The Ravaging

Chapter Thirty-Five

It has been weeks since Finn was taken. Summer is in full force now, the bright sun beckoning us outside, yet I still find it hard to force myself to leave the house. It seems wrong to enjoy the nice weather that has come, since Finn and the others are being held prisoner, tortured for daring to defy their capturers.

We have all been feeling his loss, but especially our little family. Remy has always been the closest with Finn, the little boy finding comfort from my boyfriend. It is easy to see that he was neglected by his other family, maybe especially his father. Now that he has us, he clings as tightly as he can, as if afraid we might slip between his fingers. And despite his protests at first, it is easy to see that Finn loves the little boy just as much, always patient with Remy, even when he asks him to read the same book for the fifth time.

Now, Viola, she has reverted back to her clingy phase as well. We had just gotten her back to sleeping in her crib again, but now that Finn is gone, she has been refusing to be apart from me. The two of them have been sleeping in our room since they scream if I try to put them in their own beds. It is the one comfort I allow myself right now.

"Alden," my sister calls, her voice soft.

Lifting my head from the pillow, I look in the direction of my sister. She is biting her lip, looking as if she is debating with herself, before purposefully striding over to the window and pulling open the blinds. The bright light has me wincing, pulling the covers over my head, but she just rips those away too.

"It's time to get up, Ally," she says, squeezing my leg. "The final meeting is in an hour, and I have dinner ready. Come eat before you have to leave."

"Not hungry," I mumble, arm flailing around for the blanket. It has the faintest scent of Finn, offering me some solace.

"Too bad." Her hand tightens around my leg, giving it a harsh jerk until I am fumbling around, gripping onto the sheets so I am not pulled completely off the bed. "You barely ate any breakfast this morning, and you have stayed in here all day. Enough moping and get your ass in gear."

"Jesus, Anna," I say, pushing myself up from the bed once she lets me go. "I'm up."

"Good." She drops the blanket, walking over to my dresser to pull out some clothes before throwing them at my chest. "Take a shower, put those on, and come downstairs. Your children have been asking about you all day, and they deserve to have at least one parent with them."

Her words are biting, and she knows it. She just raises an eyebrow when my mouth drops open, daring me to argue with her. My hands tighten around the clothes, but instead of letting the harsh words in my mind slip out, I grit my teeth and walk over to the bathroom.

Anna lets out a satisfactory sound, but I slam the door behind me, not wanting to see her smirk. She has always been this way, overbearing in a way that verges on annoying. Maybe it is an older sister thing.

Slipping off my briefs, I climb under the stream of hot water. One of the benefits of this community was that it prided itself on running almost entirely on renewable energy. It was one of the first towns in America to become almost entirely independent of nonrenewable energy. Thank god the residents here had been so determined, or else we would be without hot water, electricity, and other goods that we use on a daily basis.

My shower is quick, and stepping out, I look into the mirror that sits directly in front of the shower. The towel drops from my hand and I take myself in.

Anna had been right. I am letting the stress and worry get to me too much. It is obvious in the weight that I have lost and the dark bags underneath my eyes. Shame floods through me at how low I have allowed myself to sink. I am acting as if I was the one kidnapped.