The front doors of the house swung open, and one of Cilian’s head guards stepped in, his boots clicking on the tile. He was covered in soot, but his expression was calm.

"Sir," the guard announced, bowing slightly. "We’ve cleared the area. Every Mordecai soldier has been taken out. We’ve removed their heads to ensure there’s no regeneration. But we kept one alive. He’s the lead scout. We thought you’d want him for questioning."

Cilian nodded, his golden-brown eyes flickering with interest.

"Excellent. We’ll use him to track back to their main compound. Keep him alive at all costs."

Cilian turned back to Ren, his face returning to that doting, fake smile. He reached out as if to guide Ren toward the car, acting like the tragedy in the backyard was already nothing but a long lost history.

"Shall we head out to retrieve your nephew’s body, Ren? The least we can do is give him a proper burial in the family plot."

Ren didn’t answer. He couldn’t. His throat felt like it was filled with broken glass. He followed Cilian’s lead mechanically, his eyes fixed on the back of Cilian’s head, his mind calculating exactly when to reach for the weapon.

They walked past the line of guards standing at attention. Ren was blinded by his own rage, his focus so narrow that the rest of the world was just a blur.

He didn’t see the way one guard’s eyes lingered on him. He didn’t see the hand reaching into a tactical vest. And he didn’t see the knife coming towards him either.

It was only when it was too late that the hatred that blurred his vision cleared and something else blurred them.

The sight of blood.

"Ren? Why aren’t you answering?" Cilian asked. He thought Ren was still hung up on the tragedy, but little did he know...

"Ci... lian."

The sound that escaped Ren’s mouth was a choked, wet gasp and Cilian stopped immediately.

He turned his head, his smile vanishing in an instant. As he looked at Ren, looked at him clutching the bloody knife that had been shoved into his abdomen, his heart stopped.

The guard they had just walked past—the one who was supposed to be loyal—had stepped forward. And now, his blade was buried deep in Ren’s stomach.

Ren’s grey eyes were wide and trembling, looking down at the hilt of the knife and then up at Cilian.

He had been so focused on his own hatred, so consumed by the need to kill the monster in front of him, that he hadn’t seen the traitor behind him.

The guard twisted the blade, and Ren groaned in pain.

"Gah!"

"Ren!" Cilian’s voice was no longer sweet or calm. It was a raw, primal scream of pure horror and he took out his gun to shoot down the guard in one swift motion.

But the damage had already been done.

Ren had been stabbed and it was right in the stomach. Where the new budding life was growing. This stab was both fatal to not just Ren but the growing fruit itself.

This... is not how I want to end. Ren thought as he staggered. I... I want to kill Cilian. I will... I will kill Cilian.

But his consciousness was fading and he began to fall.

The last thing he saw was the look of absolute, soul-crushing agony on Cilian’s face as he rushed to save him from falling. It was a look that showed the monster was about to break at the sight of the one thing he was afraid to lose.

...

Ren opened his eyes. Everything was white and blurry. A sharp, burning pain in his stomach made it hard to breathe. He tried to move, but his body felt heavy and broken.

Cilian was sitting right there. His eyes were red-rimmed and bloodshot, but not from crying. It was from a pure, sleepless rage. He was smiling, but it was a scary, wide expression that didn’t match the anger in his eyes. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"You’re awake," Cilian said. His voice was calm, but it sounded like a threat. He reached out and touched Ren’s face with his cold fingers. "Don’t move. You lost a lot of blood. The doctors say you’re lucky to be alive."

Ren lay still, his eyes still fixed on Cilian. He didn’t speak. He didn’t move. He just watched Cilian talk. He didn’t feel lucky to be alive at all. But maybe this was the grace of whatever god was out there helping him, so he could finally get his revenge.

Cilian was saying it would be fine, that the doctors had worked hard to save him, but Ren wasn’t listening to the excuses.

​He already knew one thing that definitely died in his body. The baby was gone.

Since the guard had stabbed him in the abdomen, exactly where the seed was formed and even twisted the knife... there was no way the child would survive.

​That was why Cilian looked like he was losing his mind. That was why his eyes were so red.

Cilian kept talking as if to make up for not being able to cry, his voice low and fast, saying there was no need to worry.

Then, he saw as Ren’s hand went to his stomach. He interpreted it as Ren feeling the loss of their child and being pained. So he said,

"It’s fine, Ren. We can always have more fruit in the future," Cilian promised, his smile thin and tight.

​Ren had no response. He just thought: Good. At least now you know how I felt when Toby died.

​Ren looked away, staring at the wall. Cilian seemed to think this was just grief. He kept that fake grin on his face and leaned in.

"Don’t worry, Ren. From now on, we have nothing to worry about. I will make sure no one can threaten us again."

​Cilian’s eyes flashed with a dark light. "I’m going to purge the Mordecais."

​That finally got a reaction. Ren’s eyes flickered back to him. Cilian was going to kill them all? Now?

​Cilian leaned down and kissed Ren’s forehead. It felt cold. "I’ll be back soon, okay?"

​He was leaving already. Ren watched Cilian’s back as he walked toward the door. A secret prayer stayed in Ren’s heart: I pray that you all die together.