Chased by Life and Death

Chapter 46

Ian

I opened my eyes. My head throbbed, but I slowly stood. I don't know how many weeks had passed and I hadn't talked about Monica. She didn't return. Her room was still the same. The place was empty. Dead. I rubbed at my chest.

NO. 

She had told us lies. Even her best friends who have known each other since they were babies. But Emma's statement was right. Monica couldn't even talk to us about it. It was like a knife to our hearts. We loved that girl. We loved her until we knew she was a monster that everyone said.

I went to the kitchen. Logan had stopped bothering to make breakfast. I hardly saw Hunter and him. They said they had work. Bullshit. They just didn't want to deal with this. Parker, Ethan, and Micah sat at the kitchen table, eating some eggs. They looked like shit. Well, we all did. I took my seat. "How are you?"

"Tired." Micah exhaled. He had been working with the council more than the other times. He often went to fight creatures like Logan and Hunter. But he didn't talk with his father or brother. He worked alone.

I nodded. "How's Noah?" Noah was the most sensitive of us and took Monica's betrayal the hardest. He was in depression. He barely spoke, drunk, or talked. He just locked himself in Micah's and Ethan's room. Luke was kind in the same lost way as Noah. He spoke, but he was lost. Sad. Hunter didn't talk. He was silent, along with Logan. Parker was most of the time with Ethan because he couldn't stand Tristan's behavior. Tristan was the same as Noah, but he took his anger and sadness on the alcohol, night fights, and girls. Lots of girls. Every day he was with another one.

"Still lost," Ethan said. "What about Tristan?"

Parker slammed his hand on the table. "He's being an asshole. To Monica. To us. To himself. He's passed out in the bathroom."

"What do you think?" Micah asked Ethan.

He was skeptical for a moment. "I don't know what to think about. If she had a reason, she would have told us. She doesn't keep things from us. All these years."

"I agree. I thought the same thing. Over and over again." Parker agreed.

"But everything was true. She couldn't even tell us in our fucking faces." I argued. It doesn't make sense.

"Why are you assholes talking about her?" Tristan growled as he walked inside. "We talked about this."

Micah stood. "Yes, but don't you think-"

"SHE LIED! WE DID EVERYTHING FOR HER! BUT WE ONLY SERVED A MONSTER!"

Parker stood too and glared at him, fists clenched. "Something is off. Don't you feel it? You said you loved her. Even a monster would have a reason for doing this. But you couldn't even let her-"

Tristan's fist sent Parker to the floor. He went back for more. "Stop talking! Why are you at her side?!" I rushed with Micah to Parker, and Ethan to Tristan to separate them before they could destroy the room.

"What the fuck is going on here?" Hunter's voice boomed. We stopped and looked at him. "Hunter-"

"I don't want another word. All of you go to your rooms."

I didn't look back as I exited the kitchen. I had to clear my head. I couldn't deal with this. Something inside me said to go, look for her, and apologize for making her feel so much pain. But I didn't.

I was a coward.