Watching Nikolas die in front of him shook Emil in ways he did not expect. He had hated the man in life, and yet he felt some pity for the way Nikolas left it, terror filled and unforgiven, sure that he was about to face judgment. I’m not facing judgment, Emil thought after covering Nikolas’s body and dragging it outside to freeze. There is nothing beyond this life. The only thing you can rely on is yourself.
