Page 76 of Finn
Did he see me as the same kid who once followed him around, desperate for his approval?
Or was he only seeing a stranger now. A traitor who had turned his back on everything we’d once believed in?
The hard set of his jaw gave nothing away, but the flicker of hesitation in his eyes betrayed him. Was it doubt? Pain? Regret?
Maybe it was all of those things, tangled together in a way even Asher couldn’t fully untangle.
I knew him well enough to recognize when he was trying to mask his emotions, but for once, I couldn’t read him entirely.
I wanted to ask him, to demand answers.
Did he hate me for what I’d done? Would he ever forgive me? Or was this the moment he decided to cut me from his life completely?
The ache in my chest grew sharper with each second that passed in silence.
The Asher I knew, the one who had always tried to be there for me, even when he was too harsh or too stubborn, was someone I couldn’t imagine my life without.
But the man standing before me now, cold and unyielding, felt like a stranger. Would he really be able to let go of this? Of me?
The thought twisted in my gut like a blade.
I’d chosen this path knowing it would cost me, but standing here now, facing the fallout, the weight of that choice felt unbearable.
Could Asher walk away from this and pretend I didn’t exist? Could I?
I knew my brother. He wasn’t the kind of person who let things go easily, and he definitely wasn’t the type to forgive betrayal.
But this was different. I wasn’t just some colleague who’d broken protocol or a stranger who’d crossed him.
I was his brother. His family.
But was that bond strong enough to survive this?
His lips pressed into a thin line, his shoulders rigid as if he were bracing himself against some unseen force.
Finally, Asher stepped back, his hands dropping to his sides.
“I’ll lie for you. I’ll tell the Elders you died,” he said, his voice low and resigned. “This one time. But after this, you’re on your own. You hear me? Don’t come back.”
The finality in his tone hit like a punch to the gut, but I nodded.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
Asher didn’t respond. He turned his gaze to Gabriel, his eyes narrowing.
The two of them locked stares, a silent exchange that bristled with tension.
Gabriel’s expression was guarded, but there was something unspoken in his look. Perhaps a trace of respect for Asher’s skill,or maybe just an acknowledgment of the choice Asher had made to let us go.
Asher’s lips pressed into a thin line. Without another word, he turned and walked away, his figure disappearing into the shadows.
The moment he was gone, the adrenaline that had been keeping me upright drained from my body.
My legs wobbled, and I felt Gabriel’s steadying hand on my arm.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice soft but edged with concern.
“No,” I admitted, my voice barely audible. “But I will be.”
