Unraveling Selena by Marisa Maichel (black female authors TXT) 📕

I felt sick to my stomach. Torrance was from the same dimension as Other Reese. Also, he was right. I really didn’t want to know how they reproduced. I smart-assed anyway.

“What, do the guys get pregnant, like those crappy alpha and omega stories?” I quipped. He smirked. I felt sick again. Male pregnancy was not something I was fond of reading about. I certainly didn’t want a bunch of alien babies in my belly.

Torrance grinned at me again. “You’re full of spunk. I like that. You’d be perfect by my side in my harem.”

“Screw that. Take me back to my house!”

“I would, except Reese wants to kill you. He offered to pay me a hundred grand if I did this. It’s a damn shame, but money is money, and most lives don’t mean that much to me.”

“Why didn’t he do it himself?”

“And mess up his pretty fingernails? Nah, most royalty has others do their dirty work for them.”

“Why don’t you kill me, then?”

“It doesn’t work like that. He looks exactly like you, down to that scar on your lower stomach. If you two stay in the same dimension for much longer, one of you will have to die, or the natural balance is screwed up. But if you kill yourself, he dies. But if he kills you, he stays alive and takes your place. I know, I don’t understand it, either, but like I said: money is money. And I need a new Zackary. He was so fucking hot, but he disobeyed me, and I had to punish him. I didn’t mean to kill him, but it happened.”

Soren

I was resting on the couch when my son burst through the front door, sobbing and mumbling incoherently.

“Son!” I jumped up and grabbed Louis’ arms. I heard the bone crack and loosened my grip. “Baby, what happened?”

He shook his head, whimpering, “It’s all my fault! It’s my fault!”

“Louis Emerson, tell me what the fuck happened!”

“It’s all my fault…Reese…took a walk…werewolf…Torrance…took Reese…...”

I looked back at my brother. Mordecai looked horrified.

“Where?! When?!” he demanded. “The one time I don’t use my gift, and my son is taken!” His eyes glazed over as he tried to locate Reese. “He’s in an old hotel along the coast, near Cape May. My baby…my poor baby….”

“It’s all my fault,” Louis continued.

“Shush,” I said. “Calm down and tell me how it happened.”

“Reese couldn’t sleep, so he went to go outside. I met him in the foyer and joined him. He wanted to be alone, but I convinced him to let me come along. It should have been me- “

“Hush,” I said. “Settle down and sleep.” I adjusted him, forcing him to look me in the eyes. I used hypnosis to make him fall asleep. Someday, he’d learn to fight against it. But now, I caught him as he collapsed. He started shaking, and I rubbed his back as I carried him to bed.

His dozen or so computers scattered the room as I set him on the bed. I took his boots off and covered him with the covers. He settled down and sighed, still fitful. I kissed his forehead, a feeling of paternal love going through me. My son was all right for now. I’d check on him later. He’d live.

I went back downstairs, a feeling of unease in my gut. My brother was quietly talking to Father, who looked distressed. The unease tightened uncomfortably so that my stomach was in knots.

“I will speak to the guards,” Father said. “You should sleep, Mordecai.”

“But my son- “

“He’ll be all right. He’ll live.”

“Father, this guy wants to kill him!”

“I know, I know. But I’ve been keeping track of their movements, and if Other Reese exists, he doesn’t want to kill our Reese right away. He’ll torture him first.”

Mordecai let out a moan of distress, burying his head in his hands.

“It’s my fault,” my brother finally said. “Not Louis’. My fault. My responsibility. What was he thinking? How could he do this to me? My son…”

He rubbed his temples. “What am I going to do? My son…”

“My nephew,” I said. “Mordecai, we all love him. Not just you.”

He hissed and grabbed my shirt, his irises turning red.

“He’s MINE! MINE! MY SON! MINE! YOU HAD YOUR CHANCE TO BE A GOOD FATHER- “

“I know I’m not father of the year! But I sure as hell am a damn good uncle!”

He punched me, breaking my nose.

“Boys!” Father said. “Enough! Mordecai, don’t hit your brother! Soren’s right. You’re not the only one who cares about Reese! We all do!”

Mordecai hissed.

Reese

I cried out as Other Reese broke my right leg. He frowned at me, looking confused.

“He should be screaming,” he said.

“Fuck you,” I retorted. He stepped on my stomach.

“Maybe,” he said. “But torture is more fun.”

He ripped my jeans open and kicked me in the crotch. I tried to move my hands but couldn’t. The adamantium rope cut into my skin. I cursed again as more blood trickled down my arms.

Father? I tried to contact him again. Nothing.

Other Reese tore the curtains from the walls, causing the sun to shine in my eyes.

“How long can a vampire stay in the sun? A few hours? A few minutes? We’ll see.”

He watched from the side as the sun beat down on me.

Before long, I began to feel sick. I vomited blood, which wetly hit the cement. I felt a burning sensation in my chest. My heart was suffering. Literally, my heart was burning inside my chest. I choked back a sob, knowing I was going to die if I couldn’t get a hold of my father soon.

The light became darkness, and I drifted in and out of consciousness. Stars blinded my vision, and the burning in my chest became unbearable.

“Enough,” said a distant voice. “Even I don’t do this.”

“Who’s in charge here?”

“This is enough. He’s suffered enough. Just kill him already.”

I passed out completely.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up, but I didn’t dare open my eyes yet. It was now completely dark outside, but the burning was still there. I continued to lay half-asleep on the cold floor, when I heard a voice.

“Reese?” It was Torrance. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know he was going to do this. Even I am not this cruel. When I kill, I kill without torture. When I torture, I torture, but I don’t kill. I’m so sorry. I will find your family myself and lead them here.”

I fell asleep again.

I don’t know how long I lay there, but I soon heard familiar voices.

“Reese! My baby!” That sounded like Father.

I tried to open my eyes, and an almost unbearable pain shot through my retinas.

“Reese! My son!”

I heard a ferocious roar.

“HE’S MINE!”

“What…?”

“Impossible…who are you and what are you doing with my son?”

“Your son? He’s my son!”

“No- “

“For Thor’s sake, smell him! He’s clearly not yours!”

I felt a nose bury itself in my hair.

“No, you’re right, this one isn’t mine.” I felt a whoosh of air, then my skull cracked against cement.

“Be gentle! Reese! It’s Daddy. How badly did he hurt you? Did he violate you?”

“Father,” I choked. “He burned me. I was exposed to the sun for too long.”

“Is that why your eyes are closed? Reese, did he burn your eyes?”

Still throbbing, I nodded, only to have a sharp pain shoot through the back of my neck.

“Well, I’m here now. Come on, I’ve got you.”

He picked me up, breaking the adamantium ropes. I fell in and out of consciousness as I exited the building in his arms.

It was a full week before I was able to open my eyes. Sarah visited me when she could and told me about what was going on in our high school. Noah and Mason still were not talking, and Duke had gotten in the middle when he took Noah’s side over the Amara issue. Amara herself was still blissfully ignorant about the brewing rivalry between the two former best friends, as she was still madly in love with Cole Powers, an eighteen-year-old senior who drove a motorcycle, had a face like a pug, and had long blond hair which he kept tied back.

When I was finally able to open my eyes, it took a while to adjust to the soreness and newness of everything. Sarah was there, looking worried. When she saw my eyes, she let out a small gasp.

“The sun did that?” she whispered, horrified.

“Technically, yes. I told you; vampires can’t stay out in the sun for too long, or we get burned.”

“I had no idea…”

“Well, now you do.” I was a bit irritated at her slowness.

She helped me sit up, and I was promptly greeted by Father, who hugged me tightly.

“Ow, ow…”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Reese. You need a cold bath and some blood.”

“I don’t need shit,” I snapped irritably.

“Yes, you do. I know you probably don’t feel great right now, but try to stand up. Sarah, grab his other arm.”

“I said I don’t need anything!” I growled.

“Watch it, fledgling. I am still your father, even if you are eighteen.”

I was annoyed at being called a fledgling, but I let him help me into the bathroom. I pulled my shirt off while Father struggled with my pajama pants. I drew the line at letting him help me take my underwear off.

Still sore and aching, I eased into the bath, which was nearly freezing. I drained it a bit and adjusted the temperature. Sarah watched, seemingly fascinated.

“Can I help you?” I finally said. She frowned.

“I need to go to work, anyway. Bye, Reese.” And then she left without a hug or a kiss.

“She doesn’t work today,” Father noted.

It took another day before my eyes and chest stopped hurting. My heart was emotionally drained, however.

My eyes were still red, but I was able to counter it with a few drops of saline. I was greeted with disgust and wonder when I went back to school. A lot of people had been told that I had pink eye, which made then want to stay away.

I told my friend the truth-that I had been attacked and exposed to the sun for too long. Human eyes can get sunburned, too, so they said they understood the pain. I told them they had no idea how much it really hurt.

What hurt more was the fact that Sarah was giving me the silent treatment. Then again, so was I. I kept thinking about all our issues and wondered if it was really worth staying with her, especially now, since I had an enemy who wanted to kill me and would go to any lengths to do so.

I kept looking over at Scarlett, who had no friends, and wondered if she had changed. She hadn’t bothered me or Sarah in weeks, not since her sister-who-wasn’t-really-her-sister Jordan died. One half of a broken soul. A confused, sad person, who was desperate for popularity and love, and wound up with neither.

Scarlett was hot, and if it wasn’t for Sarah, I’d have dated her. This realization prompted me to again question why I was with Sarah. Yes, she was sweet, sometimes too sweet. She had too many guys vying for her attention, and I was sick of competition. Scarlett had a kind of confidence that was both hot and annoying. She may have been a bitch, but I got the feeling that there was little risk of her cheating on me since no one else liked her.

I knew what I had to do. Sarah was annoying, too pretty, not smart enough, and too kind. Scarlett was hot, a total bitch, and I was still attracted to her.

It happened on Friday.

“Hello, Reese,” Scarlett said, sidling up next to me.

“Hello, Scarlett,” I said. My stomach dropped. What was I doing? I hated this girl. She nearly ruined Sarah’s life. She is the reason why she almost died. She attacked her for a reason that she didn’t even know if it was true.

If I was wrong, I’d lose everything. But if I was right, I’d gain everything. That was my thinking then. So, when Scarlett kissed