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“It’s time to go home, Jo. It’s not safe here in Asphodel for any of us. Especially you.”

“No,” I protest.

“Ya don’t wanna go home?”

I stay silent. I want to go home, more than anything. For four years it’s what I’ve secretly longed for, but it’s also the place where I lost everything. There is no home to return to. I don’t feel like that girl anymore. I’m done running. There’s also Aedon. If I go, I won’t be able to come back. I’ve done it once, and I don’t want to do it again. This would be an easy escape from him. I could disappear and move on, or I could stay and venture into the unknown. Either way it’s my choice. I won’t let anyone take that from me again.

“Everyone is goin’,” he adds.

“What?”

“Everyone is leavin’. Packed up and headin’ back home. We should’ve done it a long time ago.”

I swallow. I wonder if Vivian knows. She might jump at the opportunity to go home. Bella would never protest. If she told Bella to stab herself, Bella would ask ‘how deep’. I can’t go. I won’t go. Don’t look back. Vivian and I agreed on that.

“When is everyone leaving?” My voice is hoarse. McFadden wasn’t the only one screaming. Mine was just in rage.

“It’ll take a week. The complex is just about cleared. Fiona took it upon herself to organize everyone. I didn’t realize how many of us have moved to Asphodel. Then you’ve got the outliers travelin’ here, too.”

I make my decision and turn on my heel, leaving the house before Stafford can protest. “Good luck.”

He may have asked, but I know better. That wasn’t a question. No one will take me back to the Republic, not even kicking and screaming. I’ll kill them if they try.

As I walk across the courtyard, everyone is staring. Mostly the wives. They wanted to talk all this time. Let them stare. Let them see who I am. I’m done running, and I’m done hiding. There is nothing left to take from me. No one left to put a face on for. Once they’re gone none of it will matter. I won’t be Josie the Remnant or Josie the rabid Rem Dog. I’ll just be fucking Josie.

Everyone has suitcases and bags hanging from their shoulders. Children hold their parents’ hands. They're really going home, back to supposed safety. I know better. It wasn’t safe enough to keep Killian and Kate alive. With me there, I would just be putting everyone in danger anyways.

“It was the right thing to do,” a voice calls from the other side of the yard. I pause and swivel my head, identifying it. Low and behold it belongs to Fiona.

She approaches me slowly, and the others fall in behind her. For once, instead of judgment there's something I never thought I would see: Appreciation. They’re all shaken. Betrayal is new for them. They’ve been affected so harshly that they’re all abandoning their lives here. Some of them have never even been to the Republic.

“Did he suffer?” she asks with malice.

I look her in the eyes. “He did. And anyone else who hurts you will, too.”

It’s a promise and I mean it. Our defense strategy isn’t working, so we need to change it, and McFadden was the catalyst for that change. Being separated from the Remnant will solidify their safety. I’m throwing myself to the sharks. I’ll do it with Aedon or alone.

She gives me a nod. “Are ya comin’ with us?”

“No.” I think I catch a glimpse of sadness in her eyes. Who would’ve thought that Fiona, of all people, would miss me.

“Be safe, Josephine. Take care o’ yerself. Maybe shower. I hope to see ya again someday.” She grips me in a quick tearful hug, despite my blood-soaked body, before returning to the crowd of people huddled around us. Fiona starts barking orders, and people tote their luggage, loading it onto trailers. A mass exodus. It’s for the best. I hope they find peace in the Republic.

There’s no point in going to my apartment. There’s nothing left of it. Aedon wants to marry me, but he doesn’t know who I really am. Sam said it didn’t matter, but I’m full of murder-fueled confidence. I’m finally my true self.

He thinks I’m violent, but he has no idea. He hasn’t seen me when I have nothing left to lose. It doesn’t hurt that I love to make an impression. Let him reject me, then maybe this strange dynamic we have can be over. I can cut ties with everything and be forced to start over where no one knows me.

I don’t bother with the walk. I can’t exactly trek through the city covered in blood without attracting attention. I wheel my motorcycle out of the shed and kick start it. All bets are off now that things are escalating. I’ve been reserved and hiding, trying to protect everyone. I’m not doing that shit anymore. I shove my helmet over my head and take off while Caleb and a few others escort people into the trucks. They watch me go without protest. Maybe they’re glad to be rid of me, the strange girl who showed up in the middle of the night with nothing. The one who brought about the destruction of their lives. I don’t blame them one fucking bit.

Once I roll up to Aedon’s building, Sam whips the door open. Instead of dismounting, I drive directly through the doorway. When I squeeze past him, he looks surprised, but he lets me by without a word. I jab my finger on the elevator button impatiently. It dings immediately, the doors sliding open, and I roll in, revving the engine impatiently.

Sam hurries in behind me and swipes the key card, pressing the button for the penthouse. When he exits the elevator, he watches me, shaking his head with a smile. I’ll give Aedon a run for his money. He said he liked all the chaotic shit about me, and I’m going to make him fucking prove it.

When the elevator opens again, the smell of exhaust trickles out around me into the foyer. I drive straight into the living room, right into a scene. Minos and Hermes are standing at the counter with their mouths gaping open. I haven’t seen them since they came to help Vivian move, and that was brief. I have no idea what they know about me. I guess they’ll figure it out.

I dismount, turn the bike off, and let it crash to the floor. Aedon looks like the most unbothered person in the fucking Universe, like I didn’t just disappear for several days and then insanely road rage into his penthouse covered in blood. I yank off my helmet, my blood-stained hair cascading out, and toss it onto the couch. Hermes looks like he might pass out, and Minos might, too.

Aedon is still unphased by the display, until his eyes land on the blood. He lifts one eyebrow with slight concern. “Yours?”