AllFreeNovel
Share Us
DAISY LAZARUS
Hot water sprayed downon Daisy as she laid fully clothed on the shower floor. She watched the water dribble down her outstretched arm. Watched as dried blood softened and turned the water a mix of brown, orange and pink. Watched it twirl with her silver hair before it circled the drain. Some left, some returned to her body.
She fixated on that cycle.
Water falling.
Water cleaning.
Blood leaving.
Blood returning.
It always returned.
The moment they’d returned to Lazarus House, her mind had shut down. Shower. All she could think about was to get to the shower. Clean the blood. Wash. But she didn’t have the energy to stand. She laid down and that’s when things had fallen apart. Blood circled back to her. It wouldn’t leave.
And she couldn’t get up.
The death of enemies that weren’t her enemies was a stain she would never remove. Not just Sam. Not just the driver. But all of them. From the first homeless person Julius made her kill, to the replicates she’d put down, to the Faithful who needed to be pulled into line or silenced. She had been Julius’s sword.
And now she was the same for the Deadly Seven.
The sad part was, she didn’t know who she was without the blood running down that blade.
Special One, Gloria had called her.
The true leader of this family,Mary had said.
Mate.
Savior.
Villain.
They all said.
The driver’s eyes before he’d pushed her out the engine door haunted her. The family picture was still in her hands as she’d landed. Her eyes skated across the bathroom and saw the frayed and bloody edge of the photograph on the counter, about to tip off the edge.
She’d intended to only have a shower, but the picture had fallen out of her pocket. She’d picked it up, tossed it there, and then collapsed on the shower floor.
Why did the driver save Daisy? He had a family. The memory wrenched her soul tighter with each passing second, suffocating her from within. He’d seen something in Daisy. That look they’d shared felt like he was drowning, and she was the life raft. But instead of holding onto her, he pushed her. He saved her from drowning too.
She didn’t even know him.
She was a monster.
Why were people helping her when, if they looked inside and stripped open her chest, they’d find a cavern where her heart used to live. She squeezed her eyes shut. The burn. It spread from the back of her throat. It heated her skin. It hit her eyes. She squeezed tighter. Held her breath. Fire leaked from the corners of her lashes. Stop. Don’t—
“Daisy?”
Axel. Don’t cry.
“I’m coming in.”
No.
The burn. It leaked. She choked on a breath. Held it. Screwed up her face.
