Bleeding Soul

The morning was on the horizon, but the darkness of the night still clung to Irina's depths. She ran for hours without a destination, her tired feet nearly betraying her, but she didn't stop. The sound of gunfire she had heard behind her still rang in her ears, like a ghost chasing her.

She stumbled in the dark and fell onto the muddy ground. Slowly, she raised her head, her hands trembling, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Irina (whispering): "What do I do now? Where do I go?"

She looked up at the sky, which was beginning to light up with a pale gray hue. The rain still fell, washing her weary face, as though it were comforting her in some way.

-

Irina found a small shelter beneath an abandoned bridge. She sat there, wrapping her arms around her trembling body. The echoes of the previous night haunted her; Sergei's face, his firm voice, and the gunshots he had fired to protect her.

Irina (thinking): "Did he die? Did he sacrifice himself for me? And why? What does all of this mean?"

She closed her eyes, but she couldn't sleep. Every time she tried, she saw the faces of the people she had lost, especially Dimitri.

Irina (whispering): "Dimitri... why did you leave me in this mess? Why didn't you tell me the truth?"

-

As she searched through her pockets for something that might help her, she found the paper Sergei had given her. The words on it seemed to burn under the dim light.

"The truth is the key to freedom. But the price is always steep."

She couldn't fully understand its meaning, but she felt that this paper was a part of the larger puzzle that was haunting her.

-

With the rising sun, movement began to stir in the city once again. People left their homes, heading to work as if nothing had happened. Irina watched them from a distance, feeling like a stranger in this world.

Irina (thinking): "How can the world be normal when my life is falling apart like this?"

She decided to stand up. She couldn't stay here for long. If they were chasing her, there would be no safe place.

-

She decided to return to her apartment, despite the danger. She needed anything that could help her understand what was happening. When she arrived at the building, everything seemed normal, as though nothing had changed.

She ascended the stairs cautiously, her heart racing. When she reached her apartment door, she stopped. She felt something was wrong.

She slowly pushed open the door, and inside was a scene of chaos. Furniture overturned, papers scattered everywhere, all signs that someone had searched the place.

Irina (whispering): "They were here."

-

As she searched through the papers, she found an envelope with her name on it. She opened it carefully and found a picture of Dimitri and Sergei together, just as Sergei had told her the night before. But there was something else attached to the picture: a small map with a mark on a location outside the city.

Irina (thinking): "Is this the place I need to go? But why?"

-

She sat on the floor, clutching the map, her eyes fixed on the picture. She felt trapped between two choices: running away and leaving everything behind, or facing the unknown.

Irina (whispering): "I've already started this journey. I can't turn back now."

-

She left the apartment before anyone could see her. She had to find a way to get to the location marked on the map. But she knew the road wouldn't be easy.

Irina (thinking): "If Sergei sacrificed himself for me, I won't let his sacrifice be in vain. I will find the truth, no matter the cost."

-

As she walked through the city streets, carrying the map, someone watched her from afar. Mysterious eyes followed every step she took, as if it were a game of chess where the pawns moved toward the endgame.

Inner voice: "Irina... the game has just begun."