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“What is?”
“Women in your world are hated. They’ve been hated for as long as I can remember hearing the stories. According to your father and the other men, women are cursed. Women are to be obedient to their husbands and children. And when they aren’t, they are sent to you.”
“I don’t understand. Can’t these men handle the women themselves?”
“There’s an old legend that says the Scott’s are the greatest of Gods, Ares. A man, especially a man from Bellmont, wouldn’t dare lay a finger on a woman if they didn’t want to be cursed.”
“There are few women at Bellmont. Why?” I ask her.
“They were chosen. They won’t be there forever, Ares. In fact, once every twenty-one years, they hold a ritual.”
“What kind of ritual?”
“They offer sacrifices, Ares. I honestly can’t believe you haven’t heard of any of this,” she says, shaking her head.
“He keeps a lot of secrets. Who do they sacrifice?”
“The girls.”
“What girls?”
“Have you never wondered why there are no girls in Bellmont?” I nod my head. “They give them up for adoption when they’re born because girls hold no power in their world. Only men. Yet every twenty-one years, they will hunt them down, kidnapping them, and sacrifice them. Ares, I have to go.” She starts to scoot out of the booth when I stop her. I throw my leg up, blocking her exit.
“We’re not done here.”
“I can’t say anymore. Don’t you get it? I’m twenty-one, Ares. It’s been twenty-one years since the last ritual.” Something gnaws at my insides, and I don’t know what the fuck it could be. This is unbelievable, even for my father.
“How do I know you’re not lying to me?”
“Why would I? What reason would I have?”
“The women we torture?” I ask, shaking my head.
“They didn’t follow the rules.” Her answer is simple, but I can’t wrap my head around it. For years, we’ve been torturing women and sending them back to where they belong, and it’s all because someone out there thinks we’re Gods. In the back of my mind, I like the fucking idea of it all. I like that they fear us, fear me, but on the other hand, what the hell has my father gotten us into? What makes him believe this shit?
“You’re going to run?” I ask her.
“Yes. What other choice do I have?”
“They’ll find you. If they want you, Andrea, they will find you. I will find you because that’s my goddamn job, isn’t it?” I roar a little louder than I need to this time.
“You can change your mind, Ares. You don’t have to do this,” she nearly pleads with me. But this is who I am, isn’t it? I’m a fucking Scott. I do have to do this.
“Don’t run, Andrea.”
“I have no other choice.”
“I’ll find you,” I tell her. She shakes her head, tears filling her eyes as she looks at me.
“I told you what you wanted to know.”
“The other girls? Do they know about this?” Andrea shrugs her shoulders.
“Not that I know of. How would they?” That makes sense. They wouldn’t know. They wouldn’t have a fucking clue they were about to be hunted like a goddamn animal. Anger claws at my insides as I think about things. Is this what he’s been hiding from me? Is this what really happens in fucking Bellmont every twenty-one years?
“If you’re lying to me, I will hunt you like a goddamn animal, and I will kill you.” It’s a warning, but judging by the look in her eyes, she isn’t lying to me.
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