Still Life (Still Life Series Book 1)

by Isobel Hart

  I knew full well that now was not the time to make a stand.

  The same scene repeated periodically throughout the night, each altercation ending the same way – with the female in question crying and being unceremoniously bundled back into her room, sometimes conscious but often not, the door slammed and occasionally locked behind her. After a while there were no further attempts to leave, and no more noise, allowing me to fall into a deeper sleep.

  I woke to a bright morning, the dappled sunshine casting patterns on the wall as it filtered through the thin fabric draped across my windows. My bleary eyes tried to make sense of the shapes being cast, until I registered what had woken me in the first place: more noise outside in the corridor. This time it was the sound of people on the move.

  I grabbed my robe off its peg on the back of the door, pulling it swiftly over my shoulders and securing the belt, before running a hurried hand through my tangled mass of hair as I pulled on the door handle, half expecting it to be locked.

  The scene outside was chaos. Women in various stages of undress were being escorted by pairs of soldiers, protesting loudly about everything they’d left behind as they were led away; most still wore their nightclothes. A few had the sense to be visibly afraid.

  “I’m telling you, Richard is going to be mad you’re treating me like this. You’re scum.” Ella spat at one of the men holding tightly on to her elbow as he pulled her along. He said nothing, continuing to tug her sleeve, much to her obvious annoyance. Unlike some of the other girls I’d seen, she’d had the time to grab a short, silky, oriental-style robe and managed to still look beautiful, despite the early hour. She paused as she passed my door. “What are you staring at?” Then she turned to shout at the guard again. “Why is she allowed to stay? What’s so special about her?”

  Her companions stonewalled her. Uncertainty and fear had her pulling against her captors, until she caught sight of Edward further along the passageway. She yanked her arm away from her keepers, and ran into his arms.

  He hugged her into his chest, soothing her, whispering something as he moved her hair away from her eyes and tucked it behind her ear. She smiled up at him, relaxing into his touch.

  A twinge of irritation at the obvious intimacy between them twisted my stomach. Edward’s gaze lifted and caught me staring. He pulled away immediately. Ella looked up when he detached her, her face immediately furious when she saw him looking at me. He handed her back to her keepers with a few parting words of reassurance, before heading in my direction.

  I ducked back into my room and closed the door, still irritated by Edward’s flirtation with Ella – and even more irritated that I was irritated. I moved quickly across the room, positioning myself behind the upholstered wingback armchair just before the door opened and Edward walked in. He paused inside the doorway, taking in my defensive posture.

  “Where are you taking them?” I said.

  “Somewhere safer. Somewhere we can protect them.”

  “Protect them? From whom?”

  “From the people who want to stop us.”

  “Oh, you mean the good guys . . . or maybe girls.”

  “It’s all a matter of perspective.”

  “It’s a matter of right and wrong.”

  “Is it? I think it’s more like shades of grey, but that’s probably a conversation for another time. How are you feeling?”

  “What do you care? Shouldn’t you be running after your girlfriend? She didn’t look too happy when she saw you coming to my room. She might not put out for you next time you want it. Then again, knowing the sort of girl she is, you probably don’t have too much to worry about there.”

  “Samantha, are you jealous?” Edward looked pleased as he stalked across the room towards me. I clutched the back of the chair tighter.

  “Of course I’m not jealous. I got over that a long time ago, given your proclivity for other women’s vaginas.”

  “I’ve changed.”

  I cocked my head as I looked at him. “That’s true, but not completely. You still like putting your dick about.”

  “I told you, it’s our duty. We don’t get a choice.”

  “Well, I do. And I choose not to have anything to do with you and your philandering ways. I think you’ll find it’s a major turnoff for a lot of women.”

  “You’re the only one I’ve chosen. I’d only be with you if it were my decision to make. You have everything I could want in a woman.” He paused. “I brought you something.” He pulled a strap from his shoulder I hadn’t noticed lying flush against his dark jumper. “Here,” he offered, holding it out towards me.

  It was my camera. I hadn’t seen it since I’d been at Elliott’s, all those weeks ago, but it was recognisably mine. I could see the worn patch on the cover from where it rubbed against my belt buckle when I carried it.

  “Where . . .” I began, as I took it from him. “How . . .?”

  “I asked Elliott for it, and he gave it to me.”

  “Elliott? Where is he? How is he? Has he been . . . changed?”

  “No, still not one of us, despite Richard trying his best to get to him. He’s being protected.”

  “Does he know where I am? What is he doing?”

  “He doesn’t know where you’re being held. He does know you’re with us, though, because I told him. He’s currently a very vocal part of the resistance, leading the people trying to track down supposedly ‘missing’ women. Inciting the masses to mobilise against us.”

  “How come you saw him, then?”

  “We bumped into one another when I attended one of the rallies his group had arranged. He saw me in the crowd and made a beeline for me.” Edward moved closer to me, as I gazed down at the camera in my hand. He touched my face. “You inspire men to go above and beyond, Samantha. You inspire us to want to fight for you.”

  “Rubbish.” I took a step back, pulling away from his touch. “You only ever wanted what you couldn’t have. All the years I was with you, you were never bothered about me. As soon as Elliott expressed an interest you suddenly decided you wanted me again. It’s too late, Edward.”

  “I’ve already told you, I may look like the man who wasted those years with you, but I am quite different. I know what you’re worth. All the others can see it too.”

  “So valuable you tried to kill me?”

  “That’s my greatest regret. You know I’ve struggled to manage the emotional intensity these bodies feel. I’m getting there slowly, finding it easier every day, but you make me feel so much, Sam. That day I was so angry . . . so hurt after everything I’d believed we had between us. It was a horrible mistake. I threw everything we had away with one fit of rage. I wanted to hurt you as much as you hurt me. I wasn’t thinking. As a result, I lost you. I’ll regret that every day of my life.”

  He sounded so sincere it was disconcerting. I shook myself. “Why am I still here? Where are you taking the other girls?”

  “You’re pregnant, Sam. The pregnant women are staying here. We’re taking the other women to somewhere that is . . . easier.”

  “Easier for what? To contain them? Shit, you’re taking them to the prisons, aren’t you?” I realised, remembering what Richard said about clearing the men out of the prisons. “So, you’re going to lock them up and just fuck them whenever one of the males fancies the idea, and if they get pregnant they get to come back here?” He shifted, I’d hit the nail on the head. “You have to see how wrong that is, Edward. You have to–”

  He turned, his head bowed. “I do see,” he said. “I know you don’t believe it, Sam, but I care about you. If you were among those other women I don’t know what I’d do. I thought I was okay with it, but these feelings . . . There are others among my kind that feel the same way. Men who have memories of partners they still care about. You have to understand, I’m powerless right now.” He whispered, his tone had taken on an urgency that made me believe there was at least some truth in what he was telling me. “I need a truce between us, for now anywa
y, while I try and work this out for you . . . for us. They’re watching you, and me. This baby means too much for us to disappear without anyone noticing. Even Aiden Parrish is taking an interest in you. Until they can work out how to breed with the other women, there will be eyes on us.”

  “So? What do we do?”

  “For now, nothing. We need to keep a low profile, stop them thinking about us so much. Let them get on with managing everything else. Not cause them any bother. If we spend the day together, let them see we’re close again, that’ll take the edge off. I want to stay nearby anyway – I don’t trust most of these men around you.”

  “Can we leave the grounds?”

  “No, not a chance. But we could go for a walk. You can bring your camera. It’s a nice day. I could ask for a picnic.”

  It sounded nice. Too nice. I wondered if he was fooling me again.

  The door crashed open and Richard marched in, making us both jump. Edward’s guilty reaction persuaded me he was, in all likelihood, telling the truth. It also meant I needed to distract Richard’s attention away from Edward before he noticed his excessive jumpiness. “Richard! Finished corralling your brood mares?”

  “Ah, Samantha, if only everyone could be as fertile as you.” He paused, looking at us properly. Edward looked tense. “What are you two doing?”

  “Samantha was unsettled by all the noise; I was just calming her down for the sake of the baby. I planned to take her out for a walk in a bit. Why?”

  “Aiden will be here by mid-afternoon. I’ll need her back by then. Make sure you stay in the grounds.”

  “Of course,” Edward agreed quickly. “Has everything gone to plan so far?”

  “Yes. We’re delighted. Martial law has been declared. We’ve taken over the leadership of the police, army and government, as well as all the main media outlets. It’s very fortunate for us women failed to achieve the same number of leadership positions as their male counterparts. It makes our lives an awful lot easier. There are obviously some significant cells of resistance where women and unturned males are bunkering down. We’ll flush them out eventually. Nothing to worry about at this stage.” He smiled. “Aiden’s doing another interview later. We’re confident we’ll shift opinion relatively easily. In the meantime we’ve maintained the supply of power and water, and the herd . . .” He looked at me, and I knew he was being deliberately provocative. “. . . are safely ensconced in their new home.”

  “And the other countries? Any reports?”

  “Saudi barely noticed any difference. Reports from Europe mirror our own experience. Areas of excessive rurality are proving trickier because it’s taking longer to get to all the male population. But we’re getting better all the time at enabling a rapid transition. Your old company have been very useful, in fact,” he said to me.

  I had no idea what he meant, so I ignored him.

  “Anyway, the U.S. and China are going to plan. We have the president now.” I wondered if I’d wandered into a parallel universe as I sat and listened to Richard describe how they’d taken control of all the major players in the key power centres. “Still, it’ll all be a waste of time if we can’t work out how to breed with them.” He stared at me again. “You really are extraordinarily important to us, Samantha. You have no idea.”

  “Yeah, well, this special person could do with some breakfast. Then you promised to take me out for a walk,” I said to Edward.

  Edward smiled. “My pleasure. There’s a lake on the other side of the copse. You should be able to get some great pictures down there.” I grunted, as Richard stared at us.

  “You two seem to be getting on better,” he said. “Don’t forget you’ll be required to visit some of the women at the centre later, Edward. With your hit rate, we can’t afford not to share you around a little.”

  Irritation churned inside me. Edward was being farmed out as a stud.

  “Of course,” Edward said, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

  Richard laughed. “Well, my work here is done. See you later, Samantha. Enjoy your walk.” He laughed again, and strode out of the room, not bothering to close the door behind him.

  I swung around to shout at Edward, but he’d already moved, pulling me into his arms. He kissed me before I had a chance to say a word, stopping my protest in its tracks. When he pulled away, both of us breathless, he looked at me and said, “You’re the only one I want, Sam, don’t ever doubt that.”

  Chapter 27

  Edward carried the picnic basket in one hand and clasped my hand in his other, as we tried to ignore the armed guards shadowing us. He insisted the hand-holding was necessary to deflect attention. I was left feeling uncomfortable with how natural it all felt. As if the last months had never happened. I reminded myself it was all unnatural, Edward hadn’t held my hand in months before he’d changed.

  We emerged beside a lake. Covered in waterlilies, like a scene from a Monet, I hummed to myself in pleasure, watching as dragonflies hovered over the flowers. I snapped photos, while Edward lay out a blanket on a patch of grass dappled with sunshine, and proceeded to unpack the food he’d sourced for the occasion.

  Having rediscovered my appetite, I gorged myself, much to Edward’s obvious amusement, before lying down on my back, to gaze up at the wisps of cloud drifting past overhead. It was easy to forget what was going on away from here.

  “You would have never done something like this with me before your accident,” I mused, breaking the easy silence.

  Edward rolled onto his side, propping himself up on an elbow so he could look at me. “What do you mean?”

  “A picnic? So not your sort of thing. I can’t remember you ever choosing to spend time with me that didn’t involve your mates, alcohol, and preferably other women being around too. Never happened.”

  “Why did you stay with me?”

  “In the beginning it was good – it was great. Until you started flirting with other women.”

  “I can remember some of how I spent my time. He cared for you in his own way, though. As much as he cared for anyone. He didn’t want you to leave him.”

  “Why are you so different now? I mean, you’re nicer than you were. Why is that?”

  “We’re like any group of people. Some of us are nice, some are less so. You just happened to get a good one.” He grinned.

  “So you’re a different person, then?”

  He nodded.

  “Just with his memory bank?”

  He nodded again.

  “It was good for a while. After the accident, I mean,” I admitted. “I was happy with you. As happy as I’d ever been. I even considered having the baby you wanted. I just didn’t know you’d already gone ahead and impregnated me.”

  “Are you happy about it? The baby?”

  “Surprisingly, yes. I mean, I know what this child represents to other people, but to me it’s just my child. Our child. It’s hard for me to think about it any other way. I feel protective about it. I don’t want anyone to hurt it. I just want to be allowed to be a mum, but I’m afraid they’re not going to let that happen, are they?”

  His expression clouded. “I don’t know. I don’t know what they’ll do with it. Or you.”

  “It’s our child. The violence I’ve seen – is that just you, or are you all like that?”

  “I think we’re all like that to some extent. I’ve seen lots of the guys lose it over small things. Their reactions are disproportionate. Like when I found those pills. I should’ve talked to you about it instead of trying to kill you. The red mist descended, and I lost control. Believe me though, I always cared for you, even loved you. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt you. I thank god I didn’t kill you that day. I don’t think I would’ve ever recovered.”

  “Of course you would have. You had the lovely Serena on standby.”

  He groaned. “That was Richard’s idea. When I woke up in that pool of blood, I panicked and called him. He came up with the plan. She was a willing alibi, that’s all.�
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  “She was certainly willing.” A thought struck me, something I’d been wondering for a while. “Are you immortal? I mean, I know you recover quickly from injury. But, can you actually die?”

  He shifted, looking uncomfortable for a moment. “If you chop our heads off, or cause serious trauma to our brain – I mean literally smash it in – there’s only so much our powers of regeneration can achieve. That would do it. Most other things, given enough time, we can pretty much recover from. We can’t regrow limbs, obviously.”

  “Huh, you have more in common with zombies than I thought.”

  He laughed, then looked at me seriously. “We are hard to kill, though, Sam. You need to remember that if you ever have to take one of us on. You need to disable them and escape while they’re recovering. Don’t stay to watch. Promise me?” He stared at me.

  “I promise.” I laughed to diffuse some of the tension. “So how do you even know all this? I mean, who tells you?”

  “I just do. We all just know. When we wake up, our purpose is . . . there. I don’t know how to explain it. Maybe like salmon, or birds flying south. It’s inside us.”

  “So won’t you overfill the planet if you can’t die? I mean, there’s only so much space, and we’re already pretty overcrowded in some places.”

  He laughed again. “I don’t think so. Our ability to regenerate declines with age. Our lifespan is longer than yours, but we’re not immortal. It just means we prolong the stage of life that’s of most value – in terms of being able to work, reproduce and generally live a good quality life for longer.”

  “That’s a definite upside,” I said, thinking about the poor man I’d watched die in the hospice.

  “Sam, our primary purpose is to reproduce. Like all species. That’s all we’re concerned about. It’s unusual for us to become emotionally involved, the way that some of us have. We’re the exception, not the rule. Most don’t care at all. They want to reproduce. They want a generation of virus-carrying females.”