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“What’s wrong?” Ella suddenly asks.
“Nothing, I just … have something to tell you,” I say.
“What?” she asks.
“Chase told me … Graham admitted that I was … his daughter.” The words come out in one difficult breath.
“What?” Cage gets up from the couch.
“My mother was held captive by Graham. Our mother.” I grab my hair and pull it away to show them my neck. “We know because of this birthmark.”
“Oh my,” Ella mutters. “Cage …”
“I’ve got that too,” he says, his voice low. “On my inner thigh.”
“I swallow away the lump in my throat. “Graham lied to us all.”
“You’re my sister?” His voice cracks.
I nod, tears welling up in my eyes.
Suddenly, he goes to his knees in front of me and wraps his arms around my neck again, only this time without squeezing. It’s loving, warm, and as he holds me tight, the tears begin to fall.
“I have a sister too,” he mutters. “I didn’t even know.”
“It’s okay. None of us did,” I reply. “Graham didn’t want us to know. It’s how he held power over us.”
“But he hurt you. He tried to use you for …” Ella says, unable to finish her sentence.
“I know.”
“And he still sold you!” Ella shouts.
“I know, it’s crazy,” I say. “I’m sorry, I should’ve contacted you to tell you sooner. Should’ve come to you with this.”
“No, don’t apologize,” Cage growls into my ear. “You don’t apologize.”
He hugs me even tighter, and we stay there for a while until my tears have dried and his heart is no longer beating out of his chest.
“Our mother, she …” I mutter.
“Shh … it’s okay,” Cage says. “You can tell us when you’re ready.”
I appreciate the gesture and take a deep breath, trying not to hiccup from my own pent-up tears.
After a while, Cage asks, “So do you know about my, I mean our brother too?”
I nod, wiping my face. “Yes, what’s his name? Is he here too?”
“His name’s Lock,” Ella says. “But he lives on an island by himself.”
“That’s what Chase said too,” I say.
“I’ll contact him. Tell him about you,” Cage says.
“You sure?” I ask.
“He has to know he has a sister,” he adds.
I nod, licking my lips. “Not one … but two brothers. And here I was thinking I had no family.”
Chuckling, Ella joins in the hug, and says, “You always had a family, Syrena. We were right here, waiting for you to come home. And now you finally did.”
Epilogue
Accompanying Song: “Keep The Streets Empty For Me” by Fever Ray
Chase
Syrena stayed inside for ages. I don’t know what they talked about, but I assumed she told them about her ordeal. From the cage all the way to me … and maybe even about being brother and sister. About their mother and the bond they share.
Of course, she’d need the time, and I fully respect that.
But I never expected her to come back to my car after everything was said and done.
It was humbling, to say the least. I didn’t even know how to respond, so instead, I drove off.
I already know what choice she made, and that’s all I’ll ever need.
She’s free to do what she wants. Anytime she wants to come back here, I’ll drive her myself. I won’t get in her way. And she knows that.
It’s silent as we drive back home.
I don’t have anything to say to her, and neither does she.
We don’t have to speak the words because we already know them by heart.
I’m smitten, and she’s lost to me …
We’re part of the same game, the same endless loop. She needs me, and I need her. And even though we once hated that very part of ourselves, we’ve come to live with it.
In fact, when I look at her, all I can do is smile.
I can honestly say I’m happier than I’ve ever been. Not because my life has gone so smoothly, but because even through all the bad shit, I still have her. Because no matter how wrong things get, she’s still here with me …
Out of her own free will.
I didn’t force her. Didn’t ask her. Didn’t make her follow me or come back home with me.
She came to me because she wanted to. Because it was her decision. Her choice … to fall for me.
This was never about me changing my ways or figuring out the truth about my own selfish needs. I always knew who I was, and I knew that nothing would ever change.
I was just hoping that I could … because who would ever love a monster like me?
But she does.
She loves me …
No ifs. No buts.
No shame. No hiding who I am.
She knows what she came back to and accepts it without question. She accepts me.
And ultimately … that’s all I’ll ever need.
Accompanying Song: “Bad Moon Rising” by Mourning Ritual ft. Peter Dreimanis
Syrena
The car comes to a stop on the dirt road.
