Chapter V – You and me

She had been walking for hours. These tunnels were a labyrinth, and she was hopelessly lost. A sudden, violent cough wracked her body, taking her by surprise. The pain brought her to her knees, leaving her gasping for air. The sound of her labored breaths drowned out the approaching footsteps.

Despite her weakened condition, Jinx sensed something—or someone—coming. Her eyes flashed bright pink as she drew her gun and trained it on the shadow rounding the corner.

"Don't move!" Jinx commanded, her voice sharp and unyielding, her finger tightening on the trigger.

"Please, don't shoot!" the figure yelled, his hands shooting up instinctively as his eyes squeezed shut.

"Ekko?" she said, a hint of disbelief in her voice.

The silence stretched on, and he waited, each second dragging on like an eternity, expecting the gunshot that never came. When he finally decided to risk a glance, his heart skipped a beat. For a moment, he thought he was staring at a ghost. But no—it was her.

"Jinx…" he breathed, her name escaping in a whisper, a mix of disbelief and concern in his voice.

She looked like she was in pain, hunched over and barely standing, but the gun in her hand stayed aimed at him. He could see it in her eyes—her mind racing, deciding whether he was a threat or not.

In that moment, Ekko could only hope he was right about her, because if he was wrong… he'd be dead.

When Vi woke up, light was shining through the thick curtains. Judging by the brightness of the room, it must have been around noon. She looked beside her, but Caitlyn wasn't in bed anymore. She slowly got out, her body still tense and aching. She headed to the bathroom, splashed her face with cold water to wake herself up, and then made her way to the living room. She sat down on the coffee table next to the fire, her mind lost in the flames, not even wondering where Caitlyn might be.

Meanwhile, Caitlyn was absorbed in the family archives, flipping through the blueprints of the Hexgate. She was desperate to understand how Jinx could have escaped, the head of the monkey grenade still in her hand. Her attention was drawn to what appeared to be air ducts surrounding the structure. The sound of Vi humming a tune broke her concentration. She left her desk, carefully hiding the little monkey head before heading over to Vi.

"Is that singing?" Caitlyn asked with a playful smile, settling beside Vi.

"It's just a tune my mother used to hum," Vi replied softly.

Caitlyn gently rested her head on Vi's shoulder. "Are you still in this fight, Violet?"

"I'm the dirt under your nails, Cupcake… nothing's gonna clean me out."

Caitlyn was enjoying the moment. For a brief instant, she let go of all her thoughts—especially those about Jinx. It was just her, Vi, the warmth of the fire, and nothing else. But soon, her rational mind nudged her, reminding her that peace wouldn't last. Jinx was somewhere out there, preparing something. The weight of this secret pressed down on Caitlyn. She and Ekko were the only ones who knew, and he wouldn't help her. She was on her own in this.

She wanted to confide in Vi, but the real issue wasn't knowing the truth about Jinx. The real problem was hiding it from the one she loved. The secret burned within her, threatening to consume her from the inside.

"Violet…" Caitlyn murmured, her gaze shifting toward the office, where the truth was hidden. She felt Vi slightly shift her head toward her shoulder, clearly reluctant to leave the comfort of this moment. Caitlyn could feel her breath, soft and steady against her neck. Vi had always been a fighter. She'd spent her life battling for those she loved. Now, finally, she didn't have to fight anymore. Caitlyn couldn't take that peace from her, even if it was a painful kind of peace. Caitlyn had to bear this burden so Vi wouldn't have to.

"…Nothing. Never mind," Caitlyn murmured, turning her head to rest it back on Vi's, just as it had been before.

Ekko hadn't moved an inch, his eyes fixed on the barrel of the gun pointed at him. He knew Jinx could be unpredictable and wild, but this time was different—she was injured and vulnerable. He could still hear Benzo's words after the Krug had bitten him: "Never corner a wounded animal, kid. That's when it's at its most dangerous."

"Why are you here Ekko?"

"Jinx I'm not here to fight you, everybody think you are dead but I couldn't' believe it especially when we didn't" he didn't got the time to finish is sentence that Jinx screamed

"We? Who is we?" she said frenetically looking and pointing her gun around. As she didn't see anybody else she came close to Ekko pointing her gun to his head.

"It was just Caitlyn and I" he answered terrified by Jinx reaction.

The mention of Caitlyn triggered something in Jinx mind. She started earring footsteps followed by laughing. Suddenly shadows appeared on the floor and the walls. Jinx erratically began to shoot towards shadows and noise. Ekko watched helplessly as the gunshots whizzed past his ears. One of the shots scratched his arm. He reach his wound with his hand by reflex and winced in pain. This action caused Jinx to rush to him.

"Where are they?" she shouted, aiming her gun at Ekko's forehead. "Where are you Caitlyn? Come out or I'll shoot"

Ekko could no longer stand by helplessly, he had to do something or Jinx would end up killing him. It was risky, but doing nothing would lead to the same outcome—he'd be dead anyway.

"Listen to me Jinx there is nobody else here. It's just you and me" he said grabbing her head in his hands forcing her to look in his eyes.

Ekko could see Jinx mind calm down, her eyes returned to there dull pink and her breath slowing down. He let out a sight when she finally dropped her gun down and took a few steps back. His heart was racing so loudly in his chest he was sure she could ear it. When he thought this was over Jinx was back in front of him, the cold metal of her gun back on his forehead. It happened so quickly, he didn't had time to react.

"Did Vi knows?" she asked looking right in his eyes.