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Douglass’ daughter.
I’d seen her wrapped in a bundle of blankets the day she came home from the hospital. Seen her take her first steps.
I’d given a blood oath to protect her, and this—this wasn’t protecting her. She needed to leave this place, and if she wouldn’t go on her own, I would have to force her.
“You need to leave. Pack up all your precious stuff, and move far away.”
She tilted her face upwards, eyes flashing with anger. “Who do you to think are, to intimidate me into leaving?”
I stepped in closer, frustration at my own feelings for this girl making my recklessness surge. She was already beginning to infect me with her chaos. Making me lose my restraint.
I couldn’t help myself, I reached forward, harshly pinching her chin. “You have no idea.”
“Enlighten me, then,” she snarled.
“Humans are nothing but teenage cavemen, playing dress-up in an attempt to appear sophisticated. Our world, so called ‘civilization’? It’s the flimsy mask we wear to hide the primal instincts lurking beneath. Scratch the surface, and you’ll find the raw truth staring back at you. Deep down, we’re all just beasts—savage, brutal, and violent. And the people here, they thrive in that barbarism.” I paused to let my words sink in. “I’m warning you. Leave. Take daddy’s money, pack up everything that means something to you, and move far, far away.”
I was fucking this up. I could see it in the determination settling over her shoulders, the stubbornness in her expression, the hardening of her resolve in her eyes. If she wasn’t sure before, I’d just stoked the fire inside her, pushing her to become even more determined than ever to stay.
But I couldn’t seem to stop myself. There was something about her—the untamed spirit in her that drew me in.
She was messy, passionate, and wild. And I... I felt an unexplainable desire to tame her.
To teach her how to keep her clothes from getting wrinkled. How to fix her hair so it wasn’t so tangled. To repaint her nails when the polish chipped.
To keep her shoes on so her feet didn’t get hurt.
To not pull petals from roses so she didn’t bleed.
It’s because I knew her as a kid, I rationalized. I almost raised her. It made sense, the need to protect her from the beasts of the world.
Monsters, like me. And I promised Douglass, I had to remind myself.
The rain now pelted down around us and within moments, we were both drenched.
But the pretty, little rich girl didn’t run into the house, complaining about ruined clothes or getting her hair wet. Instead, she faced me with the ferocity of a lioness, shivering in the cold air of the spring storm. “I don’t understand why you’re so determined to chase me off, but understand one thing about me, mister,” a thrill shot through me at the word. “I grew up around here. I understand more than you do about where I live. And I won't let you intimidate me into moving away from the one place I ever loved. This is my home, and I’m not leaving.”
The darkness within me surged, my own savageness rearing its head. My grip on her tightened, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she seemed to lean into it. It drove me mad.
I barked out, angry. “Listen here, little bunny. You’ve been living in a bubble, sheltered from the realities of this world by your father. But let me tell you something—it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a brutal wilderness, filled with beasts at every turn. If you don’t hop far away, as fast as your little feet can take you, they’ll tear down your door and strip you of everything you own.” I ran my hand across her jaw to the back of her head, gripping her hair, exposing her neck to me in a menacing gesture. “And they won’t stop there. They’ll destroy you in every way possible. They’ll go after every sentimental thing connecting you to the people you love. Not because they truly want it, but only because, They. Can.
“And then,” I leaned in, my fingers tightening around her, my lips inches from hers, “They’ll steal your breath, slowly draining you of life because they enjoy causing pain. You’ll struggle for air as they watch without remorse. They will take pleasure in watching you grow lethargic from lack of oxygen, your face turning red and your lips blue.”
Her chest rose and fell with heaving breaths. We were pressed so tightly together, I could feel her heartbeat hammering in her chest.
“They will fall in love with the sight of your tortured existence. Watching with bated breath as you slowly die. And when they are done—when the spark is gone from your eyes and your body is only a shell, they will bathe in your blood.” I could feel her trembling against me as I spoke. “And once they’ve tossed your body in the swamps for the alligators to feed on, they will go after those you love—your sister will be next.”
She flinched.
I’d hit her soft spot: her sister. The last family she had in this world.
I myself understood how vital those connections could be.
And I’d intentionally slid the knife deep, wanting her to bleed.
Because I needed her to see and understand exactly the kind of danger she was in; I’d made a promise to her father to keep her safe.
“And you?” she asked, her eyes defiant. “Are you one of those people?”
