."
❤️ Madeleine:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZROKIxS3S
"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:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfyGawyw2j4
"It's over?"
♠ Elizabeth (shaking her head):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEn9MLMJyZ7
"Nothing ends... but it changes."
John approaches, looking at the wounded William, then at the weapon in Elizabeth's hand.
♠ John:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlAHKZYq3tp
"Did you... kill him?"
♠ Elizabeth (looking at William):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK9yWnwHuoH
"No. I couldn't. And I don't want to."
🃏 William (with a wry smile):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkTiAEqC0Dm
"That's what makes you different. And maybe... stronger."
♠ John:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdfueSwakic
"What now? The council is over, Terence's men have fled, and the past is all but destroyed."
♠ Elizabeth:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEK0BRun12r
"We start over. We fix what we can. And we let the rest burn."
❤️ Madeline:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ222KPR2XYm
"And do you believe fire purifies?"
♠ Elizabeth:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpIx6za0S55
"Rather, I believe some of the ashes are fit to be replanted."
…
In the final scene of the chapter,28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY0pPjKPkx0
Sir Terence's body is carried out of the palace.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVDc4xWAYCK
William is taken to a treatment room, but he doesn't ask for anything. He only asks for a pen and paper.
He writes:28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvv9W2TSfm
"To you who read me as I read papers,28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ59U34QVmWA
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):28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvXrHd3gSsR
"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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