Chapter 16

ARIA

I've had a long life, one that has been full of demanding obstacles and a rollercoaster of emotions. I've faced death more times than I can count, especially this past year. It's not easy to be the target for everyone, and it's sure as hell not easy to keep feeling as though I have no control over my own life.

Fate, destiny, savages… It's all a giant cluster of madness that I can't seem to get a handle on. Everything keeps spiraling out of control, and I keep getting lost in the middle, doing what I can just to hang on for some semblance of hope. But hope only continues to evade me, and reality keeps making me its bitch. I'm sick of being a damn pawn in my own skin, and that savage lunatic better not ever come back again.

A wave of nausea hits when I think back to the blood I had to watch be shed, and the way my psychotic half thrived off the pain she inflicted. I was two parts of a person in one body, feeling as though I was lost inside my own flesh. But now… Now I can't even open my eyes.

The wounds feel as though they're healed, but my body feels constricted, unmoving. My eyes are so heavy, and it's almost as though I could go to sleep and stay that way for centuries. For all I know, I already have.

With a harsh push, my lids open just barely to see a blurry, dim room. The dank atmosphere tells me I'm below ground, but no clear imagery is easy to find. But my sense of smell works just fine, and my heart thunders in my chest when the sex and candy scent hits me.

Jase.

"Aria?" His soft voice is so soothing, even though I can't see him.

It's me.

I hear a breath of relief, and then suddenly a shadowy figure looms before me. It forces me to find the strength to lift my eyes open fully, and though my vision is still somewhat unfocused, I see him.

A half laugh, half cry comes out of me, and I try to reach for him, only to be rejected when chains rattle around my hands. It's then I realize why my body is so constricted; I'm chained from head to toe. My entire body is strapped down to a table, and panic seizes me.

"Shh," Jase soothes, stroking my hair affectionately. He bends as though he's about to kiss me, and my eyes water, making my vision all the more disrupted. But then he stops, reluctance coursing through the air as he seems to fight some inner war. When he withdraws without pressing his lips to mine, my heart sinks.

I'm a monster, and now he knows it. I can't blame him for not wanting to touch me after the hell I've raised.

"That's not it, ba—Aria. There's… We need to talk about stuff, but not right now. You need to stay as calm as possible so that your savage doesn't get riled up. I need to go get everyone else down here. Simone needs to check you out."

He wouldn't even call me baby. He stopped himself. He doesn't have to tell me anything, because I feel his emotions as clearly as if they were my own.

I feel his grimace as he turns away; I feel the sinking hole inside of him that matches mine; and I taste the tears he's holding back. My voice refuses to find its way out of me.

I love you. Don't do this. Even the voice in my mind is pleading and desperate.

He pauses in front of the door across the room, and his shadowy silhouette seems to back up and move forward several times as the inner war he has rages on. But he finally pushes himself through the door without another word.

The chains rattle again when I try to sit up, and I fight hard not to panic. There are so many. And the uranium scent promises me they're not regular chains. It's just me—not my savage. If it was my savage, these chains would be pointless.

"Aria?" Mom says cautiously, as though she's worried my freak show is about to be in place.

I still can't manage words, but I tilt my head in her direction. My vision has slowly started to clear, so I'm able to make out her face as she nears me.

"Oh, sweetie," she says in a heartbreaking voice that makes my tears start slipping out of the corners of my eyes.

She rushes to my side and starts caressing my cheeks. When she goes to tug at the chains, I hear my brother's voice boom through the room.

"Don't! She's still in a fragile state."

"Is that really necessary though?" Simone's voice is refreshing, and I want to reach out for her.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Rex asks, scoffing as though he's the only sane one in here. I suppose he is.

Mom growls at him, and then she turns to face him, blocking my view. "And you think these chains could hold her if she lost it? You're out of your mind. She's awake and scared. These chains can only hold her. Not the savage."

After hearing her confirm my fears, I decide there's no point in allowing myself to be restrained. With barely any exerted effort, my mind unlocks and drops the chains. I want to see Jase. Now.

"Jase." I manage to whisper, but my voice sounds so foreign and rasp.

A few collective gasps meet my ears as everyone takes a cautious step back. They don't realize the savage didn't merely undo the blocks in my mind, she ripped them the hell out. My gifts are free, and I'm fucking terrified of them.

Rex stares down at the heaps of chains that have slithered off my body, and I look down to see the new black gown I'm wearing. It almost looks as though it's satin, but it feels more like barbed wire against my sensitive flesh. Everything on me is more sensitive right now. I feel… awakened and… lost at the same time. Something always feels like it's missing.

"Is she okay?" Kellan asks as he joins Simone at her side, his arm wrapping around her waist and pulling her to him very protectively, as if he's worried she's in danger. I almost tear up, because I thought my savage had killed him.

I tilt my head, observing them for a moment. I don't need empathic abilities to see what's so clearly in front of me, and relief washes over me. It'll make it easier to be with Jase if he can look past the havoc I never intended to unleash.

"Jase," I say again, ignoring how everyone seems to tense.

Simone tries to step away from Kellan, her eyes burdened, but he holds her to him. He really cares about her, and I can feel that from here. Maybe my savage stripping him was the best thing that could have happened. It seems to be the only light in the darkness I've had surrounding me for the past few weeks.

"He's upstairs, debriefing the soldiers here. We're in Sherlan," Rex finally says, but I know he's holding back.

"Get him," I whisper, clutching my throat that feels to be on fire.

Simone tries once again to move away from Kellan, but he holds her tighter, wrapping her up with both arms in an embrace.

"I need to get her some blood," she says softly, looking up at him, but his jaw is tense.

"I know what you think you have to do, but you're wrong. Aria doesn't want me, and I don't want her anymore. We can find a way to bond them instead."

Simone's eyes water, and I tilt my head in confusion. "You know that's not possible," she says back. "I've tried aligning their blood, but they won't pair. You're the only one, and it's the only way. There's only a small window of opportunity for me to repair the damage done."

Kellan's jaw tries to snap off when he clenches it too tightly. "No. It's not the only way. If neither of us wants the other, then obviously fate fucked up. Without the bond… Well, you know what I want."

His eyes soften as he looks down to her, and a tear spills from her eye. I feel like an outsider looking in. So much has happened and I'm the root of all the dark stuff. If it wasn't for the fact Alice is still out there, I'd be willing to sacrifice myself while I can just to ease their suffering. They'd miss me, but they could finally have lives.

But Alice… I have to find a way to kill her first.

My mind flashes back to our epic, catastrophic battle. We were trading licks. She wasn't invincible yet, and I was only so strong—well, my savage was only so strong. There was a connection that was missing, and the strength she dug deep for seemed to be missing or buried out of reach.

I remember her frantically pulling and shoving out power, but it wasn't enough. And Alice wasn't any better. It was essentially like we were trading licks, each of us inflicting just as much pain as the other until neither of us could hold on any longer. She retreated, and my savage became a part of the wind just after calling Jase. I remember being terrified for why she wanted him.

"Get Jase, dammit," I grumble, but instead of anyone acknowledging me, Rex simply grabs a pack of blood and tosses it to the table beside me, still too scared to get too close. They should get the hell out of here if they're so scared, because my savage doesn't have to touch anyone to kill them.

"He won't come," Mom says at last. But that doesn't make sense, because he did come. He was just down here.

She reads my confusion and reluctantly continues. "The only way to tame your savage is to reconnect you with Kellan. And this time the connection needs to be strong. Simone has figured out how to do it, but we had to wait on you to wake up."

I shake my head, furious about this whole stupid thing. "Make it work with Jase's blood. If she can do it with Kellan's—"

"Don't you think she would if she could?" Uncle Brazen asks gently, joining us in the small dungeon-like room.

It looks like one of the old prison holding cells. I suppose given the nature of my latest offenses, a place like this is where I deserve to be.

"There has to be another way," I almost whisper.

I look over at Kellan who is staring down at Simone with longing affection. He really does want to be with her, and I can tell she wants to be with him just as much. Having an unwanted counter is about as pointless as having dormant gifts. We should be able to choose. It's obvious fate made one hell of a mistake by pairing us together to begin with.

Evolution happens at a rapid rate, and what might have been perfect seven hundred years ago is not perfect now. We're part of a world that needs room for change, and the rigid rules of our heritage seems to stifle any room for happiness these days.

"If there was another way, we'd do it, honey," Mom says with unshed tears in her eyes, bringing her hand down gently to cup my shoulder.

Rex's phone rings, and he walks over to the side to answer it. My ears burn against hearing the obnoxious sound, and I glare at him. But no one else seems annoyed by it. I suppose even my ears are more sensitive.

He answers it briskly, his eyes averting mine, and that only piques my interest.

"I've got to head to Herlan for a few days to smooth over some of the buzz. Take care of her, and let me know when… it's done."

I know that voice on the other line, but I've never heard it so bitter before.

" It's being argued about as we speak," Rex says, his eyes coming up to meet mine.

The sympathy there isn't enough to make this feel like less of a betrayal. Not only does fate want to screw me over, so does everyone else. Only this time, it's not just me and Jase suffering; Kellan and Simone are suffering, and they've both already suffered enough.

I hear Jase release a sigh that carries all the misery I'm feeling, and I cross my arms defiantly over my chest while glaring at Rex. I've stared down hell and death, now I'm staring at my crumbling future.

"She'll do what she has to. Just like all of us. It's fucked up and it sucks, but that's apparently our world," Jase mumbles.

I get up to go get the phone, but Rex takes a wary step back.

"I think she wants to talk to you."

Jase mutters something I don't understand, and then he breathes out deeply. "I can't. Just call me when it's done. If we talk, it'll just make it harder."

My hand recoils to my chest, and I the pieces of my heart shatter just a little more. Rex hangs up just as my eyes fall to the violet jewel on my hand. At least the savage left me that much. She stole everything else.

"Aria, I need your blood," Simone says in a pained tone that relays all the reluctance everyone else feels.

"No," I whisper, not removing my eyes from my ring.

"Aria," Rex groans. "No one wants to do this. I know you love Jase, but—"

"But nothing. It's not just about us anymore." My eyes come up to meet Kellan's, and I see his rigid body. "You deserve to be happy, and so does Simone. So does Jase. So does everyone. My legacy shouldn't be a burden. I've learned a lot these past few weeks. My gifts are unlocked. I don't need my savage to beat Alice. And despite what my lunatic thought, I don't need my counter either."

Everyone starts to speak over each other, and Kellan's eyes go wide when he figures out what I'm saying. It's time to end all of this once and for all. My savage wasn't willing to sacrifice herself to kill Alice. But I am.

"Aria, don't!" Kellan yells, lunging for me just as my body scatters into nothing.

It all goes black, and my stomach lurches, even though I'm fragmented into the air. It's odd to be disassembled yet feel whole at the same time, but within seconds, I'm rematerializing inside the Unaligned borders.

I drop to my knees and heave for air as my body slowly starts to solidify once again. My savage made that look so much easier. As bad as it sucks, it's a hell of a lot quicker than driving. I'm not the same huntress she was, but I can track. It's what I do.

And I've never wanted to find anything as much as I want to find peace. That can only come from finding and destroying Alice.