Chapter 81: The Butterfly Effect

Asher held my wrist and forced me to point the gun at Caspian.

"You killed the Mayor and his sons." My hand was shaking and so was my voice.

"Yes." He didn't try to deny it. "I'm Robin Hood, aren't I?"

"Why are you doing this? I asked, wanting him to say he was under Janet's manipulation.

"Are you familiar with the Butterfly Effect?" Asher asked me. "Altering the past alters the future."

Again with the butterflies. I chose not to say anything, instead I looked directly at Caspian. There was no fear in his eyes. He knew I wasn't going to shoot him, and somehow managed to exude an aura of calmness. He trusted me. I wasn't going to shoot him, but Asher's fingers were also quite close to the trigger. I knew Asher didn't like Caspian. He disliked Caspian more than Principal Hugh. And if he had killed Principal Hugh, he'd kill Caspian.

"A man from the past," Asher followed his question with an explanation, "has the power to change the future without anyone knowing it was him," he told me, keeping his eyes on the gun.

"So," I began. "If everyone thought you were dead, nobody would suspect you." His fingers curled around mine as he steadied my hand.

"How did you do it?" I enquired, turning my face slightly towards his.

His lips were pulled back over his teeth, reminding me of a wolf who was ready to charge.

"Newton Perry," Janet replied for him. "Plastic surgery works wonders."

It all made sense now: the wrong blood type, the short hair, the bee tattoo, the photo of Newton Wes and the fact that I couldn't find the bag by the pear tree.

"You can join us," Asher offered, his voice gruff and stern. "Don't you want to live in a caste free world, where everyone lives as equals. Just shoot him." He pointed towards Caspian.

I shook my head, tears beginning to cloud my view as the gun dug into the palm of my hand.

"Mads," he put on his big brother voice, and tried to get me to listen to him.

I shook my head and tried to draw the gun away from Caspian. Asher wrenched the gun out of my hand, and looked at me with fury in his eyes. His eyes set the room ablaze as he pointed the gun at Caspian, without turning his face away from me.

"Fine, I'll do it." He stared me down.

"Please," I begged.

But I could see there was nothing I could do to stop him. Asher pulled the trigger and I reacted without thinking. I threw myself between the bullet and Caspian. I heard a big bang as the bullet left the gun and whizzed through the air. And I closed my eyes and braced myself for the impact of the bullet in my chest. I expected it to throw me back into Caspian's arms where I would die. But that wasn't what happened, not even close. Asher had moved the gun to prevent killing me, but in doing so he had shot someone else.

Her sleek, cat-like body fell to the floor with a loud thud, and she clutched at her stomach. There was a large hole in her belly, just above her navel. Blood spilt onto the floor and it ran in different directions, creating a sort of pattern on the mat. Some of the blood was quickly soaked up by the mat, while the thicker splashes pooled on the floor.

"Janet?" Asher's face had lost all colour and he stayed rooted in place, as his girlfriend stopped squirming and she became motionless. Her pupils became dilated, confirming that there was nothing that could be done for her.

Caspian dashed to the bathroom, to where I had dropped his phone. I stayed where I was, knowing Asher wouldn't kill me; he had already proven that much. His gun was still pointed at the wall, where a couple of seconds ago Janet had stood.

I saw Caspian raise the phone to his ear as his eyes switched focus between Asher and me. I sucked a breath in, as I took a step towards Asher, but it wasn't necessary; his eyes never wavered from Janet's limp form.

I made a move to the get the gun from Asher, but he saw me out of the corner of his eye. He jerked his hand away and smiled. A psychedelic smile that made him look like the person he was. A murderer. The villain in the story. He surveyed me before shifting his gaze to Caspian.

"And what do you think you're doing?" Asher enquired of Caspian. His voice was scary; it had no feeling in it, but it was somehow still demonic.

It seemed like Caspian hadn't heard him; he continued to talk into the phone in a soft voice. Caspian put the phone down and was greeted with a bullet implanted straight into his chest.

He staggered backwards before he sunk down against the wall. He put a hand against his chest and when he drew it back, I saw that it was caked with blood. I had much the same reaction as Asher had when Janet was shot. My body felt like it couldn't function. It felt like an entire part of me had been ripped away and was lying in a ditch somewhere. The love of my life lay across from me breathing his last few breaths.

Chapter 81: The Butterfly Effect

Asher held my wrist and forced me to point the gun at Caspian.

"You killed the Mayor and his sons." My hand was shaking and so was my voice.

"Yes." He didn't try to deny it. "I'm Robin Hood, aren't I?"

"Why are you doing this? I asked, wanting him to say he was under Janet's manipulation.

"Are you familiar with the Butterfly Effect?" Asher asked me. "Altering the past alters the future."

Again with the butterflies. I chose not to say anything, instead I looked directly at Caspian. There was no fear in his eyes. He knew I wasn't going to shoot him, and somehow managed to exude an aura of calmness. He trusted me. I wasn't going to shoot him, but Asher's fingers were also quite close to the trigger. I knew Asher didn't like Caspian. He disliked Caspian more than Principal Hugh. And if he had killed Principal Hugh, he'd kill Caspian.

"A man from the past," Asher followed his question with an explanation, "has the power to change the future without anyone knowing it was him," he told me, keeping his eyes on the gun.

"So," I began. "If everyone thought you were dead, nobody would suspect you." His fingers curled around mine as he steadied my hand.

"How did you do it?" I enquired, turning my face slightly towards his.

His lips were pulled back over his teeth, reminding me of a wolf who was ready to charge.

"Newton Perry," Janet replied for him. "Plastic surgery works wonders."

It all made sense now: the wrong blood type, the short hair, the bee tattoo, the photo of Newton Wes and the fact that I couldn't find the bag by the pear tree.

"You can join us," Asher offered, his voice gruff and stern. "Don't you want to live in a caste free world, where everyone lives as equals. Just shoot him." He pointed towards Caspian.

I shook my head, tears beginning to cloud my view as the gun dug into the palm of my hand.

"Mads," he put on his big brother voice, and tried to get me to listen to him.

I shook my head and tried to draw the gun away from Caspian. Asher wrenched the gun out of my hand, and looked at me with fury in his eyes. His eyes set the room ablaze as he pointed the gun at Caspian, without turning his face away from me.

"Fine, I'll do it." He stared me down.

"Please," I begged.

But I could see there was nothing I could do to stop him. Asher pulled the trigger and I reacted without thinking. I threw myself between the bullet and Caspian. I heard a big bang as the bullet left the gun and whizzed through the air. And I closed my eyes and braced myself for the impact of the bullet in my chest. I expected it to throw me back into Caspian's arms where I would die. But that wasn't what happened, not even close. Asher had moved the gun to prevent killing me, but in doing so he had shot someone else.

Her sleek, cat-like body fell to the floor with a loud thud, and she clutched at her stomach. There was a large hole in her belly, just above her navel. Blood spilt onto the floor and it ran in different directions, creating a sort of pattern on the mat. Some of the blood was quickly soaked up by the mat, while the thicker splashes pooled on the floor.

"Janet?" Asher's face had lost all colour and he stayed rooted in place, as his girlfriend stopped squirming and she became motionless. Her pupils became dilated, confirming that there was nothing that could be done for her.

Caspian dashed to the bathroom, to where I had dropped his phone. I stayed where I was, knowing Asher wouldn't kill me; he had already proven that much. His gun was still pointed at the wall, where a couple of seconds ago Janet had stood.

I saw Caspian raise the phone to his ear as his eyes switched focus between Asher and me. I sucked a breath in, as I took a step towards Asher, but it wasn't necessary; his eyes never wavered from Janet's limp form.

I made a move to the get the gun from Asher, but he saw me out of the corner of his eye. He jerked his hand away and smiled. A psychedelic smile that made him look like the person he was. A murderer. The villain in the story. He surveyed me before shifting his gaze to Caspian.

"And what do you think you're doing?" Asher enquired of Caspian. His voice was scary; it had no feeling in it, but it was somehow still demonic.

It seemed like Caspian hadn't heard him; he continued to talk into the phone in a soft voice. Caspian put the phone down and was greeted with a bullet implanted straight into his chest.

He staggered backwards before he sunk down against the wall. He put a hand against his chest and when he drew it back, I saw that it was caked with blood. I had much the same reaction as Asher had when Janet was shot. My body felt like it couldn't function. It felt like an entire part of me had been ripped away and was lying in a ditch somewhere. The love of my life lay across from me breathing his last few breaths.

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