“Bell.” His hesitant expression broke my heart. “You know their drones can find you by your DNA?”
I knew—that was how the Kealans traced those who tried to evade the medical testing—but I couldn’t think rationally at that point.
“We’ll hide in a cave, somewhere, where the drones can’t fly?” My voice dropped, however, as did the hope in my heart. “I can’t do this, Johnny . . .”
“Maybe just for a little while?” he suggested.
“What?” I stared at him in disbelief. “You actually want me to go with them?”
“Tony should be out next month,” he spoke quickly. “I’m sure your brother will think of something.”
Tony—my oldest brother and Johnny’s idol since we were little—always came up with something. I wished he were here. Unfortunately, Tony’s ingenuity had been wasted on raiding gas stations and convenience stores, which had put him in jail for the second time in his twenty-nine years.
“Together, we will find a way to get you out later,” Johnny promised.
“It means I’ll have to go with them now,” I whispered, every fibre of my being refusing to accept the idea of that.
“Listen,” he said soothingly, stroking my arms, but his gaze flickered to the wall behind me as he refused to meet my eyes. “If they want you . . .”
“Then you don’t?” I snapped.
“No, it’s not that. Just, you know, they always get their way . . .”
“Johnny. Are you afraid of them, too?” I stepped back, not wanting to believe the obvious, but feeling completely alone already. “Are you breaking up with me?”
“There is going to be a wedding, Bell,” he sounded apologetic. “I don’t want you to end up feeling guilty over what may come afterwards.”
“Are you kidding me?” My throat tightened painfully, and I brought my hand to it.
“I just want to make it easier for you,” he continued in a rush. “No matter what, I won’t see it as cheating on your part. Okay?”
“I can’t believe it!” With a sob, I shrunk further away from him, feeling both ashamed and disgusted.
He reached for me. “You know we don’t have a choice—”
“Isabella, it’s time.” Trevin walked out of the kitchen, his voice firm.
Breathing hard, I backed away from both of them, moving to the front door.
“Miss Bruno . . .” Miller came from around Trevin, but I was no longer listening to whatever either of them had to say.
Twisting around, I dashed for the exit.
“You go, sis!” Mary cheered from the kitchen just as one of the twins started crying.
Shoving at the front door with my shoulder, I ran outside, without having any idea where I was going. Panic overtook me, propelling me to sprint as far away from this place as possible, away from the men in suits.
“Miss Bruno!” The doors of one of the black vehicles in front of our house flew open, and two men in black uniforms leaped out. They cut me off and tackled me to the ground on our front yard.
“Quickly, in the van with her,” Miller bit out the command, catching up with us.
“Let me go!” I screamed, fighting against the hands lifting me off the ground. “I don’t want this! I’m not going!”
The last I saw before they shoved me in and shut the doors were the pale faces of my family standing in the doorway of the house where I grew up.
My sister, comforting Lily in her arms. My mom, her hand over her mouth, Luca crawling at her feet. The thought of Tony and my dad flashed through my brain. The images of my little brothers who would come home from school that afternoon and find me gone.
I never got a chance to say a proper goodbye to any of them.
LEARN MORE
More by Marina Simcoe
PARANORMAL ROMANCE
Madame Tan’s Freakshow
Call of Water – 2020
Demons, Complete Series
Demon Mine
The Forgotten
Grand Master
The Last Unforgiven - Cursed
The Last Unforgiven - Freed
Stand Alone Novels Set in Demons World
The Real Thing
To Love A Monster
Midnight Coven Author Group
Wicked Warlock (Cursed Coven)
Tempted by Fae, Anthology. Available only until August 2020
SCIENCE-FICTION ROMANCE
Dark Anomaly Trilogy
Gravity
Power
Explosion
Standalones
Experiment
Enduring (Valos Of Sonhadra)
My Holiday Tails – December 2020
About the Author
MARINA SIMCOE LIKES to write love stories with characters, who may or may not be entirely human, because she firmly believes that our contemporary world could always use a little bit of the extraordinary.
She has lots of fun exploring how her out-of-this-world characters with their own beliefs, values, and aspirations fit into our every-day life.
She lives in Canada with her very own captain, their three little offsprings, and a cat, who is definitely out of this world.
For more illustrations of all of her books please visit Marina Simcoe Author page on Facebook or www.marinasimcoe.com.
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Gravity (Dark Anomaly Book 1) Page 22