Page 205 of Deviant

But it’s too much.

Too goddamn much.

“Help! Help!” I cry out between sobs.

I feel her hand on mine, a peaceful smile cresting her lips.

And then, the light in her green eyes fade, until the Abbie I knew and loved is no longer with me, having departed in search of a peace that this world never gave her.

Chapter 37

Rowen

We all walk behind Henry into the conference room.

Elias uses me for support, while David uses his crutches to make his way there.

Every one of us bears the scars of being in this house.

All save for one.

Mackenzie remains untouched as she practically skips to the room, eager to attend today’s games.

Once we are shown our seats, I immediately sense that today’s games will differ from all the rest just by the way Henry doesn’t ask us to sit next to our chosen partners.

Trepidation and apprehension swirl in the air as we wait for Henry to commence.

“As you all can see, only four of the chosen remain, a setback created by Lady Jackson when she decided to kill Master Thomas yesterday. Though I am grateful to her and Lady Hawthorn for having saved Five from experiencing such savagery under Master Thomas’s hand, the fact remains that sixwere needed to participate in today’s game. As that is no longer a possibility, today’s game will be postponed indefinitely.”

“What?” Mackenzie shouts, disgruntled, while Elias’s hand goes to my thigh and gives it a light, relieved squeeze.

He is stronger today than he was yesterday, but there was no way he would be able to survive a game in his condition.

A quick glance at David reveals that he’s also relieved by the way he leans back in his seat, looking completely relaxed.

The only one amongst us who takes this news as a bad thing is the only one who has yet to sufferThe Scourge’sire.

“I thought there could only be one winner?” Mackenzie grumbles with a pout. “How can there be only one winner if we don’t play?”

“Lady Davenport, if you would be patient enough to let me continue to speak, then I will enlighten you.”

“This better be good,” she rebukes, crossing her arms over her chest.

“As I was saying,” Henry begins, his voice a low murmur that barely rises above the eerie stillness of the room. “Though today’s game is canceled, there will be a victor of the games. In one week’s time, on the night of the Hunting Moon, you will play your last game—a game that will determine who among you walks away alive and who remains as a whisper in the shadows.”

His eyes glint with an unnatural light, and for a moment, I feel the weight of his words settle like a heavy fog around me. The air grows thick with tension, and the flickering florescent light dances across his face, casting twisted shadows that seem to reach out like gnarled fingers.

“You see,” he continues with a frown, “the Hunting Moon is not just a celestial event. It is a harbinger of decisions yet to be made, a night when fate becomes a hunter, and each of you will be both the prey and the predator. As the moon rises high in the sky at midnight, each player will unleash their deepestinstincts. Only the cunning will survive, while the rest… well, they’ll become part of the legend, echoing through the night like a terrible lullaby. Consider this your warning and our hosts’ final orders. Prepare yourselves, forThe Scourgewill have its victor. One way or the other.”

With a final, lingering gaze, he leans back on his heel, allowing the weight of his words to hit like a cold wave crashing onto jagged rocks, blending dread with something far more sinister.

“Now that’s more like it,” Mackenzie coos, her eyes sparkling with glee and a chilling smile creeping across her lips.

“Enough!” I bark out at her, having had just about enough of her giddiness when the rest of us are dreading the upcoming event that is sure to ensure three of us will lose our lives.”

But Mackenzie doesn’t flinch and instead leans further into the table, her crazed eyes fixed on mine.

“I can’t wait to see what your insides look like.”

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