Total pages in book: 18
Estimated words: 18000 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 90(@200wpm)___ 72(@250wpm)___ 60(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 18000 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 90(@200wpm)___ 72(@250wpm)___ 60(@300wpm)
And one day...
One day, I'll see them again.
Day 88
Ilike walking around early in the morning when most people are still asleep, and it's nature that I hear instead of man-made evil and oppression.
It's just waves crashing against the shore, birds chirping to each other, and the crunch of my footsteps against gravelly pathways.
It's moments like this that give me the greatest hope.
(Because I feel Him.)
But at the same time, it's these precious moments of solitude that break my heart the most.
It hurts, oh God, will it ever stop hurting?
Because this was always around this time of the day that I'd be with the cats.
Feeding them whatever I could steal from the kitchen.
But now they're gone.
They're there with You, right? They have to be.
I look up, and the skies are beautiful.
One day, God. One day I'll be there with You and the cats.
I look down, and I see...blood.
Specks of them on pebbles that lay out a trail to someone in hiding.
And bleeding.
(It's him, of course. You know it can only be him, no one else.)
My head feels faint, and I have a hard time breathing again. I can barely think over the way my heart is bang, bang, banging against my chest.
He's the reason why everyone got roaring drunk last night. But they've clearly celebrated prematurely, since the "high-ranking" government agent they've captured has somehow managed to escape.
'Se fue!' He's gone!
(You know what to do.)
I yank the used plastic bag I have in my pocket for emergencies---
(Who knew I'd actually have use for it?)
---and use it to the bloodstained pebbles I can find to avoid leaving fingerprints.
(Go, go, go!)
And then I run---
(Run like your life depends on it!)
---to the point that my lungs feel like they're about to explode.
(Because it does!)
But still I run.
(Faster, Eden, faster!)
I run without stopping.
(You can do it.)
Until I finally reach the top of the cliff and I'm able to throw the pebbles away.
(Well done, child. Well done.)
I crash down on my knees as I hear the barking of dogs behind me.
Oh please, let this be enough, God.
Tears start racing down my cheeks.
Please, God. Please.
Because He alone knows why I wasn't given the chance to save my cats.
Let this be enough.
And yet this time, it's different.
So please.
The dogs have finally reached me. They're my babies, too, but right now they have a job to do.
'Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!'
The scent of blood has brought them here, and my heart only hurts when they start barking. It's not what they want, but it's what they've been taught to do.
'Se escapó!' He's escaped!
Day 109
War has revisited our shores, but this time it's my father who tastes defeat.
I'm not sure what he's done, but he's somehow caught the eye of Dauphin Tueur. Compared to that man, my father nothing but a big old fish in a small pond.
And it's why, for the first time in his life, it's my father who's forced to swallow his pride.
Negotiate.
And offer me, his daughter, as bridal collateral.
But of course that's just for show.
Not once did I believe he had any intention to keep the peace, and true enough, as soon as I finished signing the documents that made me a bride by proxy, my father pulled me into his arms and started whispering into my ear.
Kill him when you have the chance.
It's clear that he only has vengeance in mind.
Or he'll find out you're not my real daughter,
And he's determined to have it, regardless of the costs.
And it will be your own husband who'll kill you.
My father steps back. "Take care of yourself."
His voice is gruff but tender, and it sounds so convincing it almost has me questioning my sanity.
Is it possible I've just imagined everything he said?
Oh please, let it be so.
Because I'm not above hoping that my father can still be redeemed.
So please, God, please.
But when I look into his eyes all I see is emptiness.
He's so consumed by evil that he doesn't even realize his soul is already burning in Hell.
My father smiles at me. "It's alright, daughter."
Kill him before he kills you.
"I know you can do this."
It's so easy to tell he believes he still has me under my thumb.
And even though I knew in my heart that it was best to just let it go---
To just walk away and let him think I'm his puppet---
The devil is always prowling around like a lion, and at that moment, my father's not the only one he's been able to devour.
When I look into my father's eyes again, the only thing I see all of a sudden are my cats, but it isn't God who's making me remember them.
(Don't do it, Eden.)
The spirit is willing, but my flesh is just too weak, and even then---
Even then I knew a day would come when I'd regret what I was about to do---
But even so, I still hear myself whisper, "No."