65

'I'm going to die.'

This was Sienna's only thought as Adrian dragged her by the hand. He moved so fast that her body almost lifted off the ground, flapping behind him like a scarf in the wind.

The closest thing she had to compare this stomach-turning feeling to was the fairground. It was like being strapped into the Waltzers as he flung her through the doorway and turned.

Gravel sparked under her feet, creating a cloud of dust as she tried to run. It was hopeless—her legs just couldn't move fast enough.

Adrian grabbed her under one arm and sped up further. The world became a blur. She squeezed her eyes shut tight and held her breath, letting her body go limp.

When Adrian stopped suddenly and placed her on the ground she staggered before steadying herself. All those tumbles at cheerleading practice were finally paying off.

Her breakfast almost came up when she straightened up and saw him.

Damien. And his head was perfectly intact, almost as if he hadn't recently been blasted into pieces.

He didn't look angry, but then, how would she be able to tell? He never was very apt at showing his emotions.

Adrian shifted, getting in front of her as if to form a protective shield with his body. It would do little to deter the monster before them, but the ice around her heart thawed slightly over the fact he'd tried.

He assumed a defensive fighting stand whereas Damien just stood, perfectly at ease, arms folded behind his back.

"Come on, now." Damien tutted. "This will go far more smoothly if you don't fight."

"Screw that," Adrian uttered. "You can choke on me."

"I'm not planning on killing you." Damien sighed. "If I wanted you dead, you'd be able to tell on account of the fact you'd be dead already."

"Yeah, right." Adrian snickered. "So what do you want?"

"You were closer than Scarlett and the others, so I figured I would use you to lure them back here," Damien said. "My plan might seem a tad basic, but I'm sure Scarlett and Riley won't leave you to die. If they do..."

Damien shrugged and smiled.

"...I'll kill you and switch to tracking them directly."

Damien chuckled.

"However... I only need one of you. However shall I choose?"

Adrian glanced back at Sienna. Something in his eyes worried her—his expression both desperate and sad.

'He's going to throw me under the bus,' she thought.

"They are more likely to come if you keep both of us. Riley will come for me, Scarlett for Sienna," Adrian said. "Come on, you're smart. You know I'm right."

Damien made a childish face. "But I really want to tear her limbs from her body."

"Yeah, sometimes I do too," Adrian sneered. "But she's more useful alive."

"Hey," Sienna muttered. She kicked him in the back of the calf.

He flashed her an annoyed glare, widening his eyes as if to say, 'Help me out here!'

She shuffled out from behind her protector to face the boy who wanted to kill her. The one she had loved with all her heart. Seeing his cool blue eyes still made her heart skip a beat despite everything that had happened.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm sorry for making you hate me this much. If I could go back and do things differently I would—"

"In your time machine?" Damien interjected with a lopsided grin.

The reference to her weird little breakup speech made her cringe and look away.

"You can read minds. You know I'm telling the truth. That I'm sorry. And that I'm not just saying that because I want mercy," Sienna said. Her lip began to tremble. "Please. Please... I don't want to die."

Suddenly Adrian's hand was in hers, providing the strength and support she needed to hold herself together.

"Please, Damien," Adrian whined. "If you take us both we'll promise to behave. We'll do whatever you say. If you kill her... I'm going to be as much of a pain in your butt as I can manage."

This made Damien chuckle. He threw up his arms in defeat. "Fine. Whatever."

He slipped between the pair. Taking one in each of his arms, he led them through the carpark to his vehicle.

Adrienne waited inside. She looked different without her usual make-up and clothing—no less stunning but more human... and scared.

The goth girl wouldn't meet her eyes as she and Adrian shifted into the back seat. Sienna's urge to chastise her for helping this monster track and kill her friends dissipated as she finally made eye contact. It was like looking into a mirror.

'She's another victim in all of this mess.'

As the car zipped down the highway, all windows open, Sienna's hair whipped at her face. She pulled it back and sat in silence, listening to the music blasting from the speakers. Damien's favourite band.

Their socialist lyrics sparked a question that she couldn't keep to herself.

"You know... genocide isn't very left-wing?"

Damien stopped singing along and froze. For a horrible moment, she thought he might just twist around and pull her head from her body.

He turned in his seat and peered at her from between the headrests.

"This world is rotten and has no hope. The new world I create will be a socialist utopia," he said.

"With you as what? Its ruler? Its leader? Its God?" Sienna asked. "Sounds more like a dictatorship."

Damien shrugged. "My world will be better than this one. Not that I need to justify myself to you. You'll be torn to pieces long before my plans come to fruition."

Sienna shivered at the thought as he turned his back to her and resumed his singing. She winced as Adrian flicked her in the side of the leg.

"Do you maybe wanna keep your mouth shut?" He hissed. "It's like you want to get yourself killed."

Sulking, Sienna hung her head. He had a point, but still... she wasn't the sort of person to shut up and accept her fate.

If she was going to die anyway, why not try to put up some semblance of a fight?

Adrian grabbed her hand for the second time that day, squeezing more gently this time.

"It'll be okay," he mouthed. "I'm not going to let him kill us."