Page 121 of Veil of Dust

I look ahead.

The trees open wider. The ground firms under my boots. The mist pulls back. Cypress trees tower around me, their roots braced deep in water, unmoving.

They saw everything. And they stayed.

They’ll remember.

The machete’s still in my hand. I haven’t let go. Don’t plan to.

I keep walking.

I don’t stumble. My pace is slow, but it doesn’t falter. My shoulders are set, my back straight.

There’s blood on my side. My shirt’s torn. But my grip’s strong. My heart’s steady.

Tiziano is gone. But he’s with me.

In my steps. In the silence. In the strength that’s not borrowed anymore—it’s mine.

You gave me that. And I’ll use it.

The swamp is behind me now. The fire, the bones, the ash—all of it left where it belongs.

I don’t need to remember his screams. I don’t need to recall what it smelled like when he burned.

I only need to know this:

I won.

And I walk out alone.

But not empty.

Not broken.

Just done.

The swamp is quiet behind me.

And the world ahead waits.

Chapter 28 – Tiziano

I sit at the edge of the bed, shirt off, hands resting on my thighs. The candlelight touches my skin. Warm. Still. For the first time in a long time, I don’t feel the need to brace for anything.

We made it.

That truth sits low in my chest. Solid. Real. Not loud, not shaky—just steady.

After everything—after the blood, after the betrayals—we’re here. Together.

Vespera stands in front of me. Wrapped in silk, standing just in shadow, just in light. Her posture’s relaxed, her shoulders soft. And her eyes….

They hold me.

Not the way they did in the alley. Not like when she was planning the next move or bracing for someone to die. Tonight, her eyes are quiet. Honest. And I feel the weight of them in my chest.

No armor. No sharp edges.

---