The Dare

Chapter 16

The day we were born my mother swore to it that Salem and I would always be the best of friends. Growing up it became true, nothing I did was ever done alone. Salem was always by my side, from making 'potions' out of the mud to crying over first breakups.

My mother never foreshadowed us falling apart, never saw a life where her daughters hated each other. I never saw it coming either until it happened. At the time of our demise it felt justifiable, it felt like we were in the right. But now?

Now my sister lays in my lap, blood pouring from her many wounds. The one that will be her doing is her neck wound, a gaping bite taken from the right side of it. Her blood is all over my hands, all over our clothes, and I can't stop the bleeding. It won't clot as my abdomen wound had.

Plainly, there is just too much damage. To put it bluntly, my sister is dying in my arms, and my world is falling around me. Nothing is grounding me, nothing is stopping my heart from shattering into a million pieces. My sister should not be dying, it should be me.

"That was so stupid of you-" I sob, words barely being able to form through the gasping of my crying. It was so stupid of her, so very very stupid.

"I couldn't...just let it..eat you.." With each of her words, blood gushes from her throat wound, so I shushed her; applying more pressure even though I know it's for naught. Conner had already scoured the bags of things left behind by the last people here and found no bandages.

"Please don't die." I sob, not knowing what else to say. "You should have just let it hurt me, you should have gone like you were told.." She chokes in response, blood dripping from her purple lips.

Salem is pale, washed out, and glazed with sweat. Her eyes, wide with fear, drip with tears. I only see her, I know her face will be burned in my mind. A reminder of how I failed everyone I love. My mom, my friends, and now my sister.

"Should we do something?" Avery asks, I can feel her hovering. She moves closer and I shy away, pulling my sister's body closer to mine.

"Leave them be," Conner says, his voice is gruff with his tears but I couldn't give two shits. He shouldn't be crying, it's not his sister. It's my sister, he doesn't even know her. None of these people knew her. I'm filled with sorrow and rage. I don't want to live in a world without her, I don't think I could even if I wanted to.

"Crow?" Her voice is weak, my heart aches and I feel like I can't inhale the way I need to.

"Shh, don't talk.." Her hand reaches to my face, I hold it tight against my cheek. My sister shouldn't be the one who got attacked. It should have been me, it was supposed to be me. I don't have a future, no plans.

Salem wanted to go to college, to fall in love, to be a vet. None of that will happen for her now, because she chose to save me.

"I'm...scared." She gutters, and I hold in my anguish. If anything, she needs me to be brave for us.

"Don't be, I got you. I love you, Salem." I haven't told her that in years when I should have told her every day. "I'm not going to let you go, I promise." My sister coughs again, blood splattering my shirt.

The pressure on my cheek lightens, and her hand falls from mine. There's a light exhale and then nothing, silence surrounds me and takes everything from me.

The only thing I can manage is a gut-wrenching scream, it bursts free from my mouth and shatters the air around me. I pull my sister's limp body to my chest and rock, trying to make the pain that washes over me go away.

"No!" I wail, my breath is taken from my lungs with each consonant. "No, no, no!" I can't stop the tears, I can't stop the gut-wrenching pain. It should have been me, why wasn't it me. I don't want this anymore, I don't want to be here anymore.