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On instinct, I jump into a defensive position, and am surprised to see Jondy jump with me. Ben and Zack step out of the trees, guns trained on both of us.
"What are you doing here?" Jondy asks, confused.
"Cleaning up a mess." Zack answers. Zack, my favorite brother, or had been. Jondy takes a step back, startled.
"What do you mean? We were only supposed to capture her…" Zack still doesn't bother looking at her. He takes the safety off his gun.
"She's murdered our commanding officer, and contaminated your thinking. She's a threat to Manticore, and now, so are you. All threats to the good of Manticore are to be eliminated." Ben, his gun still trained on Jondy, takes the safety off his gun with a cold click of finality. Jondy's face whitens.
"You…you can't mean that. We're family." She sounds desperate. A small voice in the back of my head is saying that I should have some kind of reaction to this too. Be afraid. Be angry. Be something. But I'm not. After everything that's happened in the last 24 hours, I'm just too tired to care. My body seems to have suddenly gained lead weights, freezing me where I stand. Original Cindy and Logan aren't in sight, so they're safe. And what else could I really expect? I knew it was dangerous but I did it anyway, I took out Lydecker, the head of Manticore. Somewhere in my heart, I knew there would be consequences, and now that they're here…that part of my mind gives a mental shrug, and shuts up.
My brothers' eyes have never looked so cold, so empty. It's not how I remember them. Neither of them has ever been exactly warm and loving since we first tried to escape, or even before then, really, but I don't remember them ever being cold enough to kill their own family. Maybe Good-Old-Deck did another mind-job on everybody. I was never this bad. Was I? Not that it really matters now, I'm not one of them anymore, and I never will be again. And my choices seem to have been eliminated anyway.
Jondy seems to realize the same thing, and tears begin to form in her eyes. Simultaneously, Ben and Zack lever the guns at us. I brace myself for the shot, but stubburnly keep my gaze locked with Zack's. Time seems to slow down as he carefully starts to pull the trigger.
"NO!" It comes from three voices at once. In a blur, Jondy dashes to the side and grabs Ben's throat, snapping it. Logan and OC jump Zack as he spins on her, knocking him to the ground. Jondy and I stare wide-eyed at them for a minute, watching Zack fight to stand up up with both of them on top of him. Not the smartest thing either of them have ever done, but it took guts. A swift kick to Zack's head from Jondy ends the struggle. OC and Logan stand up, then walk over to me and each put a gentle arm around me. I'm still staring dumbly. Jondy kneels down next to Zack's head, stroking his hair tenderly. I feel like I'm going to be sick. My brothers are dead. I rest my head on OC's shoulder, tears streaming down my face for the upteenth time today.
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