Page 83 of Pet: Genesis

“How did you save me? I know for sure those beams crushed me,” I say softly. I shiver from the memory.

“I did what I had to do to make sure you didn’t leave me.”

Remus’s tone captures my attention but before I can say anything else, there’s a light knock in the doorway. I look up to see Petra standing timidly, waiting for Remus to acknowledge her.

“Tsivoyah sharl?”1 he quips. She tenses from his tone, bowing her head in submission before she speaks.

“Tenma rive,”2 she says softly.

I don’t understand the drastic contrast of this interaction between them. Petra never seemed to be scared of Remus in the past. If anything, she admired him. But now, he seems irritated by her mere presence. Remus abruptly stands, continuing to speak to her in their native tongue, to which she nods her head, stepping deeper into the room. Remus looks back at me, his expression shifting as he takes me in.

“Petra will take care of you.”

He then makes his way to the door, leaving me alone with the doctor. She watches the door for a moment before turning back to me. She then silently begins to pull the cloth from my skin, shaking her head as she looks at my flesh. I’m as shocked as she is. I expected there to be some kind of scarring, at least. But it seems that she has once again proven why she was the chosen Leviathan that specializes in humanity.

I silently reach for my legs, running my fingers over the smooth skin. There’s nothing there. Even the scars from the blight have disappeared.

“How did you do this?” I ask. Petra doesn’t answer immediately, reaching for my skin to test it herself. She lets out a light laugh before lookingat me.

“I didn’t. Remus did.”

“...How?” My voice comes out in a whisper.

Petra only shrugs.

“That is something you will have to ask our leader yourself,” she says, eyeing me. I feel my heart beginning to beat a little faster as the situation slowly comes into perspective for me. Before I can dwell, Petra lets out a laugh, placing her hand against my cheek. She’s eyeing me with a look of pity.

“So, I was right,” she says. I look at her in confusion, unsure of what she’s talking about. She pushes my hair behind my ear, offering me a soft smile.

“He broke you, didn’t he?” she asks, her eyes searching mine in genuine curiosity.

“I don’t see any rebellion left in you. He broke your spirit, and yet... you somehow managed to capture his.”

1. Translated: "What is it?"

2. Translated: "They've arrived."

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Iris

I’m alone. My brother abandoned me, Jude was taken from me, Margot is dead, my parents are dead, and I have been left alone. The only presence I have is Remus, and he’s a constant, terrifying threat that I’ve come to realize is much too powerful. My brother, however, has not. What should have been a tearful, joy-filled occasion of finally reuniting was just me arguing with him, trying to convince him of why he should give up on going to war with Remus. I don’t understand what his drive is in fighting Remus. He saw for himself that Remus is indestructible and the weapons they used against him were useless. Why would he continue to fight? Why would he leave me without so much as an attempt to take me with him?

I’ve risked everything in giving all the information I could to the resistance, and it seems to have given them zero ground inthis “war.” I suck in a deep breath, pulling open the glass door that leads to the patio. The patio overlooks the beach surrounding us, the plant life immaculate atop it and filled with a plethora of colorful flowers. I angle my face toward the sun, enjoying the feel of the rays for the first time in weeks. Remus has been very strict about my recovery, keeping me indoors at all times. But finally, I have been cleared to roam free. Freer than he’s ever let me be.

There are no humans with inhibitors monitoring me, no Leviathan servants, or even Remus standing nearby.

It’s just me and my thoughts.

In the days since the attack, Remus’s behavior has been abnormal. I don’t know if it was the loss of Cypress and Jude and any chance of finding his brother safe or the fact that I almost met my end. Petra’s words are constantly torturing me with the possibility of Remus having feelings for me. He seems closed off and distant, more so than he was when we originally met. And he rarely leaves his office.

Whatever reason he has for dealing with humanity so patiently seems to be losing its importance the longer this stretches on. The rebels are backing themselves into a tight corner. And with the retrieval of Jude and Cypress, I know the corner is going to get much smaller for them. They seem to think that whatever they are doing to his brother is enough reason to continue to attack Remus. What they don’t seem to understand is that Remus and his brother are not the same, and that is information I gave my brother before he was rescued. I can only hope that instead of using it as moreammo, Cypress will take it as a reason to discontinue this empty fight that only results in the deaths of more humans.

I pull the locket open, looking at the faded picture of my family. I blink my eyes rapidly to force the tears down as I stare at the picture. We look happy. My brother looks so young and innocent, my parents seeming to enjoy the life they’ve created. A moment like that has been frozen in time forever, and I can’t even remember it.

I really am alone.

I don’t know if Cypress sees me as his sister or just a lost cause to the enemy. The more I try, the harder it is to find the will to fight. Even during the rebel’s attack, Remus’s only concern was me. He never seemed concerned about the mass attack with weapons beyond my imagination. And somehow, he managed to bring my mangled body back to a healthy version of itself.

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