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Painfully familiar.
The black ink spills so many secrets.
Jason and Malcolm have the tattoo as well. The Mother told me it is a sign of trust. A sign of security. A sign of loyalty.
Except unlike the one on Jason and Malcolm, Cam’s has a crown on top.
Just like my brand.
“My king,” Jason says to Cam, giving Malcolm a look that says, Hey, dummy, do the right thing.
“My king,” Malcolm says as Cam pulls his pants up and strides right into the house, as if he owns it.
Which, technically, he does.
“My future husband,” I whisper, a churn of emotions rushing through me so fast I can’t breathe, can’t think, can barely move until Jason touches my shoulder and we follow Cam right into the house. First me, then Jason, then Malcolm.
“Why didn’t you say so,” Jason asks, him, his tone accusatory and aggressive.
Cam says nothing, closing the door behind him.
“Bow before me,” he demands. Our manual calls for honoring the king, so we all do as told, Jason and Malcolm giving each other confused looks, but they obey.
We must obey.
“Drop your weapons,” Cam orders.
I look down, a thrill of joy rippling through me as I watch Malcolm set his weapon down, Cam moving over to pick it up. Jason looks at his son sharply, but he takes in a shaky breath and says:
“I am here to serve others.”
“I am here to serve others,” Malcolm and I repeat, the words sending a delicious thrill through me. They mean so much more now. So rich, so layered, so exciting.
Cam is my husband. Cam is my king. Cam is my --
The first bullet makes Winnie bark so loud I think it must be from her, the sound sharp and distinct, the slump of Jason’s body against mine so startling I don’t know what it is until I see the dirty hole in his bald scalp.
The second shot comes so fast after it’s like a whip cracked twice in a row, too fast to be real, so sharp it defies physics.
“NOOOOOOOOO!” I scream, the sound loud and hard, Winnie barking with me, her little yelps of terror like echoes of my soul. When I look up I see Cam holding Malcolm’s gun in his hand, Malcolm’s mouth slack, his bullet hole a twin to his father’s.
I’m screaming, so loud I can’t think, can’t move, can’t anything, because I cannot believe what I’m seeing, cannot believe what Cam does next, all of it surreal, all of it so impossible.
Because suddenly, in slow motion, he does the unthinkable.
He turns the gun on me.
And says, “The prophecy above all, Princess.”
I WILL SAVE YOU is next
What just happened?
* * *
