Excerpt from The Progeny
Ascher pulled
Shauna behind him, his stance clearly a protective one. But why-? Surely, she
didn’t need protection from her. His
grip tightened around her arm, his knuckles straining with tension. Her mind
finally registered his firm hold and sent messages to her heart and eyes.
She wiggled away
from him. “Let go of me, Ash! What’s wrong with you? Who is she?”
“I’m fine and
she’s nobody. Ursula was just
leaving.” He spoke with little conviction.
“The
hell I am…” the stranger mumbled, an unsavory smirk turning up the corners of
her mouth. “Tell her, Ascher. Tell her who I really am!”
“Yeah, Ascher,”
Shauna spoke in a mocking tone, her eyes becoming pieces of wet coal in narrow
sockets. “Why don’t you tell me the truth…who
is she?”
He froze, his
youthful face chiseled with a mixture of shock, horror and anger. “There’s
something you need to know.”
“Spit it out,
Ascher. Tell her! Or I will!” Ursula growled, her hands flicking the shades
away from her face.
Terror, worse
than any horror movie Shauna had ever seen. More ghastly than any monster a
mind could conjure.
Shauna clutched
her chest, stepping away from both of them. “Her eyes!” she screamed.
“Ascher…what’s wrong with her eyes?”
The stranger
giggled and continued piercing her demonized stare into Shauna.
Ascher struggled
to control his mounting anger. He clutched Shauna closer. “Do you trust me?”
The floor
vibrated underneath their feet. Shauna’s eyes became cold, the glare of
distrust swimming in them.
“No. I don’t!
Why are you so nervous?”
“You left Katy
alone. You should go back up with her. I’ll be up there in a little while.
Okay?”
“No. I want to
know who she is. Right now, Ascher! Who…is…she?”
“Please,
Shauna,”— he huffed with impatience— “just do it.”
“For cryin’ out
loud…” Ursula groaned.
“I warned you,
Ursula,” he growled, every part of him aching to rip her to shreds. She had
nerve. Were he not a gentleman, he’d finish her and be done with it.
“You don’t warn
me. Looks like you’ve been keeping a lot from her. Afraid she might not want
you if she knows the real you?”
His lips
strained against clenched teeth, begging to curl up and release a menacing
snarl. Control— He had to stay in control. Push the anger back down. Stem the
raging desire to lash out at Ursula.
Her red eyes
narrowed, the smirk taunting him, daring him to expose himself. He was strong
in his gifts, but rage made her stronger. Her mind turned, fighting off the
subliminals he hurled at her.
She cackled,
“That won’t work, dearest. It’s time she knows everything.”
“Dearest?”
Shauna questioned, her tiny fists balling.
Ascher reached
for Shauna but she moved away from him.
“Don’t touch
me!”
“Ursula, doing
this won’t change things between us,”
he uttered, knowing she’d never listen to reason.
“No! She
deserves to know the truth, Ascher,” Ursula responded.
“Ursula,
please—” He couldn’t believe he was begging her
for anything.
Ignoring his
pleading, she continued, “My name is Ursula. Ascher and I are to seal in two
days.”
Shauna drew in a
staggered breath. “Seal— as in marriage?”
Ascher sighed.
“Is this true?”
Shauna demanded.
His head dropped
in shame. “Yes, but…”
“So she is your fiancée? And let me guess, she’s the first.”
“Shauna, I can
explain.”
Shauna clutched
her head with both hands screaming, “No!” The window, behind her, cracked. She
ran towards the door, fresh tears flooding her face. Ascher grabbed at her,
missing. “No!” she shouted again. The ceiling rumbled, water raining down from
the sprinklers. “Move!” she shouted, pointing towards the door. It flew open,
nearly ripping off its hinges. Ascher appeared in front of her. She scowled then
pushed him back. “Go away!” she yelled then watched as an unseen force moved
him from her path. She turned, backing away from both of them, her eyes fixated
on the two. Her finger twirled then pointed at each of them. “Stay!”
“I hope you’re
happy now,” he growled at Ursula then sprinted after Shauna, catching her
before she hit the stairs. He clutched her, turning her to him. Distress
blanketed her face. “Shauna please, just let me explain.”
A strange burn
started in her legs. What’s happening to
me? She’d had rage issues all her life but never anything like this. Her
normally clear eyesight was now blurry and grey. The hall—she’d seen for three
months and knew like the back of her hand—became an unfamiliar maze, veiled by
her fuzzy vision.
She took a step,
stumbled then regained her balance against the wall.
“I told you how
important honesty was to me and you’ve been keeping this from me the whole
time. You told me she was nobody… that it was only physical curiosity. It
doesn’t look that way to me. She talks like she owns you. You told me it was over between the two of you. How were
you going to cover up getting married to someone else?”
“I wasn’t, just
listen to me...”
She shook her
head. “I’ve listened enough. I can’t trust you. Without trust, we have nothing.
All you’ve done is feed me lies. You’re a liar! I despise liars! I can’t
believe I was going to sleep with you—allow you to be my first.” She gripped
her stomach and doubled over. “I’m going to be sick…”
He reached for
her, again.
“Don’t touch
me!” Every ounce of restraint left her body. Chaos now flooded her brain. She
wanted to lash out. No, she needed to
lash out.
“Shauna. Just
let me take you home. I promise I’ll explain things to you.”
“What part of, ‘I don’t want to hear your lies’— don’t
you understand?” she seethed through clenched teeth, her anger blazing directly
into him. “Back…!” she barked, pushing her hands away from her body, towards
him. He flew back against the wall. “I don’t want to hear it! Don’t touch me,
Ascher,” she sobbed into her hands, “I hate you. I wish I’d never met you!”
“Shauna…?” he
whispered, pain and disbelief creasing his face.
“Just leave me
alone. I never want to see you again.”
“Shauna you
don’t….”
“Oh yes I do— I
mean it and I quit! I can’t work here any more.”
She ran out the
emergency exit, setting off the door alarm, sprinting—into the night.
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