TWISTED FATES BOOK 1: THE FIRST TWIST by Jacklyn Rogers (read after TXT) 📕

"Believe it or not, there are forces that are trying to protect you, Sammie," Jay explained. "But your assailant got the upper hand, which is why you're here with me now."

Thanks, Captain Obvious ...

"Don't roll your eyes at me, Sammie – I totally know what you're thinking." Jay chided then cleared his throat so that he could continue. "Now, back to what I was saying, Miss Smartass. You have peeps out there trying to help protect you, but clearly, it didn't work out. Just know that choices are being made for you at the moment. They may not seem to your liking, but they will be for the best hon in the long run. "

"What are these choices being made for me, Jay? Why won't I – "

"Sammie!" Jay abruptly interjected. "I'm running out of time, hon. Please just listen. Your fate was not the one you were born with. You won't remember, but the person that did this to you manipulated you and caused you to alter your own destiny. Who you are now is not who you were originally meant to be. That vile creature took what was yours and cursed you in the process. But because you didn't immediately die, like you were supposed to, you are now a threat to them and everything they stole from you. They didn't anticipate the ones that protected you from death. So Please, Sammie ... you have to be careful and pay attention to those around you. Not everyone you know is what they seem."

I let out a breath that I had not realized I had been holding. I noticed that Jay and I were now suddenly standing at the end of the corridor in front of a bright red closed door. He released my hand, and solemnly looked at me before he spoke.

"Sammie," he paused, "I'm afraid this is where our journey ends, sweetie. This door will lead you to where you belong. As much as I fucking wish I could, I can't follow you through it."

Tears began to swell in both our eyes. I was so overcome with a ton of emotions, but none worse than the pain of leaving my BFF again. I reached over and wrapped my arms around Jay and hugged him tightly, allowing his familiar scent of citrus and musk to fill my senses one last time. Slowly Jay pulled away and smiled at me. His Amber eyes glossed over from unshed tears as he slowly nodded towards the door in front of me, indicating that it was time for me to leave this realm and move forward.

As I slowly turned the brass colored doorknob, I took a deep breath and cautiously crossed the pitch-dark threshold into the unknown.

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For a brief moment, I wasn't quite sure where I was. I could hear the faintest sound of voices far off in the distance. They sounded like Jareth, Shay, and Astrid. From what I could discern, they seemed to be sad, but I didn't know why. After what seemed like a few moments later, I felt a fleeting sharp pinch on my neck, reminiscent of a bee sting. The sensation was quickly replaced by a feeling of euphoria flowing throughout my entire body.

That warm cushy feeling, however, faded fast ... real fast, I might add.

Without warning, it felt like the blood propelling within my veins was a smoldering river of fiery lava, slowly searing my entirety from the inside out. I wanted to cry out, but it appeared as if my vocal-chords, hell any of my muscular functions, were not working.

Ok, this is bad ... and I mean really bad.

Every essence of my being was struggling to move ... to do Something. But no matter how I tried, it seemed as if I was in this silent prison within myself suffering through insurmountable pain. The irony is that, for some reason, a sense of déjà vu swept over me. It was as if I had actually experienced this kind of pain before, which I don't know about you, but pretty sure that this pain is DEFINITELY something I would have remembered—just saying.

What the Fuck did you just do, Jareth?

I heard Shay yelling. Her voice was a lot clearer than before. Good sign ... I hope.

But why was she yelling at Jareth?

I needed to find out what the hell was going on. With a sudden burst of adrenaline, I tried to scream out one more time.

**********************************************************

I bolted upright in an unfamiliar bed. The sound of a scream reverberating throughout my ears. I was perfectly prepared to tell whoever was making the ungodly noise to shut the hell up. The surprised looks donned on everyone's faces in the room brought about the understating that the ungodly noisemaker was me.

Surveying the extravagantly decorated, very superfluous bedroom, I realized that everyone, myself included, was in Jareth's home. I was sitting up in the middle of a massively intricately designed mahogany four-poster bed that was festooned with burgundy and gold bedding. I looked over at the four awestruck people staring at me. They looked as if I had literally just died and came back to life or something.

Very weird ...

I was seriously confused about a lot of things at the moment. I looked down and observed that my clothes were completely ruined. My bare stomach was wholly exposed. What the hell happened to me? I glanced beside me and noticed my shocked boyfriend against the wall.

Why was Jareth on the ground? And why did it seem like there was some significant tension in the air?

I tried to clear my throat and say something, but the dryness the settled itself within my esophagus felt as desiccated as the Mojave Desert. Immediately, Jareth was beside me on the bed, wrapping me in a tight embrace.

Was