Chapter 1
The snow fell peacefully around the entire scene, oblivious to the damage, oblivious to the trauma and the death, the snow continued to fall without stopping, unperturbed by the blood that painted it, by the screams, unperturbed by the pain and uninterrupted by a storm of its own creation that enveloped a group of strangers in an avalanche of terrors
Anya watched her fall delicately and helplessly from a corner sitting near a police car, an officer had felt bad for seeing her almost naked and barefoot and had offered her his coat as well as some gloves and had gone to look for a pair of shoes although Anya could not give a shit about all that, she did not feel, she could not move, she could not speak and the snow falling on her skin did not have the slightest effect in scaring her away to look for a warm place
His eyes kept staring at the same place, the place where a tarp had once covered a body, where the snow wasn't pure, the place where it had all ended.
That stage of your life now covered by small snowflakes, where Addison's body lay cold and morbid, destined to rot beneath the earth until the worms cruelly ate it down to the bone
And Anya was quite happy that at least a part of him could receive something worse for all the suffering he caused and what better than such a shameful death, covered by snow and then thrown into a mass grave to be devoured, to be erased from existence
— Are you okay? — The policeman from before approached carrying what looked like a large blanket, shoes and some new gloves, Anya approached with a simple grimace — I'm sorry it took me so long, but Mrs. Mills fainted for the fourth time and the paramedics needed help — The policeman apologized and Anya could think of poor Mrs. June, a charitable soul who had opened the doors of her home to two strange girls and just look at how they had paid her
She couldn't blame Liza for everything; she was to blame, as much or equally as much. Maybe if she had spoken to that man first, or had run when Addison had taken them out of his sight, she could have run through the snow in her bare feet and dress until her well-manicured little feet were completely frozen and bloody.
Maybe that way she would have avoided everyone's suffering, a family's suffering, and especially the bitterness of one man
—...it's a real shame, everything that man did. A real carnage — the man's words brought Anya back to reality
— Where are you going to take me? — she managed to ask with a half smile, not letting her nerves give her away
— Oh, yes... of course — The officer scratched the back of his neck, somewhat embarrassed — Detective Becker asked us to take you to the station. He needs to ask you a few questions about the incident — He paused, seeing Anya's expression — But please don't take this the wrong way; it's not an interrogation. It's just part of the protocol. Everyone present must give a written statement about their relationship to the perpetrators and what happened —
— No problem — she forced a flawless smile, the same one she used to hide her anger — I don't mind repeating it all again. I have nothing to hide. But if you could help me up…—The policeman, nervous, held her awkwardly
From a distance, Jay watched with distaste as the police officer helped the girl and the two drove off in a patrol car. The tension still hadn't left his body, and he was so nervous that every noise his ears heard was a small shock in his heart and a reaction to reaching for his gun
It had been a traumatic event not only for him but for his entire family, an event that his very trust had caused, one that he would give his life to redeem, a mistake for which he was willing to go to jail again even if he wasn't even the villain in that whole story now and in this case he was by the grace of fate one of the victims
Yet guilt gnawed at him from within, burning more than the snow on his bare skin, more than the pain in his hands. He'd returned home with a mission in mind. He'd decided to start putting things right—for himself, for his family, for everyone around him—and he'd failed once again
Just like every time he wanted to start all over again, something snatched it away from him like a loop of infinite violence where Jay was the central axis directing chaos wherever it went, destroying the little he could have achieved, breaking the few hopes his heart still held
Living in a constant hell where all possibilities were reduced to one and in the end it was always the same, Jay Mills ended up in a situation worse than the previous one
Jay stared blankly into space, as if nothing happening around him was real. Paramedics hurried back and forth, carrying instruments, dragging stretchers, talking urgently to each other. His mother lay on her back, gasping for air, while at the other end of the hall, his father's body, already covered in a black bag, was being unceremoniously pushed toward the morgue. Jay felt a knot in his stomach: the chaos around him didn't compare to the brutal emptiness that had settled inside him
The snow fell relentlessly, seeping under their clothes, clinging to their skin like a frozen reminder of their fragility. It burned and covered everything around them, creating a white and implacable landscape. It was the only proof that they were still there, the cruelest of certainties: the cold confirmed that they were still breathing
