Page 127 of Us Dark Few

Khalani slowly walked past bookcases as a delicate song whispered through the air, hauntingly beautiful. She rounded the corner, and Winnie’s eyes were closed, swaying as she sang. Khalani took a step forward, and the wood creaked under her feet.

Winnie’s eyes snapped open, and she turned to her in shock. “What are you doing here?” Her mouth opened as she hurriedly stood andturned off the music.

The wary look in her eyes speared Khalani’s heart.

“Hey.” She fiddled with her hands. “It’s good to see you. It’s been a while.”

Winnie nodded, loneliness clear in her gaze.

“It has.”

The uncomfortable silence grew, like a monster widening its jaw before snapping.

She bit her lip, the pit in her stomach expanding.

“Winnie, I came to tell you that I’m sorry. I am so, so sorry. You were right. About Apollo, the surface, the Governor. Everything. And now I’m starting to believe that Timothy Talbot might be right, too.”

Winnie stood silent, her expression unchanged. Winnie, the most vivacious and vibrant person she’d ever met, looked…numb. Her eyes were sunken, and Winnie’s body appeared frailer since Khalani last saw her.

Was she not eating?

“Winnie was waiting a long time for you to say that. But you were right. There is nothing we can do about it. We will never be able to leave.” Winnie bowed her head.

“That’s not true, Winnie! We have a plan. We’re escaping tomorrow morning. Brock knows a secret entrance to the surface, and Captain Steele is going to help us. You are coming too.”

“A plan?” she asked, lifting her head.

“Yes.” Khalani smiled. “We’re gonna finally make it out of here.”

The tiniest flicker of hope appeared in Winnie’s eyes but was quickly snuffed out. She shook her head, glancing down at her palms.

“There’s no plan for Winnie, Khalani. Winnie is getting old. She would be a burden.”

Khalani surged forward and grabbed her shoulders. “Don’t you say that. Don’t even think that because you could never be a burden! I have learned more through my time with you about love, art, and passion than I have my entire life. Those things are worth fighting for, just like Timothy said! You can’t give up now. I love you too much to let you give up.”

Tears started to form in Winnie’s eyes. “Winnie forgot what it was like to hear someone say they love her.”

Nothing could have prevented Khalani from wrapping her arms around Winnie. “You know I do. I love you, Winnie.”

Prison beat her body to a pulp, but her many scars only began to mend when she met Winnie. Not because she forgot the past. Healing was never that easy.

Freedom lay in forgiveness.

The little girl who’d lain on the floor all those years ago needed to know that it wasn’t her fault. It wasn’t her parents’ fault for leaving. And it wasn’t her fault for putting her broken pieces back together the only way she knew how.

“Winnie could never replace your mother, Khalani.” Winnie cupped her face, a soft glimmer in her eyes. “But her love for you knows no bounds, just like a mother’s. If Sarah had lived to be your age, Winnie would’ve wanted her to be just like you.”

Khalani’s chin trembled as the aching contents of her heart threatened to spill over. “That’s why we’re leaving this place, Winnie. Together. Captain Steele will get you tomorrow morning, and we’ll finally be free.”

“Winnie can’t bring the typewriter with her, can she?”

Khalani’s heart clenched. “No. But when everything is better, we’ll return for your story and complete it.”

“Promise?” she asked.

“I promise.”

They held each other for as long as they could, tears streaming for all they had lost and gained in Braderhelm.

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