Relentless (Book 3)

Chapter 33: The Tenth Day - Part Two

Benjamin

I was roughly pulled toward my destination. Blinded, I stumbled forward, praying the entire way that Bethany's life and my own, would be spared today. I wished I could see her, could know that at least for right now, she was safe, that they weren't hurting her. At the very least, I hoped that her guards were being gentler with her than mine were being with me. Their grips on my arms were bruising. Thank God one of Bethany's guards was Rivers.

We walked, or should I say, I was mostly dragged, for quite some time before I was tossed unceremoniously into a seat and then trapped tightly between my two guards. I realized then that we were in some sort of vehicle when I heard the doors slam, the engine rev, and we started moving. I wondered if Bethany was in the car with me or if she was in one of her own. I figured she had to be in a different one because I couldn't feel her presence in this one.

When the vehicle came to a stop, I was pulled roughly from the car and was ushered forward to what was meant to be my final destination. We walked about fifty paces or so before I heard the sounds of hundreds of people gathered tightly in one area. A surprised hush fell over the audience when we stepped into view.

My skin crawled with the feeling of thousands of eyes trained on me. The eyes of the live audience right in front of me, and the eyes of those watching from home. I felt naked, downright exposed. I had to fight to prevent my body from trembling before the eyes of those waiting to watch me die. I felt almost ashamed standing up here in front of everyone, covered in cuts and bruises, covered in proof of the hell I'd just lived through.

But I wasn't going to shake, I wasn't going to shudder. No. When they took this bag off of my head, I was going to look down at the audience with a fire blazing in my eyes.

Cory

"What the fuck!?" Meredith shouted next to me, echoing my own thoughts as we both watched Benjamin and Bethany get dragged out on stage through the scope of our rifles.

I couldn't see their faces, they were covered by burlap sacs, but what I could see of them, had my blood boiling in my veins. They were both wearing very thin white cotton clothes. Peeking out of Benjamin's clothes were so many bruises, I couldn't count them even if I wanted to. And I couldn't even begin to imagine what lied beneath.

And Bethany. God. Bethany's white clothes were barely even white anymore. Lines of crimson blood soaked through her shirt and I was terrified of what sort of injuries were hidden by the cotton tank top. And she was covered head to toe in bruises as well. "Wait." I whispered seeing a strange mark on her collarbone. "What the fuck is that?"

"Oh my God!" Meredith exclaimed. "It's a fucking brand! Those bastards branded her!"

"Branded her?"

"Burned that symbol into her fucking skin!"

"Those motherfuckers." I seethed through clenched teeth. It took every ounce of will power I had not to pull the trigger and end the lives of the four monsters who escorted both of the roughly to the center of the stage. My finger twitched closer to the trigger.

"We'll get them, Cory, when it is time, we will get them." Meredith whispered next to me. "I know you want to cleanse this world of their presence now, but we have to wait until the time is right."

"I know. Dammit. I know."

She laid a hand on my shoulder, and trying to distract me from my rage, she asked, "Do you see my uncle yet?"

"No." I replied, my voice wavering with ire, "Not yet. You know he wouldn't just be sitting in the crowd. He'll have to make a grand entrance for the execution of him most wanted fugitive."