Marcus’s head drops to his chest, inspecting the new hole on his left. He raises his eyes and gives me one last look. His mouth parts, “El–” he coughs and his eyes go blank just before he slumps to the ground.
“Marcus!”
Hot streams of tears coat my cheeks as I still flail around, trying to escape Joshua.
“No! No!” I elbow him repeatedly, “I will kill you!” The burning of my throat worsens as I keep repeating the words, my eyes locked on Marcus’s still body.
“Looks like you aren’t going to fucking listen.” He lets up his hold on me and I sprint towards Marcus. Before I can reach him, pain shoots through my neck. The world around me sways, the edges of my vision darken. My limbs grow heavier with each step as I turn to face Joshua, who is now right behind me.
I reach for my neck, my fingers touching something sticking out of the side. I hiss at the dull pain as it erupts through me. I grip it with the little strength I have left, pulling it out to inspect it.
A syringe?
“Wh-what did you d-do?” I slur as I feel my body topple over, but he catches me in his arms.
“What I had to.” His words are faint as my eyelids sag, and the world around me goes dark.
Epilogue
Elliott
Muted sounds echo all around me, the darkness refusing to fade as I try to force my heavy lids to open. Even with so much effort I can't seem to keep them open for longer than a second. A familiar scent engulfs me, a scent that I haven’t smelled in a while. I must be dreaming. My limbs won't move. I feel plastered to the soft, cushioned fabric that lays beneath me.
Everything feels off.Where is Marcus?
Marcus!
The images of him falling to the ground, limp, covered in blood, return to me.
Where am I? Why can’t I move?
I try but fail again. My body not responding to my demands further aggravates me.
A blistering burst of pain cracks through me as my head is jerked to the side, yet I barely let out a cry with how disoriented I am. The peddling sting on my cheek grows.
"Wake up." A high pitched voice breaks through my dazed state.
No, it can't be.
Another slap and my eyes snap open, burning as if I shoved my face into a mound of sand. I blink rapidly to ease the pain but it only enhances the burning sensation.
"Mrs. Donovan?" My voice cracks as I say her name.
"Yes, it's me." She sounds annoyed. The only way I remember her sounding.
"Wha—" I look around the room I am in. The wallpaper is lined with floral print and lavender stripes. The smell of Mrs. Donovan's perfume reaches every corner of this room.
It takes me a moment to figure out where I am. This isn’t our home. No, I was in the cabin we would visit every time Mr. Donovan needed a break from the community and his duties.
"Oh, dear." She smiles weakly as she speaks to me. Disappointment hanging from her face, "You really made a mess of things, didn't you?" I can't speak as I lay defenseless on the twin mattress of the room they assigned to me whenever we would come here. "You give them an inch…they take a mile." She continues, as she clutches her pearl necklace, using her hand to move it one pearl at a time around her neck. She paces the room now, her heels clicking against the wooden floor boards, echoing through the room like a ticking time bomb.
"We thought your bonding with Samuel would help you realize how much your family needed you, how much our people need you." She stops right in front of the bed. Leaning in close, she cups my cheek in her palm. "But you screwed it up, Eden. Why am I not surprised?" She slaps my cheek a few times before straightening up and continuing her pacing. The tapping of her heels grows faster as she speaks. "Your father was always a little too soft with you. I told him it would ruin you, that it would ruin us, if he didn't stop. But did he believe me? No, of course not. You were Eden. The next to stand beside the leader of Everton. Hell, he wanted it to be you beside him at one point. But I knew Samuel wouldn’t let that happen. No." She chuckles and my skin crawls at the sound I wished I'd never hear again.
Mr. Donovan never favored me or gave me special treatment. Not by a long shot. He never gave me much attention or affection. I was just there, keeping Samuel company. He was always away with his duties for the Divine. Helping Samuel learn to take over his spot on the Divine’s throne. His priorities were to his people. They were the ones that groveled at his feet. They treated him like a god, because that's what they all believed he was. A god, walking this world with them.
Mrs. Donovan smooths out her dress. "Good thing he is gone." My eyes widen, "Now I can make things right."
I struggle to move my limbs but they won't listen to my internal screams. I don't know what Joshua gave me, but I can't seem to shake it off.
