The location led me to a cliff.
"Kids?" I called out, breathless. "Gianna? Matteo?"
There was a rustling sound.
Then laughter.
Cold and cruel.
"You actually came," Gianna said, stepping out. Her chin was up, tilted to the left.
One by one, they appeared from behind the trees.
Dressed in black.
Holding crossbows.
My heart dropped.
They surrounded me from all sides.
Behind me was the cliff.
No way out.
"You should have left when we told you," Matteo said. His fingers were curled tight into his palms.
"You are ruining everything," Gianna shouted.
"You took Daddy," Alessia yelled.
"Now we take him back," Matteo said coldly.
"And avenge our mother," Lucia added.
They raised their crossbows together.
Six arrows aimed at me.
My head.
My heart.
My eyes.
My legs.
My temples.
My breath trembled. "No… please…"
In the next second, the arrows flew toward me from all directions.
"You vicious woman, today you can finally die miserably!" "Finally, we killed the murderer of our dead mother with our own hands! We have avenged our mother!" The sextuplets spoke in unison, their voices fierce, each child's face filled with the pleasure of revenge. TWANG. Pain exploded through me. And everything went black.
A low humming sound pulled me from the dark. My eyelids felt like bricks. My throat burned. My whole body… it didn't feel like mine.
I opened my eyes. Bright, white ceiling. Circular windows. A soft beeping sound beside me.
I was lying down. Strapped to tubes. A clear one in my hand. A needle in my arm. Something cold on my chest.
My heart started to race.
What is this? Where am I?
I tried to sit up and pain exploded through my side. I cried out, gasping.
"No, no, don't move!"
That voice.
I turned my head, slowly.
He stepped into view. Tall, lean, slightly older. His hair was neater, darker now. But I'd know that voice anywhere.
"Marco?" I croaked.
He rushed to my side, his hand instantly covering mine. "It's me. You're safe now, Seraphina."
I blinked through the blinding pain and tears. "You're… here?"
He smiled softly. "Yeah. I'm here."
My chest trembled. "Am I… alive?"
He let out a shaky breath. "You are. And you're going to be okay."
"But I… I fell. I remember arrows. I remember falling," I whispered, voice cracking.
Marco sat beside me. "You were shot with six arrows. They hit you almost at once. You were standing at the edge of the cliff when it happened."