Page 93 of The Glass Empire
I should have left. I should have run the moment I saw the cages. But I hadn't. I was still here, still breathing, still existing in the space between them.
Maybe that was the choice I'd made.
Maybe that was the only choice I'd ever had.
I closed my eyes and slept without dreaming.
23
Gabriel's Ultimatum
He found me in the greenhouse at dusk.
I'd been hiding there for hours, surrounded by the orchids that reminded me of his mother, the glass walls that held back the cold. The sun was setting, painting the sky in shades of orange and pink, and the LED grow lights hummed softly above the flowers.
I heard his footsteps before I saw him—slow, hesitant, the footsteps of someone who wasn't sure he was welcome.
"Monika."
I turned. Gabriel was standing in the doorway, his face pale, his eyes red-rimmed. He looked like he hadn't slept, hadn't eaten, hadn't done anything but think about what he was about to say.
"Gabriel," I said. "What are you doing here?"
"I need to talk to you."
I nodded, patting the bench beside me. He sat, but he didn't touch me. He kept his hands in his lap, his gaze fixed on the flowers.
"I'm leaving," he said. "I've been accepted to a medical school across the country. Stanford. I'm going to start in the fall."
The words landed like stones in still water. I felt them ripple through me, spreading outward, touching everything.
"That's wonderful," I said. "That's everything you've wanted."
"I know." He turned to look at me, his eyes dark and earnest. "I want you to come with me."
"Gabriel..."
"Wait. Just—wait. Let me finish." He took a breath, steadying himself. "I've been thinking about this for weeks. About us. About this family. About everything that's happened since my father walked into that diner. And I've realized that I can't stay here. I can't be part of this world anymore. It's killing me, Monika. It's killing you."
"I'm not—"
"You are. I see it. The light in your eyes is dimmer than it was when I first met you. You're fading, piece by piece. And if you stay, there won't be anything left."
I opened my mouth to argue. Closed it. There was nothing to say.
"We can start over," he said. "No Mire. No empire. Just us. I'll be a doctor. You'll go to vet school. We'll find a small apartment, a place with a garden, and we'll build a life together. A real life. One that isn't built on blood and women."
He reached for my hands, his fingers warm and steady.
"I love you, Monika. I've loved you since the first moment I saw you. And I know—" His voice cracked. "I know you've been with my father. With my brother. I know you have feelings for them. But they're not good for you. They'll never be good for you. They'll use you and break you and leave you in pieces. But I won't. I'll love you. I'll take care of you. I'll never hurt you."
I felt the tears building, hot and sharp, behind my eyes.
"Gabriel, I—"
"Please." His grip tightened. "Please say yes. Please come with me. I don't care about the money. I don't care about the name. I just care about you. About us. About the life we could have."
I wanted to say yes.
