Chapter 381 TOUCH AND GO

Chapter 381 TOUCH AND GO
ARTEMIS’ POV
I grab her before her body can hit the ground, pressing down on her neck that gushes more blood than I can bear to see. “Sera!” I yell her name, my voice laden with begging and pleading for her to wake up, to look at me, to say something—anything at all. Even if it means her hating me for forcing her into this situation, for not being strong enough, I would gladly take it; she need only say anything. The blood doesn’t stop, and she doesn’t move either; her eyes remain unfocused, staring at nothing without the usual glint of light in them. “Sera, please…” I break into a sob, holding her against me, pressing my cheek against her forehead as a wave of agony overwhelms me. She can’t leave me. I won’t let her. "Moon Goddess!" I scream, my voice reaching the sky with tears in my eyes, Sera clutched tightly in my arms. Rage burns like fire in my blood. "You said you chose me to make a difference, you said you wanted the circle to end. None of it would make any sense if she dies!" I speak to the goddess, knowing damn well she’s listening. She better be. "If you let her die, I'll burn your precious world to the ground myself," I threaten, not bluffing in any way. "I'll kill everyone and everything, and end this world. You will have nothing left. The wall will fall by my hands if she dies. I promise you!"
"Artemis," Jasper yells my name, running towards me now that everyone else has been led to safety, freezing the moment he sees her limp body in my arms, flinching when my rage-filled gaze falls on him. He knows I’d kill him the second he touches her without regret. And I would. "The ambulance is here. They can treat her, Artemis… before it’s too late," he pleads, stretching out his hands to take her from me. Reluctance grips me, knowing he had failed me every chance I gave him to keep her in his care, knowing no one else could protect her besides me, yet I couldn’t heal her. She needs a human doctor. "Please, she’s losing so much blood," he begs again. It takes everything within me to hand her over to him gently. "
Please, be careful," I whisper before she leaves my clutch.
Pacing back and forth in front of her operating room, alongside everyone else, I wait patiently for the end of her treatment currently going on. She had lost way too much blood before getting here. My outfit itself is currently soaked in most of it, with everyone suggesting I change, but I refuse. I can't miss any moment; I can't rest until I know that she's okay. Miss Lucy sits right next to Jasper and Olivia, silently praying amidst tears. Jasper, on the other hand, is holding onto Olivia, who is sleeping and exhausted from crying for hours. From the corner of my eye, I see someone else emerging from the corner, slowly approaching the three of us with careful steps. My gaze shifts before he can get close enough for Jasper or Olivia to notice him, drawing closer before he can cover the distance. "Ace," I say. It's a simple, cold word escaping from my lips as I address him. The truth is, I’ve never been able to forget what he did to Sera, everything he did and said about his own friends afterwards. I might have forgiven him along the line, but I could never forget. Seeing him now has me on guard. He hadn’t reached out since our fallout, never apologized or showed an ounce of gratefulness to Jasper for making the issue die as quickly as it had begun. I imagined he was aware when the witch hunt began, when Sera was being searched for, and all those times he had been in hiding, all until now. I clench my fist in case he says anything racy to her, about the fact that she’s a witch. I won’t forgive him like I had before. Being the new unofficial king, I’ll lock him up in the darkest, dirtiest cell if I have to. "What do you want, Ace?" My voice is cold, my stance protective. I sure as hell won’t let him remain here if there’s even the slightest chance that he will be a source of discomfort to her. "N-nothing. I’m not here to start a fight either."
Of course, he isn’t. I don’t buy it, though. "How is she—Sera?"
"Why do you care… now of all times? After what you did?"
I watch him flinch away from me, from the heat of my anger that I unconsciously let out on him. He takes a step back, avoiding my eyes for a moment before taking a deep breath and looking at me, fully remorseful yet unfazed. "Look, I’m not stupid… I was there while you guys were trying to coax her out of killing everyone, hidden in a corner amidst all the rubble. I was there while you guys realized you each had a part in her losing it, and I was there when she tried to kill herself just so she didn’t hurt any more people," he confesses, being a bystander while it all happened. I had been too busy trying to diffuse the situation and get Sera back that I hadn’t noticed him at all. I thought I was the only one left when she cut her own throat, but he saw it too. I bite my lip, reliving that moment again and forcing myself not to dwell on it. "I might be an asshole, Artemis, but I’m not a heartless jerk," he says, guilt evident on his features. I can see it instantly. He feels bad for not doing anything, for simply watching like everyone else. Possibly for what he did months before as well. I’m angry at him but also at myself.