—- Chapter 12 In the war-torn outskirts of East Lutenia, chaos still raged. Elizabeth moved swiftly between the wounded , her clothes soaked through with blood and sweat. She was exhausted , but she didn’t stop until the next shift of medics arrived to take over. Only then did she finally exhale. She sank onto an old, dust-covered ammo crate, rubbing her aching calves as her gaze drifted toward the horizon, where smoke still rose into the sky.
After leaving the country, she’d planned to continue her studies , but the trauma she’d endured had left deeper scars than she expected. She developed depression, haunted every night by nightmares, visions of herself being violated and tormented. Her hair had fallen out in clumps. That was when she found Project Dawnlight. Without hesitation, she signed up. For the past few months, she had moved with her unit from one frontline to the next.
Even though the work was exhausting , the nonstop —- pace left her no time to dwell on the mess of thoughts and memories she’d been trying to escape. “Ellie! I’ve got some good news!” While she was lost in thought, her new friend Pamela Norman came jogging over, panting, flushed, and excited. Elizabeth blinked , snapping back to reality . “Is the war over?” she asked quickly. “If only! That kind of good news is way too big to hope for,” Pamela laughed.
She leaned in, dropping her voice to a playful whisper, ‘We just got a new comms specialist assigned to our unit. Word is he’s insanely hot, plus, filthy rich…” Elizabeth instantly lost all interest. She had only ever truly loved one person in her entire life, and unfortunately, that same person was also the one who had hurt her the most. Pamela knew Elizabeth had been through heartbreak, and said meaningfully , “If you ask me, the only way to heal from love is with love. “Come on!
Who hasn’t run into a few jerks in their life? You’re beautiful and kind! Someone out there’s going to see that and treat you right.” But Elizabeth didn’t hear a single word. —- It wasn’t until Pamela insisted on dragging her to go check out the new comms specialist that she finally snapped out of it. “You go. I’m not up for it,” Elizabeth said quietly. “Really? You’re not even a little curious?” “I’m too tired today.” Pamela saw she meant it and gave up trying to convince her.
“Alright, I’ll go. I’ll report back and let you know if he’s worth the hype.” That night, gunfire and explosions ripped through the warzone once again. Elizabeth shot awake, heart pounding . She grabbed the nearest jacket and bolted out of the tent. One after another , the wounded were carried in. She heard someone shout, “Over there! There is more over there!” No time to think, and she ran toward the voice. Dodging debris , weaving through chaos, Elizabeth sprinted toward the injured.
She was almost there when a shell exploded nearby. The roar was deafening, and fragments tore through the air with a terrifying shriek, hurtling directly —- toward her. Just as it was about to hit, a tall figure dove in from the side, shielding her with their entire body. Strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her into a tight, protective embrace.
