Page 75 of Eternal

DAMIR

“Way Down We Go” by KALEO

Present

S o beautiful…

I sent her a message this morning because I missed her. It was a picture of purple irises, blooming in the park near the training complex, with a single caption: They’re not prettier than you.

She had replied with just one word. Idiot .

That made me smile again, because she never replies. And her calling me an idiot means she likes me.

And yet, I was still following her. A mistake, a fucking mistake. But I needed to be inside the building she entered a few moments ago.

The main entrance was a no-go, cameras everywhere, a guard at the front.

You needed a key card for the private elevators, but there was always a flaw.

I found a service entrance, a backdoor tucked between two freight elevators.

A place no one paid attention to, no cameras here, no guard posted.

I was dressed as a maintenance worker, loose overalls over my base clothes, a cap pulled low, a tool belt at my waist, my mask hidden beneath my shirt.

I slipped through the door in a single breath, quiet, fast. An empty hallway. Azra was just ahead, stepping into a private elevator. Fuck. It’s a penthouse with direct elevator access.

If I wanted to follow her, I needed another way in.

My gaze traced the building’s structure, there was a maintenance ladder, bolted to the outer wall, probably used for ventilation access. It led straight to the tenth floor, where an empty balcony overlooked the facade.

I had no choice, it was narrow, but I didn’t care. I climbed, fingers gripping the icy metal, one pull after another. The sixth floor, then the seventh, then the eighth.

Finally, the ninth-floor balcony.

I swung over the railing, silent, I glanced through the glass doors. The penthouse was vast, bathed in a soft light, glass and steel. I slipped inside, quietly, my mask on my face, my disguise abandoned on the balcony.

And then I saw her. She was there, and she wasn’t herself anymore.

Her eyes were empty, dead. But her body… her body was playing a role.

She was there, on that couch, on him, a lethal machine letting herself be touched, and I wanted to kill him. I felt the rage surge when he put his hands on her. Then he grabbed her by the waist, flipped her over him, she took off her dress, revealing black lingerie.

And fuck… She was breathtaking.

But her eyes, her eyes were still cold. She was a weapon, a weapon I had to stop, because the only victim she was about to make today… was herself.

He kissed her neck, and she didn’t even move, as if her mind was somewhere else.

I wanted to burn everything down, the penthouse, that man, myself.

Jealousy? Obsession? I didn’t know.

But the way he touched her… when I never had… I was losing control.

Then she pulled a knife from her stockings, and in a single motion, the man’s throat opened like a blooming red flower.

She smiled, her eyes came back to life. Blood on her skin, on that damn black lingerie.

And I hated that it fascinated me.

She then stood up, as if nothing had happened, turned, stepped toward a mirror, and our eyes met.

She saw me.

“It’s been a while. Why are you still following me?” Her voice was calm; like she was talking to an old friend. She ran her fingers through her hair, adjusting her knife, and I moved.

In seconds, I had her against the wall, my hand around her throat, my breath against her skin, still warm with blood.

“What the fuck are you playing at?”

My voice was the same one she knew, and for a fraction of a second, I saw her mind connect the dots. A flicker of hesitation… recognition.

Then she reacted, she kneed me, but I anticipated it, caught her mid-air, and threw her leg over my shoulder.

“Who are you, and why are you following me?”

My fingers slid down her leg. “I hate seeing someone else touch you.”

Her pupils dilated, then she shoved me off.

We rolled, her on top, me beneath, her knife against my throat.

And I exhaled, slowly. “Azra.” A whisper. Her name.

And at that moment, she froze, her fingers tightened around the hilt of her blade. She didn’t talk, but I felt it. The way her eyes widened. I could see a flash of memories, thoughts, feelings, and I smiled under my mask, softly. Because I wished she’d stop me, I wish she could just make me say it.

I was tired of lying. I wanted her .

I said it again. “ Partner… ”

She finally understood, and without hesitation, she turned the handle.

A clean punch to the temple, the world tilted.

Then… nothing. Black.