Contest: Murder in a Land of Madness 2

Host: Mermaid1211

Cold.

Cold.

So cold.

Winter flurries wink in the sunlight as they flutter elegantly through the air like little fairies dancing on the wind. An eerie silence blankets me in its warm embrace, wrapping long fingers around my body and cloaking me under its hooked wings. A forest of trees trapped me in on every side, a tangle of death and decay as the cruelty of winter suffocated the life from the branches.

Such beauty.

An iron taste spreads along my tongue from my continuous biting on the inside of my cheeks, the crimson red liquid drips leisurely from my lips into the snowy ground beneath me. Fingers, cold and lifeless, rested in one bloodied hand. Empty brown eyes stared up at nothing and curls of black hair framed her pale face, dripping wet from the snow. Her lips were faintly parted in a scream – or maybe in the ill-fated attempt to breathe – as I'd strangled her.

The fluffy brown coat still clung to her small, child-sized frame. Her jeans were soaked through and she'd lost one of her tennis shoes during our scuffle. There was a numb feeling in my chest, one that dulled the colors of the earth and muffled the noises of the forest. I glanced down at the pretty girl's face with a calm, yet curious, expression. She looked so innocent in death, so peaceful and sweet.

A piece of art. Carefully crafted, painstakingly posed, and elegantly frozen in time forever. A meticulously made masterpiece.

Her legs were bent off to the side and her head was tilted ever so slightly to the left, showing off the ring of purple-ish marks along her throat. A silver diamond encrusted locket rested on her chest, the silver chain broken and smeared with blood. My blood.

I reach out with one hand, running my fingers over the silver surface and giggle giddily. The necklace falls away from the girl's neck as I clasp the locket tightly in my fingers. It was mine now. Mine. All mine.

One pale hand was thrown off to the side, palm facing upward and the fingers curled slightly to expose the chipped, pink nail polish decorating her nails. The edges of her white toothed smile were visible through the gap of her pale white lips.

She'd deserved to die.

Because of her, I was hurt and bleeding. Because of her, I failed to complete my mission. Because of her, I'd lost him.

I'd lost him.

Him.

My target – Jordan Vangeystelen, a high importance member of a secret society. Five years ago my agency sent me here undercover to infiltrate the Vangeystelen household and kill Jordan. I'd spent five years planning my attack, five years pretending to be normal, five years playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse.

Today had been the day. And I'd come so close.

Until she got in my way.

Suddenly, the world shifts violently on its side and the baby blue sky darkens; the creamy yellow sun shifts into the shape of a crimson colored heart, dripping blood from various stab wounds. A swirling face emerges from the grotesquely beautiful image; bright green eyes and curly blonde hair – Jordan.

"Kill him." The voice whispers as the face of the dead girl lying before me glimmers past my vision. "Kill him Astrid, he'll lock you up if you don't." I slow smile stretches across my bloodied face, the scratch marks along my cheeks burn and I welcome the pain with open arms, biting down hard on my tongue. Subconsciously, I begin to bite at my fingernails, tearing madly at the smooth skin.

Kill him.

Killing.

It was addictive.

The blood, pain, and adrenaline rush pushed me on, drove me crazy with anticipation. The excitement, hunt, and kill – watching their last breath leave their still lips – quenched the growing bloodlust within me. And the pride, joy, and happiness for my artistic creations filled me with such frenzied elation that I couldn't wait to do it again.

"Yes." I whisper into the stillness of the forest, feeling a soft, gentle breeze swish the bloodied, mangled blonde curls atop my head, obstructing my vision. I sigh, setting the girl's hand down gently on her waist; completing my painting of an angel massacred in darkness. Cold and alone, with no one to help her. I sit back on my legs, feeling the icy chill bite into my skin and shiver with the thrill of it.

Cold.

Cold.

So cold.

The butcher's knife sat a few feet away from me, having been carelessly discarded when she'd followed me into the forest. That was his death, not hers. She was the angel, and he was the monster. The stabbing sensation was reserved specifically for him. Jordan. Jordan Vangeystelen.

I sat there in the snow, waiting calmly and humming a light tune. Placidly curling my fingers in the snow, enjoying the cool numbness that swirls through my hands, traveling up my arms and spiraling through my body.

He would come. Eventually.

He always did. He loved her. He loved me.

All I had to do was wait.

The blood red sun was slipping behind the trees when he finally came.

"Dai!" My head snaps up as the sweet summer tune gets stuck in my throat. Wild green eyes search the forest, seeking him out in a frantic buzz of excitement. A blurry, stumbling figure appears several feet away, their stride quick and anxious. A feral growl escapes my lips as the figures eyes lock on me, bright green gaze widening ever so slightly.

I spring to my feet, bare toes sinking into the glistening two colored snow and snatch up the knife in white knuckled fingers. The boy's eyes widen even further and he sucks in a tight breath, zipping the winter coat up a little higher.

"Dai, don't run!" Jordan calls, grasping ahold of a tree trunk with one hand and holding the other out as he cautiously approaches. A lifetime of moments pass as he crunches through the snow, his breath fogging in the chilly air.

But I didn't feel it. Only warmth and happiness swirled around me, the air tinted with madness.

He steps gingerly into the small clearing, his eyes flashing between me and the dead girl. He cringes and gasps in a suffocating breath, his jaw locking as he appraises my bloodied condition. "Dai, come home, okay? Everything's going to be alright." He murmurs in a voice full of heavy emotion, holding one shaking hand out to me, a nervous look in his eyes. I tilt my head, my lips parting in a bloody grin. Jordan flinches, drawing in a lung full of cool breath.

"No." My voice is small and sweet, a deadly mixture of serenity and exhilaration. Jordan gulps and retracts his fingers, his gaze traveling between me, the butcher's knife, and the dead girl. His lower lip quivers and he blinks rapidly, turning angry, yet tranquil, eyes on me. His body shook, whether from the cold or the anger, I couldn't tell.

"Why Dai? She was your niece, why did you kill her?" He wonders, voice tight with raw emotion.

Dai.

Dai.

He kept calling me Dai, but my name was Astrid.

Jordan locks his jaw, "Why did you kill her Astrid?" I blink at the way my name rolls off his lips, smiling faintly and shrugging, carelessly glancing back at the girl's still form.

"She got in my way." I respond unfazed, looking back at Jordan with an empty expression. He gapes, his mouth open and his eyes wide as he shakes his head and clenches his fists by his sides. A shimmering face glimmers just past his left shoulder, sweet brown eyes and long black curls.

"Kill him." She whispers, I nod and feel the knife clenched between my fingers. Jordan takes a step forward, oblivious to the girl hovering behind him, an evil grin contorting her features.

"Astrid –" A snarl slithers free from my throat, silencing him instantly as my lips curl back from my teeth. Without warning, I lunge forward and slash out violently with the knife. Jordan jerks and raises his arm to block the blow while using the other hand to nail me in the stomach. I gasp as the air is knocked from my lungs. Jordan pries the knife from my hands and tosses it far, far away.

A lethal scream crawls up my throat, filling the empty air with heart wrenching noise, shrill enough to make Jordan yelp. I throw the full weight of my body into him, sending us both flying back into the trunk of a tree. He grunts, taking the brunt of the blow, and locked his jaw as he grips ahold of my bloodied wrists.

In one fluid motion, he twirls my body around and traps my back to his chest. One strong arm locked around my chest while the other holds my wrists behind my back in a vise-like grip. "Astrid stop!" He shouts, anger vibrating through his voice as he presses his lips to my cheek, warm breath fanning my neck. A fresh, minty scent flutters through the air, swirling through my nose and tinting my vision for just a second.

The trigger.

My memory blanks as the sanity descends upon me, heavy and threatening.

"Please, okay?" He asks, the anger slipping away replaced by anxious desperation. "You need help. Okay? Just –" his voice cracks. "Please let me help you Astrid."

Astrid? Who's Astrid?

I gasp as crippling fear latches onto me, the cold bites at my expose skin, and tears slip from my eyes. "Jordan?" I whisper childishly, shivering in his arms. He gasps, his breath lodging in his throat.

"Dayanara?" He questions hopefully, I whimper and glance around frantically. What was happening?

"What – what's happening?" Jordan sighs, thumping his head against my shoulder and squeezing my body against his in a relieved soft of embrace.

"Nothing, nothing's happening. Just look away." He tells me, releasing the suffocating hold on my wrists and twirling me around to stare into his eyes.

I frown. "Look away from what?"

"Never mind." Jordan mutters, pulling me against him viciously tight before shrugging out of his jacket and draping it around my shoulders.

"You're okay, okay?" He whispers, gripping my face in his hands, the warmth from his palms biting painfully at the chill deep in my skin. There was agonizing pain all along my body, angry red scratch marks covered most of my exposed skin and my mouth burned from various bite marks.

A fevered anxiety descends on me all at once. Blood. Blood. So much blood. The shaking starts in my hands and travels all the way through my body, but it's not from the soul crushing cold. It's from the dirt, the grime, the blood, and the open wounds covering my body.

"Get it off. Get it off. Get it off!" I chant, screeching at the top of my lungs as the disgusting feeling causes my lungs to close up. Dirt, dirt, dirt. I don't like dirt. I can't. I can't. I can't handle dirt. "Jordan get it off!" I snarl, slamming my fists against the bark of a tree in a desperate attempt to pull the dirty skin away from me.

"Hey!" Jordan growls, clasping his fingers around my wrists and holding them firmly against his warm chest. He shakes his head and tries to catch my terrified gaze, his face a mixture of too many emotions. "Stop, Dai, stop." He urges, a note of despair in his voice as I continue to shake, thrashing in his hold as I try to rid myself of the dirt. "Dai, please. Stop. Okay? Just stop, relax, breathe. There's nothing there, you can't see it. Look, no blood, no dirt. See?" He holds up my arms, running one hand over the smooth clear skin and tries to force a smile.

"Nothing there, you see?" I nod, feeling air surge through my lungs as the constricting feeling in my chest disappears.

"I see." Jordan sighs, nodding his head as he fingers a strand of my clean, blonde hair in his hands. Clean, clean, I was clean. "Dai, I need you to sing, okay? And don't turn around." I frown at him, at the distressed expression on his face.

"Why?" He smiles softly and shakes his head.

"No reason, just don't turn around. Okay?" I nod, sinking down into the snow and leaning back against a tree trunk, the dark blue sky twinkling with stars as I began to sing. The melody flowed from my lips, terribly off key and unrecognizable, but soothing all the same.

Something bit painfully into my palm and the shocking sensation drags me out of my daze for a split second. Slowly, I unfurl my fingers to find a silver locket clenched in my hand. It was beautiful, clean and silver and bright. It was mine. But I couldn't remember how I got it.

Several minutes passed before Jordan came back, turbulent shivers wracking his body. He reaches a hand down to me and pulls me to my feet, wrapping his arms around my waist as I cling to him. "Come on, we're going to go home and I'm going to call a doctor. Okay?" I tilt my head and frown.

"Why?" Jordan looks at the snowy ground, tear streaks freezing against his cheeks.

"No reason Dai, no reason." His voice is cracked and sad but he gives me a soothing squeeze and rests his chin atop my head. I breathe out softly and press my head into my chest, listening to the way his heart beat fumbles.

Like he can't quite force himself to calm down, but he's trying really hard. Like there's too much emotion and pain swirling inside him but he's working intensely to hide it. Like he's mad and sad and terrified and hopeless all at once but unwilling to show it. Like he's in shock but it hasn't set in yet.

The walk home is long, cold, and tiring but Jordan forces me on, refusing to let me sit as we trek back to our small cabin in the middle of the woods. The safe house, he called it, a place where no one would hurt me. Only four people were allowed to be at the house; Jordan, Emily, Neveah, and Dayanara.

"Why do you need a doctor? Are they allowed to come to the house?" I wonder, tilting my head up to stare at Jordan as he guided me through the woods. He gulps and rubs his hand over my arm, keeping it draped over my shoulders.

"Yes, he is. He's going to help."

"Will Emily and Neveah be there?" Jordan cringes, a pained expression filling up his face and he trembles softly; but not from the cold.

"Neveah won't be there Dai." He says quietly, running his free hand over his face in a show of stress. I pout, puffing out my lower lip and frowning.

"Why not?" Neveah was Jordan's daughter, a cute girl with brown eyes and black hair like her mother, Emily, who was also Jordan's girlfriend. I liked Neveah, she was nice. Emily was mean, she called me names. Mean names, Jordan always got mad at her for it.

"Neveah is...gone, Dai." I pinch my lips together and twiddle with the locket in my fingers.

"When is she coming back?" Jordan's hold on my arm becomes so tight that shocks of pain vibrate beneath my skin. I yelp and Jordan jerks, halting in the snow to look at me.

"Never, Dai. She's never coming back." He snaps, voice suddenly cold and terrifying. I shrink away from him, tears wetting my cheeks as a crippling fear grasps ahold of me. Why was he acting like this? Why was he saying these things?

I pull my arms against my chest and press my back into the trunk of a tree, watching the green of his eyes flutter between a series of emotions in the moonlight. He struggles to get ahold of himself, breaking down into a fit of tears and anger and slamming his fists repeatedly into the snowy ground before finally dragging in unsteady breaths and composing himself.

He glances at me, green eyes carefully guarded, and reaches out a red knuckled hand. I shake my head, pushing myself farther away from him. Jordan sighs and hangs his head, an aura of defeat rushing around him like waves in the ocean. "I'm sorry Dai, I didn't mean to scare you." He murmurs, peeking out at me through blonde bangs and reaching for me again.

"I'm sorry, do you forgive me?" He questions, eyes alight with some unknown emotion. I hesitate, unsure of what to do before something urges me to go to him and the fear slips away. I tuck myself into his open arms, feeling them constrict around me as we continue to tromp through the snow.

It's long after dark when the flickering lights of the cabin come into view. A black car sitting in the driveway; Emily's car. She was shouting into the forest, a flashlight in her hands and a desperation in her voice. Jordan stiffens, sucking in a breath of tight air as we tromp toward the house. The light flutters across us and Emily gasps loudly.

"Jordan! Oh my gosh! Neveah's gone!" She cries, launching herself at him and forcing Jordan to release me. I stumble back into the snow, the locket tumbling from my numb fingers. A scream erupts from my chest as I dig my hands into the cold, fervently searching for the lost item.

"Dai!" Jordan shouts, his arms coming around my chest, pulling me up from the ground just as my fingers secure around the chain. I quickly hide the locket in my fingers, afraid that he'd take it away as he cradles my freezing body against his chest and carries me inside. Emily follows on our heels, ear splitting sobs wracking her body. Jordan sets me down by the fire crackling in the living room and turns on Emily, shaking her shoulders and forcing her to stop crying.

"She's gone Em, I'm sorry. She's gone." He whispers quietly, holding the girl against him and running his fingers through her hair as she sobs onto his shoulder.

"No!" Emily squeals, ripping herself free of him to stalk toward me, a vicious glint in her eyes. My gaze widens and I shrink back, my lips parting in a scream as she reaches for me. But Jordan's arms lock around her, dragging her back as she screams savagely at me.

"What did you do?! You monstrous little freak! What'd you do to my daughter?!" Emily's voice hits an undiscovered octave as Jordan launches her shaking body on the bed, climbing on top of her and holding her down, speaking to her softly. She struggles in his hold, eyes wild and frantic as she continues to yell and kick and spit at him. But he simply takes it, waiting patiently for her to calm down.

The horrifying scene continues for several minutes until finally, Emily just stills. Her violent thrashing having finally forced her body to shut down, her emotions completely overwhelming her. Jordan sighs and hangs his head, pushing himself away from Emily and grabbing his cell from the bedside table. He dials a number and holds the phone to his ear, a haunted look in his eyes; one of grim determination and sad reluctance.

Jordan glances at me and covers his mouth with his hand as he speaks quietly into the phone, I sigh and turn my face toward the fire, the feeling of weariness pulling me into its thick embrace. Warmth sinks into my cold muscles, making the chill not so bad anymore. "Thank you." Jordan mutters glumly, dropping the phone away from his ear and rising to his feet. He catches my gaze and smiles half-heartedly, beckoning me to him.

"The doctor will be here soon, come on, let's get the dirt off you and wrap the wounds." He soothes, a streak of unease slices through me.

Dirt.

No, no, no.

The shaking returns and Jordan's curses, clenching his fists. "No, no, Dai breathe." He rushes on, grasping my fingers and tugging me up from the chair. "Come on, this way." He guides me down the hallway to the bathroom where he sits me down on the edge of the bathtub and runs water in the sink.

"Close your eyes Dai, you won't see the dirt." I flutter my eyes closed, shaking uncontrollably as Jordan starts to hum a familiar tune. One that brings a wave of relief to me, making the shaking cease. A warm cloth touches my arm and I cringe back, my eyes flying open. But Jordan makes a shushing noise with his lips and covers my eyes with his hand. The cold metal of the locket cuts into my palm and I tremble, forcing my palm open and dropping the locket.

Jordan's breath catches abruptly in his chest as his hand falls away from my face, I blink and watch him pick up the necklace with trembling fingers. "That's mine." I whisper, Jordan gulps thickly and looks up at me with confusion.

"This is Neveah's, Dai, not yours." He retorts, a harshness to his tone. I bite my lip, rubbing it between my teeth and shake my head.

"No, I want it. Can I have it please?" Jordan opens his mouth and then closes it again without having spoken a word. He runs the cloth over the chain, popping the locket open to expose a photo of him, Emily, and Neveah. Jordan closes his eyes, tightening his fist around the chain and plucks the photo from the inside with a breathy exhale.

"Here," He hands the locket back to me, wiping the blood away from my palm, and inserts a fresh photo into the space. This one had only him in it, no one else. It was a little bit bigger than the spot provided but Jordan just bent the photo to fit and snapped the locket shut, wrapping my fingers around the chain. "Keep it close to you Dai. Always." He tells me as I twiddle with the silver chain, nodding solemnly.

"Always." Jordan nods his head, the painful look never leaving his eyes. "I'm sorry, is it bad that I have it?" I wonder, he doesn't respond right away as he busies himself with wiping my dirty arms and replaces his hand over my eyes.

"No. It's okay, I promise." Jordan says softly, dabbing at my skin with the cloth. I slump forward, focusing on the tune that erupts from his throat. The warm cloth slides over my skin, wiping away the dirt and grime I know it there but refuse to look at. Jordan removes his hand from my face and drags the cloth over my cheeks and down my neck then he tips my head back over the tub and dumps cups of warm water over my head, running his fingers through my blonde hair.

"Open your eyes Dai." Jordan tells me when he's done. His haggard green eyes drill into me, full of anguish and sorrow.

"Why are you so sad?" I question as Jordan lathers my arms, neck, and face in a soothing lotion that causes a soft, tingling feeling to sink into my skin.

"I lost someone very close to me Dai, she was hurt very badly." He explains, his voice colored with agony. I frown and tilt my head as he wraps soft white bandages securely around my arms, pressing pieces of cloth to my face and neck.

"Why didn't you save her?" Jordan sucks in a deep breath, his whole body trembling.

"I tried but it was too late." His deep voice cracks and he chokes back a sob, clenching his fists against his knees. I pout and slip off the edge of the tub to wrap my arms around my brother, burying my face in his neck and breathing in his scent.

"I'm sorry Jordan." I say quietly, hearing him intake harshly. "But you still have me, and Emily too." I tell him, pulling away to smile. Jordan gives a broken sob and shakes his head, cupping my head in his hands.

"No, Emily is leaving. And you are too little sister." I stiffen, confusion swirling through me at Jordan's strange words.

"Where are we going?" I wonder, Jordan sighs and gets to his feet, pulling me up with him. "Are you coming too?" He shakes his head and walks me back into the living room, but his calm demeanor shifts instantly at the sight of the empty bed. He jerks, forcing me behind him just as Emily explodes from around the corner, a gun held tightly in her hands.

I slam my head back against the wall as Jordan reaches out to snag his arms around Emily's waist. He catches her against his chest and points the arm holding the gun toward the ceiling, away from my chest. Emily screams, kicking and lashing out toward me, her fierce brown eyes burning holes into me. "Emily! She couldn't help it! Stop!" Black hair whips around Emily's face, adding intensity to the madness in her eyes.

"She killed Neveah!" Emily screeches and Jordan grunts as her elbow connects with his nose. He wrenches the gun from her hands, accidentally setting it off. The bullet buzzes through the living room, shattering a window and creating a booming inside my skull.

"Killer, killer, killer." The voice shrieks, a face swimming in front of my eyes. Brown eyes, black hair, a blazingly white smile. "Killer, killer, killer." Neveah accuses, pointing a pink fingernail at me. I shake, covering my face and twining my fingers frightfully tight in my hair.

"No!" Jordan snaps, pressing his hands to my scalp, preventing me from pulling wads of the blonde curls free. "No." He says, quieter this time and carefully detangles my hands from my hair. A darkness grasps ahold of me for a split second before Jordan's minty scent floods my nose and forces me to calm down.

Emily was lying on the ground a few feet away, a dribble of blood dripping from her temple. Jordan grasps ahold of me and pulls me up, setting me down on the bed. "Is she dead?" I whisper, barely audible. Jordan cringes and glances over at Emily.

"No, just knocked out."

"She wanted to hurt me." Jordan nods grimly.

"I know but she won't. I'll protect you."

"Always?" Jordan nods, thumping his forehead against mine.

"Always and forever." Sirens erupt through the silence of the night, followed by blue and red flashing lights. Jordan jerks, a deep sorrowful look overshadowing his features. "I need you to stay here, okay?" He says, peering into my eyes. "No matter what, don't move." I blink, glancing uneasily at Emily's still form.

"Will she –"

"No, she won't hurt you. Just please, stay here until I come to get you. Okay?" I nod and Jordan kisses my temple before standing to his full height and running his hands over his face. He steps out the door of the cabin, leaving me sitting all alone.

I stare at Emily's form, a swell of agitation overwhelming me. What if she got up and attacked me? What if she tried to hurt me again? Jordan wasn't here to protect me. The fear presses down on me, suffocating the air from my lungs and cling to the locket tightly. I pull my legs up to my chest and hum a simple song, rocking back and forth, keeping my eyes solely on Emily.

"Dai?" Jordan touches my shoulder, I jerk and scratch at him, surprised by his return. He hisses as my nails rake four long, ragged marks down his lower arm. I gasp and lean away, guilt gnawing at me. Jordan gives me a pained smile, pinning his bloodied arm to his chest and reaches out for my hand with the other. More marks covered his flesh, they were white and scarred – clearly long healed – but there were so many of them it was like looking at a child's drawing of random scribbles.

"Dai, come here." Jordan soothes, I gingerly get to my feet, slipping under his waiting arm as it circles around my body. Pulling me impossibly close to him for what felt like a final hug. Shocks of fear rip through me and I clench his dirty, bloody t-shirt in my fingers, refusing to let go.

"Where am I going?" I mutter into his chest, Jordan sighs and drops his chin on my head.

"A new home."

"Are you coming?" Jordan hesitates and the fearful feeling inside me grows.

"Yes," A heavy weight lifts off my shoulders and I melt into him. "but not now, you need to go without me and I'll come later. Okay?" Jordan pulls back, glancing down at me with desperate eyes. I blink and force a nod, feeling my insides shrink in on themselves. How could I go without Jordan?

"Why?" Jordan closes his eyes and clenches his jaw.

"Because I need to help Emily and –" He bites his lip and exhales heavily. "And someone else. But I love you, okay? You know that, right?" Jordan asks worriedly, I nod.

"I know, I love you too Jordan." He huffs a breath of hot air, blowing the damp blonde bangs away from my forehead. Abruptly, the door to our tiny cabin is thrown open and in barges police men and paramedics. I shriek and lurch backward onto the bed.

"They're in our house! Jordan! No one's allowed here! Stop them!" They crowd around Emily's body, lifting her onto a stretcher and carting her off. Jordan's face fills my vision, forcing my eyes to focus only on him.

"Don't look Dai, don't look." I feel my eyes fill with tears and cover my mouth with my hands, rocking back and forth to calm myself.

"Are they going to hurt me?" I whimper, referring to the people who'd taken Emily away. Would they hurt her? Or Neveah? Or Jordan?

"No, of course not. I wouldn't let them." Jordan soothes before pulling back slightly, exposing two figures dressed in white clothing. They looked weird, professional and cold, and a bit disgusted with the scene before them. "these people are nice, okay? They're going to take you to your –" Jordan cuts off, biting his lip, "I mean, our, new home." I blink curiously at them and wrap my arms around my knees.

There was something wrong with them, I could see it as they looked at me. They were like Emily. They didn't like me. They would call me names. Why was Jordan letting them near me?

"No." I whimper, shaking my head anxiously. The two people step intimidatingly toward me, their hands outstretched and their faces carefully blank.

No, they were going to hurt me. "No!" I shriek, Jordan twitches away from the shrillness of my voice.

"Hey, Dayanara, it's okay. Look at me." Jordan snaps, my gaze swirls toward his face and he smiles. "Go with them." I shake my head, throwing my arms around his body and pressing my face into his shirt.

"No!" Jordan sighs and holds me close.

"Please Dai." He whimpers, exhaustion tinting his voice. I hesitate, torn between the fear of leaving him and the desire to please him by doing as he asks.

Then, finally, I release my hold on him and hug myself tightly, feeling a growing sense of dread swirling in my stomach. "Okay." I mumble, Jordan smiles and steps back from me, turning away toward the table beside his bed.

The two people crowd forward, one touches my arm and the other keeps one hand in his pocket, a warning look his face. I wrinkle my nose at the two of them, hating the disgusting smell of hospital and sickness.

"Here." Jordan says, handing the one with his hand in his pocket a bottle. The man frowns at him and then at the bottle.

"Cologne?" The white coated man asks, frown at my brother. Jordan nods, carefully prying his injured arm away from his shirt to inspect the marks. He hisses through his teeth and reapplies the pressure to quench the bleeding.

"It's her trigger when she's..." He drops off, a troubled look on his face and in his green gaze. "absent." He finishes, choking on the word. "It's mine but you'll need it. It makes her Dai again, it reminds her of me." He says, barely audible. I frown at him, wondering why he was giving his stuff away if he would be meeting me at the new home later.

"Thanks." The man responds, tucking the bottle into his pocket. Jordan nods and backs away as the two people crowd around me.

An electrifying jolt of terror sweeps through me and I gasp.

He lied.

Jordan lied.

He's not coming with me.

A shriek slips my lips and I dodge the hands that grab at me, feeling adrenaline surge under my skin. "No!" I yelp, running around the little room as Jordan presses his back against the wall, his eyes closed and a pained expression on his face. "Jordan!" I call, terror twisting my gut. My brother clenches his jaw and turns his face – even though his eyes are closed – away from me.

A crushing sensation rushes at me, pressing in on my skull and killing the emotions inside me. A terrible anger erupts from somewhere deep inside me as the two people finally manage to corner me. One holds a syringe in their hands, full of a clear liquid, I gulp and shake my head. Torn between screaming and lashing out.

Then, suddenly, the person jams the syringe into my arm and I jerk with the pinching sensation. I scream, a burning hatred spreading through me. But all too quick, the feeling is squashed as a light, feathery emotion tumbles through my chest. My vision blurs and my limbs get heavy, my legs drop out from under me and the warmth electrocutes my skin. Arms wrap around my falling body, catching me up and holding me against their chest.

Soft fingers trace the outlining of my cheeks, drawing circles along my forehead and around my eyes. Jordan's face swims above me, tears in his eyes. He sighs and lowers his head to mine. "I'm sorry Dai, but you're sick and I can't keep you here anymore, not after –" Jordan cuts off, brushing the scraggly hair out of my face.

After what? I wonder, trying to form words with my lips. But they refuse to respond. The locket felt heavy in my palm but I curled my fingers around it, making sure it stayed with me no matter what.

"Understand, please Dai, I'm trying to protect you." He mutters, kissing my forehead seconds before the darkness catches ahold of me and drags my conscience far away under a comforting cloud of oblivion.