~BOOK 5/PART ONE~ Paranormal: Too Close To Home (Multi-Bandom FanFic)

Chapter 8 - Kenya

I sat at the bottom of a hill, watching the water pass by in a trance. I slowly gazed up at the moon, noticing that it was almost full now. 

Time was running out. It was only a matter of days until Natalie would come after Rachael again. The town I once called home was in shambles, everyone still hated each other, and I was more torn apart than I'd ever been. 

Everything was so confusing. I had no memory, I had no hope in the future, and it seemed like I had no family again. I probably deserved it for all the shit I've caused.

I never once doubted that I was the cause of everything bad in the world, and because of that, I didn't deserve a single thing I had. I didn't deserve a family, I didn't deserve a pack, and I was beginning to think that I didn't deserve to live either. 

I ran a hand through my hair as I listened to the water hit rocks, the trees shaking their leaves, and the bugs secretly talking to one another. I heard a pair of footsteps approaching from behind me, and the scent filling my nostrils was familiar, calming. I didn't turn around or say anything as Lynn sat by me.

It was stupid to think of - especially at a time like this - but she was the only thing that made sense to me right now. Out of all the bullshit, the lies, the secrets, and the damage done, she was my clarity. I brought my knees to my chest and hugged them, not wanting to talk or even look at her for now. I knew it wasn't possible, but in the moment, I just wanted to fade away into the warm Louisiana night.

Lynn's voice brought me out of the daze I'd fallen into. "You wanna talk about what happened in there?"

"Not really," I mumbled while searching for stars. 

I knew she would be content just sitting there in silence with me, since she'd done it a few times before. The weight from my memory loss, my mistrust in my mate and my brother, and the events from today were all pressing down on me, and I knew I wasn't going to talk about it with anyone else. 

"Why didn't I just die right then and there in the hospital?" I wondered, turning my head over to Lynn. She gave me a sad look, and I dared to ask myself if it could get any worse. "I'm sure everyone would be happier if I'd died, or if I just faded away in my coma." I was on the brink of giving up for good now, but I knew fate was too cruel to let me have my escape. "I don't even get why I'm living anymore. I mean, it all seems pointless. We squash out one problem, another one pops up. First Christine, then my father, and now-"

"The demon," Lynn finished for me, "Kenya, it has to get worse before it can get better; you know that." I released my legs, allowing my entire body to lie flat on the ground. "Thing is, I don't think you see the good in the world anymore. Yeah, you may have died-"

"May have?" I joked, causing her to shove me. I laughed.

"Fine, you died," She admitted, "New Orleans was practically demolished, and you may never get your memory back. But if you let those things get in the way of what's right in front of you, then you might as well have never woken up."

"I know." I heaved a sigh. "I'm just tired of it all - the fighting, the secrecy, the mistrust, the hate. Like I said in Texas, I'm just done with it all."

"True, but you also told me you made this town a promise." I gazed over at the human girl, knowing she was right, and reached out to take her hand in mine. My princess slipped her fingers through mine. "You don't make a lot of promises, but when you do make them, you don't break them. Don't break the promise you made." I sat up and looked in her eyes, knowing that there was way more to that sentence than she was letting on. The entire car ride here, I could sense Lynn's fear about me abandoning her again, but that was the last thing on my mind. Five years ago, I made a single vow to her and broke it. Never again.