Title: The Forgotten
Author: Mariah Deitrick
Email: mariahdeitrick@yahoo.com
Excerpt Heat Level: 1
Book Heat Level: 1
BLURB:
Addaline Walker is sentenced to death after
being accused of a crime she didn’t commit. Determined to save herself, she
makes an impossible deal with the man who wants her dead. Every time she fails
to get him what he wants, he threatens to kill someone she loves. With time
running out, Addaline must face her fears, swallow her pride, and allow help
from Xander, a seventeen-year-old boy she was raised to fear.
As Addaline and Xander race through the
guarded city to save themselves and their loved ones, Addaline uncovers horrifying
secrets that will leave most of the city dead. With hundreds of lives on the
line and Xander by her side, Addaline sets out to stop the man trying to kill
everyone.
EXCERPT
"Please, please, please,"
I begged for what seemed like the millionth time. That one word played like a
broken record in my head as if that was the only word I knew.
For the past three days, I pleaded
with anyone who came near me. I wasn't begging for my life. That was the last thing
I wanted. Death was much better than the torture I'd endured. All I wanted was
for someone to kill me.
I felt foolish now for spending so
much of my life concerned about death. Death was not the worst thing that could
happen to someone. Living a life full of pain and fear was much more agonizing.
Since I'd been yanked from the
prison, near drowning and beatings were all my life consisted of. I couldn't
figure out why they didn't just kill me, but I didn't ask. Every time I opened
my mouth, pain followed. I quickly learned to keep quiet.
Even after the days of torture, I
thought they would at some point end my misery. Of course, Dr. Grant wasn't
kind enough for that.
"The Elders and I had a meeting
last night. Since you've already established a bond with the criminals, we've
decided you will get us the information we want," Dr. Grant told me after
having me pulled from the pit for the third time that day. "But this time,
we're giving you a little more incentive."
I flinched. What more motivation was
there? They weren't about to offer me my life again. If I wasn't successful
with my own life on the line, why would I do it knowing they were going to kill
me?
Horror and comprehension hit like a
bolder. My breath came quick and unsteady. My hands trembled.
Page.
Dr. Grant chuckled. "I see you're
catching on. After all you've put me through in the last few days, I'm not
stupid enough to offer you your life again. Besides, that clearly doesn't mean
much to you. But, you might be willing to work harder if Page's life is at
risk."
Tears sprang to the tiny slits that
were the remains of my beaten eyes. I shook my head and ignored the pain the
action caused. "No," I mumbled through swollen lips.
His chuckle turned into a booming
laugh. "You're actually willing to let your twin sister die for you? Are
you really that selfish?"
Sobs rumbled through my chest. "No,"
I said again, forcing more anger into my tone. "Leave her alone." My
words were so indistinct I wondered if he even understood.
When a twig snapped and a blurred
figure moved toward me, I cringed away.
"Let me make this very clear,
Addaline," he said from so close I could feel the heat radiating off his
body. "This is not a request. You will do as you're told or Page will die."
"Please," I begged again,
the broken record spun out of control now. Once again, that was the only word
that my mind could conjure up through the thick haze in my head. It angered me.
I wanted to scream at him, but I couldn't. All I could do was beg pathetically.
Dr. Grant didn't even acknowledge my
pleading. He simply said, "Take her back. I'm done with her."
For a second, I thought he meant the
pit, and my body stiffened. I was tired of this game--physically and
emotionally exhausted. I just wanted it all to end. It seemed like a cruel joke
that he would continue to suck every last bit of emotion out of me before he
finally let me rest in peace.
Once again, Mac tossed me up on his
shoulder, but before he could get too far, Dr. Grant said, "You have one
day."
I knew at that moment I was not
going back to the pit.
Water dripped off my saturated skin,
hair, and dress, leaving a muddy trail behind us to the prison. Not that anyone
needed the trail to follow us. I moaned loud enough for anyone in a mile radius
to hear.
The first gust of cold air came when
Joe opened the prison door for Mac.
"Whoa, that's cold. I'm
definitely going to have to change after this," Mac said, and we both
shivered.
Joe laughed. "Why do you think
I had you carry her?"
"Thanks," Mac said, and
shuddered again. "Remind me to return the favor later."
Mac walked in ahead of Joe. The silence
in the prison was more profound than it had been before. I didn't want to think
of all the helpless teens that had been drug out of here while I was being
tortured.
"You two get to the corner over
there and turn around," Joe ordered once we were standing outside the
Forgotten's cell. He must have realized there was no quick way to drop me off
since they couldn't shove me from behind.
The cell door creaked open and Mac
took two quick steps in, dumped me on the ground, and darted out.
My breath hissed between my teeth as
I choked back the shriek that crept up my throat.
"We'll be back," Mac
warned with a chuckle.
"One day," Joe said.
Because even the slightest movement
would have tipped me over the edge to unconsciousness, I didn't acknowledge them.
Despite his aversion to me before,
Xander was at my side in an instant. "What did you do to her?" he
asked, concern thick in his tone.
The guards merely chuckled and
sauntered away.
"She's soaked," Xander
said. "I need your coat, Grandfather."
"That won't do any good. We'll
need to get that dress off of her."
I tried to shake my head. "N...no,"
I stuttered already trembling from the frigid air. But, dark or not, I wasn't
about to let them strip me down. Dr. Grant and the Elders hadn't managed to take
all my dignity, and I wasn't losing what little I had left here in the prison
to the Forgotten.
A warm hand clutched the fabric
clinging to my thigh. I flinched away automatically then moaned.
"Shhh, Addaline," Xander
soothed. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just have to get this dress off."
He didn't wait for my reaction before yanking my dress above my hips.
Surprisingly, I wasn't jostled much at all.
"Please don't," I
muttered, trying to pull the dress back down. Tears streamed down my cheeks.
He ignored me. "Do you think
you can hold her while I pull the dress off?" he asked Julius. "I don't
think she'll put up much of a fight. They beat her pretty bad."
"Of course. Whatever I can do
to help," Julius said.
Four hands gripped me as lightly as
possible. "We'll try not to move you too much," Xander assured.
Slowly, they sat me upright. Air
hissed through my teeth and more tears streamed down my cheeks. The pain was
excruciating. "Please stop," I whimpered.
"It'll all be over in a minute,
I promise," Xander said. "Do you have her?"
"Yes," Julius said.
"I'm sorry," Xander
whispered. Then without warning, he gripped my wrists in one of his hands and
wrenched them over my head.
A bloodcurdling scream escaped my
lips, but they didn't stop. More torture, I thought. No, I couldn't handle
anymore. "Kill me," I tried to tell them, but my words were lost in
the sobs.
Sasha took her revolver from
Alvin, fished her spray out of her pocket and finally took a deep slow breath. "I
really hope it's not a vampire overlord," she said with a strained smile
and opened her door.
