Shadows Of A Forgotten Spring

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Annie jolted awake at the sound of relentless pounding against her door. Her breath hitched in her throat; her body went rigid with fear.

No! no! no! no! Not yet! Her heart pounded loudly in her ears as she rummaged through the dimly lit room. Shadows were jumping around cracked walls and playing into her paranoia. She'd hidden so well, covering up her tracks so carefully, and yet, somehow they had outsmarted her.

Her fingers clamped over her mouth, stifling the panicked breaths threatening to betray her.

The knocking grew louder, more insistent. It was aggressive. Determined.

They were coming for her.

Heart hammering, she threw off the thin sheet and scrambled out of bed.

With trembling hands, she snatched her scattered clothes off the floor and yanked them on.

There was no time to waste. She had to get out-now.

Her mind raced with escape plans, but none seemed viable.

The door had been her only way out, and that was no longer an option.

And suddenly, it clicked.

The window!

She whirled toward it and flung aside the curtains.

The drop wasn't too high-if she jumped and landed right, she could run, disappear again before they caught her.

She reached over and snatched up a few pieces of yesterday bread from the bedside table and jammed them into her pockets.

She had no idea when she would eat good food again, but for now, survival was all that mattered.

Just as she was about to hoist herself up, the door exploded off its hinges.

Wood splintered into the air, crashing onto the floor in jagged pieces.

Annie recoiled; her breath caught in her throat as a towering figure stepped through the wreckage.

A man.

A man with broad shoulders, and a presence that filled the room.

His sharp features shone in the dim flickering light.

His eyes, dark as coal-unemotional and calculating-cut into hers and pinned her in place.

Power seeped off him, a palpable weight of dominance.

He was deadly. Lethal. And he had come for her.

12

Cen

08:42 Wed, 12 Feb B

Her lips trembled, nothing came from them. She tried to force words out, and still, only managed a weak swallow,noveldrama

Then, in a voice low and menacing, to the extent it sent a shiver down her spine, he spoke.

"Annie" A slow, deliberate pause. "Long time no seei

It was the most terrifying, voice she had ever heard.

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Jeremy ran to catch up, his voice rising high with urgency. "Jake's lost his bloody mind! He can't be serious about what he's just said!"

But John said nothing, didn't even slacken his pace. His jaw was locked so tightly it could have cracked under the pressure, his fists opening and closing, as if he were physically restraining himself from punching a wall or worse, punching Jake.

The words his older brother had spat at him still echoed in his brain. He'd sacrificed his entire existence to back him up and get his trust-but now it only felt as if the floor just got taken right from his legs, throwing him into free-fall without ground in any manner. It was the one thing that could have been his strength: believing in family. That had shattered, the wreckage slicing deeper than any physical wound.

Catching his breath, James spoke between deep breaths. "We cannot just let Jake continue to walk all over us. You see what happened today: even with Father still alive, he has completely taken over. And mark my words, John, he will do everything in his power to make sure Father never recovers."

He let out a sharp breath and flung his head back towards the sky, as if to glean some answers from the darkening clouds above. His hands quivered at his sides, his mind whirling with thoughts, none good.

Could it really be so that Jake-their very brother growing up, the brother in whom they had once placed all their trust-was so far gone he'd rather see their family destroyed than at peace?

The very thought made John's stomach heave..

Jeremy's voice did not rise, but neither did it lose its urgency. "We need to do something. Now. Before it's too late."

Without another word, John got into Jeremy's passenger seat. His silence spoke volumes more than any shouted fight, the simmering rage bubbling over. The ride back to their mother's was somber and quiet; even Jeremy himself didn't pipe up much to break that silence, keeping his lips set in a firm line. And as they went inside, mother was already awaiting them at the door; her eyes-those red swollen desperate eyes-looked well in their faces for some amount of good news.

She found none.

The knees almost gave in after seeing this on them.

A catch in his breath, while John averted his glance stopped it.

She stumbled backward, collapsing onto the couch with a strangled sob torn from her throat. "Where did I go wrong?" she whispered, her fingers digging into the material covering her body. "Where did I fail him?" Nobody was there to answer her question.

John fisted his hands at his sides, his gaze on the woman who had given them everything-who had loved them, no matter

08:42 Wed, 12 Feb.

how undeserving they were. And now she was breaking in front of them, blaming herself for a monster the didn't create Something inside of him snapped.

This wasn't just about their father anymore.

He had turned their home into a war zone. And if a war was what he wanted, it was a war he was going to get

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11

Vivian knelt beside Ethan, handing him a small cup of ice cream. "Here, sweetheart, she said softly, brushing a stray lock of hair from his forehead. "You need to eat something"

Ethan took the cone in his small hands and just stared for a long while. He was not hungry, but how could he be, with his sister lying pale and unmoving in a hospital bed? The doctors might have saved her for the time being, but everybody just kept whispering words he heard but didn't understand. So he forced this small lick; he didn't want to disappoint anyone, and most of all, Vivian.

She had been babysitting him since their arrival, making sure that he was fine while one was concerned with Emily's welfare.

"I wanna see de hospitial," Ethan chanted in the sudden, fantastic tones of childhood whimsy.

Vivian demurred for a moment and considered the youngster. His wide brown eyes stared into her innocently and vibrantly, reflecting a boundless energy she only wished she could shelter from view.

With a disconsolate sigh, she weighed her decision. After all, he had been stuck in the hospital for hours on end, with only worried adults staring at him from every corner, so maybe this wouldn't do any harm either.

She cast a look to the on-brooding guards: "Allow him some walk, but keep him in your sight," she ordered, and then faced Ethan: "And you-be back soon, okay?