“The girl killed more than a dozen people in Darfield,” Jaxon spoke over me.
“Accidentally!”
“I’ll ask that ye give us a wide berth, for yer own safety. We’ll be takin’ her to Byron, and she’ll be dealt with accordingly.”
“I’m not a monster!” My chest hollowed as people began vacating the market streets. “I don’t want tohurtanyone. Please. I’m a hybrid—I don’t know how to control—I needhelp.”
No one listened.
The hollowness in my chest spread. I supposed I couldn’t blame them for their wariness. Had I been in their position, watching a grimy girl beg for help while walking through the streets in chains, I might have chosen caution too.
“Please,” I repeated as we continued our trek through the streets.“Please.”
It would have only taken one person to change the course of my future. One gentle soul to step forward and offer a helping hand. But no one did.
They watched me as we moved toward the center of the town. Their gazes were cold. Frightened.
I stared at my battered, trembling fingers.
“If ye loose yer power here,” Jaxon warned. “Ye’ll be getting more than a lump on the head. Ye understand? I’d rather keep ye alive, but I’ll not hesitate to kill ye if ye hurt anyone.” He tapped his thumb against the knife in his belt.
“I can’t control it!” I said, for what must have been the umpteenth time.
For the umpteenth time, he ignored me.
“For a Foreseer,” I hissed, “there’s much you refuse to comprehend.”
Jaxon didn’t spare me another glance.
Darragh walked behind me, the sharp edge of his sword pressed against my back. He would use it if I stopped again. Darragh had never refused an opportunity to hit me. Indeed, every time the men believed I was at risk of using my powers, I was struckunconcious—unconscious. Which was a rather problematic way to travel, considering neither they nor I understood how my power worked.
Jaxon saw too much; too many instances where my power could come to life. He couldn’t rely on his foresight to help him. So the men reacted to every noise or movement I made. I’d been struck for sneezing or coughing too loudly—the same infraction my kin at Detha had once been whipped for. I had received a blow to the head when I stubbed my toe on a tree root and had moaned in pain. Another blow had come when I’d swatted a fly that had been biting my ear.
Their harsh treatment was not without consequences.
Throughout our journey, as my head was repeatedly struck, my visiondeterated—deteriorated. I saw clearly when an object was in front of me. As soon as it shifted to the right or the left, it became fuzzy and unfocused. For example, while walking through Lamex, I could only discern faces if I turned my head and stared directly at them. Otherwise, they were blurred, shadowed shapes in myperhiferal—peripheral vision.
It is a disability I still bear. To this day, I still relish the idea of encountering Jaxon and Darragh again and using blunt force to rob their sight. The way they had robbed mine.
Although their harsh treatment paled compared to what awaited me. The leader of Lamex had no plans to shatter my bones or pummel my skull, as my captors had. He sought to destroy my heart, my soul, the very fiber of my being.
And he nearly succeeded.
37
Freddie Fucking Hawkins
“Cheriour!” I dropped my burning log and stumbled over to him. My knees popped as I slid into a kneeling position. “Cheriour! MyGod…”
Sweat dripped from his brow even as he shivered. His eyes focused hazily on my face. “Addie,” he choked.
“Shush. I need to concentrate.” I touched his cheek. His skin burned. Fever. Not good. Not surprising either. “Jesus freaking Christ, how many cuts do you have?” Blood seemed to be coming from everywhere. His clothes were soaked.
“Addie.” Cheriour made a huffing noise that sounded almost like a laugh. “You…the fire…youare—”
“Dude, I really need you to be quiet. I’m trying to think…crap!”I’d been attempting to undo the straps on his leather holsters, but my fingers kept shaking. “And if you were about to call me a hybrid, stop.‘Don’t you put that curse on me, Ricky Bobby!’I’m… that…it wasn’t a real fire? Or something…ah!” The leather finally came undone. “Lift your arms. Come on.” I snapped my fingers when he was slow to respond. “I’m saving your ass here. Give me at least a little cooperation. There we go.” He sluggishly sat partway up, enough for me to yank his shirt over his head. “Okay, now…fuck.” This situation got 10x worse. He had gashes all over his arms, shoulders, and chest. But one laceration below his right ribcage wentdeep.I couldn’t tell if that was his innards poking out, or jagged pieces of muscle. I didn’twantto know either.
“You’re bleeding,” Cheriour mumbled.
