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What was truth? What was a lie?

Who could I trust? Who would be my downfall?

J.

J.

J.

J.

The answer to all my questions was J.

She was my downfall. And I had known it.

I thought I knew how it would feel to lose her, but this...

How can you lose something you never had?

I clenched my hands into fists, letting out the pain in the form of a pressed sound as my entire body tensed.

When I couldn't take it anymore, I threw my head back, banging it against the refrigerator behind me, again and again, until it hurt.

The control this woman had over me...

The next thought simply crept through my inner chaos, past my distracted rage, which was locked in battle with my despair.

Julie isn't like the others. She's another victim of these people. She's real. And if she's real, then so is J...

“No...” I stopped that thought because I couldn't bear it.

The weak part of me wanted to believe it, but something inside me just broke, robbing me of any strength to think clearly.

I thought I heard my phone ringing somewhere in the kitchen, but my thoughts were louder.

J. My Charis.

My vision blurred.

You have to protect J. She needs you.

I wanted to, but Julie was in the way. The Councils were in the way.

“What is real and what is fake?” I sobbed quietly.

J is real.

“Then who is Julie?!”

Again, I banged my head against the refrigerator until I realized it was useless and more sobs tore me apart from within.

No answer. I didn't know. All I knew at that moment was that this woman had me in the palm of her hand. And there was only one thing that would help. I had to put as much distance between us as possible. I had to forget her.

The mere thought of it shattered me.

My phone rang again, and I looked around, spotted it next to me on the floor, among the shards, and swiped away the caller without even checking who it was.

All I noticed was the sticky blood on my fingers, which must have come from the cool, stinging cut on my cheek, but even that faded into the background in the next second.