The Aviary

by Emily Shore

  “Ser, just hold on. Get me a damn first aid kit, somebody! I’m going to fix you,” Sky soothes me, hand cradling my face.

  I latch onto one word. “You fix everything.”

  I can practically hear his smile. “That’s right, I do. Except for your mother. I understand why now. I know why her dreams always haunted her.” Sky fumbles around, searching again for something. I snap to attention when he holds it just above me.

  “Listen,” Sky says before he opens the lid and retrieves an object. “Your mother wasn’t just rescuing girls all those years in the Sanctuary. She was searching for one special girl.”

  He holds up a photograph. It’s me, but not me.

  Her eye color is all wrong. It’s too dark to be mine. Her hair is not as wild. Not as many curls. And I don’t see lightning anywhere. No intensity in her face. No feral glint in her eyes. No subtle curl in the corner of her mouth.

  “She’s alive, Serenity,” Sky tells me. “Your twin sister’s alive.”

  33

  C o n v a L e s c e n c e

  I don’t remember passing out.

  The last thing I remember is the doctor’s hands tearing my dress from me, just as a nurse injected me with something. I remember it wasn’t a hospital; it was a private clinic.

  But I wake inside a bed. Just across from me is a window with shades drawn. Whoever put me here must have known I’d want the natural light. The view of the lake just outside is stunning.

  There are long white bandages across my chest. I don’t feel pain anymore, but there’s an underlying ache, a sense of gnawing. The wound on my side isn’t as deep. I peel back the smaller swatch of gauze there to see…nothing. Of course—the Immortal Treatment. My cells have already regenerated, new skin grown. My hair is damp, and I’m wearing one of the white Aviary dresses. No blood on my skin. Almost as if everything is erased but the memory.

  “You’re awake,” Nightingale says. “Good. You’ve been sleeping for most of the day.”

  “What’s going on? Where are we?”

  “Luc’s lakeside retreat. It’s a few hours upstate, far away from the Aviary.” Sinking onto my bed, she pats my hand. “They want to talk with you.”

  “Did you dress me?”

  “And cleaned you off, yes.”

  Relief engulfs me, and I nod because there is one thing I definitely remember from the limo. A need for answers bubbles inside me.

  I don’t get out of bed. Instead, Nightingale leaves to give us some privacy as Luc and Sky walk in.

  Both men come to me, but I direct them to sit on the same side so I don’t have to look back and forth between them. Neither seems happy about that. An awkward intensity hovers between their bodies.

  Once they both establish I’m feeling better, I ask about what Sky told me in the limo. “You said the baby died.”

  “I thought it was the truth,” he says. “Anytime your mother mentioned anything about it, she only said they took your twin from her because she wasn’t breathing, and that’s the last she ever saw of her. I’ve left her chest on the table for you. Other than that photograph, I know nothing. The rest is yours to dig through.”

  I purse my lips. “What about Force?”

  Luc straightens to answer. “He and I were the last of the bidders. So, I bid my Aviary shares. Every last one.”

  Sky crosses his ankle over the opposite knee. “Couldn’t very well turn down the whole Aviary, now could he?”

  Luc leans over the bed, and I notice Sky tense at the action. “It was worth it.”

  “What does that make me, Luc? Your property? Your slave?” I challenge.

  Luc shakes his head. “It makes you Serenity. Though you will always be my Swan.”

  “Give her some breathing room, or I’ll do it for you.” Sky threads his brows low.

  Luc turns to Sky. “Don’t forget whose roof you are under, Skylar.”

  “Oh, I think we both know I won’t forget anytime soon.”

  “What’s going on between you two? What aren’t you telling me?” I survey both of them.

  They stare at each other.

  “Should we tell her?” Luc asks.

  “Obviously, we have to now.” Sky rolls his eyes. “You don’t ask something like that in front of her without telling her. Ignoramus.” Sky slides back in his chair, spreading his legs out. He mutters something under his breath. It sounds like, ‘known her for sixteen damn years.’

  “You are not helping the situation,” Luc informs him.

  Sky inspects his hand before clenching it. “Situation’s already screwed beyond repair. You won’t make it any worse by telling her that we’re brothers.”

  “Half-brothers.” Luc interjects.

  As they bicker, I suck in the air around me. It can’t be true. It just can’t.

  “What the hell?” is all I manage to get out.

  “I told you we should have told her before,” Luc says.

  “Clearly, you’re the dumb pretty boy in the family.”

  “Shut up, Sky,” I say. “Luc, you’re better at talking. So, talk.”

  “I discovered the information shortly after hiring Sky. It was one of the reasons I promoted him to head of my security, other than the fact he conquered all my other candidates.”

  “What can I say?” Sky tightens his arm, showing off his brawn.

  “I bided my time,” Luc continues, unhindered. “Observed him until I could form enough of an impression. I never had much interaction with him as I was older than both him and Larke, who were born from the same mother. At the time of his disappearance, my father was more interested in raising me, the byproduct of the only woman he ever genuinely loved. She passed away giving birth to my younger sister Lea.”

  I remember her from the Guild visit night.

  “Larke was supposed to be watching Sky the night he disappeared—though his name was Lars then.”

  Sky grunts at the name, but I point a finger at him and invite him to shut it.

  “I had my suspicions, but it wasn’t until the night you saw the volus in my room that I discovered his connection to you. When I confronted him, I learned we both held one common interest—your safety above all else. And once I learned of Sky’s association with the Sanctuary, that he was responsible for securing Blackbird and her child, I chose to inform him of my decision to auction off the Aviary.

  “However, we both knew Force would never stop hunting you. It was a grand diversion, but a diversion nonetheless. I provided it while Skylar disarmed the system and took care of you. Dove’s involvement was unexpected.”

  Once he finishes, I remain where I am for the moment, sorting through all the other questions in my head.

  “Serenity, I don’t regret a damn thing,” Sky says, interrupting my thoughts. He sits up in his chair, reaching over to hold my hand. “When I was little, I got lost and took the wrong elevator. The next thing I knew, there was your mother and this pretty little baby.”

  My concern latches onto one thing. “Where are my parents, Sky?”

  “Still in Guild custody. Luc’s father is hoping to use them as a bargaining chip, since his three-for-one Temple partnership deal didn’t work out so hot thanks to Aldaine here.”

  That’s when I launch myself at Luc. Kindled like lightning at dawn, I spin around and slap at Luc’s face over and over again. “You promised me! You said anything I wanted! Any favor!”

  Sky is the one who grips me by the waist, who pins me back onto the bed while Luc rights himself.

  “Stop,” he commands. “Your new skin is still growing. As soon as it’s finished, you can smack him around to your heart’s content. Hell, I’ll join you. You did a good number on him already. Not as deep as your wounds, but he still needed stitches.”

  “Good!”

  “If you want someone to blame, blame us both, Ser. We made the choice together.”

  “I couldn’t let you fall into the hands of the Temple,” Luc adds, approaching from the other side of the bed.
r />   I grimace when he approaches, but Sky pushes down on me again and scolds, “Be good. And pay attention.”

  “Force was prepared to make my father a Temple partner,” Luc says. “He put up Temple stock shares, ownership titles, everything, but even Force could not bid an entire museum.”

  “Clever party trick, Aldaine.”

  Keeping his hands placated at his sides, Luc holds his head high as he addresses Sky. “You’re an Aldaine, too.”

  Sky shakes his head. “Hell will grow icebergs before I become an Aldaine.”

  I glance back at Luc, study him, compare them for a moment. “You look nothing like each other.”

  “Pity for him, isn’t it?” Sky snickers. A joke, of course, because we both know how easy Luc is on the eyes, even if I’ve always found Sky undefeated in the handsome category.

  “Does Force have my sister, Sky?” I ask.

  He nods once. “Identical twins are exceedingly rare in this day and age. And apparently, Director Force has spent over sixteen years searching for the match to the other twin. Just like your parents have spent their lives looking for their older daughter. When they finally found her, they got captured in the process. Force hid her pretty well. Shame they never thought he’d hide her in plain sight. In the Penthouse.”

  “What does he want from me?” I bite down on my lip.

  “He’ll turn you into the Face of the Temple. That much I do know. But I can’t begin to speculate about anything else.”

  Sky backs off when I stop tensing. “Penny for your thoughts?”

  I ask for my twin’s photograph again, as well as my mother’s when she was the Unicorn. The photograph of Mom has old, curled corners. The one of my twin is fresh, but Sky’s fingerprints taint the edges.

  The Temple is full of blood. And she’s some white jewel crusted into its center, my father’s hand in danger of shattering her every day.

  After I trace the edges of both photographs, I close my eyes. I have to help my family.

  Sky and Luc rescued me. Now, it is my turn to do some rescuing.

  I glance at the photographs once more.

  I’m coming, I tell them silently.

  Don’t miss book 2, in the Uncaged Series, The Garden, coming April 8th, 2019!

  Acknowledgments

  First, I have to thank the guys in my husband’s unit for talking to the local men in an underground pub in Germany where I overheard the words: Red-Light District. Without them, I would never have been shocked into wanting to know more.

  A most sincere thankfulness goes to Benjamin “Benji” Nolot of Exodus Cry for the documentary Nefarious: Merchant of Souls, for talking to me on the phone, for all you and the whole Exodus Cry team do. Thank you, Helen, for your intervention training, for your strength, your grace, and your kindness. Thank you for reacting to my name at Justice Awakening; it was both sweet, encouraging, and humorous!

  Special thanks to all my local freedom fighters. For Terri Hands and her networking superpower! If you weren’t so busy running around inspiring us, you could write a book! For Adri who read this book in its infancy and thought it was good (even though it was awful!) and all she’s done for the cause! For Keith and all your hard work with Trafficking Justice. For Amanda for helping me with my presentation, for telling me the truth, for challenging me, for educating me. For Kjersti and your inspiring kindness and compassion. Your testimony softened my heart, and you’ve always taken the time to answer my questions graciously. Thank you for your patience as I continue to learn! For Danielle and Justice Awakening which triggered my WORD. For all those working with Trafficking Justice, Breaking Free, Source, Beautiful and Loved, The Link, Action169, and more. A big thank you as well to Anna Friendt for the enchanting Swan artwork. Really hope for more art for the sequels!

  For Rebecca “Becky” McDonald. There’s not enough room to describe how much you’ve empowered me and changed me for the better. I know many who agree! For the entire WAR team. For lovely Shelby and all your fangirling over The Aviary. For Tricia and Elizabeth and Hannah and more. We are all WARriors!

  To all the agents who rejected Serenity, thank you. Thanks to the beta readers I met along this book’s journey. Special thanks to Kate Angelella, who chose me as her grand prize winner for professional editorial services. To Allison Singer, formerly of ZSH Literary Agency, and all her editing/agent skills however short a time. To Carlie Webber and how long she stuck it out with The Aviary. Even though it didn’t work out, it wasn’t wasted, and I learned so much!

  Finally, to the incredible team of Clean Teen Publishing for taking a chance on me and for giving this series a place to shine! Thank you for partnering with me on such a significant issue. You are helping me to #dosomething.

  Last but not least, my family—my mom for teaching me to read and write, and to my daddy for always asking me questions about my writing. It matters! For my husband for always raising me up when I fall, for holding me and rocking me, for appreciating my passion, for walking with me on this twelve-year journey!

  Ultimately, to my Designer, Inspirer, and Abba who gave me my Princess Vision and my word: M.A.P: Mother/Author/Preventionist.

  About the Author

  Emily Shore is a MN author with a B.A. in Creative Writing from Metro State University and was a grand prize winner of #PitchtoPublication, which led her to working with publishing professionals. Her novellas Ruby in the Rough and Ruby in the Ruins are her first indie-published anti trafficking works. She is signed with Clean Teen Publishing for her anti-trafficking dystopian The Aviary. For every book sold, a personal donation will return to trafficking rescue.

  Throughout the years, she has connected with rescue organizations, activists, and trafficking survivors and injects truths she's learned into her books for youth. She loves motivational speaking on the issue of sex-trafficking and was recently featured at the 2018 MLA and MEA. Please contact her through her website if you would like her to speak at your local school, library, or church. In her spare time, she loves attending any abolition events, baking, painting, and spending time with all the girls in her life.

  Emily lives in Saint Paul with her husband and two daughters. They are in the process of adopting a little girl from India.

  Discussion/Essay Questions for The Aviary

  The main theme of The Aviary is identity. In the world of prostitution, dissociative identity disorder is common, though it manifests in different ways to each individual. Consider the struggle of identity with multiple characters from Luc’s identity with his Family and responsibilities to Serafina’s identity with the Unicorn to Serenity’s Swan identity. Consider researching the psychological process of DID and writing on it.

  Luc tells Serenity she was not groomed for life in the Aviary and he would need to remake her. Research different grooming methods. Discuss how they play a role in how one can end up in the sex industry. Here are some helpful hints to get you started: poverty, sexual abuse, physical abuse, mental health issues, parental absence, homelessness, modesty culture, respect for authority figures, patriarchy, toxic masculinity, pop culture, and pornography.

  Consider Serenity’s reflections on Sky and how he looks at the girls around him. How he focuses on their eyes. Why is this important in the scope of sexual objectification? Discuss the images of pop culture, media, and advertising and how they may perpetuate drawing the eye to a woman’s body or sexualizing her body instead of emphasizing her humanity?

  When Blackbird explains her background and her mother’s debt, it’s understandable why she applied for the Aviary. Unlike Serenity, she chose to enter the Aviary, but discuss whether girls should be forced to make such choices. Discuss whether choosing the sex industry vs poverty is truly a choice. Discuss how society can offer other solutions for families or individuals in poverty so they don’t have to make such a choice.

  During the inspector’s testing, Serenity overhears how signs of abuse have been found on the girls despite the beautiful and technologically advanced envi
ronment of the Aviary. Research studies and articles on countries where Red-Light Districts are legal and if abuse is prominent in such environments. Discuss possible effects of legalizing prostitution. Would regulations and panic buttons be enough to stem abuses in the sex industry or does it open doors for more abuse to occur? Contrast the Nordic Model of decriminalizing the selling of sex but not the buying.

  Consider the terminology Serenity uses throughout the book: Breakable, broken, doll. Consider Blackbird’s reaction to Serenity’s view of her. And then consider Serenity’s change of heart when she confronts Luc and reflects on how strong girls in this environment can be and how beautiful they are. Discuss how stereotypes and words—even ones socially acceptable and normalizing ones such as “slut” or “whore”—can harm and impact girls’ self-esteem and how they influence their belief about their worth.

  After Nightingale shares her story, Serenity likens the viewpoint of her time in the sex industry as “paid rape”. Contrast Nightingale’s background with Blackbird and her character and choices. While Blackbird only came from poverty, Nightingale came from poverty and sexual abuse. Research the backgrounds and psychology of those who enter prostitution or who are vulnerable for trafficking into prostitution or sexual exploitation (i.e. strip clubs, pornography, massage parlors etc.). A good place to start: The National Center on Sexual Exploitation.

  In light of Nightingale sharing her coping mechanism of singing, research survival strategies of those in prostitution. This can overlap with dissociative identity disorder. What other survival strategies are used in The Aviary, not just in the museum but in other environments as well?

  Thank you for reading The Aviary; I hope you enjoyed my book!

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