Page 68 of Regressive

“Why are you doing this?” I ask. “Why are you destroying us?”

He walks over and stands before me. He reaches out and I flinch, but he just rests his hand on my shoulder. “Levi, you have been loyal and true, and I tried to give you the opportunity to change with us, but you declined my offer.” He grins. “Your response was Indulgent. Selfish. And there’s one thing I’ve learned during my time building this community, it’s that if you are not going to fulfill the needs of this community, then Serendee no longer has a place for you. That goes for all of you.”

“You don’t have a place for us?” I ask. “What does that mean?”

“It means you’ve become an obstacle to what I want and it’s time for you to leave.”

“What you want?” Silas asks. “What do you want?”

Anex’s gaze swings to Imogene. “Her.”

I’m shocked he says it. I think everyone is, but Rex who shouts, “What did you say?”

Anex removes his hand from my shoulder and turns to face his son.

“I know you think you’re the one that discovered this little lamb?” He chuckles. “Yes, I know your pet name for her. It’s fitting. I’ve had my eye on her for a long time—first to make sure she didn’t inherit any of her mother’s Regressive traits. But as I waited on her to work her way through the Domum, as she came of age, I saw the wild beauty of this precious female.” He walks over to Imogene. He touches her cheek, and a shudder rolls down her spine. “I was ready to set her aside, train her for myself, but then you requested her for the Ordering. It pained me, but I figured it was a passing whim. I know the kind of women you like, Rex. The slutty whores of the secular world. I understand—I find them appealing, too—but I figured you’d break her in and cast her aside and if you didn’t…”

“You’d have my friends do it.”

“Exactly.” Anex tucks a loose piece of hair behind Imogene’s ear. “At first it worked. You hated her, hurt her, happily handing her over to your friends, who,” he looks over at us, “taught her well. Easing her morals. Heightening her desires.” His eyes land on mine. “Pushing her to her limits.”

“We didn’t train her for Rex,” Silas says, the pieces clicking into place, “we trained her foryou.”

“You, along with Margaret, and a few other well positioned members of the community. Last night, when she took my brand, things solidified. But really, you did an outstanding job preparing her for this day.” He turns away from Imogene. “Unfortunately, I haven’t been as satisfied with your other work. The run-in with Jeb was a setback. The refusal to adjust to our new product—”

“You mean sex trafficking,” Elon says.

“See… this is the problem. You seem to think that this is a democracy. That you get an opinion in how things operate—how I operate.” He walks over to one of the guards and yanks the gun out of his hand, lowering it and pressing the barrel under Elon’s chin. “This is a dictatorship and I’m the one in charge. You do as I say, or you suffer the consequences.”

“Like being banished,” Elon says, ignoring the press of the gun.

“Only two of you are truly being banished,” he says, lowering the gun and turning to Silas. “Since Elon decided to destroy my new venture, you’ll be the one to explore the feasibility of this trade.”

The reality of his statement hits hard. Exploring. Does that mean manage or work. Is he going to traffic Silas or force Silas into trafficking members of the community? It doesn’t matter. Either will be enough to destroy him.

“And Rex.” He turns to his son. “You’re my son. You’ll remain here. Frankly, you know too much and are too easy of a target for my enemies. You’ll enter re-education training.”

“Fuck you and your deranged mind games,” Rex growls. “You don’t control me and your reeducation is bullshit.”

“See?” Anex says with a sigh. “That’s the kind of attitude we need to work on. Don’t worry. I’ve been honing my methods.”

He nods at one of the guards. He walks over and without warning, shocks Rex with a taser, sending a jolt of energy through his muscular frame.

“Rex!” Imogene cries, watching her mate’s body spasm with the shock. “He’s your son! What’s wrong with you?”

“Nothing, dear girl. I’m just trying to keep my family—my newly upgraded family together.” He shifts his gaze to me. “Levi.”

“Yes?” A desperate, last flicker of hope fills my chest. It’s shameful and corrupt, but it’s all I know. This is all I know. “I shouldn’t have said no to your offer. I’ll take it. Do whatever you want—”

“You and Elon will leave Serendee tonight.” His tone is cold and authoritative. “If you attempt to return or contact anyone inside the walls, you’ll be shot on sight.”

My stomach drops, but there’s no time to process it before strong hands grab me from behind. I look to Rex, then Imogene. Both seem frozen. Numb. The same sensation spreads through my limbs.

“Take them,” Anex says, waving them off. “I never want to see your faces again.”

He waves his hand and the guards snap into action, dragging us toward the side entrance. No one goes easily but the fight isn’t fair. The weapons they have are greater than any resistance we can put forth.

Elon and I are pulled one direction. Silas and Rex another, and before he goes out of view I hear Rex shout, “What about my mate? What are you doing with her?”

---