“Now,” Oscar says, his eerie calm making everyone shiver, “I suggest we discuss this situation rationally, or I will simply let Van loose on Annabelle and see what shakes out.”
“She’s not going to betray us,” Zander says though clenched teeth.
“Then why would she run?” Ketchup demands.
The tension between them renews, the fear and anger from a moment ago rising quickly. I fight to keep control. Breathing like Chris taught me, I listen with only half my attention.
“Annabelle would never do that to me,” Zander defends. “She promised she was with us, no matter what.”
“She’s also a Godling.” Ketchup folds his arms across his chest. “None of them can be trusted.”
Zander’s shoulders pull together tightly. “She’s different.”
“That’s what she wants you to believe, and we all know how good a judge of character you are,” Ketchup snaps. “She’s probably been playing you this whole time! Why would she come here, if not on David’s orders?”
The pain pulsing out of Zander right now stabs into me. My breath catches, and I double over. I want to comfort Zander, but only to get rid of the pain. I fear Ketchup is right, and Zander has made a horrible mistake in trusting Annabelle. My hands fumble for the door, and I nearly fall out of the truck.
Doors pop open around me as Zander and Ketchup scramble out of the truck, but I stumble away from them. “Stop,” I bark sharply. “Get away from me!”
They both slow, not seeming to know what to do. Both of them want to help, but neither can calm themselves enough to get near me without stirring my hunger. I lean against a nearby dumpster and take a deep breath. Instantly, I regret that move. Foul odors seep into my lungs, and I break into a fit of coughing. A moment later, I nearly jump out of my skin when a hand touches my shoulder.
“Relax,” Oscar says. “I sent them back to the truck.” His casual tone matches his slack posture. I shake my head, unable to understand how he can stay so calm about this.
“Oscar, we have to do something.” I push away from the dumpster slowly. “We can’t let Annabelle tell David anything.”
Nodding slowly, Oscar stares at nothing.
His silence only irritates me, and the weight of his hand on my shoulder is killing me. Shoving his arm away, I look up at him in exasperation. “What are we going to do?”
“What isn’t the question.”
I groan in frustration. We do not have time for riddles! “Then what is the question?” I demand.
“Who should do it,” he says.
I stare up at him, wanting to shake my head. “Do what?”
“Kill Annabelle.”
“What?” I shriek.
Oscar looks over at me, his face wrinkled in a perplexed expression. “It’s the only way to ensure her silence. Protecting you is more important than anything else, Nessie Girl.”
“Worth killing?”
“Of course,” Oscar says. He stares at me like I am being intentionally thick. I shrink back as I get the impression that this is not the first time he’s come to this conclusion. Thoughts of my parents, of their bodies lying in their caskets, fill my mind for just a moment before I firmly shove the memories and the tears away.
“Oscar,” I say slowly, “let’s not jump to murder right away. How about we focus on finding her, first?”
He shrugs, like it doesn’t really matter. Maybe he doesn’t think debating about it does matter, because it will end the same, either way. I sigh, knowing this could go bad very quickly. The last thing we need are the cops showing up to find Oscar not in the hospital and the rest of us standing around a dead redhead.
“We need to go to her apartment,” Oscar says, startling me.
“You really think she’d go there?” I ask. “It’s the first place we’d look.”
Oscar turns to look at me slowly. “If she’s innocent, that’s exactly where she’ll run.” He turns away and stares back out at the parking lot. “If she’s the liar I suspect she is, she’s already on her way to David.”
“Or on the phone with him,” I admit. She doesn’t have to search for David. He’s only a few taps away.
“There’s nothing we can do but run if she’s already betrayed us,” Oscar says.
“Run where?” I shake my head, terrified that may be our only option. “David will find us, no matter where we go. That’s why we haven’t run already. He has unlimited resources, a Godling army, and who knows what else.”
Oscar scoffs. “David only thinks he’s unstoppable. Killing or imprisoning us will not be as easy as he believes.”
I force myself to keep my eyes turned down. Part of me wants to see what is hiding behind Oscar’s eyes that make him so sure of that, but I’m too afraid of what I’ll find to look. There were many times Oscar disappeared between the time of his hunger erupting and his arrest. I was not allowed to see my parents’ bodies until the funeral, and I was never once shown a photograph of the crime scene, or even allowed back into our house. I didn’t need to see any of that to know Oscar’s power runs deeper than he lets on. Even still, I can’t help doubt his surety that he could outrun David. He hasn’t seen everything I have. He doesn’t understand David’s obsession. All he understands is his own abilities, and I just don’t think that’s enough to go on this time.
Before Oscar started losing his mind, we were very close. Closer than Zander and I are now. We weren’t supposed to intentionally stir our hunger, or attempt to use our power in any way unless we absolutely had to, but other people’s rules have never meant as much to Oscar as his own warped sense of right and wrong. He never attempted to hurt me. In fact, most of what he did made me laugh, or watch in awe. He could climb anything, jump from any height, do a million impossible things that he only ever showed me, and I loved it. That doesn’t mean I didn’t see the potential to cause pain… a lot of pain.
“Are you under control?” Oscar asks.
“Yeah, I think so.”
Oscar nods. “I suppose we should get going then. Not that rushing really makes a difference.”
“Uh, how do you figure that?” I ask as I shuffle back toward the car. To my mind, finding Annabelle and figuring out why she ran is pretty time sensitive.
Oscar and I reach the truck, but he doesn’t open the door right away. Instead, he says, “Because she’s made her choice. Either we’ll find her at her apartment, scared and lost, or she’s already in David’s pocket. If it’s the former, she’s not going anywhere.”
“And if it’s the second one?” I ask.
“Then David is already mobilizing against us. Running won’t do any good.”
“But, I thought you said all we could do was run if David comes after us.”
Oscar blinks. “It would be the wiser choice, but not the most satisfying one.” His lips part in a vicious grimace. “I dislike being hunted even more than being locked up.”
“So, you’re planning to do what?” I ask. Two full-strength, but severely undertrained Godlings, one half-crippled Godling girl, and one human boy do not make for good odds against David.
I half expect something profound to come out of Oscar’s mouth, though I don’t know why. It should be no surprise when he says, “I plan to kill David.”
I don’t bother to ask how he intends to do that. I don’t want to know.
Oscar helps me back into the truck, and I breathe a sigh of relief at the mellowed atmosphere. I fear it won’t last long, so I immediately start breathing and focusing. Oscar’s muffled voice stays on the periphery of my hearing as he lays out what we will do next, regardless of what anyone else wants.
Everything is so black and white for Oscar. Lying is unacceptable. Betrayal warrants harsh punishment. Family must be protected at all costs, unless one of the other rules are broken. He could kill Annabelle and never feel a moment of remorse. There is so much blood on his hands already. I stare down at my hands, wondering if I could really do the same. How far will I go to protect the people I
love? It scares me to realize I already know the answer.
Acknowledgments
This was one of the hardest books for me to write for various reasons, and I wouldn’t have gotten it to a readable state without the help of my husband Ryan, who always lets me know when my male characters are too whiney, and my wonderful team of beta readers, Susan Stec, Deanne James, Angela Mendenhall, Michelle Zeplin, and Savannah Lilywhite. Your encouragement and suggestions got me through the tough chapters and helped me iron out all those stubborn kinks that were driving me nuts.
Also, thank you to all my readers who are as in love with Ketchup as much as I am, who hate David with a passion, and who are rooting for the Roth siblings to figure things out and stay alive. Writing keeps me from losing my mind, but all the wonderful comments and encouragement from my readers are why I love writing so much. Thanks for hanging in there with me!
Thank you as well to my husband and kids, who are so supportive and keep me going. My daughter giggles every time she hears the name Ketchup, and every time I pick up a book my son asks me if I wrote it, which I usually did not. I love that they enjoy reading and books as much and my husband and I do, and I hope they never stop loving them.
About the Author
DelSheree Gladden was one of those shy, quiet kids who spent more time reading than talking. Literally. She didn't speak a single word for the first three months of preschool, but she had already taught herself to read. Her fascination with reading led to many hours spent in the library and bookstores, and eventually to writing. She wrote her first novel when she was sixteen years old, but spent ten years rewriting and perfecting it before having it published.
Native to New Mexico, DelSheree and her husband spent several years in Colorado for college and work before moving back home to be near family again. Their two children love having their cousins close by. When not writing, you can find DelSheree reading, painting, sewing and trying not to get bitten by small children in her work as a dental hygienist. DelSheree has several bestselling young adult series, including "Invisible" which was part of the USA Today Bestselling box set, "Pandora." The Date Shark Series is her first contemporary romance series
Connect with DelSheree online at:
http://www.delshereegladden.com
http://delshereegladden.blogspot.com/
Twitter:
@DelSheree
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https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/DelShereeG
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https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDelShereeGladden
LinkedIn:
www.linkedin.com/pub/delsheree-gladden/65/990/744/
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Also by DelSheree Gladden
Escaping Fate Series
Escaping Fate
Soul Stone
Oracle Lost
(Coming 2014)
Twin Souls Saga
Twin Souls
Shaxoa’s Gift
Qaletaqa
The Destroyer Trilogy
Inquest
Secret of Betrayal
Darkening Chaos
Someone Wicked This Way Comes Series
Wicked Hunger
Wicked Power
Wicked Glory
(Coming October 2014)
Wicked Revenge
(Coming 2015)
The Aerling Series
Invisible
Intangible
Invincible
(Coming 2015)
The Date Shark Series
Date Shark
Shark Out of Water
(Coming October 2014)
Wicked Power Page 32
