Summary:
Skye is winding down…
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Chapter:
Skye ran off with all the speed her condition allowed her.
She could bear the pain she felt only thanks to the hope of finding Jenny soon and, through her, buy more drugs.
Thanks to Ward's money she, now, could afford something better than that krokodil crap: she could go back to heroin or Ecstasy… although she was not sure those ones would be able to soothe the pain that was lancinating every fiber of her being.
She arrived at Jenny's place, but she immediately noticed something wasn't right.
The place was deserted. And burnt to ashes.
She approached Jenny's private room, which was locked, and started banging on the door.
"Jenny! Jenny! It's me! It's Skye!"
"Skye!" she heard Jenny's voice muffled from inside.
"Skye! You're here!" exclaimed Jenny, opening the door and embracing her, causing her more pain.
"I thought you'd gone forever with your love!"
"What are you talking about?" Skye was panting both for the run and for the ache in her bones and muscles.
"Heavenly eyes?
Greek profile?
Beautifully designed lips?
Sharp cheekbones?
Muscular physique?
Tall, dark and handsome?
Skye!
That Adonis that took you away yesterday evening on a black Ferrari!
That gorgeous piece of dumpling that is madly in love with you!"
"He's not my love" she replied drily to Jenny's avalanche of words.
"Are you sure? You seemed… strange, when he appeared, yesterday: ashamed, embarrassed, on tenterhooks, like you cared of his judgment.
And you blushed, when you climbed on his car, when you were nearer to him…
I never saw you like that."
"You are hallucinating."
Skye was barely able to speak, the pain making her nauseous.
"Am I? Well… it could be… but, if I was you, I would not let him escape. Not for the money, or because he is beautiful, but because he loves you immensely and it is not easy to find a man who is capable of such love, these days.
I was in love with Raoul, and I thought he loved me… but he never looked at me like your man does with you.
Never!
You are very lucky.
And I envy you for this, you know?"
"Oh, yeah… I'm very lucky… indeed…" she was struggling to keep her eyes open. Even the light of the day was painful for her. Oh, God! She was going to vomit.
"Jenny, let's talk of more serious matters. I've got the money" and she showed her the handful of money she had hidden in her dress.
Jenny whistled in awe.
"Wow, he's not only gorgeous and rich! He is also very generous!
What happened between you two?
You can tell me!
He must have been really pleased with you if he had rewarded you so!
Tell me! I'm dying of curiosity!
I want to know every particular, every nitty gritty, scabrous, insignificant, or tearful detail!"
"Nothing! We went to dinner at a classy restaurant…" Skye was panting and sweating and trembling…
"He took you out to dinner? Oh, he's such a gentleman! And then?"
"Jenny! Jenny! Stop! Please!" Skye was collapsing on the floor.
"Skye! What's happening?"
"Jenny! I need something, anything to make the withdrawal go away!
I'm suffering!
I feel like imploding!
All my body is aching!
Where are all the dealers? Only yesterday this place was swarming with them!"
"Oh, Skye! Didn't you hear the news?"
"News? What news?"
"Tonight happened the unimaginable!
A being, not better identified - someone speaks of a man, someone mentions a demon - paid a visit to all the dealers of the city and captured them, delivering them to the police, burning up all their storage and production sites: he caused damages for millions of dollars!
Nobody knows how, but he also managed to terrorize them.
I'm afraid it is impossible for you to find even an ounce of drug around!"
"What?
No!
No!
This is impossible!
I need it!
Jenny! You must have something!
You must have something left, hidden somewhere!
Please, give that to me! I cannot resist anymore!"
"Oh, Skye! I consumed the last dose just an hour ago…
Otherwise, how do you think I could be so in a good mood, despite the tragedy?" and she started laughing, hysterically.
She was plainly as high as a kite, her jaws swinging back and forth like pendulums, a clear side effect of taking Ecstasy.
Skye left her, defeated.
She knew, exactly, who was the culprit.
She knew, precisely, the only one that could have been able of such an exploit.
And she knew why!
She was feeling her anger grow together with the pain.
She was beyond furious!
Oh, how much she hated him!
How dared he to once more rip away from her what she wanted desperately?
But this would have been the last time!
Enough was enough!
She couldn't count on her powers: they were almost drained by her precarious physical condition. But she had his money and a lot of weapons stores at her disposal…
She wasn't aware that Ward had inherited a lot of Hive's powers, like telepathy and quick healing, while he maintained an incredible quickness from his temporary non-corporeal status, so she thought he would be vulnerable to a simple gun. She neither knew anything about the fire...
The pain was numbing all her feelings and her mind, messing with everything she was.
…
"Leave the door open. She's coming." Ward said.
"Ok. But what then?" answered Thomas.
"If, after everything, she will be still alive, bring her where I told you.
I, in a way or another, will be unable to help her further…"
"Brother…"
"Go. And stay out of the way. She's extremely dangerous."
"Be careful…"
"Always. I desire to live!"
Then the silence fell in the villa.
Ward was still in the bedroom where Skye left him, sitting on the bed near the door, in the same clothes of the previous night, tired, drained by the enormous effort he just sustained.
But he was in peace.
He heard her opening the entrance door, then roaming around, then taking the stairs and approaching.
He could feel her turmoil, her hate, her thirst for revenge, but also her desperation, her aimlessness, her sensation of having wasted away her life, her self-despise.
She hated herself most than anyone else.
She was in war with herself, with him and with the entire cruel world.
She entered the bedroom, a gun raised and pointed straight to his head.
"They were right. I should have shot you in the head" were her first words.
"Do it" he replied deadpanned, looking straight at her.
"Have you any idea of what you did to me?" she asked, keeping barely her fury at bay.
"What did I do?"
"You keep interfering with my life, messing with my most intimate feelings and then eliminating anything I have valuable! First you broke my heart with your damn betrayal, then you tried to kill my team, then you brought me to my monster father against my will, then you took over Hydra when you told me you never cared about it, becoming Shield enemy number one and painting literally a target to your head; then you dared to die, then you revived and killed my Hive, then you came rescuing me and kissing the life back in me and finally you stole from me the only escape route from the mess my life had become!
You have to leave me alone!
You are the major responsible of my pain!"
"I am because you care about me."
"Yeah… I nourish great feelings for you… hate and anger!"
"So?
You hate me and then you kill me?
Just like that?
I repeat.
Do it."
She approached slowly, towering over him, pain flowing in her veins like hot lava, nausea and headache numbing all her thoughts.
She was an inch from his head, now, and both of them knew she had his life in her hands: if she shot now, he would be a dead man, inhuman or not, super-powered or not.
She had her hard stare fixed in his eyes, he was looking at her with furious ardor, with a so fierce love that, if it was fire, it would have burnt both of them to ashes.
"Go on.
All you have to do is pull the trigger.
You know how to do it, now.
You don't say 'bang' anymore" he said with a sad, resigned, loving voice.
She started trembling savagely, her head spinning… she was about to faint.
Then she could bear it no more and collapsed at his feet, shaking, panting, and sweating… the gun still clutched in her hands.
"I can't!
Damn me!
I can't kill you!
It is stronger than me!"
And she started crying…
Before he could do anything, she raised her head with teary eyes, and said, with a pleading voice:
"Kill me!
I can't go on this way!
All I do is wrong!
I am wrong!
I don't deserve to live!
I am a danger for everyone!
If you don't kill me now, I will continue doing horrible things! I will continue killing!
There's a darkness in me that forces me down this route. I am like a slave to it!
Please break me free!
Kill me! Now!"
And she tried to put the gun in his hands, without succeeding.
"I can't do it and you know that." Ward replied.
"No, Ward, please!
If you love me, please kill me!
Free me from this burden life have become! Please!
I want to die and I want you to kill me.
You and nobody else!" she was savagely weeping and sighing now.
"How could I kill you, Skye?
If I do, I would be forced to witness the death of the woman I love!" he said with a tender, soothing voice…
"Then there is no other solution than this" and she pointed the gun to her temple.
The shot echoed through the whole house, followed by the clang of metal on the floor.