Gen Three- Chapter Thirty Seven

Sensitive topic matter addressed this chapter

Waking up this time could not have been more different than it was this morning. Yesterday morning? There was no way to tell the time as my eyelids slowly fluttered open. The unfamiliar room that held me offered no windows or even a clock to let me know how long I'd been out. Dread consumed me from the instant my consciousness hesitantly returned to when I lay there in a gentle daze working through the pain exacerbating the headache I'd had. I went with the routine of wriggling my fingers and toes before moving onto my wrists and ankles before daring to move my legs, arms, waist, back, and neck. Movies and video games were bad proponents of the concept that a person could be physically knocked out without any consequences. No matter how one did it there would be injury in some way, and depending on the type of hit one could face internal bleeding, clotting, or stroke. My lone relief flittering inside my chest was that Timber had clearly done some kind of research. He'd gone for one of the safer spots to take me out. The headache flared over every inch of my skull, but everything else seemed to be working fine.

I daresay my body was cooperating too well. My ability to disbelieve lasted for a few brief seconds before my mind got back to work. Timber had given me my surprise, and knocking me out to bring me here after revealing he was with The Company was ridiculously extreme for a practical joke. The Timber I knew wouldn't think to do anything like it for a prank. That meant it had to be true.

I shuddered as I gingerly sat myself up. Truly, the headache pounded my temples as if my head no longer had room for anything inside. My chest hitched painfully with the indecision to have me scream or laugh. Could our family be cursed? Grandma, grandpa, and dad...I wondered if their cases of being taken and waking up to find themselves as I now did were like this. The Company was nothing if not consistent. I guess this was a tradition our family had to carry on. I just had to ask, why? The same question I'd been asking myself all day. I couldn't figure out Timber's plan more than I could Arbor's, although obviously no more worrying had to be done on my boyfriend's behalf. He was innocent, exactly as I thought. Hell, I bet everything was as Confetti said. The Thickets were falsely blamed to mess with us. To serve as a warning for the real threat to come. Perhaps to even be a distraction for Timber getting me by myself. But, again, why? Why me? Why not take grandpa or Uncle Wisp- the two most connected to the original incident all those years ago? Unless they had been taken. Maybe the entire rest of my family were in their own rooms like mine. That was too hard to believe though. Even for The Company, that was a lot of people to capture when the government was already on edge and watching. This room was too nice as well. To make so many of them was an effort I couldn't imagine they'd take on.

Letting out neither a scream nor a laugh, I exhaled long and slow before propping myself up more. I swung my legs over the edge of the bed before eyeing the cup on the nightstand. The contents looked like water, but naturally I remained suspicious. My body craved a drink, however, when I glanced at the clear liquid. It'd been hurt and tired from the day's stresses. Dipping my finger into the liquid and hesitantly sucking to see what I could gather, my shoulders relaxed a little. It was just water. I drank the whole thing before I could stop myself.

That combated the headache somewhat. A few more minutes of sitting upright and gently putting more and more weight on my legs allowed me to stand and walk without issue. From there, I acted. No doubt this place was well locked up and guarded despite the cheerful and comforting atmosphere. My chance at slipping away before someone arrived was slim. Still, I had to put this alone time to use. If only the warning signs of my capture didn't send daggering chills up and down my back. The bed was one of those ones that lifted up into the wall. The choice to have more space in addition to the exercise equipment on the other wall signaled I wouldn't be going outside anytime soon. They were how I was to prevent myself from becoming a blob devoured by cabin fever. The computer on the desk turned on, but lacked any internet connection. The bathroom in the corner was just a bathroom.

The door to it was clear glass. The door to the living space was the same. The Company clearly didn't want me to have too much privacy. Support for my long-term capture increased when I explored the second room. There was a washer and dryer for me to do my clothes. There was a kitchen area, although there was nothing in the fridge, no knives or forks for me to use as weapons, and the stove wasn't connected so I could cause a fire to force them to take me out of here. Would they though? If I risked burning to death, they might just let it happen. Me being expendable didn't make a ton of sense considering they'd gone to such great lengths to make my space bearable, but there remained the risk that they couldn't care in the end. In any case, it didn't take more than a single walk-around for me to see everything there was to see. The partitioned section in the corner held baskets of blooming flowers and pots with ripe-to-pick edibles like grapes and lettuce. Did I have to grow my own food? A television and couch sat in the center of the room while the other corner housed two bookshelves and a cushy armchair.

That chill stabbed through my body once more. The more I glanced around, the more I realized something was off. Something was wrong, and it didn't make sense. I rubbed at my temples until more of the ache faded for me to understand what that was.

There was no door.

I hurried back inside the bedroom and even into the bathroom. Besides those two glass doors, there were no other ways to move between the spaces. How in the world had I gotten in here then? Had The Company mastered teleportation?

I would have smacked my head for being ridiculous if that wouldn't have hurt me more. There was an explanation somewhere. I simply had to find it. Eventually, I did, but it took me the better part of an hour. It started with me knowing the door merely had to be hidden, and from then I began knocking on the walls. The lack of windows was for one of two reasons. They would be an unnecessary addition that could potentially permit me to escape, or I was underground. I found the latter more likely when my knocking revealed thick sounds from everywhere I went. Dirt pressed back from the other side. Hollow reverberations then came when I went from checking the bedroom to the living area. The one corner that jutted out had empty space behind it. Bending over to look, faint scratch marks on the wood hinted of something heavy being moved back and forth.

Really? A hidden door disguised as a bookshelf. It was so out of a story that I actually felt a bit impressed. It was kind of cool to see it for myself. And so I had that brief moment of admiration before I began pulling, tugging, and pressing against it. My efforts rewarded me with a bit of give as the bookshelf would wobble slightly when I shoved the frame. If only I could get it to slide.

     "It didn't take you as long to figure that out as I thought."

Timber's voice echoed from a speaker. I nearly jumped out of my skin, but hurriedly glanced around for the source. It didn't surprise me in the slightest that there were speakers and definitely cameras. They were too well hidden for me to find though.

     "You won't be able to get through though. It's controlled by a remote, not a button behind a book or something. Even if you take out the books and try to smash through the wooden backing, there's heavy metal behind that to reinforce it," his disembodied voice explained, "I'll be down in a minute. You can stand by there and try to escape if you want when it opens, but there's more security past that you can't slip through."

My feet paced me madly back and forth. More bothersome than the fact that I knew Timber wasn't lying was how normal he sounded. His voice wasn't triumphantly gleeful or mocking. It wasn't cold or dark. This hidden Timber sounded like my friend, and when the bookshelf slid open a minute later the person who stepped through looked just like him as well. He even motioned behind him to the empty room with a proper door, pure metal and thick as hell with several types of locks, permitting me a chance to go inside if I wanted. I stood right where I was.

     "This is a terrible surprise." I rebuked, glaring ice his way.

The bookshelf slid closed and locked with a 'thunk.' Arbor didn't hold anything or reach into his pocket to press a button. The remote had to be controlled from somewhere else with another person watching. No chance to take it off him then.

     "I said the surprise would life changing. I never said it would change things for the better," Timber shrugged lightheartedly, "Although, maybe it'll make you feel better to know this has screwed me over too. The plan didn't go exactly right, so dad and I are left not quite sure what to do."

     "Your dad's in on this too?"

     "Of course. You can thank him for being the cause that allowed these events to snowball into what we find ourselves in today."

     "How long have you been a part of this?" I demanded.

It didn't matter that I had loved Timber differently than I loved Arbor. The betrayal nearly collapsed me to my knees. Now that he stood in front of me, the influx of warring emotions of anger, fear, and sadness chipped at the calm determination I'd had so far.

     "Forever. Since I was born. Dad had me for the express purpose of getting his revenge. There's quite a story to tell though, so why don't you and I take a seat at the table?"

     "I'm not sitting with you."

     "You can stand then. I don't mind. Whatever makes you feel better." Timber replied nonchalantly.

I had half a mind to leave for the bedroom. Timber would follow me in, but any protest felt like a little victory. Curiosity, on the other hand, won out over my anger. A thousand and one questions filled my head, and Timber gave no impression he wouldn't answer them. He sat confident and content at the table where I stood on the other side glowering down.

     "I'm a little surprised you haven't asked if this is a joke or a mistake or something." he spoke still as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

     "I'm not that stupid."

     "No. No, you really aren't," Timber agreed, "Well, let's get right down to it. My dad and I are members of The Company. He was with another group before them, but for reasons he made a switch. Part of his plan involved getting in close with your family, and he felt at the time the best way to do that was to have a child of his be friends with one of you. Dad monitored your family until he got confirmation that your mother was pregnant. He used a Company surrogate program to find a woman to give birth to me. The insemination luckily worked the first time, leaving you, Gilly, and me close enough in age."
     "Roti Silo was the surrogate?" I pressed, ignoring the reality that The Company had been spying on my family since before I was born.
     "Nope. Dad technically knows the woman who carried me, although they haven't had any contact since I was born. Roti Silo was a random woman I found on the internet to use the little you could trace of her on the web as a filler mother in the scheme I created. That explanation will come further in the story, so we'll get to that later."

I opened my mouth to speak, but couldn't find any words to say. What could I really say that would have any impact in this divulging of lies?

     "Dad didn't want to have us meet from when we were super little. He had to mold me how he wanted first, and us being friends from before we could remember would mean I'd be much more resistant to hurting you." Timber continued.
     "You don't seem to mind that your dad raised you more like a project than a son." I pointed out sharply.

Timber shrugged again.

     "He did, to an extent. I know he does love me though even if it make no difference to me."
     "Why not?"
     "Because I came out...unique. Dad got extremely lucky in that regard. I most likely appear to be looking and talking the same as before I ruined your life, and that's because I don't feel. The only thing that sort of guides me is interest. A hint of curiosity. Otherwise, there's nothing. No happiness, sadness, guilt, anger, empathy, whatever. That means I will act as I have been, because everything is an act. I mimic a typical person, but I'm not swayed by the events around me. It makes it easy to keep up the facade."
     "You're a psychopath." I whispered, stunned and frightened.
     "That, or I have some kind of dissociation disorder. We never pressed to find out a diagnosis, although whatever I have is something of a family trait according to dad. My grandfather was similar, although not to the lengths I am. He could feel to some extent and hid his tendency to be explosively violent."
     "So you know your grandfather then. Another lie. Is he upstairs too?" I snapped.
     "Oh no. He died before I was born, and it was his death that was the catalyst for this. You have to know, Dia, that your family, especially Blaze, your grandpa, and dad, are gigantic liars too. Understandably so, but half of what you know is a deception by them."
     "Please enlighten me." I growled through gritted teeth.
     "First off, Blaze was a member of The Community, the group that brought The Company down originally. Through our investigations we discovered he started your grandfather in their work from the time he was a child. Amaranth wasn't oblivious of your grandma's situation growing up. He monitored her the whole time. He was there when The Community broke her free, and it was his decision to continue mucking about with secret groups afterwards that got himself captured."

Timber paused, gauging my reaction. My attempt at an impassive expression failed as I clearly hung on his every word. Timber continued.

     "Amaranth's parents died in an accident when he was an infant, or so the world was told. He believed their deaths had been premeditated- that someone killed them. He narrowed his suspicions to another group; a group so good at staying hidden doing what they do that they don't have a name. Not even a nickname. Amaranth dug into their files looking for evidence."
     "But they caught him." I concluded.
     "Precisely. Good job."

I wanted to throw something at him. The smile he flashed exploded rage in my chest. Now knowing the truth, understanding Timber couldn't even feel guilty for what he was doing increased the fury of my anger. It wasn't fair that he wouldn't lose so much as a wink of sleep.

     "Specifically, it was my grandfather, Buckeye, who caught onto his searching."
     "Buckeye?"
     "The name is familiar to you, I know. Amaranth and your dad included him in the lies they told. Anyway, grandfather organized the capture of Amaranth. He technically should have reported him to the higher ups, but he felt the situation not important enough. It is true he held Amaranth captive and had him work in a warehouse for ten years, but anything said about The Company being involved is the lie. So Amaranth worked, grandfather got a little violent with him from time to time, and eventually he released him back home as promised after his sentence was served. Then your dad accidentally stumbled across Amaranth's files of his research on the day grandfather ordered him to delete it all. Grandfather couldn't let that slide, so he captured your dad too."
     "But the higher ups found out Buckeye was acting without permission. They agreed to release dad, although not for the reason he gave of them being afraid of a search for Ethereal Yonder's son. Buckeye got pissed as they let dad leave and attacked him." I ran the story through my head with the new filter.
     "Yes, that part is truth. Your dad blacked out, however, and was left unaware of what happened next. Simply, grandfather got himself shot and killed. It was how the higher ups stopped him from murdering your dad and possibly the others around him."
     "So it was his own damn fault." I huffed.
     "It really was, but, obviously, I don't care one way or the other. Dad, who had been working with that group for a few years, thought differently. He was pissed and upset about them taking away the only family he had in his life. Off he went to The Company to consolidate their efforts for revenge. There was no way to take action against his ex-employer as they were too guarded and aware of his intentions. That's why dad turned his attention to who else he could blame- your grandfather and dad. He could have organized some assassinations that could have gotten through The Community and government's watch, but he wanted to take the long burn. Dad didn't want to eliminate Amaranth and Coal. He wanted to screw with the people they loved. That would hurt them more."

Which was why Timber abducting me began to make more sense. I'd seen how grandpa and dad looked when they thought I'd been in danger for an evening and wasn't. For them to know I was actually gone with no clue what was being done to me, it would certainly hit them hard.

     "You and your dad moved here to put your plans in motion once he was done priming you for the job then."
     "Oh no. Our actions started way before that. The first strike was killing Ethereal."

That finally rocked me to where I couldn't hide any part of how the revelation blasted down my core. All the blood drained out of my face while my hands shook and darkness loomed in the corners of my eyes.

     "Yes, we got to her. There was no way The Company would pass up taking her out even if she was already on her deathbed. It took some time, but a worker of ours snuck in as a doctor who slipped a little something into her medication that caused her to croak. She also set up a camera and microphone as the intent was for us to watch Ethereal die alone. You and Eden suddenly showing up put a wrench in that, but in some ways the others felt more satisfied seeing how Eden poorly handled her death. The video's still on file if you want to watch it."
     "Fuck you."
     "Let me know if you change your mind," Timber spoke, unfazed, "Anyway, The Company went into hiding after that. They had to make sure they were bolstered against any repercussions if the real reason for her death was discovered. Clearly, it wasn't. By the time the years passed, the vast majority who had a direct reason for revenge were dead themselves, were feeble in nursing homes, or no longer cared as they'd gotten the person they wished to get. Dad riled the last few who had a mild desire to take out Eden."
     "You killed him too?" I could hardly mumble.
     "Yup. With a poison that would slowly get him over the course of a month. That time, we did succeed in making sure he died alone."
     "You..."
     "Not really me, of course. I didn't have a hand in either of their deaths even if the timing overlapped with Eden's. My work started when I began school in Berrybrook. Dad told me to get close to you or Gilly in whatever way I could, and you dragged me into being friends the very first day we met." Timber laughed.

He stopped when he saw my face.

     "Sorry. That was rude," he apologized as if it meant anything, "Would you feel better if I looked sad or guilty?"
     "Just tell me how else you screwed us over so you can go ahead and get the hell out of here." I demanded with a quivering, dark tone.
     "Fair enough. Dad told me to cause accidents where I could. The first big one I put into motion was tricking you about Roti, but the first one that actually had any impact was me tripping you down the library's stairs. It's amazing how so much harm can come out of a gentle tap of my foot on yours you didn't even notice. Dad took charge of the next incident by setting Allium and Dahlia's house on fire. He intended it to get bigger than it did, but you guys got lucky with the window being open with the storm raging. The thing is though, by that point his attitude started to change. Dad isn't like grandfather or me. He's normal, for all that that means. His fear he'd had with me being close to your family backfired on him. Dad came to care. He understood none of your family was guilty of what he accused you of and that his father's death was only his to blame. While he tried to rein in all the chaos he'd began, it was too late. I wished to keep the plan going. I warned him if he tried to stop me I would tattle on all his crimes. So he let me do what I wanted, and he helped me too with participating in the lie about Roti. In case you haven't figured it out, I was the one sending the letters and emails while the 'evidence' like the file was faked."
     "You're horrible," my voice shook more, "Trying to help you nearly killed me."
     "You're skipping ahead again, but that's fine. You falling into the lake wasn't an accident. I was trying to kill you."

Another horrible pause passed.

     "Dad told me to mess with the Vivid family in ways that would hurt Amaranth and Coal. What's a better way to do that than have you die? I also had to make sure you suffered yourself first. That's why I killed Autumn, November, and their mom. I didn't bury them where I said either. How would I have ever dug a grave in that frozen ground? I filled their bodies with rocks and let them sink to the bottom of the lake. The idea was to have you join them. I gave you a fancy drug The Company created nicknamed 24 Hour Drop. Once ingested, it'll cause a person to become unfocused, dizzy, and uncoordinated before it drops them unconscious almost exactly twenty-four hours later. It's accurate within a minute. Undetectable too unless you know to look for it, which no one does. The drug was in the orange juice I brought over. I hid when it really started to hit, and when you stumbled I snuck up and pushed you so you would fall into the water. Dad ruined it though. He grew wise to the fact that the ruse wasn't simply to make you disappointed about Roti not showing up. Unfortunately, he showed up in time to get you out of the water. The worry and care he gave you at the hospital was genuine. Then I spent the whole afternoon being rebuked and and hounded for going so extreme. I refused to lay off completely, but I promised I would cease the killing of any people."

Every inch of me went numb. A nausea clenched my stomach as my legs tricked me into thinking I was falling. My hand reached for the chair fpr support, but only smacked into it hard instead. The pain didn't register, but tears immediately burst forth as if I'd broken every bone. This was too much. Being captured was a dooming thought by itself. However, it was this moment here hearing such awful words come out of the face of one I'd cared for deeply that did me in. I kept expecting my Timber to jump out and tell me this was a dream, but the person who hid behind that mask simply stared at me in my destroyed state.

     "Shall I keep going?" Timber asked.

He spoke with a perfect tone of care and concern that I almost believed it. I wanted to believe it anyway. In the end, I recalled back what I had thought earlier before he knocked me out. It was possible to be that good of a liar.

     "Whatever." I mumbled.
     "Best to get it over with then. Well, from there I laid low for quite a while. The accidents couldn't keep happening at the same frequency or else suspicion would start to arise. I mean, I did little things like stealing Gilly's favorite erasers and sneaking treats from Merlot's secret stash in his room. It kept me content enough. Then the hurricane came and threw me for a loop. As dad obviously wanted me to stop entirely, he refused to move us where any of you were going. I didn't have access to resources to do anything from so far away. Thus, I threatened dad again with me tattling on him when we were set to visit you over Christmas, so I was given the permission to cause one event for my holiday present. Dad helped me set up the car accident that struck your uncle and his family. We made sure it wouldn't be big enough to do any real harm. Just give you guys a scare."
     "You keep saying you would have tattled on your father, but that would have exposed you too, you know." I murmured.
     "Hmm, not really. Like I said, dad loves me. He might want this all to stop, but not at the risk of ruining my life. He wouldn't have revealed my part in anything, and even if something did come out about me being involved who would think nice Timber, a mere child, was the mastermind behind the thefts, accidents, and attempted murder?"

I fell silent. He was right. If it'd come out that Mr. Mountain worked for The Company and he tried to share the blame with his son, I wouldn't have believed it. I would think Mr. Mountain such a terrible man that he sought to use his son as a scapegoat instead of me looking at the evidence that supported the truth.

Timber leaned back in his chair. Giving me a moment, he caught my eye when I dared to look at him. I shouldn't have. That terrible smile was still there. The one that looked like his. Part of me wondered if Timber saying he couldn't feel was something of a lie as well. No way he wasn't getting some sort of sick pleasure out of this.

     "I worried when the news came out that-"
     "Stop using words like that. You weren't worried about anything. You either feel or you don't." I snapped.
     "I have to talk like this. It's the only way to get the story across in a way you understand. Anyway, I worried over what to do when it came out that you guys were staying another year in Tinseltown. Sure the rest of your family was moving back to Berrybrook, but all the important players were too far away to touch. Dad, again, would never move us out there in order for him to prevent me from wreaking more havoc. Things went back to normal eventually when you did all come back," Timber said as if relieved, "While I occasionally planned more troublesome events, like sneaking into your garage to mess with the cars, I kept most of my actions quiet and meek. Accidentally spilling my drink on your homework, 'forgetting' we were doing something so you and everyone else would have to wait around for me, sneaking into Blaze's room to knock his medicine bottles of the floor for him to have to pick up...those sort of things. I couldn't think of anything grand until it hit me to start killing cats."
     "That's why you were late that morning." I rationalized with closed eyes, struggling to process the overload.
     "Yup."
     "That's why you were able to stop Gilly from noticing the body so quickly. You knew it was there."
     "Yup. The intention wasn't to keep it going for as long as it did, but then we met Arbor. I saw how he was and understood he'd be perfect to use as a deflection. People would think him behind it if I planted the right seeds, made him out the be the person everyone assumed he was."
     "It couldn't be then...Arbor was completely right about you being the one who took grandpa's snow globe and planting it in his room."
     "For a third time, yup."

Madly attempting to stop my tears, I wiped what wetness I could away while I banished my sniffles to the back of nose with all the effort I could muster. It helped, but not all the way.

     "Is it safe to say you were the one who 'tipped off' the police about Arbor running away from one of the crime scenes?" I rebuked.
     "It is a very safe thing to say, yes. Dad couldn't stop me from having access to Company resources once I got older, so keeping tabs on where Arbor was proved easy. I knew he was out about town, but that he wouldn't get charged with anything since the police would find the tip was a dud. I just wanted to make his day worse."
     "I should have listened to him more when he told me to stay away from you."
     "That was something I never figured out. Everyone else I obviously managed to fool without issue, but I couldn't shake his suspicions."
     "It has to be because he knew someone like you in the past. Someone who could smile and play pretend, but hid everything real underneath."
     "You mean that Dr. Wool woman who kidnapped and raped him?"
     "How do you know about that?" I whispered, more blood draining out of my face- if that was possible at this point.
     "I feel that should be an easy guess. Of course I looked up all about Arbor to know what I was working with and what to taunt him with, if any. Company reach made it all too easy to peek at his history. In any case, letting him interact with you kept you bothered and upset enough for me to be satisfied in picking other targets for a bit. The cat killings took a lot more work once they got big. Oh, what else was there? Right, I gave Merlot some of the 24 Hour Drop too so he would pass out during Mirage and Tappy's wedding. He took the orange juice as easily as you did. However, by that point dad was on my case again. He forced me to stop with the killings after Mirage and Tappy were found. He shut me off from whatever resources he could. I obeyed him for a while. Finishing high school and starting my job helped in keeping me content. Screwing with you guys had become boring in a way, as much as I can be bored. Then you mentioned your surprise. I figured if I could finish off the original revenge with a bang that I could move onto other projects."
     "And so you knocked me out to kidnap me here."
     "Dia, kidnapping you is the least of what I've done."

Quirking a brow when Timber started scratching his hand underneath the table, after a moment of concentration on his part I heard the sound of ripping tape. Timber soon placed before me a thin manila folder.

     "You would search around this place we provided, but I felt confident you wouldn't look under the table. Would you like to open it?" he motioned to the folder.

I pursed my lips shut. I froze into a statue. The dread piercing me grew thicker with every word Timber said. No way in hell did I want to see whatever he had in there.

     "A wise choice," Timber agreed as he opened it himself, "Despite dad's efforts, I'd formed enough of a connection with The Company for them to take my will over his. They were more than happy to help me with this."

The pictures were blobs at first due to my wet eyes, and yet the colors of those blobs were familiar. Gilly. Merlot. I blinked to clear my vision only to wish I was blind. They lay covered in blood.

     "You faked these." I growled, slamming the folder closed.
     "And when would I have ever gotten your brother and sister to agree to lay like this so I could photoshop their deaths? Because they are dead, Dia. I attached that fake link to Arbor and his family, and then while the main forces protecting you were distracted I had the people I had ordered to kill strike their targets. Like I mentioned though, the plan didn't go off perfectly. Gilly and Merlot were gotten, but your mom's still fighting her best in the ICU. She might make it. She might not. If she does make it, her body will certainly be messed up afterwards. Ember is where it all went downhill. Organizing her hit was more difficult since she was further away. I didn't know her schedule as well and couldn't oversee her positioning at the time everyone had to make their move. Dad warned me not to use Agate, and I should have listened. He only got a cut on her neck before she escaped. The idiot got himself caught too, and, worse, he blabbed everything. No one was supposed to know dad and I were involved with this, but now the whole damn country is aware we are Company members who planned this retribution on Ethereal Yonder's poor family. We're as stuck in this house as you are."

Everything buzzed. Millions of pinches ran up and down my skin while a static noise dominated my hearing. My heart pounded hard enough to hurt my chest, and it begged me to open back up the folder and search for whatever mistake Timber made in those fake photos. There had to be something to point out to show they weren't real. My brain, on the other hand, only barked at my legs to cooperate as I took several steps back. Timber hadn't told a single lie here.

     "Gilly..."

My twin's name tumbled off my lips. Gilly was gone? It didn't make sense. My heart beat, and hers didn't? With all the time that'd passed since she died, I was now the older one?

     "And Merl..." I whispered, distraught, "He was still just a kid. How could...but...who else did you take?"
     "I couldn't go too grand, especially with dad's reluctant cooperation. The goal was to go after who would hurt Amaranth and Coal the most. That made it your mom, you, and your siblings. Everyone else is fine."

Stunned and failing to cope, I jumped again when Timber stood close to me. I hadn't seen him move. He wrapped me in an embrace, and my weak attempts to push him off failed spectacularly.

    "Shh. It's okay, Dia," he comforted, and only then I realized how hard I sobbed, "That's all over with, and now you just have to focus on yourself. Despite me being how I am, there is some sort of connection I'm able to feel. It's not love or anything like that. I can't even say I like you. Still, you and dad I've grown to prefer to have around. I feel that way about him because he's my dad, and you attached yourself to me at some point. That's why you get to stay here instead of being killed. I even went ahead and got you permission to help us with some projects."

He motioned to the partitioned area with the plants.

     "The lights in that section are different. The soil in the pots is unique. We're working on a way to grow healthier plants with less effort and less strain on the planet so we can combat the rising temperatures, habitat loss, and starvation rates. You won't be able to gather a great deal of data with the limited space, but it's the kind of analytical work you like."

I pushed him back, and Timber let me go. His phone beeped due to an alarm going off, which prompted him to give me a kind of look that sent shivering vibrations through my chest. I wondered what on earth it meant when my legs abruptly buckled underneath. My vision flashed black as I collapsed before the colors returned muted and morphing. My breathing went ragged and heavy while my throat stung and tightened to further cut off my air supply.

     "Hmm. The timing is more accurate than ever. Only seconds off, if I set my alarm right. Still, the side effects are overpowering what should be happening." Timber noted.

He bent over to meticulously check my pupil dilation, test my pulse, and otherwise monitor my symptoms as the immobilizing fit and sense of suffocation faded.

     "One of your fancy drugs was in that water." I coughed, still heaving.
     "Mmhmm. It's another way you can help us with our projects. That one is supposed to make you completely paralyzed, temporarily of course, an hour after ingestion. We keep having problems with it throwing the target's breathing patterns for a loop."

I forced myself to swallow. Not all of the strange sensations leading up to the collapse were because of the weight of the news hitting me then. If only I'd been smarter.

     "You should be feeling pretty numb and disconnected soon," Timber explained right as such a state creeped up from my core, "I didn't allow you a proper full dose. Given that I couldn't be sure how your body would react to being knocked out, overloading you with an alpha version of a drug might not have mixed well. Don't want you dying on me."
     "You should have just killed me too." I mumbled with my raspy voice.
     "Yeah? Is that really what you would've preferred?" Timber wondered casually, tilting his head.

It sounded like the easier option. Timber wanted to keep me here as his plaything until whenever his faked emotions no longer saw me interesting. With all the effort that'd been put into my prison, he clearly assumed it'd take a while for that to happen. Way more than a few months. Several years at least. I knew what being cramped in these rooms, even with plants littered everywhere and exercise equipment available, for years without sunlight, fresh air, and only Timber for company would do to me. My physical, mental, and emotional health would all be shot to their lowest points. I could lose myself if I wasn't careful. So, certainly, in that moment, wanting to be back with Gilly and my baby brother struck me as my preference.

     "The Company was taken down when it was more powerful and guarded than it is now," I challenged, willing courage and strength to push back against the drug and my grief, "Blaze might not be physically capable anymore, but his mind is there. If he and grandpa are as involved as you say, they won't let this stand. I'll be saved as grandma was saved, and you and your stupid dad will end up like your grandfather."
     "You say that..." Timber said, glancing up to the ceiling in thought.

Frustrated at the ease in how he carried himself, I struggled to my feet and stumbled into the bedroom. Even more frustrating, the slight breaking of the paralysis also broke whatever momentarily ceased my tears. They returned to cascade down my cheeks without shame. My legs then crashed me into the bathroom wall, and I slapped off Timber's supposedly helpful hand that he offered to dash as best I could to the bed instead while he slowly followed. Trying to move in this state reminded me of trying to speak when one couldn't hear. With the whole effect drenching my entire body, I couldn't fight much longer.

     "Maybe they might be successful, but just because Agate blew dad and mine's cover doesn't mean The Company is exposed. They were already prepped to be marked as the cause for the incident in the first place, so all the safety measures to make them undetectable were in place to begin with. We made sure Agate was taken care of too, so he can't reveal anything else. Then there's the fact that your side lost a major benefactor," Timber revealed, "Remember the day when this whole surprise thing came up? We could never figure out who, but your family had someone fucking powerful watching over you all these years. They made it a real pain for dad and I to avoid being found out. Their influence just went away though. That's why I was happy that afternoon, because I finally caught on to the fact that I could act with much more freedom from then on."

My fingers clenched into the sheets to drag me onto the bed. The task proved no small thing as any feeling remaining continued to flutter off like scared birds in the sky. The best I could manage after that was propping myself on my arms so my body didn't collapse uselessly.

     "Someone will slip up one day, like Agate. Maybe someone will betray you. It-" I began to protest logically as emotional persuasion naturally wouldn't do any good.
     "Oh, yeah! I knew I was forgetting something. Fucking Jac. Your dear old great-grandpa was the original whistle-blower." Timber interrupted.
     "So there you go," I continued through heavy lips, "If I'm here, my family will have their motivation to keep beating at you until they get what they want. Best to hand me over as ransom so your chance at slipping away to somewhere more agreeable than whatever house this is will be greater."
     "The house is actually a neglected Community hideout we stole. Some renovations were done," he swept his arm around to ignore me first before shrugging, "If the others want to go that route using you as leverage, I suppose I'll follow. Make no mistake that we won't break so soon though. You're mine until further notice."

My vision blinked again. It was as if everything came at some great delay while pieces went missing in the process. Timber stood near me by the bed, and with my next struggling breath he was on the bed with me. On me. His arms pinned my shoulders while his lips claimed mine.

     "W-What the hell are you doing?" I squirmed as best I could.
     "You're mine," Timber repeated, once more with the smile he'd shown me all these years, "I guess you haven't worked out what that means yet, but that's understandable. You've had a lot thrown at you, and the lies you've believed growing up won't vanish so easily. You better stop thinking of me as your friend fast. In fact, go ahead and fear me. The reason you're here is because of my wishes. Whatever I want from you, I'll get. And I want you right now."

A tad more pressure on his part, and I was down with him over me. How greatly I urged to slam him off, but the drug did its job. Timber was right too. I couldn't connect the friend he'd been with the person who stared at me now doing all this. Timber and I always said there was never anything like that between us. Even now, why would he want this?

     "My emotions don't work, but my body does," he explained as if reading my mind, "I get hungry, and there are foods I like while there are foods I don't. I have a preference on how hot or cold I am, and yes, I get aroused when I see a good looking girl. With you not going anywhere, me not being able to go anywhere, and the drug making sure you will hardly feel anything, it all makes this the perfect time to go ahead with it, huh?"

Timber tenderly brushed my hair away that stuck to my wet cheek before wiping off the tears that'd finally come to slow to small trickles.

     "No protest?" he wondered after a moment.
     "Why would I bother?" I replied, with bite and not with defeat, "You've made it so I physically can't fight back. There's nothing I can say to change your mind as you won't care about anything I put forth as an argument."
     "True," Timber nodded in agreement, "But...I do see the logic in being nice for right now. Sleeping with me after learning our relationship is a farce, that I tried to kill you, and that I successfully arranged the murder of two of your loved ones is a bit much for one day. If you ask me to back off, I'll go ahead and do it."
     "Will you just come at me some other time?" I questioned, liking to believe my slack muscles managed something of a frown or a glower.
     "Yeah." he confirmed simply.
     "Then just get it over now. Like you said, I can't feel anything. My choices are few, but this is the one I'd like to make." I spoke.
     "Alright. By the way, even if I hadn't drugged you, I would do my best like I'll do my best now not to hurt you. I know you and Arbor never got to this point."

His surveillance clearly wasn't as good as he thought. The damn idiot. I scoffed in my head before proceeding to ignore him. The drug did make it easy. Even with Timber on top of me, closing my eyes almost made him disappear. If only I couldn't hear. However, I kept my eyes open. My mind, though sluggish, ticked along with its thoughts. A swell within me built as Timber proceeded, and then there came the snap. Not audible, not the crack of anything physical. It was the break of me doing my own killing. I loved the Timber I'd known growing up, and I didn't want to get rid of him. So I separated those warm memories from the dark, cold ones I now understood existed before stabbing the warmth as firmly as I could. I did blink slowly for that moment. When I opened my eyes, my chest didn't hurt anymore watching the stranger above move me into a position better for him. There was no love for him. Only mourning for a boy long lost, and an anger, a disconnect of contemplative rage that would give me plenty to work on while this other person was busy. Timber told me many horrible things, but many informative things. I would use them to my advantage, and even then plans whirred in my head to facilitate or assist the others in my escape. Timber had made himself an enemy, but he'd yet to realize what an enemy he'd made of me.