No one asked why Lessers looked so human if they were anything but.
The rooms we passed were decorated similarly. The furniture was all made of a strange mixture of clear plastic or darkly-stained wood. Intricate carvings of frightening scenes and creatures adorned every desk, chair, and mantle. It was strange to say the least... strange and scary as hell.
It was like the abandoned fun house on the outskirts of Orchard had come to life.
If I could have, I would’ve retraced my steps and run out of that place. The guards at my back meant the option to flee was definitely off the table.
Lillith led me to a sitting room of sorts, plush furniture was strategically positioned around the room, emphasizing an imposing stone fireplace I wasn’t sure had ever been used. There wasn’t a single soot stain on the stone or wood piled nearby. It was a completely different climate there and an extremely warm one. For the first time in my life, I was actually glad for the dress I was wearing. It let my flesh breathe.
Lillith turned, pointed to a plush leather chair, and said, “Please, be seated. We have much to discuss.”
Smoothing my dress along the backs of my legs, I sat and then crossed my arms across my chest and my feet at the ankles. It was difficult to get comfortable, or sit like a lady, sporting a bump the size of a watermelon.
She settled on a matching couch across from me. Where she looked lithe and delicate, I looked like an elephant balancing on a tiny stool.
We were separated by only a long, triangular, wooden table.
Lillith narrowed her eyes before pinning me with a look I’d never seen before. Her smile said she was pleased to have me in her home. But her eyes... they were anything but happy. They were an angry, roiling storm, and I could’ve sworn I saw a small amount of fear reflected in them. Harrison Cole had been so forward about his hatred of me, about his disapproval. Even the Prestons were forthcoming about their intentions. I found that I preferred to know what was coming at me instead of imagining the worst, like I was doing then.
But I had to focus. I needed to get Gray, and hopefully Marian and Gretchen, and get the hell out of Vesuvius. I also needed to figure out how to make sure Vesuvius would never be able to retaliate against any Lesser village for what I was about to do... Or, attempt to do.
As a people, we’d been oppressed for too long. Freedom meant more than anything. And to be free, we had to rid ourselves of those who tried to rule over us. We had to reclaim our independence. To defeat the evil surrounding us, we had to become ruthless—we had to become the bigger evil.
It wasn’t something I looked forward to—at all. But some things in life were worth damning yourself for. Freedom was one of them.
It wasn’t the world I’d envisioned for my baby. Her kicks reminded me she’d be making her entrance very soon. She was already so strong and was growing bigger each hour—at least, it felt that way. While the development was slowed somewhat by my Lesser genes, those from my Greater side had still propelled the gestation forward at an alarming rate. It was frightening to me, anyway.
Lillith motioned at a woman hovering in the doorway. “Please, bring some refreshments.”
The woman never made eye contact with her queen or with me. Eyes averted, the maid scurried off to complete her task.
“I understand that you had some medical problems associated with your pregnancy. I trust that you are well since you have been released by our physicians.”
Lillith knew what the physicians had said. Why was she playing a game? “They said that everything was okay.”
She smiled. “I believe in being blunt and honest, so I am going to tell you exactly what is expected of you while you are a guest in our city.”
She stopped and waited for me to acknowledge her. I didn’t give her the satisfaction of a reply or even so much as a nod. Eventually she gave up, but I could’ve sworn I heard her grind her teeth.
“You will be under the supervision of royal guards as you are considered a threat to the security of Vesuvius. You will not be permitted to have contact with anyone from Orchard Village. Do you understand?”
I clenched my fists. “Yes, though I’m not sure why you’d consider me a threat.”
Lillith laughed out loud. “My dear girl, you helped bring an entire city of Greaters to its knees. Without you, the Vesuvians would have had much more difficulty eradicating the Olympians. But you stood up to Harrison Cole when not a single other person was brave enough to do so. You also gave the hope of freedom from his tyrannical regime to Lessers scattered in villages all over this continent. You are most certainly a threat. I do not have to tell you how delicate the situation is. You are a smart girl.”
I shifted in my seat. “But I’m just that... a simple, Lesser girl.”
“You are so much more than that, Abigail. You may be the key to saving the reproductive capabilities of all Greaters. You or your daughter, that is. Or perhaps both.”
“Excuse me?” I asked in a deceivingly low voice as red-hot anger pulsed through my veins. She’d never touch my daughter. My teeth raked against one another, the sound echoing in my ears. I wanted to claw the queen’s face off.
Her eyes narrowed. “Did you really believe we would never need to harvest from you again? Cole truly did sterilize the entire race of Greaters. We need to reverse that unfortunate condition for future generations of Vesuvians. It will take years to do so, but with undamaged eggs, it is possible to reverse the situation we find ourselves in at present. At least, our scientists believe so.” She raised her head. “And, of course, eventually, we will be able to replicate the superiority of our genetic profiles. That, too, will take years to repair.”
The servant woman returned carrying a silver tray with two small ceramic cups, a teapot, and a few cookies situated elegantly across the surface.
“While we could harvest from pure Lesser women, the geneticists believe that your contribution would be more worthwhile.”
My contribution? My lips were shaking in fury.
Lillith took her time, daintily pouring the steaming water into her cup, steeping a small pouch of tea with a strange metal contraption. Two half circles, punctuated with tiny holes, surrounded the bag before it disappeared into the water. She took a cookie and placed it on the empty dessert plate in front of her.
In Orchard, if we got a shipment of tea bags, we just smooshed them with spoons and then used the spoon to weigh the bag down in the water until the tea was suffused. We didn’t have a metal teabag torture device.
An uncomfortable silence stretched into the room, filling every available space. It was smothering. A line had been drawn in the sand, and she’d been the one wielding the stick. I wanted to wrench it away from her and stab her in her evil heart. Or in the eye. No, I just wanted to stab her.
“You will stay here in the palace for the duration of your visit.” She took a small nibble from her confection, dabbing the tiny crumbs gathered in the corners of her mouth.
“My visit? And how long will my visit last?”
She lowered the delicate cookie to her plate and raised her cup to her lips, blowing gently across the surface of the steaming liquid. “Until your daughter is born.”
“Why do I have to stay in the palace until then?” My stomach became queasy.
“Because after you give birth, we will harvest the remainder of your eggs.” She paused, taking a bite of her sweet. “Your daughter will be raised a Greater, a princess of Vesuvius.”
The hell she would. “And me?”
She never flinched. “You will no longer be needed.”
“I’ll get to go home?”
She smirked and took a sip of her tea. “I never said that.”
I fisted the material of my dress, squeezing it for all it was worth. “You’ll never take my baby from me.”
Lillith slammed her teacup down on her plate so hard, I heard the glass splinter. “Do not threaten me, Abigail. At present, your mother and I see eye to eye. I would hate for something to happ
en to her.” The bottom of Lillith’s ceramic saucer clinked abruptly against the tray when she put her dishes down. Her eyes dared me to say anything more.
And, believe me, I wanted to. For a second, I imagined upending the tray and sending the boiling-hot tea onto her skin, watching her mouth fall open in a silent scream as her flesh reddened and the liquid seared through her perfectly pressed dress.
“Guard!” she yelled.
The sound of boots echoed down the hallway and paused outside the door. When it swung open, a gasp fell out of my mouth. I covered it with my hand.
“Take Miss Cole to her room. Make sure the door is secure.”
“Miss Cole?” I questioned.
“Yes, Queen Alexander.” The voice and body belonged to Gray. My Gray. He stalked toward me, an enormous gun familiarly strapped across his shoulder. Instead of keeping it toward the floor, he pointed it at me and motioned for me to exit the room.
I tried to make eye contact with him, but he refused. Everything about him was hard, cold, and methodical. In the hallway, I tried to speak to him. “Gray, what happened—”
“Save it, Marian. You’re the reason we’re in this situation. Not as good a liar as you thought, huh?”
WITH THE BARREL OF THE gun, Gray motioned toward a grand, curving staircase situated just outside the foyer. “You’ll be confined to your room,” he said. “Maybe you’ll be able to keep your mouth shut in there.”
What is he talking about? And why does he think I’m Marian? I climbed the staircase I thought would never end. My baby girl was taking up too much air space, and by the time I reached the landing, I was out of breath. Huffing and puffing had become the norm for me, but it was ridiculous.
Gray let me stop for a moment, but I could tell he didn’t want to. Sweet oxygen.
“Gray?”
“Let’s go.” With anyone else, his icy tone would’ve meant business.
“Gray, it’s me. It’s Abby. They just took me from Adam’s house.”
Grabbing my elbow, he pulled me down the hallway; it was one of the longest I’d ever been in, with closed, dark wooden doors lining both sides. The walls were red. It looked as if some giant being had been wounded and bled all over the city. Macabre didn’t even begin to describe the Vesuvian décor and its morbidly creepy vibe.
“Lillith just took me. Would you listen?” I begged. In frustration, I tried to free my elbow from his death grip. “Let go!”
When his footsteps slowed, a door opened to our right and none other than Marian Cole sauntered out, her stomach swollen with child. How had that happened? When had that happened?
And that wasn’t the only thing that had changed about Marian. I looked her over critically. My mouth fell open. Her hair had been dyed the same color as mine and was cut to match exactly. What in the... Even her eyes! They were the exact color of my own—medium blue, identical down to the tiny golden ring that was only barely noticeable.
Wrenching my arm out of Gray’s grasp, I moved toward her filled with rage and a new purpose. The smirk that had been plastered on her face fell fast.
“Don’t!” Gray protested. “Marian.” He managed to warn through gritted teeth. He tried to grab my arm again, but I was having none of that.
“What have you done?” I grabbed the front of her dress just beneath her chin and pulled her close before pushing her hard into the wall behind her. “If something happens to my baby, I’ll hunt you down, Marian, I swear. I’ll make you sorry you ever crossed paths with me.” No one messed with an angry mama bear. And I was fighting mad.
“I am already sorry,” she said, spittle flying from between her clenched teeth.
“Why?” Why had she done it? Why did she look like me?
Her fake blue eyes hardened. “Because it was my only option. They offered me a deal and I took it. I have to protect my child, too!”
Gray’s hands gently found my shoulders, and I released Marian’s dress. “What deal did you make?” No way was I letting her get away without knowing what we faced.
She ran her palm over the freshly wrinkled fabric covering her chest, trying to smooth it, and took a breath. “If I did not agree to pretend to be you—the savior of the Greater race—then they would exterminate me. I am pregnant, Abby. I am having Crew’s child. And in their eyes, I am expendable, as is this baby.” She dramatically pointed toward her stomach as her eyes flooded with tears. I didn’t miss the quivering of her chin, despite how regally she tried tipping it upward.
She was having Crew’s child.
I’d be lying if I said that didn’t sting a bit.
“What do you have to do?”
She laughed mirthlessly. “I have to transform myself into what I have been trying to be since my parents sent me to President Cole as an offering to his son. I have to be you, Abigail.” If crazy laughter had a sound, she’d made it. It was a desperate keening mixed with a side of irrational.
“What does that even mean?”
She swiped the wet tracks beneath her eyes. “They want someone to show off. I am to be the face of their public relations campaign. They want me to parade around, act happy to be a part of something bigger than myself, and act happy to donate my eggs and my child to save the Greater race. I have to be everything you are not willing to be.”
Inhaling a sharp breath, it hit me. “They don’t trust me to do it.”
Marian shook her head. “Not after the stunt you pulled with Olympus. When you took over the cameras, you sealed your fate, Abigail... and you sealed my fate, as well as my child’s.”
I swallowed thickly, the bitter taste of bile filling my mouth. “I’m sorry.”
It wasn’t enough. But nothing ever was.
Looking at Gray, I saw him trying to grasp what he was learning. They’d done an amazing job. Marian looked like my twin... Or my clone. It sent shivers down my spine.
A noise came from downstairs. It was the rhythmic sound of footsteps—footsteps that were climbing closer and closer...
“Someone’s coming.” Gray urged.
I looked back at Marian. “Do you know what they plan to do with me?”
She nodded. “They will take your baby. And after they have harvested your eggs, you will be killed. The plans are already in place. You are too big a liability for them.”
I felt every muscle of Gray’s body stiffen behind me. His fingers hardened on my shoulders.
“Gray,” said Marian, softly. “You have to find a way to get her out of here.” She didn’t say the words, but I heard the implied “before it is too late.”
ONCE GRAY ACTUALLY RECOGNIZED ME, he rushed Marian down the hallway toward the staircase I’d just climbed and quickly led me to what would be my room, my prison. I guessed it was actually sort of an incubator. I’d be kept hidden away until the baby came.
I swatted his chest as he gently pulled the door closed behind us. He pointed toward his ear and scanned the room with his eyes.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, barely letting his lips move.
“I can’t believe you thought that was me!” I motioned toward the hallway.
“We’ve been through a lot over the past few days. Of course I thought she was you. She’s identical now, except for...”
Narrowing my eyes, I asked, “Except for what?”
“Her bump, okay. It’s bigger than yours now.”
You know the sound of a teakettle’s whistle? Yeah. That came from my ears. He did not just say that. He’d better be talking from simple visual observation, because I know about his little bump fetish. He better not have touched her. And if she’d let him, I might’ve had to throttle her.
“Well, good. It means I have a little bit of time before they go through with their plans.”
He sobered, his features hardening.
Finally, I looked around the room. There was a strange raised bed with a clear canopy made of hard plastic. Some sort of book-sized panel with lit buttons was situated along the wall to the left. The wall to the right was
entirely made of glass, giving me a view of the strange city beyond. It was a wonder the crimson of the place hadn’t bled into the sky, water, or earth. Those still looked normal, at least.
“Abs, I don’t know if they’re listening.” His plump lips moved slowly, enunciating each word though they were barely audible.
“I hope not. They’d know that you know I’m not Marian.”
He gave me one long look and then snapped into character.
He tipped his chin toward a door to the back of the room. “Bathroom is that way. Meals will be delivered. You aren’t permitted to leave your quarters.” Guard Gray was in full effect. The worry in his orange eyes must’ve reflected in my own. We were in deep, too deep. Over our heads and neither of us could swim.
Gray slipped out the door, his eyes meeting my own one more time before it closed behind him. How had he gotten out? I didn’t even see a door handle.
Click.
Click.
Click.
Click.
Four locks engaged.
That sound alone made me want to climb the walls. I wanted out.
Walking to the glass wall, I put my hand against its cool, sleek surface. It was strange to look out over Vesuvius, but from the enormous wall-sized window, what looked like most of the Greater city sprawled out below me. I hadn’t noticed it when we were riding in the vehicle, but the palace was situated on a hill. A fortress with a thick stone wall surrounding it, complete with guards stationed in towers at its corners. And were the guards ever thick in Vesuvius. Maybe there was unrest. Armored vehicles and a strong military presence. Enemies and Allies.
Or maybe Queen Lillith was paranoid. What enemies could they have? They’d eradicated their biggest competition—leveled the other Greater cities completely.
My baby girl kicked happily, oblivious to anything but the darkness and warmth of my belly. I wondered if she could hear my breath, or my heartbeat. Could she feel how much I loved her? Could she sense my fear, and did it make her afraid, too?
I rubbed my stomach, hoping she’d stay put until I could find some way out of there. If she came too early, we were both in trouble. She’d be taken, and they’d try to put me down. But, the truth was, I’d die fighting to keep her long before they could execute me.
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