Chosen: A Dystopian Novel (The Immortal Ones Book 1) by Shade Owens

Author:Shade Owens [Owens, Shade]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: Red Raven Publishing
Published: 2022-02-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

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After what Star had told me, I had a hard time focusing on my work.

My whole life, I’d been raised to believe that every year, one lucky person in Lutum was selected and granted eternal life within the walls of Olympus. But now, I knew none of that was true. If Penelope had been sent off on the train, it meant that I, too, would be sent away from here.

What made me even sicker to my stomach was the thought of being used like cattle, only to then be tossed aside. How were they getting away with this? Why was no one standing up?

They didn’t know the truth, I realized.

Every time I glanced up at Star, it was like she wasn’t even inside her body anymore. She went on to complete her daily tasks that afternoon without speaking to anyone. At one point, Dax—being the cool and collected one of the group—approached Star and asked, “Hey, you all right over here?”

“Not in a talkative mood, Dax,” Star said.

She frowned at the clothes she’d been folding and packed them nicely inside a plastic bag.

Would Star ever come around to telling her friends the truth? Was there any point in them knowing? It wasn’t like we could do anything about it. Countless Defenders watched us every day, and our regime was so strict that there was no way to strategically plan anything.

When Ivy came to get us after our shift, she appeared wearing a bright red dress with matching shoes and matching lips. Dangling from her neck was a white pearl necklace that shined beneath the industrial lights. She reminded me a bit of Dorothy from that story I’d read—The Wizard of Oz. Only she was nothing like that character and instead reminded me of the evil witch.

“What’s up with the long faces?” she asked.

We all walked past her without a word.

She rushed by us to lead the group. “You know, it’s quite rude that none of you make the effort to talk to me.”

“What the hell do you care?” Star said.

Everyone around us, including two Defenders, stopped what they were doing. Ivy slapped her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” Star said. “You don’t give a rat’s ass about us—”

“Hey!” shouted a Defender. He stepped forward with a hand hovering over the gun on his belt.

Ivy flicked her wrist at him. “Don’t worry, I have this under control.”

She stepped so close to Star I thought she might try to kiss her. “Listen here, you little shit. You have no rights in here, do you understand? With a snap of my fingers, I could make you disappear.”

Star didn’t seem intimidated. Although she didn’t respond, she stared at Ivy as if she were nothing more than an annoying child. Sucking her teeth, she raised her chin, forcing Ivy to tilt her head back to maintain eye contact.

“I’m warning you, Star. You’d better pull your shit together if you ever want to meet your unborn child—”

Without warning, Star raised a tight fist, but she didn’t have time to take a swing at Ivy’s face.

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