"Shen Xiao doesn't get to pretend now. Not after leaving her to bleed alone."
He stood slowly, walking over to a drawer sealed with reinforced steel. With a fingerprint and a breath-code, it clicked open. Inside sat a small vial of blood, dark, almost black, resting in a velvet case next to an old, cracked locket.
He took out the locket.
Inside was a photo of Yueyao, smiling faintly, no makeup, eyes softer than the steel they later hardened into. She used to be the sweetest girl he had ever seen, but suddenly, her eyes were soulless!
He stared at it for a moment longer, thumb grazing the curve of her cheek.
"I told you I would protect you," he murmured. "Even if it meant disappearing. Even if you hated me for it, I will always do."
His voice cracked with heartache.
"But now he's digging… sniffing around places I buried dirty linen with my own blood. If he finds out everything, if he learns the truth about that night…"
He paused, his breath shaking.
