บท 136: I will step in.

Ryan jolted awake. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as his chest heaved. His eyes darted to look around, struggling to adjust to the dark silence of his condo. The empty bottles lay splayed on the floor, evidencing his state. The remnants of the dream clung to him, so vivid and unrelenting, as if he could still see the scene unfolding before him. 

The sight of Arwen intertwined in another man's arms horrified him. She looked so … content, more at peace and happy than he had ever remembered her. But how could she be so happy with someone else? Who was that man? Was he the same one he had seen that day outside the hospital?

As he tried to figure that out, another flash of the dream surfaced in his vision—of that man. In his nightmare, he held her so close, with a soft, devoted look in his eyes, charming her into his chasm. And she was there happily following his lead, ready to surrender everything she had held precious to herself.