ELUSIVE (Book 2)

CHAPTER 48

"Couldn't sleep." I cross my legs. He nods at my vague answer and looks at the clouds coming in.

"Grape?" He offers.

"Are they sweet?" I ask. Sour grapes are the worst and I just brushed my teeth so they might taste funny.

"A little." He shrugs, plopping another one into his mouth.

"Sure." I take my chance.

"Open your mouth." He says,  I do as he says and raise an eyebrow. He throws one into the air. I try following the grape so it lands into my mouth but instead I land directly on the rash infected arm and I wince in pain. Unfortunately for me Sawyer sees the drawing and brushes my pain away.

"What is this?" He states more than questions. All signs of playfulness gone. "I thought we agreed." He lifts my drawing book and flips through the pages, all of them gorier than the last.

"No, you agreed. I didn't have a say in anything." I pull my drawing book away. I sit on it so he can't take it from me.

"I've made up my mind, we're erasing our memory tonight." He says in a harsh whispering tone, he gets up and walks away.

"We will see about that, you can't just take away my memory of my parents!" I yell, but he doesn't argue back. We agreed on me having my memory of my parents for a couple more days. I should have made him sign a contract.

I grunt annoyed and throw a pencil.

"Is that a zombie you're drawing?" I hear a voice and I jump startled. "Or are you pleased to see me." My uncle Whitt is standing in a black suit. He looks the same, sweet and comforting and I want to run into his arms, but I hold myself back. He is standing alone on the other side of the locked fence. No one can get in or out unless they know the code and only Evan knows it.

I stand up, glaring at him. "Both." I take a step back but grab a near by stick to defend myself.

"Come on Opal, it's me. Your dear old Uncle." His voice has a pleasing tone to it and I almost fall for it, but remember that Sawyer said he's manipulative and plays mind tricks.

"Did you kill my parents?" I question. I want answers and I'm not going to get them if I beat around the bush.

"Don't be foolish." He says, and I lower the stick. "They died peacefully." He stuffs his hands into his pockets as he confesses to killing them. "You've only seen an accidental tiny glimpse, Opal. There is so much going on in this miserable world. I'm an aficionado, like Sawyer."

"You're a murderer."

"No one ever figures me out. And no one ever will." He says almost tearfully. I want to say he's almost sad but the void in his eyes causes me to shiver.

"Sawyer will." I seethe.

"That pestering pathetic excuse for a doctor. He's now just in my way. But I've had enough."

"Why are you here?"

"I've been holding back Opal, you don't know the half of it. So take this as a friendly warning, my dear sweet Opal."

"You let people die." I argue.

"People die sooner or later." He walks closer to the gate, holding on to the rails. If I take a few steps forward we will be face to face. "You can come out boy. You can talk."

I furrow my eyebrows confused as to why his attention is behind me, but I immediately feel Sawyers warmth. How long has he been standing there?

"Opal, go inside." Sawyer says pushing me behind him. I start heading up but stop myself when Whit starts talking.