"I know..." he murmured, closing his eyes and nodding slowly, as if in an act of self-conviction. He never told me about Azazziel. I had no idea he existed until what happened happened. And I know he gave himself up to save him, but…” He paused briefly and shook his head. I think that, if he was able to do that to save him, then my son had a great… appreciation for him. —His brow furrowed, as if the word he used was not the right one. He shook his head again. Sometimes I think that was why I decided to make it remain in existence; because somehow I feel like Kaspiel would have wanted that. And that, if he was still alive, then his sacrifice would not be in vain.She continued staring straight ahead, into the distance, with half-closed eyes and a serious face. Deep in a thought or memory that seemed too dark. A place in which, surely, I should not investigate.Khaius remained taciturn and respectful, intelligent enough not to add anything that would worsen his mood. I, however, wanted

—I want you to go back and apologize to your parents, do you hear me, spoiled girl? —She said in a severe tone, close to my ear. Then she gave a long, regretful sigh. Believe me, if I had known that Kaspiel was involved in something so screwed, he would have done anything to prevent it.—So I should tell them about you? —I asked without hiding the horror in my voice.She stepped away from me, her hands on my shoulders, and stared at me before rolling her eyes."Don't be an idiot," he snorted wearily. You can't do that unless you want to kill them with one attack. "But fix things," he advised me, with such an unnatural tone from a creature of Hell, that an unknown pang passed through my chest.I nodded, trying to return my best smile.Akhliss walked away from us as Khaius walked me home. Curiosity to know what she would do alone made me watch as she walked away from her along the sidewalk in long steps, but without losing that elegance of hers, until she moved too far from my field of

It couldn't have been real to me, not even when I saw it on the news.According to what the reporter stated on television, it was an armed robbery that got out of control. Two criminals entered the same store my parents had recently entered, for who knows what. The store owner, who also had a gun, pulled it out to defend himself. It was not known who shot first, but five people were injured: an innocent customer, the owner of the store himself, one of those unfortunate guys... And my parents.My mother was shot directly in the chest. Knowing how my dad was, who never allowed anyone to harm his wife, he probably attacked the guys blinded by anger or grief, and ended up with one shot in the leg and two in the torso. One of those damn bullets hit him in the lung. By the time the ambulance arrived, Dad had suffered a collapsed lung and, like Mom, massive bleeding that they couldn't control. Neither of them made it to the emergency room of the nearest hospital...I closed my eyes tightly.

—You can go, guys. We stayed with her. —A different voice, one that he knew very well, sharp and soft at the same time, made him suddenly take his eyes off the tombstones.As I turned on my axis, the first thing I ran into was Nat's small, thin figure, next to a taller and more athletic one, one that I had only seen behind a bar: Tyler's.Something in the center of my chest shifted and thumped at an abnormal speed when I realized that, in addition to Nat and Tyler, just a few steps away were Claire, Diana and David. All of them had different sad faces, although the only one who was crying was Diana.I wasn't able to greet any of them. I was not able to connect my brain with my mouth to articulate any words. The only thing I could do was look at them in confusion.I had said absolutely nothing to any of them."We'll stay with her as long as she needs it," Tyler told my brother with an encouraging inflection, then pointed one hand in a distant direction. We came in my car, so we'll take

I requested that Claire be the first one Tyler dropped off at his house, as I was worried that his mother would start making calls and causing a fuss because she had escaped from his care. My friend said goodbye to me the same way she gave me her condolences: with a hug so strong that I felt like she had broken something in me.Both Tyler and Diana expressed concern about me being left home alone, but Nat nevertheless urged them to let me do whatever I wanted. If I wanted to be alone, to be at peace, they would listen to me... At least, for today.I rubbed my forehead with the arm that was not Diana's prisoner, in a vain attempt to calm the painful pulsations that attacked my skull. The only thing I wanted to do for now was get home… And, at the same time, I didn't want to. I didn't want to get to that place, where I had had my last conversation with them. Where I last saw them.Finally, before I knew it, Tyler turned the car keys and it stopped in front of my house.“Thanks, guys,” I