Book 2 Chapter 37

The house was finally quiet. The doctor had left an hour ago, the cleaners had finished, Alina’s sobs had died into exhausted sniffles somewhere down the hall, and Mariah who had been heavily sedated, had slipped into a fitful sleep. Ioannis hadn’t returned immediately, he'd stayed with her, sitting beside her bed, keeping her hand in his until he was certain she wouldn’t wake again in another panic.

Until he was certain she would jerk upright and start attempting to hurt herself.

And by the time he exhaustedly walked back into the bedroom, dawn was only just beginning to color the sky with a faint streaks of light blue and pink.

Yalda sat on the edge of the bed, still in her robe. She hadn’t even tried to sleep. Her fingers fidgeted anxiously in her lap, and her heart jumped when Ioannis closed the door quietly behind him.

He looked tired, tired wasn’t even the word. He looked hollowed, drained. His white shirt had been discarded somewhere and he was left with the sleeveless wife-beater underneath. He'd washed his hands but Yalda could still see faint smudges of dried blood along his wrist and a small stain near his collarbone.

Ioannis noticed her staring and sighed softly. “She’s finally asleep.” he said.

“Are you alright?” Yalda asked, her voice barely sounded. “You stepped on broken glass earlier.”

He blinked, as if he hadn’t realized it. “Did I?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “You did.”

He shrugged like it didn’t matter, but the moment he shifted his weight, a small wince crossed his face, it had only just dawned on him that he'd gotten nicked by a piece of glass.

“Ioannis,” Yalda murmured, standing quickly, “sit down.”

He opened his mouth to argue but he didn’t have the strength to, so he sat at the edge of the bed, and Yalda knelt on the floor in front of him. Her hands trembled as she lifted his foot to inspect it, and there was a small shard lodged just beside his heel, surrounded by a thin line of dried blood.

“Oh God…” She swallowed. Her mouth felt suddenly dry. There had been too much blood tonight, too many red stains. Too many tremors in her hands that she couldn’t stop.

“Leave it,” Ioannis said quietly, noticing the sight of blood was affecting her. “It’s nothing. I'll tend to it.”

“No.” Her voice cracked. “Let me… just let me do this.”

His brow softened and he didn’t stop her. He let out a resigned breath, one which sounded like the entire weight of the world had settled on his shoulders.

Yalda's fingers trembled as she found the first aid kit, she disinfected the area and pulled out the tiny shard. It wasn’t much, but her hands shook as if she were handling something far more dangerous. Ioannis watched her in silence, he watched the way she took slow breaths to steady herself, watched the way her eyes flickered every time the disinfectant touched his skin.

She was still shaken.

“Yalda,” he murmured, reaching down to touch her cheek gently. “You don’t have to...”

“I want to,” she whispered.

"You're shaking." He pointed out.

"It's...nothing."

And he once again let her be, he watched her become pale as she wiped off the blood, and he truly wanted to stop her but she had insisted, and there was nothing he could do.

She finished bandaging his foot, then sat back on her heels, chest rising and falling unevenly. Ioannis leaned down, cupping her face in both hands tenderly, he kissed her slowly to express his gratitude, because words wouldn't do justice at the moment.

“Come,” he whispered against her forehead. “Let’s go back to bed.”

Yalda didn’t argue. Her exhaustion had turned heavy and painful; her body felt too small for all the emotions inside it.

She lay down and Ioannis settled beside her, he pulled her closer and held her, rubbing her back soothingly while they both thought about what had happened but were unable to speak about it.

He said nothing else and neither did she.

Eventually, Yalda’s breathing slowed, not quite sleep, but close enough that Ioannis thought she had drifted off. He gently slid out of the covers. Yalda felt the bed shift, her lashes fluttered open just slightly. She watched him quietly as he crossed the room and sat in the corner, phone pressed to his ear, one hand rubbing his forehead wearily, he was truly exhausted but restless.

“Yes,” he whispered. “She tried again… worse this time.”

He paused, listening intently.

“No, I don’t think she meant to kill herself,” he said quietly. “But she wasn’t in her mind. And she’s not stable, I need you here once she's awake.”

A long silence followed and Yalda held her breath for some reason.

“She’s terrified,” he continued, his voice lowering even more. “She's suicidal and almost insane at this point. I can't watch her deteriorate. Get everything she needs, call whomever you need to call, I don't care how much it will cost."

Yalda’s throat tightened and her chest squeezed painfully.

He cared for Mariah so deeply, and she was beginning to wonder if it was just care, she was beginning to wonder if there was something else.

And she hated herself for the way her jealousy slipped into her heart like poison, even after what she’d witnessed; Mariah’s blood, her screams, Mariah’s brokenness. It was cruel, it was wrong, and Yalda knew that.

But emotions didn't bow to logic.

She lay perfectly still, her eyes remained closed, forcing her breathing to remain steady so he wouldn’t know she was awake. But her chest ached so viciously that she almost pressed her hand against it to ease the sting.

When his call ended, he sat in silence for a long time, elbows on his knees, head bowed. Then he returned to bed and draped an arm lightly over her waist. She let out the breath she'd been holding and stirred away from him, pretending to be asleep.

And away from him, she finally let her tears fall.

~~

Mariah didn’t wake until nearly noon.

Yalda was in the living room with Alina, trying to coax Loki into eating. The dog was restless, pacing, sensing the tension in the house, and when Ioannis led Mariah into the living room, everyone froze.

Mariah looked small and fragile. Her eyes were swollen from crying, her hair was still messy, and her skin was pale. The sedatives had left her groggy, unable to stand properly on her own so Ioannis had to hold her closely to support her.

When Ioannis set her on the couch, she reached immediately for his wrist, clinging and refusing to let go.

“Ioannis…” she whispered, her voice sounded cracked and childlike.

“I’m here,” he said gently, sitting beside her.

Yalda felt a sharp, shameful pinch in her chest. She turned her face quickly, pretending to fix Loki’s water bowl just so she wouldn’t have to watch.

Mariah blinked slowly, confused. She lifted a hand to her own head as if trying to piece together what had happened. Like she still hadn't completely gotten over the sedatives.

“I’m sorry.” she whispered, her voice cracked. “Ioannis, I’m so sorry. I didn't mean to do all that last night”

Ioannis stroked her hair. “You had a bad episode, there's nothing to be sorry about.”

“I...i couldn't control myself.” She said quietly.. “It was too much. I...i didn't mean to be a nuisance.”

“It’s alright.”

“No, it’s not,” she whimpered, her fingers tightening around his. “I scared everyone. I didn’t mean to. I just… I just felt like....."

Ioannis hugged her, tightly and reassuringly.

“It’s fine, Mariah.” he said to her. "You'll be fine."

Yalda looked down quickly, staring at Loki as if the dog held all the answers to life. She felt invisible once again, even Alina had left to go check on Mariah.

Knowing it would be off of she didn't as well, she left Loki and joined them in the sitting area to inquire how Maria was doing and if she was feeling better. She excused herself after a few minutes, claiming she needed to rest. No one argued. No one even noticed she was gone until she was already halfway down the hall.

Mariah slept again in the afternoon, and Ioannis stayed with her almost the entire time.

Yalda tried to occupy herself with reading, organizing her skincare, going through simple work folders, even taking a long shower, but the silence in the house felt suffocating. The sound of her heartbeat felt louder than everything else.

Loki followed her everywhere, sensing her distress, and she appreciated it. She'd been through thick and thin with Loki and she knew he'd always be supportive, he'd always be hers.

When she walked past Mariah’s door once, she heard Ioannis’s voice quietly coaxing her to drink water. She heard Mariah ask him, weakly, “Will you stay?”

She didn’t wait for the answer, she didn't need to. She already knew what he would say, after all, she was in distress and he was a knight in shining armor.

She knew he wouldn't be joining her anytime soon so she made her way downstairs to the garden all on her own. And by evening, the house fell silent again. The maids moved quietly, Alina kept dabbing her eyes, and Ioannis hadn’t eaten anything all day.

Yalda tried to bring him a tray. He thanked her but barely touched the food.

Later, when the house had grown still and everyone seemed drained past the point of functioning, Ioannis helped Mariah sit up in bed.

She caught his wrist again, her fingers were still trembling.

“Ioannis,” Tears pooled again in her tired eyes. “Please… don’t leave me tonight.”

Her voice cracked on the last word.

And the world seemed to revolve around Yalda who had been standing in the hallway waiting for Ioannis.