The Price of Trust (Part 3).

Amelia was surprised when she didn't find Marcus with her daughter in Elena's room. After a short interrogation, she found out from Simon that her husband should be in one of the spare rooms of the workshop that was built next to the main building.

The woman knew that there was a spacious room where Marcus painted and kept his paintings, but she did not find him there. Pulling the handles of several doors that led to empty rooms, she opened the last one and gasped.

A sweet scent filled the white space. The man was sitting on a small sofa in a sea of flowers, and the girl was sleeping next to him, curled up in a ball. Her head was on his lap, and he stroked the baby's hair, looking at the girl.

"My God, how amazing it is!" The woman with an open mouth looked around. The room was filled with her favorite flowers and looked like a fluffy cloud. The wind blowing through the half-open window swayed musical bells, and their light chimes reminded the melody of an old box.

"Thank you so much! There are no words to describe how I like it." Amelia leaned close to her husband and kissed his lips.

"I'm glad," Marcus nodded with a slightly sad smile on his face, which did not escape the woman's attention.

"Something happened?" Conscience pricked her heart, Amelia wanted to make this day filled with joy and happiness. Their last day. But Marcus seems to suspect something.

The man was playing with one of the child's locks and was immersed in some of his thoughts. "Did you know that Elena is a reborn girl from my past?" he asked without turning his head to his wife.

Amelia was taken aback by such a direct question. "But how did you...?" She did not tell him about it, only mentioned in passing that the girl should be born. But she never said that this girl was their daughter.

"How did I find out? Hmm, ask this little lady who almost blew my brain with her cartoons about it," Marcus looked at Amelia. It seems that this ability of his daughter was unexpected only for him. "What else I don't know, from what happened to my child during these two weeks, m?"

And again he felt fear and confusion on the part of his wife.

Marcus took the woman's hand and squeezed it in his hand, "Amelia, if you are worried about something, will you tell me? If there is anything I need to know, tell me."

If only he knew how much she wanted to tell him! But there were things she couldn't share. Amelia already paid a heavy price to get this information. And she will pay even more to carry out her plans. All she had to do was to believe that Marcus would ever understand her.

"Of course," the woman smiled, "But let's talk about it tomorrow? Today I want to be with you and enjoy every moment. I really missed you," she whispered and pressed her husband's lips. Marcus did not hesitate to answer - his hand wrapped around Amelia's back and pulled her to him. He missed her madly. No matter how much time they spent together, it was never enough.

You can't breathe air for the future, its presence is vital every second while you want to live.

Years later, as Marcus returned to his memories of this day, he could describe it as one of the happiest in his life.

He had everything that day. Wife, daughter, a close friend. On that day, he realized for the first time that he finally had a family.

He lay on the bed and waited for Amelia to come out of the bathroom. Pleasant fatigue in the body after several stormy sessions with his wife spread to the tips of his fingers.

The man had a blissful smile on his face. The anxiety that arose in the morning was completely gone by evening. He was happy. It even seemed to Marcus that today was his birthday, not Amelia's.

"You look like a cat who was fed with a huge mouse and a bucket of milk," the woman giggled as she walked to the edge of the bed.

Marcus took her hand and pulled her toward him, placing Amelia on top. "It's just that this cat is very pleased with his dessert today," the man's hands slid up his wife's hips and slid up to her breasts, Marcus squeezed them in his palms, enjoying the slight moan that escaped the woman's lips.

"Are you going to sleep at all? You have been on your feet for two days. Or did you imagine yourself as a superman?" Amelia unhooked her husband's arms, but they returned to her hips anyway.

"Well, you're close to the truth. True, I don't know how to fly, but if I practice with air currents...," a playful smile twitched the corners of the man's lips. He pushed Amelia from his belly down to his thighs, "Now I have a more tempting offer."

"Yeah, I feel your offer," Amelia reached out and pinched Marcus's nose.

"Hey, you ruin the whole mood! Adults don't play like that," he grabbed her palm and bit her finger, "Hmm, what's that?" there was a cut on the woman's palm that had only recently healed.

"Um, sorry, I was a bit careless," Amelia wanted to pull her hand back, but Marcus didn't let her do it. "Let me heal," he suggested, to which his wife shook her head.

"Don't, let it stay. It doesn't bother me," the woman smiled, but this smile did not touch her eyes. She looked at the man with such love and longing that Marcus did not know whether to cry or laugh.

"Let's have a baby."

"What?"

"I want another child from you, or better two," repeated Marcus, and tears welled in Amelia's eyes. She pressed herself against his chest, put her arms around his neck and burst into tears.

"Shhh, god, you didn't react so emotionally even when I proposed to you," the man laughed tenderly in his voice, stroking his wife's head and back. "Or is it PMS? You know, if we try hard today, this thing won't bother you for the next year. How do you like this offer?"

He wiped the woman's wet cheeks with his thumbs and lifted her head to kiss her lips.

"You are the most amazing person I have met in my life, Marcus Taubert. Words cannot convey how much I love you," Amelia whispered.

"I love you too."

"... Marcus, do you trust me?"

"Of course, what a strange question," the man said, "You are my soul, my love, my life. My everything. My Amelia..."

If he could, he would melt into her to become one.

It was his secret dream to follow her to a better world when the time came. Their souls were one, and if there was a god somewhere, Marcus hoped that he would at least hear his request.

"Can you close your eyes?" The woman's voice was hoarse, almost hysterical.

The man nodded and complied with the request. He felt Amelia's hand slide under the pillow behind his head. Hmm, it looks like he was in for some kind of surprise. Marcus's lips curved into a smile. Another second...

Pain shot through his chest, echoing through his body. The heart skipped the beat and stopped.

Marcus opened his eyes. Her trembling fingers gripped the handle of the knife. The blade went into his chest to the bottom, piercing right through his heart.

"For what... why..."

He did not hear the answer to his question. The world faded faster.

The woman sat bending over the man's body. She screamed in pain... in a dumb scream, knowing that she had no right to voice.

Amelia took a pendant from her pocket and opened it. A blue gem flashed, illuminating the room.

"Blood to blood, light to light, soul to soul." She dipped the pendant into the blood that came from the man's heart. The red liquid began to spiral into the gem, dissolving inside.

Amelia leaned over Marcus's face and kissed her husband. The last kiss was almost cold. His lips did not move with their usual passion. His heart didn't beat.

She had only half an hour for his heart to heal and start beating again.

The price for the freedom of her beloved man was high, and Marcus would never agree with such a decision. She could only hope that he would understand her. Someday.