Hey Julie, thought you said you wanted me at dusk. How come you didn't have Liam wake me up before he crashed?
'Cause I didn't need you. I'm still good.
He was already picking up the north half of the ?
Nope. Nothing but nothing.
You did some scouting?
He'd caught the edge of one of my side trips. He headed up the new trail.
Yeah—I ran a few spokes. You know, just checking. If the Cullens are going to make a hunting trip...
Good call.
Seth looped back toward the main perimeter.
It was easier to run with Seth than it was to do the same with Liam. Though Liam was trying—trying hard—there was always an edge to his thoughts. He didn't want to be here. He didn't want to feel the softening toward the vampires that was going on in my head. He didn't want to deal with Seth's cozy friendship with them, a friendship that was only getting stronger.
Funny, though, I'd've thought his biggest issue would just be me. We'd always gotten on each other's nerves when we were in Sam's pack. But there was no antagonism toward me now at all, just the Cullens and Bella. I wondered why. Maybe it was simply gratitude that I wasn't forcing him to leave. Maybe it was because I understood his hostility better now. Whichever, running with Liam wasn't nearly as bad as I'd expected.
Of course, he had made a pretty big fuss when I brought the food and clothes Esme had sent for him. At first he threatened to chuck them in the river. I'd decided to ignore his threats and sit down and eat my share—it did smell nearly irresistible away from the vampire burn. After a while he calmed down and begrudgingly ate some of the food. Then he took to sulking.
Maybe we should run a sweep east?Seth deep, see if they're out there waiting.
I was thinking about that,I let's do it when we're all awake. I don't want to let down our guard. We should do it before the Cullens give it a try, though. Soon.
Right.
That got me thinking.
If the Cullens were able to get out of the immediate area safely, they really ought to keep on going. They probably should have taken off the second we'd come to warn them. They had to be able to afford other digs. And they had friends up north, right? Take Bella and run. It seemed like an obvious answer to their problems.
I probably ought to suggest that, but I was afraid they would listen to me. And I didn't want to have Bella disappear—to never know whether she'd made it or not.
No, that was stupid. I would tell them to go. It made no sense for them to stay, and it would be better—not less painful, but healthier—for me if Bella left.
Easy to say now, when Bella wasn't right there, looking all sad at me and also clinging to life by her fingernails at the same time...
Oh, I already asked Edyth about that,Seth thought.
What?
I asked her why they hadn't taken off yet. Gone up to Taras' place or something. Somewhere too far for Sam to come after them.
I had to remind myself that I'd just decided to give the Cullens that exact advice. That it was best. So I shouldn't be mad at Seth for taking the chore out of my hands. Not mad at all.
So what did she say? Are they waiting for a window?
No. They're not leaving.
And that shouldn't sound like good news.
Why not? That's just stupid.
Not really,Seth said, defensive now. Edyth doesn't want to take any risks moving Bella.
She's better than she was.
Seriously,Seth agreed. In his head, he was comparing my memories of Bella hooked up to the tubes with the last time he'd seen her as he'd left the house. Bella had smiled at him and she can't move around much, you know. And her body is still pretty weak. Just one little tumble off the couch and she broke a freaking rib!
I swallowed back the pain.I know, I was there.
Oh,his thoughts grew somber, no, it happened earlier after you left. So I guess she's broken two now.
My stride faltered, and I staggered a step before I regained my rhythm.
Carlisle taped her up again. Just another crack, she said. Then Royal said something about how humans fall and crack ribs all the time. Edyth looked like she was gonna rip his head off.
Too bad she didn't.
Seth was in full report mode now—knowing it was all vitally interesting to me, though I'd never've asked to hear 's been running a fever off and on today. Just low grade—sweats and then chills. Carlisle's not sure what to make of it—the disease keeps… mutating, I guess.
Yeah, Carlisle mentioned that before.
Bella's in a decent mood, though. I mean, sometimes she seemed really sad. Like she was thinking about something.
Oh, so now she's thinking?Given the entire situation, I found that unlikely.
It's weird, sometimes she just looks so sad, but then she'll snap out of it and be totally fine. Like when she was chatting with Charlie, laughing and all—
Charlie!What?!What do you mean, she was talking to Charlie?!
Now Seth's pace stuttered; my fury surprised he calls every day to talk to her. Sometimes Bella's mom calls, too. Bella sounds so much better now, so she was reassuring them that she was on the mend—
On the mend? What the hell are they thinking?! Get Charlie's hopes up just so that he can be destroyed even worse if she dies? I thought they were getting him ready for that! Trying to prepare him! Why would Bella set him up like this?
She might not die,Seth thought quietly.
I took deep breath, trying to calm . You know how badly I want to believe she's going to pull through this. But chances are she won't. The second she's strong enough they're going to have to… to…I couldn't think the words. Anyway, she knows that, and so do the rest of them. If she doesn't die, she's going to have to do a pretty convincing impersonation of a corpse, kid. Either that, or disappear. I thought they were trying to make this easier on Charlie. Why... ?
Think it's Bella's idea. No one said anything, but Edyths face kinda went right along with what you're thinking now.
On the same wavelength with the bloodsucker yet again.
We ran in silence for a few minutes. I started off along a new line, probing south.
Don't get too far.
Why?
Bella asked me to ask you to stop by.
My teeth locked together.
Alice wants you, too. She says she's tired of hanging out in the attic like the vampire bat in the snorted a laugh.I was switching off with Edyth before. Trying to keep Bella's temperature stable. Cold to hot, as needed. I guess, if you don't want to do it, I could go back—
No. I got it,I snapped.
didn't make any more comments. He concentrated very hard on the empty forest.
I kept my southern course, searching for anything new. I turned around when I got close to the first signs of habitation. Not near the town yet, but I didn't want to get any wolf rumors going again. We'd been nice and invisible for a long while now.
I passed right through the perimeter on my way back, heading for the house. As much as I knew it was a stupid thing to do, I couldn't stop myself. I must be some kind of masochist.
There's nothing wrong with you, Julie. This isn't the most normal situation.
Shut up, please, Seth.
Shutting.
I didn't hesitate at the door this time; I just walked through like I owned the place. I figured that would piss Royal off, but it was a wasted effort. Neither Royal or Bella were anywhere in sight. I looked around wildly, hoping I'd missed them somewhere, my heart squeezing against my ribs in a weird, uncomfortable way.
"She's all right," Edyth whispered. "Or, the same, I should say."
Edyth was on the couch with her face in her hands; she hadn't looked up to speak. Esme was next to her, her arm wrapped tight around her shoulders.
"Hello, Julie," she said. "I'm so glad you came back."
"Me, too," Alice said with a deep sigh. She came prancing down the stairs, making a face. Like I was late for an appointment.
"Uh, hey," I said. It felt weird to try to be polite. "Where's Bella?"
"Bathroom," Alice told me. "Mostly fluid diet, you know."
"Ah."
I stood there awkwardly, rocking back and forth on my heels.
"Oh, wonderful," Royal grumbled. I whipped my head around and saw him coming from a hall half-hidden behind the stairway. He had Bella cradled gently in his arms, a harsh sneer on his face for me. "I knew I smelled something nasty."
And, just like before, Bella's face had that same sad smile. It was full of something I couldn't place, something that made me ache and scared me all at once.
It was so unfair.
"Julie," she said. "You came."
"Hi, babe."
Esme and Edyth both got up. I watched how carefully Royal laid Bella out on the couch. I watched how, despite that, Bella turned white and held her breath—like she was set on not making any noise no matter how much it hurt.
Edyth brushed her hand across Bella's forehead and then along her neck. She tried to make it look as if She was just sweeping her hair back, but it looked like a doctor's examination to me.
"Are you cold?" she murmured.
"I'm fine."
"Bella, you know what Carlisle told you," Royal said. "Don't downplay anything. It doesn't help us take care of you."
"Okay, I'm a little cold. Edyth, can you hand me that blanket?"
I rolled my eyes. "Isn't that sort of the point of me being here?"
"You just walked in," Bella said. "After running all day, I'd bet. Put your feet up for a minute. I'll probably warm up again in no time."
I ignored her, going to sit on the floor next the sofa while she was still telling me what to do. At that point, though, I wasn't sure how... she looked pretty brittle, and I was afraid to move her, even to put my arms around her. So I just leaned carefully against her side, letting my arm rest along the length of hers, and held her hand. Then I put my other hand against her face. It was hard to tell if she felt colder than usual.
"Thanks, Julie," she said, and I felt her shiver once.
"Yeah," I said.
Edyth sat on the arm of the sofa by Bella's feet, her eyes always on her face.
It was too much to hope, with all the super-hearing in the room, that no one would notice my stomach rumbling.
"Royal, why don't you get Julie something from the kitchen?" Alice said. She was invisible now, sitting quietly behind the back of the sofa.
Royal stared at the place Alice's voice had come from in disbelief.
"Thanks, anyway, Alice, but I don't think I'd want to eat something Blondie's spit in. I'd bet my system wouldn't take too kindly to venom."
"Royal would never embarrass Esme by displaying such a lack of hospitality."
"Of course not," Blondie said in an overly kind voice that I immediately distrusted.
He got up and breezed out of the room.
Edyth sighed.
"You'd tell me if he poisoned it, right?" I asked.
"Yes," Edyth promised.
And for some reason I believed her.
There was a lot of banging in the kitchen, and—weirdly—the sound of metal protesting as it was abused. Edyth sighed again, but smiled just a little, too. Then Royal was back before I could think much more about it. With a pleased smirk, he set a silver bowl on the floor next to me.
"Enjoy, mongrel."
It had once probably been a big mixing bowl, but he'd bent the bowl back in on itself until it was shaped almost exactly like a dog dish. I had to be impressed with his quick craftsmanship. And his attention to detail. He'd scratched the word Fidointo the side. Excellent handwriting.
Because the food looked pretty good—steak, no less, and a big baked potato with all the fixings—I told him, "Thanks, Blondie."
He snorted.
"Hey, do you know what you call a blonde with a brain?" I asked, and then continued on the same breath, "a golden retriever."
"I've heard that one, too," he said, no longer smiling.
"I'll keep trying," I promised, and then I dug in.
He made a disgusted face and rolled his eyes. Then he sat in one of the armchairs and started flicking through channels on the big TV so fast that there was no way he could really be surfing for something to watch.
The food was good, even with the vampire stink in the air. I was getting really used to that. Huh. Not something I'd been wanting to do, exactly...
When I was finished—though I was considering licking the bowl, just to give Royal something to complain about—I felt Bella's cold fingers pulling softly through my hair. She patted it down against the back of my neck.
"Time for a haircut, huh?"
"You're getting a little shaggy," she said.
"Yeah, look who's talking." I snorted, reaching back and gently ruffling the long mop of curls on Bella's head.
She laughed and gently pushed my hand away, "Maybe—"
"Let me guess, someone around here used to cut hair in a salon in Paris?"
She chuckled. "Probably."
"No thanks," I said before she could really offer. "I'm good for a few more weeks."
Which made me wonder how long she was good for. I tried not to think too much about it. But Bella continued, distracting me.
"Actually, I'm feeling much better. I could probably trim up the edges for you if you'd like." She offered.
"I guess I wouldn't mind that so much." I shrugged.
She continued running her hands through my hair.
"How's the heart?" I finally asked after a few quiet minutes.
"Hard to say," she replied softly. "Carlisle says I'm doing better. But obviously we don't want to rush into anything. That would be risky." She paused. "We want to wait a few more days before we make any big decisions, I guess. At least three or four days."
I couldn't make complete sense of it in my head. Bella's life was speeding by in fast-forward. Now a number on the days she had left. Four. Four measly days. It took me a minute to figure out how to swallow.
"You okay?" she asked.
I nodded, not really sure how my voice would come out.
Edyth's face was turned away from us as she listened to my thoughts, but I could see her reflection in the glass wall. She was the burning woman again.
Funny how having a deadline made it harder to think about leaving, or having Bella leave. I was glad Seth'd brought that up, so I knew they were staying here. It would be intolerable, wondering if they were about to go, to take away one or two or three of those four days. My four days.
Also funny how, even knowing that it was almost over, the hold Bella had on me only got harder to break. It was like every hour of her life that faded away pulled me in deeper.
For a minute I tried to look at her from a distance, to separate myself from the pull. I knew it wasn't my imagination that my need for her was stronger than ever. Why was that? Because she was dying? Or knowing that even if she didn't, still—best case scenario—she'd be changing into something else that I wouldn't know or understand?
She ran her finger across my cheekbone, and my skin was wet where she touched it.
"It's going to be okay," She soothed, sadness in her voice.
"Right," I muttered.
She curled against my arm, resting her head on my shoulder. "I didn't think you would come. Seth said you would, and so did Edyth, but I didn't believe them."
"Why not?" I asked gruffly.
"You're not happy here. But you came anyway."
"You wanted me here."
"I know. But you didn't have to come, because it's not fair for me to want you here. I would have understood."
It was quiet for a minute. Edyth'd put her face back together. She looked at the TV as Royal went on flipping through the channels. He was into the six hundreds. I wondered how long it would take to get back to the beginning.
"Thank you for coming," Bella whispered.
"Can I ask you something?" I asked.
"Of course."
Edyth didn't look like she was paying attention to us at all, but she knew what I was about to ask, so she didn't fool me.
"Why do you want me here? Seth could keep you warm, and he's probably easier to be around, happy little punk. But when I walk in the door, you smile at me and you act like I'm your favorite person in the world."
"You're one of them."
"That sucks, you know."
"Yeah." She sighed. "Sorry."
"Why, though? You didn't answer that."
Edyth was looking away again, like she was staring out the windows. Her face was blank in the reflection.
"You're my best friend, Jules." She said simply. "I've never been able to get things right between us. I thought I might never get the chance. Things still might not end up right, but at least I have a chance to fix it."
"What are you trying to fix, Bella?"
"I just want you to be happy, Julie."
I could have been. If everything had actually gone my way. I could have been incredibly happy with Bella. But that was a far gone possibility now.
"I didn't want to change without making sure everything was right." She said quietly.
"What do you mean?"
"I wanted to make sure I had everything set up first," she explained. "A reason why I wouldn't be able to see everybody so I didn't have to just disappear. And I wanted to fix everything between us, before I had to say goodbye."
I didn't know what to say to her. Things were starting to make more sense to me now. Bella wasn't being stupid. She didn't have a death wish. She had wanted to stay human long enough to make her changing easier on everyone else.
I glanced back over to Edyth, her expression had hollowed out a bit again. There was something like guilt in the back of her burning eyes.
I looked back down at Bella's face then, so close to mine. Her eyes were shut and she was frowning. "We got off track, Julie. Out of balance. You're supposed to be part of my life —I can feel that, and so can you." She paused for a second without opening her eyes— like she was waiting for me to deny it. When I didn't say anything, she went on. "But not like this. We did something wrong. No. I did. I did something wrong, and we got off track..." I could hear her sniffle a little. "I didn't realize before, how selfish I could be. This put everything into perspective."
Her voice trailed off, and the frown on her face relaxed until it was just a little pucker at the corner of her lips. I waited for her to pour some more lemon juice into my paper cuts, but then a soft snore came from the back of her throat.
"She's exhausted," Edyth murmured. "It's been a long day. A hard day. I think she would have gone to sleep earlier, but she was waiting for you."
I didn't look at her.
"Seth said she fell again. Broke another rib."
"Yes. She's been having a harder time breathing."
"Great."
"Let me know when she gets hot again."
"Yeah."
Bella still had goose bumps on the arm that wasn't touching mine. I'd barely raised my head to look for a blanket when Edyth snagged one draped over the arm of the sofa and flung it out so that it settled over Bella's body.
Occasionally, the mind-reading thing saved time. For example, maybe I wouldn't have to make a big production out of the accusation about what was going on with Charlie. That mess. Edyth would just hear exactly how furious—
"Yes," she agreed. "It's not a good idea."
"Then why?" Why was Bella telling her father she was on the mend when it would only make him more miserable?
"She can't bear Charlie's anxiety."
"So it's better—"
"No. It's not better. But I'm not going to force her to do anything that makes her unhappy now. Whatever happens, this makes her feel better. I'll deal with the rest afterward."
That didn't sound right. Bella wouldn't just shuffle Charlie's pain off to some later date, for someone else to face. Even dying. That wasn't her. If I knew Bella, she had to have some other plan.
"She's very sure she's going to live," Edyth said.
"But not human," I protested.
"Perhaps, not human. But she hopes to see Charlie again, no matter what."
Oh, this just got better and better.
"See. Charlie." I finally looked at her, my eyes bugging. "Afterwards. See Charlie when she's all sparkly white with the bright red eyes. I'm not a bloodsucker, so maybe I'm missing something, but Charlie seems like kind of a strange choice for Bella's first meal."
Edyth sighed. "She knows she won't be able to be near Charlie for at least a year. Bella thinks she can stall. Tell Charlie she has to go to a special hospital on the other side of the world. Keep in contact through phone calls…."
"That's insane."
"Yes."
"Charlie's not stupid. Even if Bella doesn't kill him, Charlie's going to notice a difference."
"She's expecting that."
I continued to stare, waiting for her to explain.
"She wouldn't be aging, of course, so that would set a time limit, even if Charlie accepted whatever excuse she comes up with for the changes." She smiled faintly. "Do you remember when you tried to tell Bella about your transformation? How you made her guess?"
My free hand flexed into a fist. "She told you about that?"
"Yes. She was explaining her... idea. She's been coming up with plans for changing. You see, She's not allowed to tell Charlie the truth —it would be very dangerous for him. But Charlie's a smart, practical man. Bella thinks he'll come up with his own explanation. She assumes he'll get it wrong." Edyth snorted. "After all, we hardly adhere to vampire canon. Charlie will make some wrong assumption about us, like Bella did in the beginning, and we'll go along with it. She thinks she'll be able to see him... from time to time."
"Insane," I repeated.
"Yes," she agreed again.
It was weak of her to let Bella get her way on this, just to keep her happy now. It wouldn't turn out well.
Which made me think that she probably wasn't expecting her to live to try out her crazy plan. Placating Bella, so that she could be happy for a little while longer.
Like four more days.
"I'll deal with whatever comes," she whispered, and she turned her face down and away so that I couldn't even read her reflection. "I won't cause Bella pain now."
"Four days?" I asked.
She didn't look up. "Approximately."
"Then what?"
"Then we see if she's strong enough to keep fighting, or just strong enough to change her."
"You don't seem to think she has much chance of staying human."
"I don't." She said, her voice was pained. "But we've been trying to research."
"Research?" I asked.
"That's why you haven't seen Jasper or Emmett around. That's what Carlisle is doing now. Trying to find clues as to what this disease is, in the hopes that we can find another case of it to better understand it. We haven't had much luck."
Of course not. None of us had luck anymore. Just pain.
"We had some small hope," Edyth began. "There was a woman we encountered in South America—where she contracted the disease. She had seen it before."
"And?"
Agony ripped across her face, and, as I flinched away from her pain, I knew she wasn't going to give me an answer. I doubted she could talk.
It was Royal—who'd been so still and quiet since Bella'd fallen asleep that I'd nearly forgotten him—who answered.
He made a scornful noise in the back of his throat. "Of course there were no survivors," he survivors, so blunt and uncaring."Without the proper medical supplies or training to keep them alive, how could they survive? Bella has a better chance than any of them ever did. She has us on her side, fighting for her humanity. We're doing all we can to keep her human. Of course, we have plans in place if she takes a turn—and if she chooses that route. But all this worrying isn't good for her. She wants to let things take their course and we should respect her wishes." He sniffed.
Blondie was so concerned about keeping Bella human he didn't seem to really care about the deeper repercussions of Bella dying.
Edyth's face went white as snow. Her hands curved into claws. Totally egotistical and indifferent, Royal twisted in his chair so that his back was to her. Edyth leaned forward, shifting into a crouch.
Allow me,I suggested.
Edyth paused, raising one eyebrow.
Silently, I lifted my doggy bowl off the floor. Then, with a quick, powerful flip of my wrist, I threw it into the back of Blondie's head so hard that—with an earsplittingbang—it smashed flat before it ricocheted across the room and snapped the round top piece off the thick newel post at the foot of the stairs.
Bella twitched but didn't wake up.
"Dumb blonde," I muttered.
Royal turned his head slowly, and his eyes were blazing.
"You. Got. Food. In. My. Hair."
That did it.
I busted up. I pulled away from Bella so that I wouldn't shake her, and laughed so hard that tears ran down my face. From behind the couch, I heard Alice's tinkling laugh join in.
I wondered why Royal didn't spring. I sort of expected it. But then I realized that my laughing had woken Bella up, though she'd slept right through the real noise.
"What's so funny?" she mumbled.
"I got food in his hair," I told her, chortling again.
"I'm not going to forget this, dog," Royal hissed.
"S'not so hard to erase a blond's memory," I countered. "Just blow in his ear."
"Get some new jokes," he snapped.
"Alright, you two, calm do—" Bella broke off mid-sentence and sucked in a sharp breath. In the same second, Edyth was leaning over the top of me, ripping the blanket out of the way. Bella seemed to convulse, her back arching off the sofa.
"Ah!" She gasped.
Her lips were white, and she had her teeth locked together like she was trying to hold back a scream.
Edyth put both hands on either side of Bella's face.
"Carlisle?"
"Right here," the doctor said. I hadn't heard him come in.
"It's fine," Bella said, still breathing hard and shallow. "Think it's over. My chest. I don't know. It hurt."
Edyth and Carlisle exchanged wary glances. It was Bella's heart.
"I'll be… fine…" Bella's voice began to trail off. She relaxed back into the couch. Before long she was lightly snoring again.
"Her cardiovascular system isn't improving." Carlisle said after a long second. "It's getting weaker."
"Carlisle…" Edyths face was dark, the burning woman reappearing.
"Yes, most likely a mild heart attack." The doc's voice was serious.
"The blood isn't helping." I wasn't asking, I was stating a fact. I had hoped that maybe my blood could fix Bella, maybe it would save her. After all, it had helped before, hadn't it? Why wasn't it helping now?
I noticed Edyth watching me out of the corner of her eye. Probably wondering the same thing I was.
"It does help, Julie." Carlisle assured me. "The transfusions give Bella some extra strength." He paused, "The problem is that, while your blood types are compatible, on a chromosomal level you and Bella are different."
"Chromosomes again." I muttered.
"Yes," Carlisle sighed. "I had hoped that perhaps your innate healing abilities might transfer to Bella via the transfusions of your blood." He shook his head, "I had no logical scientific basis to support that hope…"
"Just hope." I muttered. My eyes trailed over Bella's frail body. She looked like she was plenty warm now, in fact, a sheen of sweat was forming on her forehead. "She looks warm enough. I'm gonna step outside. Get some air."
I pushed myself up from the ground and crossed the room to the nearby backdoor before anyone had a chance to say anything else that would make me feel even more depressed than I already did.
The clean air was a welcome relief to my lungs. Even though I was spending a lot of time in the Cullen's place, I still wasn't quite used to their scent. Still burned my nose.
I was staring up at the cloudy sky, unable to think properly when I caught the scent of one of the leaches approaching. Can't I have five damn minutes to myself?
"Sorry to bother you," Alice's bird-like voice chirped.
"S'fine," I lied.
She slowly walked just past me and stood with her hands clasped behind her back, looking up at the sky like me.
"I wish I knew what to say here," she sighed. "Usually I'm pretty good at knowing what to say to make someone feel better," she laughed, humorlessly, "I guess I didn't realize how much my visions helped me accomplish that."
"Don't worry 'bout it." I muttered. "Guess I wouldn't mind those visions right now. Some answers would be nice."
"Tell me about it," she sighed. "It's all completely dark now. You and your pack are too wrapped up in this. I don't have a hope of seeing anything anymore."
"Hope," I snorted, "What's that?"
Alice sighed, she turned to face me. Her black eyes looked as dull and lifeless as I felt. "Hope is all Bella has now. She keeps hoping that it will all work out."
"She's making me crazy with the way she keeps going on like that."
Alice watched me for a second, her eyes curious.
"What?" I finally snapped.
"You really love Bella, don't you?"
"Why would you ask that?" I glowered.
"I can't see your future and I can't read your mind like Edyth can," She sighed, "But I can see how much you hurt. I don't need any powers to see that. And I'm sorry."
"At least someone cares about how I feel in all this, I guess." I snorted.
"Bella cares," she insisted. "She cares a lot."
"Sure, sure."
"You'll be happy again one day, Julie Black." She said, sounding pretty damn sure of herself.
I knew Alice was supposed to be kind of out there from what I had seen myself and what Bella had told me about her, but I never expected her to be flat out crazy.
"Sorry, but I don't know if I trust the predictions of a fortune teller who can't see the future."
She half-smiled at me and turned to go back inside.
"Maybe I just have some of Bella's hope. Maybe I'm just hoping that all of us will have a happy ending."
I watched her walk back inside. When I was alone again I slumped against the side of the house. Happy ending? Yeah right. None of us were going to have a happy ending now. Well, at least not all of us. There was only one way all this could end. A happy ending only happens for some of the people in the story. Someone has to lose out.
I knew that someone would be me, no matter what.