"I can, Ven. He hurt you."
It was an odd feeling defending someone she loathed with all her heart. But had it come down to it, which it had now, Vanessa's love of her cousin would overcome her hatred of his brother. Any emotion in the world was insignificant compared to what she felt for the man who stood in front of her, fighting with his shirt only to give up on the button altogether.
His own vision was blurred with tears where hers had dried now, dried to make way for the panic that would ensue if he left. Left to do something that would result in them being separated once more.
And Vanessa wasn't sure she would be able to live through it a second time.
"What he did... It would never hurt me as much as losing you would. The gods have seen fit to punish him. He can barely stand up on his feet these days let alone attempt anything of his own violations. Isn't that enough?" she pleaded, trying to make him see sense. The brunette had never wanted revenge, she had only wanted Louis to know the whole truth before deciding to accept her as she was.
"I've failed you completely, Ven. I was supposed to make sure you're safe and look what I've done. Nothing. They forced me away, and I let them. Dominic... Took what was always supposed to be mine. Some bloody American had the child that should have been mine. If I don't do anything now, when is this going to stop, Ven?"
"Its going to stop now," the brunette replied softly, reaching for his hands, holding them carefully in her own as she looked up at him. "Its going to stop right this minute. I may have made horrendous errors in judgment in the past but that doesn't mean I was taken from you..." That much she had always known. Even as Dominic had overpowered her, she had known that this would never change the bond between her and Louis. What existed between them had grown more powerful than the two people who were involved. And even if he chose to walk away, she would never stop feeling it.
And neither would he.
"I need to do something, Ven. I have to make it... Right."
Reaching up to him, Vanessa kissed his lips softly, catching his tears on her own skin. "Then stay with me."
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