บท 848: Watch You Suffer

"No, no, no, Ramirez…" Queen Maeve's voice tore through the silence, a raw, visceral scream that echoed through the chambers. 

It wasn't just a sound; it was an agony given voice, a howl of despair capable of rousing goosebumps on anyone who heard it. The indomitable Summer Queen, the unshakable Maeve, was now reduced to a sobbing heap on the floor. 

Gone was the queen who ruled with ice in her veins and fire in her hands. In her place was a female broken, shattered by the cruel finality of death. She no longer cared for decorum, for the regal pride she had carried for centuries. 

She crawled toward Ramirez, pulling him into her arms, feeling the fading warmth of his body. His head lolled back, his once-bright eyes now glassy and unfocused, staring at nothing. 

Maeve had built walls around her heart, cold and impenetrable, to protect herself from weakness. To her, love was vulnerability, and vulnerability was a fatal flaw.