Prologue
Poseidon / Jesse
Twenty years ago, Age fifteen
I wake up when I feel a cold hand touch my cheek. “Winnie?” I mumble, almost incoherently. “That you?” My best friend and neighbor, Winnie, has been crawling into my window and sleeping curled up next to me for years now, ever since her step-father started beating on her mom. When shit hit the fan, she would lock her bedroom door and climb out her window then into mine. The first time she did it, she was eight and I was ten, so by now, my mom was used to coming in and finding her asleep next to me.
“C-c-c-old, Jesse,” she says. I realize her hand is colder than normal and reach out to turn on the light next to my bed before I roll over.
I freeze. She’s covered in blood. Head, face, chest, arms. Everywhere I look, I see blood.
“Winnie? What the fuck happened?”
“B-b-b-art,” she stammers out, her teeth chattering. I’ve got to get my mom. She can help. I know she can.
Climbing out of the bottom of the bed, I grab the blanket and gently cover Winnie up. “I’m getting Mom, Winnie. Hang on,” I whisper. I won’t think about the fact that her normally golden-tone skin is grayish looking. Or that her lips that are generally red enough she doesn’t need to think about lipstick are blue.
Hurrying down the hall, I run into my mom’s bedroom and shake her shoulder. “Mom, Mom. Wake up! Winnie’s hurt, Mom. You’ve gotta help her!” Once I see she’s awake, I rush back down to my room and turn on the overhead light. Winnie hasn’t moved and her eyes are closed and my heart clenches in my chest.
“Winnie? Mom’s coming, hold on,” I chant, crouching on the floor next to her. I don’t know where to touch because she’s hurt everywhere, and I won’t bring my best friend more pain. My mom runs into the room and I see the horror on her face for a few seconds before she wipes it away and starts issuing orders.
“Jesse, hon, I need you to call an ambulance and the police while I see what I can do, okay?” she asks, moving toward Winnie, her bag in hand. She’s a traveling nurse practitioner and has gotten used to patching us up.
I nod and leave my room again, grabbing the phone and making the call my mom asked me to make. I turn the outside lights on and unlock the front door and go back to my room, only to hear my mom quietly crying as she works on my best friend.
“I can help, Mom,” I say. “Please, let me help.”
She nods and hands me some gloves that I slip on before I grab a gauze pad and try to stop the bleeding. Winnie’s eyes are closed and her breathing is shallow, so shallow I have to look closely to make sure she’s still alive.
“Is she… is she going to be okay, Mom?” I ask. I can hear the tremble in my voice, but this is Winnie. My Winnie.
“I don’t know, Jesse. She’s in pretty bad shape.”
I don’t feel my tears as they slide down my face while I help my mom try to stop the bleeding and clean her up. When I feel cold fingers touch me again, I glance down and see Winnie looking at me. Well, as best as she can, seeing as one eye is swollen shut. “Jesse,” she says.
“Shhhh, Winnie, rest. The ambulance is on the way,” I reply.
“I love you.”
“Love you too, my Winnie,” I tell her. And I do. Maybe it’s that innocent, kid kind of love, but we’ve been thicker than thieves for years and I don’t know where I end and she begins. As far as I’m concerned, she’s my girl. Always will be.
“I… I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing?” I ask. If she’s talking she’s gonna be okay, right?
“My… my fault. All of it,” she replies.
“No it’s not. Nothing you could have done deserves this at all!” I angrily state. “Now, rest, the ambulance should be here in a few minutes. You’ll be just fine.”
She closes her eyes and smiles and I see her take a breath. Then nothing.
Lillianna/ Lilli
Sixteen years ago, age 13
It’s my first day of middle school in a new town and I’m nervous. What if I don’t make any friends? I hate that my dad’s job caused us to transfer, but according to him and my mom, it’s a great opportunity for us all. Sighing, I walk out of the office with my schedule and head toward my locker with another girl by my side. “I’m Kassidy,” she says.
“Lillianna,” I reply.
She takes my schedule and looks it over. “Oh, awesome, we’ve got several classes together, as well as lunch! You can sit by me and I’ll introduce you to everyone, okay?”
“That sounds good to me.” I’m grateful for her offering of friendship. Well, companionship, but it all feels the same to me right now.
“I like your hair, did you do it yourself?” she asks. I think about my French braid and finally, I nod.
“Yeah, one of my mom’s friends is a hairdresser and she taught me how to do it since my mom has fumble fingers.” She giggles at what I’ve said and I find myself smiling back at her.
“I think we’re going to be the best of friends,” Kassidy states as we find my locker. “Mine is right here,” she continues, pointing to a locker two spaces down from mine. Once I’ve managed to get it unlocked, I stow my backpack inside after pulling out my Trapper Keeper and a few pens and pencils.
“Okay, I’m ready,” I say.
“You sound like you’re about to face a firing squad. I promise, we’re not that bad!”
I keep my thoughts to myself; this move was huge and leaving friends behind that I’ve known since kindergarten along with both sets of my grandparents, has me reeling a bit. On to a new adventure as my mom proclaimed as she dropped me off. Maybe this won’t be so bad afterall.
Lillianna
I’m holding my breath so hard right now, I see stars dancing behind my closed eyelids. I can’t believe what I’ve just heard and learned. I would puke, but that would draw unwanted attention to me, and that’s something I don’t need nor can afford to have happen right now. My knees begin to quiver as I tune back into their conversation.
“You’re sure she doesn’t suspect anything?” Kassidy asks.
“Not a fucking thing,” Anson replies. “We’ve got two weeks to go, then we’ll be on easy street, baby doll.”
These are the two people I’ve trusted most in this world, and they’ve betrayed me. My best friend and my fiancé, how could they? As quietly as I can, I force my feet to move and slip out, heading outside to my car. Once I make it back to my apartment unseen, I quickly begin throwing the belongings I can’t live without into my backpack, grab my electronics and chargers, then head out. I stop by the bank, which is thankfully open, and close down my savings and checking accounts. It’s only a couple of grand; but it should see me through until I can find someplace to lay down some roots.
Fuck you, asshole. I’m outta here.
Poseidon
I think I picked the worst week to come up to my granddad’s cabin. The forecast is now calling for blizzard-like conditions. As I carry in more wood, I’m grateful that I had the foresight to bring plenty of food because it looks like I might be here longer than I initially expected to be. Once I’m as prepared as I can be, I take out my phone and call my vice president, Loki.