by Shayla Hyde
“What was that sound?” Iris asked, wide-eyed.
“Kaden uprooted a tree,” I sighed, stepping by them.
“Where are you going?” Iris called after me.
“Home,” I stated. I tugged the front door open and rushed outside before anyone could follow.
I didn’t have my dad’s car, but I was fine with walking. Alone, I sauntered down their long dirt driveway in the darkness. It was late, really late. It was chilly out, and I was without a jacket. I folded my arms tightly over my chest. Cold tears spilled from my eyes unintentionally. I was so stressed, so anxious. More so now than ever. Halloween was four days away, and Sebastian had made perfect sense. My lifespan is short. Why should they fight for a life so insignificant? I sniffled, a deep sob escaping my throat.
I found myself wishing I’d never met Kaden Warren. My life was completely normal until he came into the picture. He should have left me to fend for myself the night Jake attacked me in the forest. If it came to me dying of blood loss, maybe that was better than what the Primevals had planned for me.
At the same time, though, the abnormal lifestyle I’d plummeted into after meeting Kaden Warren was exciting. It kept me guessing. At times, it was terrifying and deadly, but at others, it was exhilarating. I blinked my tears away and picked up my pace. I was midway down the driveway now and just trying to block out the rustling sounds coming from the forest on each side of me. I pinned the blame on squirrels and the wind, but deep down, I feared something much worse was lurking about.
That’s when I got an idea. Mary’s voice was in my mind telling me to, “think of a hidden pain, a hidden anger.” I halted in place, glancing side to side at the forest. It was dark, so it was only faintly that I could see the tree limbs dancing in the wind.
I intently focused on one tree. Its limbs were the only ones not sashaying in the wind. I glared at the pine, forcing thoughts and images of my mother’s grisly death in my brain. My chest started burning almost at once, and my fingertips started to tingle. The rest of my body was thoroughly numb.
It was familiar, this feeling I had. I’d felt the same way once before on the night I accidentally slammed the door in Iris’s face. This feeling slowly took over my entire body. From head to toe, I tingled with static electricity. Suddenly, many dazzling rays of light shot from my mark and illuminated the once pitch-black trees around me.
I didn’t notice anything out of place or anyone/anything stalking me like I had feared. I smiled and took one step forward, testing the waters.
Amazingly, the light didn’t dull. I had a built-in flashlight.
“Eve!” Kaden suddenly shouted from somewhere behind me.
I flinched at the unexpected sound, and the rays of light quickly burned out. I faced Kaden and found a look of astonishment in his dark blue eyes.
“Wow,” he grinned, his sharp canines showing.
I dropped my eyes to my feet, “Yeah.”
He stepped toward me, “You okay?”
“I don’t want any of you to fight for me,” I stated, not making eye contact.
“What?”
I blinked a tear away, “I’m going to try this myself. Mary said I could save myself.” “Is this because of Sebastian?” Kaden interrogated, stepping even closer to me.
“Sebastian is right, Kaden,” I whispered, my lips trembling as I spoke. “I’m not worth all of this.”
Kaden stayed silent, but I still didn’t look at him. I counted the rocks under my sneakers, trying to stay calm.
“Eve, I’m sorry, but I can’t let you do that,” he said quietly. I felt him inch closer until he was only a few inches away from me. “You have to listen to me. Everyone that is fighting, excluding Sebastian, offered to it. Some of us really care about you while others just really want the
Primevals to end,” he took my wrists in his icy and strong hands. “I hate that it’s come to this, and I wish it didn’t have to just as much as you do. But it is our own free will, and we are willing.”
I sobbed quietly, tightening my arms together when I caught a chill. Kaden stepped back and pulled his black hoodie over his head, revealing his toned, flawless torso. I glanced up at him just as he placed the hoodie on top of my folded arms.
“Aren’t you cold?” I sniffled, glancing at the cloth, then him.
“I don’t get cold,” he explained, ruffling his hair.
“Thanks,” I whispered, slipping my arms inside the fabric.
He watched as I slipped it over my shoulders and was swallowed by the oversized hoodie. I shoved my hands in the front pocket.
“Better?” Kaden raised his eyebrows. I nodded.
He unexpectedly grabbed my forearm and pulled me against him. I pressed my nose against his bare chest and breathed him in. His skin smelled natural, clean, and the scent of Kaden made him even more attractive to me.
“Never think that just because your life expectancy isn’t as long as mine that it’s any less significant,” he whispered into my hair, “I would lay one million of my lifetimes down just so that you could live one long and happy one.”
I felt a tear roll from my eye and spill on his chest. He tightened his grip around my shoulders, “Sebastian can sit this one out if that’s what he wants, but no one else will. Come on. I’ll take you home.” I grinned softly and followed him toward his house.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN:
Halloween is in two days, I cringed. I was home alone for the very first time in over a week, but it was only for a temporary time while Kaden and Jake went hunting for food. Apparently, the more they feed, the more powerful they become.
I sat on the couch, chewing my fingernails. I was a nervous wreck. I
hadn’t slept well since my dream, and I couldn’t find my appetite no matter what I tried eating. I worried, and that was all I could do. Each time I tried finding a distraction, it only made matters worse. The front door suddenly shoved open and Kaden stood in the darkened doorway. He had an uncertain expression as he glanced at me, then over his shoulder.
“What is it?” I peered at him, repositioning my legs on the couch. He uncomfortably scratched the back of his neck and stepped inside the house without giving me an answer. Jake trailed along behind him struggling with a translucent plastic tote full of… something. He’d stepped inside without my invite, and I felt uneasy at the realization I’d invited him in three times already. He had free reign of my house now. The objects in the container were plastic bags, oval in shape, and full of a crimson red liquid that sloshed around when he dropped the box on the floor.
I felt my stomach churn. “Blood bags?” I questioned them, turning to Kaden, “but why? I thought you only fed on animals.”
“Typically, yes, but human blood will enhance our abilities for battle,” Kaden sheepishly explained. “I’m sorry. I promise we won’t drink it in front of you.”
“No, it’s fine,” I said quietly, my nausea subsiding slightly.
Jake reached in, selecting a random bag from the box, “if you say so.” I turned my head when he positioned the clear tube in his mouth and started sucking the blood through it like it was a straw.
“Don’t overdo it, Jake,” Kaden scolded him. “Remember what I told you.”
Jake continued slurping, but I heard him mumble, “Mhm,” mid-suck. Kaden glanced at me, probably noticing I was turning green in the face, and started trying to distract me from what was happening less than five feet away from me. He stood and reached into the back pocket of his firm-fitting dark jeans. “I have something for you,” he told me as his black boots clacked across the hardwood floor.
Intrigued, I straightened up on the couch. He kneeled next to me and opened his palm, revealing a thin, shiny, silver chain. From the necklace, a small, metal crucifix dangled.
“Usually, using a crucifix against us can partially stunt our powers. I don’t know if it will do much good against The Primevals, but if nothing else, maybe it’ll distract them.”
“Thank you,” I nodded.<
br />
He unfastened the chain as I quickly used the elastic on my wrist to pull my thick, messy hair up and out of the way. Kaden’s face was suddenly inches away and his eyes were locked on mine. He gently placed the cold necklace around my warm throat and effortlessly fastened it behind my neck.
I stuffed the cross in the collar of my t-shirt and smiled. I could still hear Jake disgustingly belting down on his blood bag and I was becoming increasingly lightheaded because of it.
“Hey, Jake. Iris is on her way over,” I blurted out. I knew he would stop if there was a chance of Iris seeing him. The gulping abruptly stopped.
Kaden smirked at me, “Is she actually, or are you just grossed out?”
“Both,” I turned up my nose.
Around five minutes later, Iris’s truck peeled into my driveway. Jake had slid the entire container of blood behind my couch and tossed a thin throw blanket over it before she’d arrived. I knew it was because he was ashamed for her to see it, but it wasn’t his fault.
Iris surprisingly knocked on the front door before bursting inside.
“Guys, my dad talked to Principal Riley today. He said school should be back in session by next Monday,” she exclaimed as she rushed through the door.
Yeah, if we live that long, I thought to myself.
“Has Dean reported me missing yet?” Jake questioned her. Dean is his step-dad. After Jake’s mother passed away when he was little, Dean adopted him, but also gradually became an abusive alcoholic and drug addict.
Iris hesitated, then shook her head side-to-side, “No, he hasn’t.”
Jake scoffed, “Figures.”
“I’m sorry, Jake,” Iris said quietly.
He shrugged his shoulders, a disgusted look on his face, “Don’t be. I wasn’t expecting him to.”
Iris’s phone started to chime, dwindling down the awkward tension a bit. She grabbed it from her coat pocket.
“Hello?” She switched the phone on loudspeaker.
“Iris, where are you?” A man’s voice interrogated. I could hear police sirens in the background.
“I’m at Eve’s,” she squinted. “What’s going on, Dad?” “Good. Stay there,” he demanded, “and lock the doors.”
“Why?” Iris exclaimed.
Her father sighed into the phone, his police scanner going off like crazy in the background.
“To be honest, Hon, I’m not really sure. There have been many attacks in various parts of the city, but they’re all related and happening fast.”
I gulped and quickly jumped to my feet, “Iris,” I said, my body going numb, “The Primevals.”
“Wait, Dad, don’t go!” Iris exclaimed into the phone, “I need you to come home.”
“I have to go, sweetie, it’s my job,” Officer Simmons said softly, “I’m almost to Bridgeford. I love you, and I will call you soon. Stay where you are.”
“Dad!” Iris screamed, but the line was silent.
Iris helplessly faced Jake and Kaden, who were already heading toward the front door. Kaden paused beside the couch and reached over it with one long arm, grabbing a blood bag. He crushed the straw between his lips and drained the bag in a few large gulps. He was directly in front of me as he did this, and he focused on me the entire time. I held my breath as I watched him. I was surprised when his eyes, just for a second, flashed from their familiar beautiful dark blue to bright crimson. I felt myself take an involuntary step back. He wiped the excess blood from his lips with his shirt sleeve and threw the empty container on the floor. He stepped by me, his cool eyes full of anger.
“Was that…” Iris gulped. She was staring at the empty bag on the floor.
“Never mind that,” Kaden waved. “This is what we are going to do. Jake and I are going to Bridgeford, and I will see to it that your dad goes home unharmed, Iris. You both have to promise me that you are going to stay here and keep the doors locked. Can you do that?” Kaden’s seriousness was a little frightening, but I nodded. Jake grabbed Iris’s hands, looked her in the eye captivatingly. After a moment he grimly said, “don’t leave, and don’t open the door for anyone.”
Kaden squinted at Jake, then examined Iris’s suddenly calm facial expression.
“I won’t leave, and I won’t open the door for anyone,” Iris whispered back in a brainwashed-like state.
I knew what he’d done to her. Jake used mind compulsion in his favor. Iris had no choice now but to obey his command. I nervously paced the floor and bit at my fingernails. I thought only we would be in
danger when the Primevals got here, but I was dead wrong. They didn’t come quietly. They brought chaos. They were literally killing everything in their path, and it was my fault.
Jake stepped away from Iris and slipped out the front door. Kaden followed him but paused just as he was about to step outside. He turned
to me with a solemn gaze. He had this expression on his face that I’d never seen him wear before. His eyes were sad and bleak, but his lips were pursed and angry. He didn’t say a word, just examined me like that for what felt like forever but was only a few seconds. I didn’t want him to go.
Suddenly, and quietly, he turned away from me. He slammed the door shut behind him. I wondered if he was angry with me for everything I had indirectly caused. I couldn’t really tell what he was feeling.
Iris and I sat on my couch in silence for over an hour before I broke. I called Jake from Iris’s cell phone. He answered on the first ring.
“Iris, hey. Are you okay?”
“It’s Eve,” I corrected him, “and we are good. What is going on?” “Get away from Iris. I don’t want her to hear,” he told me.
I shifted away from her and lowered her cell phone’s volume against my ear. I was nervous. Were they too late getting to her dad?
“Okay,” I urged him to go on.
“It’s a bloody mess out here,” he told me, “but I compelled her dad to go home, and he did.”
I sniffled, “Any sign of them?”
“No,” he said disappointedly. Knock, knock.
“Was that the door?” Jake exclaimed.
I stared at my front door, my heart hammering against my chest. Fear
took over my entire body. I grabbed Iris’s hand without looking away from the door, and I pulled her to the hallway.
“Yes, someone is here,” I whispered very, very quietly.
I heard Jake screaming for Kaden, then he calmly said, “We will be there in five minutes. Do not answer the door. Hide.”
I ended the call and shuffled Iris into the bathroom. It was the only
room in my house that didn’t have a window. I directed her to get inside the shower and sit down. She was in a daze, babbling to herself about how she couldn’t leave the house.
“Iris, I will be right back,” I whispered to my friend, “stay right here.
Okay?”
She glanced up at me silently from the bathtub floor. I turned away from her and locked the bathroom door on the way out. I marched down the hallway, my eyes locked on the front door. This was the only way I knew to keep everyone else safe and prevent a confrontation. I was going to let The Primevals have me.
I heard low voices mumbling on the other side of the door. I tiptoed to the door and swiftly jerked it open with little hesitation. Three people stood on the darkened doorstep, but I was relieved to see them. They meant me no harm. It was Victor, Sebastian, and Elizabeth. All three of
them looked like they’d just seen a ghost as they stared at me from the doorway.
“It seems as though Halloween has come early this year,” Victor muttered solemnly, “Can we come inside?” “Yes,” I breathlessly whispered. “Come in.”
They each stepped inside my house as I gathered Iris from the bathroom. She was sitting just as I’d left her. “Come on, Iris.” She didn’t look at me, just stood from the tub and followed me down the hallway with folded arms. She was still babbling quietly to herself.
I didn’t like what Jake’s mind compuls
ion had done to her. “Where is my brother?” Sebastian narrowed his eyes at me in an accusatory fashion once I returned.
“Behind you,” Kaden’s voice growled.
That was way sooner than five minutes. I glanced over Sebastian’s shoulder at Kaden. His white t-shirt was stained with fresh blood and his face was dirtied up.
“They’re here,” Kaden stated, “they wiped out Bridgeford. We saved as many as we could. They’ve made a trail of bodies across the entire country, a trail that’s headed straight toward us.”
Sebastian glanced from Kaden, to me, back to Kaden. “Okay, well, what’s the plan?”
“Oh, what? Are you actually going to fight now?” Elizabeth retorted, rolling her eyes at Sebastian.
“I hoped Kaden would change his mind, but it’s clear he isn’t going to,” Sebastian argued, “and I won’t sit back and watch you all die.” Jake rushed inside and found Iris. He stared into her eyes and started speaking, but over the murmurs of the group, I could hear nothing he was saying.
“We will all camp in the woods until they show,” Kaden demanded.
“We’ll keep them away from Eve’s house.”
“Get your sleeping bags together, girl scouts,” Sebastian sarcastically said as he exited the front door.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT:
We built a fire in the forest close to the clearing at around ten o’clock PM. Jake had sent Iris home, so it was just the six of us for the time being. The Abominations were coming soon, along with a few of
Victor’s Upperclass friends. Every sound I heard in the forest put me on edge. I anxiously wondered if the Primevals were already near and secretly making a mockery of us.
Next to the small campfire, I wrapped up in a fuzzy throw blanket and tried to stay calm. I knew what was coming, but when? Why were they early? Were they planning something else? My teeth chattered, but
I wasn’t sure if it was because of the cold or fear.
Kaden joined my side, dropping on the ground next to me. He lifted his knees, resting his elbows on them as he gazed at the fire. Elizabeth and Victor were putting a tent together while Sebastian and Jake gathered more firewood. Suddenly, a hand even colder than mine traced my forearm comfortingly. I glanced up at Kaden, but his eyes were still on the flame.