Page 103 of A Silence So Divine

Bringing my hands to my face, I dig the handle of the pistol into my forehead.

Fuck. Fuck.Fuck.

“It’ll be alright,” Veda assures me, southern drawl thick with cajoling. Her palm comes to my shoulder, but I shrug it off, continuing to pace around her small living room.

“We’re not ready.” They’re not ready,I wanna say. Through the window, Creed and Eden attempt to catch lightning bugs in their palms. The sky has bruised into a deep purple of dusk, and it’s too fitting for the ache in my mind.

“We will be. We don’t have a choice.” She’s resigned, and it somehow makes the pit in my stomach sink further. I’m not sure what I wanted her to say, but that wasn’t it.

There’s no winning. I should have known.

“But—”

“Cecil. Look at me,” Veda commands. Even though we’ve been on the outs recently, I obey. She comes to stand in front of me. Her crows feet deepen as she peers at me.

“We don’t have a choice,” she repeats, nodding her head in agreement with herself.

Swallowing thickly, I look back to the window. Eden’s teeth flash in a rare display of genuine joy, and I catch sight of her imperfect smile. On the tip of her index finger, there’s a pulsing yellow glimmer.

“What do we do?” The desperation in my voice is unfamiliar. I hardly recognize it.

A weathered hand comes to my cheek, and I peer down at the woman before me.

“We fight.”

Forty Two

Creed

Something is off.

My brother has always been a decent gift giver, but this surpasses even my expectations. And I once insisted on a pet pig.

“It’s not a big deal,”he insists. A toothbrush hangs out the corner of his mouth as I watch him in the mirror. I purse my lips in suspicion.

“You never want to go on trips.”

“It’s your birthday.”

“So?”

“So, I’m trying to be nice. Is that okay?”He shakes his head likeI’mthe one being unreasonable.

A glob of foamy spit shoots out of his mouth and slides down the edge of the sink. My nose wrinkles in disgust as I reach around him to turn the tap on, rinsing the basin.

With a whirl, Cecil fixes me with a glare and points the bristles at me. I put my hands up.

“Take it easy,” I sign, eyes wide in feigned fear.

Cecil’s eye twitches.“Do you want to go or not?”

My lips stretch into a mischievous grin.

“Of course I do.”

“Then leave me alone and pack a bag.”

Before I can respond, he drops the toothbrush on the countertop and exits the bathroom. Though I’d like to harass him further, I settle on a petulant huff and do as I’m told.