23. Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Three
Victoria
I woke slowly to light murmuring around me. I groan as I curl into myself, not wanting to be awake. I don’t want to face what happened or what will happen.
“Come on now. I know you’re awake, princess.” Snapping my eyes open, I feel a hand in my hair. Marcus is leaning over me; my head is in his lap. I shift and sit up quickly. Marcus is sitting on the cell floor with me, Jasper’s leaning against the wall not far from the both of us, a smirk on his face.
Quickly scooting back from Marcus, my heart’s racing as I take in my surroundings. I’m back in my cell, but Marcus and Jasper are here with me. Memories of what I’d just witnessed came flooding back - Amber's screams, the blood, the sickening sound of saw on bone. I fought down the urge to vomit.
"Easy there, princess," Marcus says softly, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "We're not going to hurt you."
Letting out a harsh laugh, "Right. Because you're all just so kind and gentle." My eyes dart between Marcus and Jasper warily, trying to gauge their intentions. "What do you want?"
"Just checking on you," Jasper drawls, pushing off from the wall to saunter closer to me. "Making sure you hadn’t broke after that little show earlier."
Bile rises in my throat as flashes of Amber's mutilated body flash through my mind. "You're sick," I spat. "All of you."
Jasper's eyes flash dangerously. "Careful with your temper little bird. You don’t want to get your wings clipped do you.” I tensed at the threat he gives but I take a deep breath, eyes burning with unshed tears. I won’t let them see me cry. I need to keep myself together.
I tense as Jasper steps closer, his eyes glinting with that dangerous light I'd seen earlier. Marcus holds up a hand, stopping his brother's approach.
"Easy, Jasper," Marcus says calmly. "She's still processing." He turns back to me, his blue eyes intense. "We understand this is... difficult for you to comprehend right now. But there are reasons for everything we do."
I shake my head, anger and disgust warring inside me. "There's no reason that can justify what you did to Amber. That was torture, plain and simple."
Jasper's eyes flash dangerously, "Careful, little bird," he warns, his voice low. "You don't want to end up like your friend, do you?"
Clenching my jaw, anger and fear are warring inside me. "She wasn't my friend," I say coldly. Which was true. I didn’t like the girl, but no one deserves to be murdered like that. "But she didn't deserve that."
Clenching my jaw, I force myself to take a deep breath. As much as I wanted to lash out, I knew it would only make things worse. I had to stay calm, rational.
"It's how our family has survived for generations," Jasper says coldly, eyes gleaming in the light, "The weak are culled, the strong survive."
“That's insane," I whisper, shaking my head. "You're all completely insane." I didn’t think maybe I was at my breaking point. Would they kill me that easily too? I know they like me well enough, but is that enough? I know for me to be safe I must pass every test.
Can I do this? Am I strong enough? I don’t know. I already feel like I’m losing myself while here. Taking a deep breath, I’m trying to understand their motives.
"Why are you really here?" I ask changing the subject. I don’t want to hear any more about this crazy family. They’re all insane. I know my voice is tight with suppressed emotion. "What more could you possibly want from me after... that?"
Marcus leans forward, his blue eyes intense as he studies me. "As I was saying, we want to see how you're processing things. How you're coping with what you’ve witnessed….you were in shock, and we want to make sure you have someone with you when you woke."
"How I'm coping?" I let out a bitter laugh, not understanding how they could murder someone and now be worried about me. I don’t understand at all. "You just forced me to watch you torture and dismember someone. How do you think I'm coping?"
"Better than most," Jasper said with a smirk, as he looks me over. "You didn't scream, cry or even beg like the others. You stayed calm, even when Elijah was touching you afterwards."
The memory of Elijah's blood-covered hands on my face makes me shutter. "I was in shock," I muttered. " And I still am." I shake my head, disgust churning in my stomach as his other words sank in. "Is that supposed to be a compliment? That I managed not to vomit while you butchered someone?"
"It shows strength," Marcus says softly. "Mental fortitude. The ability to endure difficult situations without breaking. Those are traits we highly value." Marcus pauses taking a breath as his blue eyes bore into me "But shock doesn't explain your composure during the other tests. You've consistently shown more resilience and rationality than the other girls."
"I don't want your approval or to be of value to you," I spat. "I don't want any part of this sick game you're playing."
Jasper's anger is radiating and I’m not sure I care. "It's not a game, little bird. This is our way of life. The sooner you accept that the easier things will be for you."
"Accept it?" I spat, my body filling with anger. "You expect me to just accept cold-blooded murder as a 'way of life'?"
"We expect you to adapt," Marcus says calmly.
Shaking my head, not wanting to hear their twisted praise, "What does it matter? I'm still just a prisoner here. Whether I stay calm or not, I'm still at your mercy." I bite my lip, after letting some of the emotions I’ve been keeping, explode out.
I’m not sure what flashes in Jasper's eyes but a feral smile takes over his face as he moves so that he can crouch down in front of me. "For now, yes and if you continue to impress us, you’ll be a part of this ‘insane family’ as you call us.”
A cold chill runs down my spine at his words as I recoil from Jasper's words, my back pressing against the cold concrete wall. "I don't want to be part of your family." My voice is shaking slightly despite my efforts to stay calm. "I want to go home."
Jasper leans in closer to me, his breath hot on my face, "This is your home now, little bird. The sooner you accept that the better off you'll be."
“Do you all expect me to accept you if I pass all your tests? I know you’re all looking for a wife, but I don’t want that…” I want to leave here and pretend none of this ever happened.
“You can’t seriously expect me to accept all of you and a life like this.” I know I'm pulling from thin air, but if we’re talking about this, I’m going to see what kind of information I can get from them.
"Oh, we're very serious about you, little bird," Jasper purrs, reaching out to brush a strand of hair from my face. I don’t hesitate in flinching away from his touch. "You've shown such promise. It’d be a shame to waste all that potential."
Vehemently shaking my head at his words, I feel the weight of dread settling on my chest. There has to be a way to get free of them and this place.
Marcus sighs, exchanging a look with Jasper. "We understand this is overwhelming for you right now. But you'll come to see things our way in time. We told you what we wanted and expected at the beginning of this... you were chosen for us, and we don’t want to let you go."
“You haven’t been here long enough to get to know us, and so far, these tests have shown you’ve done very well.” I see the grin on Jasper’s face as reaches out and touches me again. This time his thumb runs over my lips before letting his hand fall. “We got attached to you much more quickly than the others you’ve been around.”
I turn my head away, unable to look at the manic gleam in his eyes. My heart’s pounding so hard I’m sure they can hear it.
"Easy, Jasper," Marcus says, his tone a gentle, yet warning. He stands up, reaches out and places a hand on his brother's shoulder, pulling him up and away from me, enough that I have breathing room. "Give her some space."
Jasper growls but allows Marcus to tug him away. I take a shaky breath, trying to process everything they were saying. The idea that they were getting "attached" to me after such a short time, after everything they'd put me through, was deeply unsettling.
"You can't seriously expect me to just... accept all of this," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "To be okay with murder and torture. To want to be part of your family after what you've done."
Marcus sighed, running a hand through his hair. "We don't expect you to accept it all at once. It takes time to adjust to our way of life. But you've shown such potential already. With time and guidance, you could truly thrive here."
I shook my head, feeling tears prick at my eyes. "I don't want to thrive here. I want to go home. I want my old life back…” I shook my head looking up at the two of them. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to stop the trembling that had taken over my body. My mind was reeling, struggling to process everything that had happened and what they were telling me now.
"I also just don't understand," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "How can you talk about family and attachment when you just tortured someone before killing them? How am I supposed to ever trust you or feel safe here?"
Marcus's expression softened slightly. "We know it's difficult to comprehend right now. Our ways are... different from what you're used to. But everything we do has a purpose. We're not mindless killers."
I let out a harsh laugh, curling more into myself. "Could've fooled me."
Jasper's eyes flashed dangerously, voice low. "Watch your tone. We've been patient with you so far, but don't push your luck."
I flinched at his words, causing Marcus to sigh, running a hand through his dark hair. "It's not something that can be easily explained or understood immediately. Our ways may seem cruel to outsiders, but they've ensured our family's survival and prosperity for generations."
“I don’t know if I want to understand your ways,” I told him softly, I guess I didn’t stay as strong as I wanted to in this situation. I was crumbling after everything that had happened. I have seen two people die. I think they are expecting too much from me.
“Can I get some time alone…” I wanted to process everything and didn’t want to talk to these two anymore. I saw the two look at each other, having a silent conversation before answering me.
“Someone will be back later to bring you dinner,” Marcus told me, but food was the last thing I had on my mind. I just wanted to be alone to be in my own head.
“Don’t get too lost in your thoughts and emotions,” Jasper spoke up next, his eyes burning into me. I shut my eyes and curled into myself not giving him an answer.
I can only wish later would be better…but I highly doubt it.