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“Then we can come here for supplies,” I start to dream about our future with him.
He shakes his head. “We’ll plant our own vegetables and breed animals.”
The corner of my mouth lifts. “I’ll get attached to all the animals.”
Chance lets out a chuckle. “Yeah. Never thought I’d become a vegetarian.” His eyes meet mine, concern for me still in his irises. “How are you coping with everything that’s happened.”
The blow hits once again, and I press my face to his chest. “Too much has happened.”
“Look at me.” When I lift my head, he asks, “How do you feel about me killing Warrick?”
My eyes drift over his face, and all I see is the man who will do anything for me. “He had it coming,” I repeat Dawn’s words.
“When I pulled you out of the pool, and you weren’t breathing, I lost my mind.” He closes his eyes, raw pain rippling over his face. “Christ, I thought it hurt when the trackers got Ethan.” Shaking his head, a breath shudders from him. “It was nothing compared to thinking I lost you.”
Chance looks at me again, and there’s so much emotion on his face it makes a lump form in my throat.
“It’s like you were always meant to be mine.”
My lips curve up in a soft smile. “I feel that way, too. The night we met, it was easy to trust you. I knew you wouldn’t let me fall.”
“I never will,” he promises. “Just you and me.”
“And Raze,” I add.
Laughter bursts from him. “Yeah. And Raze.”
“Where is she?” I ask, wondering if she even knows what’s happened today.
“She’s somewhere out here.” His hand starts to move up and down my back. “Raze is a loner. We’ll see her at training.”
“Is it safe for her to be alone?”
“Yeah. I trained her well.”
Nodding, I rest my head on his chest again and stare at the stars.
After a couple of minutes of silence, I whisper, “Thank you, Chance.” I wrap my arm tightly around his waist. “Thank you for dragging me over those rooftops, for taking me off the nest, for training me.”
“You’re welcome.”
I let out a chuckle. “I’m not done yet.”
“My bad,” he laughs.
“Thank you for choosing me and keeping me alive.” I snuggle into his chest. “Thank you for loving me.”
A comfortable silence falls between us, and my mind turns back to everything that happened today.
I fought a man twice my size and won.
I met two good people who made me forget about the depressing stuff happening in this world.
I found my mother.
But most importantly, Chance and I grew much closer to each other. It feels like our bond is unbreakable after today.
I focus on the positives because the negatives are too traumatizing.
Tomorrow will be a new day, and with some luck, it will hopefully be better than today.
Now that it’s just the two of us, I decide to try and get some answers to all the questions I have. “Why do the emissaries send crusaders to the boundary if they plan to capture them? Why not just take the people once they reach the haven?”
Chance lets out a sigh. “It’s to keep up pretenses. When everyone sees the crusaders leave, there’s nothing to question.”
“Can I ask more questions?”
He chuckles. “Sure.”
I sit up and fold my knees beneath me. Resting my elbows on my knees, I look at Chance. “At first, I thought the trackers killed us, but they capture us, right?”
He nods, which has me continuing, “How? What do they shoot us with? Do you know what happens after a person is taken?”
Chance rests a hand on his chest. “They use actual bullets. They only need our DNA, but if a person survives the attack, I’ve heard they experiment on them, trying to remove the part that feels emotions. If the person is killed, they use the DNA to make a clone of them. Our fathers figured out a way to accelerate growth, so they’re able to make thousands, if not millions.”
A shiver shudders down my spine. “I can’t believe my dad’s a part of this. It’s insane.”
This time, Chance doesn’t say anything but just nods.
My heart shrinks, thinking Dad is basically killing people. In a matter of weeks, it feels like my parents failed me… like they’re gone, and I’ll never get them back.
Lowering my head, I try to process the intense loss.
“You have me,” Chance whispers.
I nod, choosing to focus on the strong man I’ve learned to love. I clear my throat, then ask the next question, “What are the people… the insensates like? Do they become emotionless robots? Can they still feel pain?”
Chance sits up and resting his forearms on his knees, he stares at the darkness around us. “The ones I’ve seen were like robots. There was zero emotion. None of them talked.” He shakes his head. “It’s like they were programmed to kill and only kill.” His eyes find mine. “But they die just the same as us. If you aim for the head, your chances of killing one of them are much higher. With a leg or chest wound, they still keep coming.”
