Jojo's body trembled beneath my hands as I tightened the bandage around her shoulder. Blood soaked through the gauze faster than I could replace it.
She coughed again.
Then reached out to me with her other arm, and curled her bloodstained fingers around mine.
I knew she was in with pain. But beneath it… something else flickered.
"There's something you need to know."
Her voice was low, hoarse. Like the words had been living in her throat, waiting to be freed…and now that they were.
I stiffened. My breath caught in my throat. I didn't want to hear it. Not now. Not when I was holding her blood in my hands and Asha's death in my chest.
But I nodded.
Slowly.
Jojo leaned in closer, her lips kept trembling. Her voice dropped to a whisper, the kind meant for secrets.
"Vincent… he's not like us."
A bitter laugh slipped out of me before I could stop it.
"Oh, I know," I said. "He's a goddamn murderer."
But Jojo shook her head hard, like I was missing the entire point.
