The corridor narrowed, walls slick with condensation, the faint metallic tang of the Veins clinging to my lungs. Underfoot, the concrete groaned softly, subtle vibrations running up through my boots like the city itself was whispering secrets. A distant drip echoed in rhythm with my pulse.
Elliot stepped from the shadows. Not a leap, not a dramatic reveal just there. Calm, deliberate, like he'd been waiting for me to catch up. His face hadn't changed much, but his eyes… they carried a weight I hadn't seen before, something beyond survival.
"Dylan," he said, voice low, measured. "I didn't betray you."
I let the words hang. The silence of the corridor amplified them, made them heavier. My fingers itched near the edge of my jacket pocket, ready for any sudden motion, any hint he was lying.
"Didn't betray me," I repeated, dry, because sarcasm is easier than panic. "Funny. That's what everyone's been telling me these days."
He shrugged, almost casually, but the motion was tense. "I protected you. Every time they thought you were clever, every trap… I covered for you. You were always on their radar. I made sure they didn't notice you."
I studied him. The map of the factions still burned in my mind, each betrayal, each sabotage, each score tracked like pieces on a board. Could he really have been protecting me? Or was this just another move in the game? The Veins felt tighter, smaller, more suffocating than ever.
"Every move they made… you were there," I muttered, more to myself than him. "Every last one. So what? You're telling me I've been surviving because you, what pulled strings in the shadows?"
Elliot's expression didn't waver. Calm. Calculated. "I had to. You weren't just another piece. You were… unpredictable. Dangerous. If they knew what you could do, they'd have ended it long ago."
I swallowed. My chest tightened. Part of me wanted to believe him. Part of me wanted to throw him against the wall and make him confess every hidden truth. The rest of me, the smarter part, stayed still. Observing. Calculating.
"So, protect me, huh?" I asked. "Funny way of showing it. You leave breadcrumbs, shadows, traps… and now this little confession?" I let a dry laugh escape, because humor is the only armor left that fits.
Elliot didn't answer immediately. He let the hum of the Veins, the distant drip, the soft groan of the corridor fill the space. Then, finally: "You'll have to decide for yourself what's truth and what's manipulation. But know this: I didn't betray you."
I nodded slowly, letting the words settle where they might. Trust was a luxury I didn't have, and maybe never would. But one thing was clear: he had been in the shadows. That much I couldn't deny.
And that was enough for now