“I need to apologise to you.”
“What for?”
“I thought I could help. I always think I can help…” Dante said, turning to her. “But I was sure I could this time. Sovereign had the perfect plan. A way for me to take Nightingale out, perhaps Julian as well, but…it would mean Nicholas would be dead. I couldn’t do that to Nicholas. I couldn’t do that to Alexandra, but it means you are stuck with Go Deo.”
“If Nightingale would’ve killed Julian…Then I would be forced to kill Nightingale. Big loss.”
“You would’ve died,” Dante replied. “Don’t look at me like that. You know it’s true. I could’ve ended it. I could’ve ended so much. Julian wanted Nightingale dead. I could’ve done it and saved you and Alexandra from his tyranny.”
“How?”
Dante held up a detonator in his hand, fished out from his pocket.
Melina looked from his hand to his face. “And just when were you planning on using that?”
“Tonight. It would’ve all been over.”
Melina struggled to get the words out, fury building up inside of her. “You were going to use that…with you being inside I take it?”
“You would be free. My agreement with Julian would wipe yours out. Nightingale would be done for. Sovereign would be dealt a blow. What is my life compared to that?”
Melina slapped him, hard. The ice and quaking meant nothing to either of them. This right now was what mattered.
“How fucking dare you say that to me. After everything we have been through, that we have done to each other, this is how you wanted to end things?”
“Can you think of a better option?”
“Yes! Fight, damn you! Since when do you give up? What the hell is wrong with you? Suicide? You love the humans. I get that. You feel guilty. I get that too. But she’s gone. Snap the fuck out of it! What was it that made this stupid idea leave your head?”
“You showed up. You weren’t supposed to. You were taking Nathaniel out. You were supposed to listen…but you never do. And then I saw them carry Nicholas in, and I knew that I couldn’t carry it out. Even if I somehow managed to get Nightingale alone…but then Nicholas would be at the mercy of Sovereign and their ridiculous prophecy theory….”
“Alejandro, what are you talking-”
“When I thought I was dying in that water…after Alexandra was possessed…I had a vision. A dream. I saw myself in bright sunlight, on a farm, happy, but with two women. Alexandra and Michelle. For the longest time I couldn’t understand. Why would I fantasise about both of them, when I had only truly opened up to one. It’s only just now I realise I’ve been seeing it all wrong. I wasn’t fantasising. It was showing me the truth. I never let Michelle know my true feelings. I had tried to do the same thing to Alexandra. But somehow she managed to force my heart open. It took a while, but finally, I couldn’t deny it anymore. Even as a vampire, I was capable of loving. I was even capable of falling in love. I risked everything to be with her. To tell her how I felt and to show her. I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted to fight for her. For us. I wanted to learn from my mistakes and ended up making the worst one yet.”
“Alejandro, I still don’t understand…”
“The vision showed me the truth. They both loved me. I understand now that I hadn’t just denied my feelings. I had denied theirs. Michelle was there in that water when we both thought I was dying. Holding me. Loving me. Despite the fact that when she was taken from me, I let her go. I failed her. Yet there she was. Like she always was. And I had never told her how I felt for fear that what I felt wasn’t real. Forget the romantic love. I had never told my best friend that I loved her. Not until I thought I wouldn’t survive. And I had never let her tell me how she felt. We are dead, Melina. What can dead things hope to feel? That’s how I always justified it. Even with you. I finally see that despite my intentions, all I do is hurt the ones I love. And here, on this very night, it continues. I had to do what’s right for everyone else but you. I’m sorry. But I swear to you I will make this right, somehow. None of you will be trapped by Julian or me. I needed you to know that. You…you mean a lot more to me than you know.”
Melina took a step forward. “Why does it sound like you’re saying goodbye to me?”
Dante caressed her cheek. “Because I am.”
“Alejandro please…” Melina said thickly, tears forming in her eyes. “Whatever you’re going through, whatever is wrong. Talk to me. We can figure it out together.”
Melina brought him in and kissed him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, desperately clinging to him. Trying through affection to show how much she loved him. How much she needed him.
“I want you,” she breathed.
“Melina…I can’t…”
“I know…I know…” she whispered, kissing his cheek softly. “Ok…will you just hold me?”
Dante took a second and nodded, letting her place her head on his chest as they both watched the baseball sized ice balls plummet and crash.
*
As their apartment rumbled, Lauren and Clive stood facing each other in the lounge room. Clive had taken her hands, gripping them harder as a quake hit.
“Lauren...I…”
“It’s ok. I know…”
“You do?”
“Yes. And I want to.”
Lauren kissed him hard. Before Clive had a chance to respond, she had gripped both sides of his head and held him as her mouth went to work.
“But…”
Lauren covered his mouth
