Page 119 of Mariposa
“Go! I love you, Violet Isla. Do it for me, okay? And most importantly, do this for yourself! Go!” He pushes me off the side of the cliff.
No!
I’m rolling down the side of the mountain in agony. My body collides with rocks, trees, and dirt. It feels like I’m pinballing until gravity wins. My back and legs are getting the brunt of the unforgiving landscape. Each time I hit something, I cry out in pain. I try to stop rolling further down multiple times but comeup short because I’m moving too fast. It takes me a few minutes to regain my senses when I land. As soon as I catch my breath, I force myself off the ground and take off running in the direction from which I hear the sound of blades whipping the air. The rounds grow louder, and bombs continue to wreak havoc.
Then I hear it: Kade shouting to pull the enemy’s attention toward him, instead of me. Doing what he said he was going to do. I turn around and place my hand over my mouth to stop the shattering scream.
The last thing I see from about twenty feet below is Kade taking a bullet to his chest...his heart. He falls over, disappearing into thick trees as more explosions surround him. Fire and dirt explode everywhere, leaving me in a blanket of darkness.
I sink my teeth into my knuckles to stop the sound of a broken, wounded soul.
No one would survive that.
Not even Operator Beast.
“I love you, too, Kade. I love you…” I cry into the palm of my hand. “I love you…”
46
VIOLET
Black.
All I see is black.
All I feel is black.
A heavy elephant is on my chest, making it difficult to breathe. The sound of a heartbeat monitor rings vehemently by my right side—muffled, distant chatter barely reaches my ears. Everything about this atmosphere is cold and dark. I must be in a hospital or, at the very least, a clinic.
But why am I here? I can’t remember anything.
Why can’t I move or scream?
“You and I will never be out of time.”
That addicting, heavenly, deep voice crashes into my soul with no remorse, causing a painful ache in my chest to take over. My heart drops into my stomach as my last memory with the man I love hits me unforgivingly.
Everything comes back in haunting flashes.
Kade pushed me down the side of the cliff.
I limped and occasionally dragged my drained body before QRF picked me up. As soon as I was pulled into the Black HawkHelicopter, I collapsed from dehydration and exhaustion while murmuring Kade’s name over and over again.
“Booker and O’Connell were KIA. She’s the only survivor from that crash. We don’t know what exactly happened, but we’re hoping she’ll wake up and be able to give us her story. This whole thing is a mess.” I don’t recognize that voice, but I need them to stop.
No.
No.
No!
Please let this all be a bad fucking dream!
“Her heart rate’s picked up. She’s awake,” an unfamiliar, feminine, chirpy voice says.
“It’s me, Violet. I’m here.”
Adam.
