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):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqRlByEGsDQ
"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:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmEJFAH56Qm
"I learned from the best... but I didn't want to end it like this."
🃏 William (looking into her eyes):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlWd01PaL55
"We could have been allies, you know?... if we weren't reflections of the same flaw."
♠ Elizabeth (in a low voice):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡieQqrIN2Yw
"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:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBd2Gv1nNm7
"Nice, isn't it? A poetic ending. Blood, betrayal, half-baked love, and words worthy of a grave."
♠ Elizabeth (turning her face toward her):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbEP6emTBiT
"You're not out of the game yet, Madeleine."
❤️ Madeleine:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCchnpGljZ
"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:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdzIVH07w18
"It's over?"
♠ Elizabeth (shaking her head):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEayR2rnjkK
"Nothing ends... but it changes."
John approaches, looking at the wounded William, then at the weapon in Elizabeth's hand.
♠ John:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHQOZOWirx2
"Did you... kill him?"
♠ Elizabeth (looking at William):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiQno0FHOr5
"No. I couldn't. And I don't want to."
🃏 William (with a wry smile):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ahPeGoObw
"That's what makes you different. And maybe... stronger."
♠ John:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcxzICihdQQ
"What now? The council is over, Terence's men have fled, and the past is all but destroyed."
♠ Elizabeth:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUhdOnRhjIY
"We start over. We fix what we can. And we let the rest burn."
❤️ Madeline:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZFIO3EHg8g
"And do you believe fire purifies?"
♠ Elizabeth:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cjSejlV4k
"Rather, I believe some of the ashes are fit to be replanted."
…
In the final scene of the chapter,58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2d38x6c959
Sir Terence's body is carried out of the palace.58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFceFhHYP0Q
William is taken to a treatment room, but he doesn't ask for anything. He only asks for a pen and paper.
He writes:58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡElBgaYdrPY
"To you who read me as I read papers,58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbbyx6gvMkd
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):58Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYpAcyismo
"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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