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I take a deep breath and look back out Va at each other Their eyes bleed, lifeless corpses of flesh, so desperate for hunger that they’ll soet his point

"We can go back," I say and he nods, darting for the back door

"So I’d be like the vampires?" I ask "That’s the price I have to pay"

"You wouldn’t look like one" He locks the back door, checking it twice "But you’d be like the for the next kill And you don’t have to pay the price," he says "You can choose to just be you"

"It’s time for you to just be Kayla" One of Monarch’s last words before he died

"So Bernard’s one of the about that too"

"No, he took the medicine" His voice is venomous "He made the choice"

"But he didn’t knohat he was doing," I say "We should have tried to help him"

"We did," he says "Where do you think those scratch marks came form on the hillside"

"He’s there," I say, relieved

"Was there" Aiden leans against the door "We had to turn him loose"

I shake my head "So he’s dead"

"It depends," he replies, standing up straight "If the others found him," he pauses, "It had to be done--he would have hurt so it off

"Does The Colony know about all this?" I ask "About these half breeds?"

He shakes his head "I think that everyone just assuhers?"

"Especially the Highers" He motions for me to follow him back to our pathetic little fire where we sit down on the rotted floorboards "I think the Highers want us all dead for sos," he says "I think that that’s what’s really supposed to happen at The Gathering Were supposed to be killed, thrown into body bags, and tossed into the infirmary"

"Then why doesn’t it happen?" I ask, thinking of how Maci spoke of Angels "Do you think soainst his honey eyes "I think someone makes it look like we’ve died, so they can toss us in the desert and we can be on our way to go on living hoant"

"Maci said soave her the vials" A pause "Do you knohat or who it is?"

"I already told you I didn’t"

I eye hihs, reaching for his bag "Well, I really don’t know"

"She also said the Angel helped Taggart," I say "Do you think he has so out because I didn’t stay locked up in the hospital"

"Taggart?" Aiden questions "You think Taggart could be the oneus all look like we’re dead?"

"He could be the one taking us out into the desert, though," I say "But I’h about death to make us look like we’re dead" There’s only one person in The Colony who I knoho could do so like that "I’d say it was Monarch, but he was He died right before The Gathering"

He props his back pack against the wall and leans back "Are you sure about that? Because if he is the one asus look dead, then maybe he did it to his I felt when I found out he was dead But it was never really said if he was Yes, Gabrielle iotten proof, instead of just accepting?

"What would you do," I say "If I did turn into one of those half-breeds? If I chose to die? Would you hate me?"

"You won’t," he says with confidence "I know you and I know you wouldn’t choose to be like them"

"But what if I didn’t have a choice?" I’ about the half-breeds any horrible and I couldn’t help it? Would you hateas you don’t put the medicine into you, you’ll be fine" He puts his ar "We should try to get some rest Do you want ot it," I say, stirring the fire with the tip of my knife

He yawns "Are you sure? Because I can--"

"I’m fine," I assure hi to doze off and I relax against the wall, letting the vahts

Chapter 31

I don’t fall asleep I stay up all night listening to the sounds of screams At one point, I take the vial and stare at the black liquid, bubbling inside the glass The only person I knoho could create such a ave the members--he just had to be Maybe he did fake his own death for some reason But then where is he now?

When Aiden starts to stir, I quickly shove the vial back into the bag

He sits up, his eyes blurred over with early lances around "You let ht?" He yawns

"I wasn’t tired" I stand up and stretch "Besides, it kept pretty quiet all night," I lie

He stands and kicks out his legs "You know I can tell when you’re lying"