Bloody Water: When Monsters Meet

AURELIA

A/N: The first two chapters of When Monsters Meet are simply prologues that set the scene for the story. You may choose to skip them and go straight to chapter three for the six-month time jump, since this part is slower in pace than the others. Thank you for choosing When Monsters Meet.

Update Schedule: Minimum of 2 chapters a week, on Fridays.

I KNEW there’d be another dead body.

It smells almost as good as rotting fish.

The blood surrounds her in a pool, glistening in the soft glow of the orange sun. Her ginger hair is matted to her forehead, her lips parted open in what looks like a scream. Her skin is… so perfectly light brown.

Body number… seven… eight?

She was one of us, too. She has the mark on her wrist—a perfect circle— so she was a Natural.

I squat over the dead woman. “What’s the COD?” Her mouth is gaping open like she’s in shock, and judging by the spider’s web already formed in there, she’s been gone for a while.

“Bashed her head with a rock one too many times.” The Coroner, Bob, points towards a rock wet with blood, then sets aside the camera.

“Is there ever an okay amount of times to bash your head with a rock?" I look at her hands. "And how do we know she did it herself?”

“Fair enough.” He tries to smile. “The angle of the hit shows it could only have come from her. I’ll request a re-enactment when we go through the grounds.”

Her skin is discolored, with hints of blue on her feet.

I should put out a PSA for all zones regarding their clothing.

If you’re going to be dead, at least make sure you’re warm.

Fresh, red marks trail from her thighs to her ankles. Or are they from her ankles to her thighs? The marks around her thighs are thinner than the ones closer to her ankles. “What do her nails look like?”

Fred scoffs beside me, startling me a bit. When did he get here? “Why? Need new inspo for your next visit to the salon?”

Ignoring his weak shot at my choice in nail designs, I pick out the latex gloves in my pocket and stretch them on to check. Her nails are still long.

“She was scratching herself.” She looks like she was rolling through the mud, and if not for the small patch of blue on her shorts I’d have believed they were originally brown.

If the backpack hanging on the tree is hers, she was most likely a student at the University.

What was she doing outside the border?

“What do we have so far?!” Grayson strides up to us. Instinctively, I straighten my back even as I’m squatting and tilt my head in a bow.

“Boss.”

“Sir.” Fred bows too, and we receive a nod of greeting.

As much as they like to deny it, Grayson and Fred look a lot alike. They have the same sharp green eyes, perfectly ridged nose, and proportionate cheekbones. Although, Grayson does spend a lot more time at the gym than Fred, so his muscles—along with his jaw are a lot more defined. You’d think Fred would be more active seeing as he does more field work.

“Female, mid-twenties, Sir. Cause of death is excessive bleeding.” I lift my head only to barely meet his eyes. “Do you recognize her?”

He stares for a few heartbeats, then shakes his head. “No. She must be from another unit. Any form of ID?”

Fred shakes his head. “We searched the backpack, and her shorts don’t have pockets. There’s nothing there.”

“She has the mark so she’s in the system. I've already signed off on the face rec. so get that done as soon as possible.”

“Yes, Boss.” He bows again and heads to the van, probably to start packing up.

Grayson turns to me and clears his throat. “Aurelia, you’ll be coming with me today.”

Why? I almost want to ask.

I’ve always made a constant effort to stay clear of the Boss and his officials. They were kind enough to take me in, but I'll never let myself form a connection with any of them. Because if everything goes to shit, they’ll put me in the front line since I’m an Honorary, not Natural.

Wordlessly, I follow him back to his car.

He must be as cold as I am, because immediately the doors shut, the heat is turned up.

“There’s a meeting with all the zone leaders here in Area 13. The bodies haven’t just been turning up here, it’s happening in two other zones—we need to figure out exactly what is going on” He quietens a bit. "Especially with the elections coming up."

One zone, I’d say a poisoning of some sort. But three out of five of us… there’s no connecting party. We don’t share the same water supply, and Othello grows its own food—I make sure of it. “That can’t be a coincidence. But do you really believe it could be a ploy to affect your chances, Sir? ”

“That's what we have to find out.” He starts the car, and we head presumably to the Area House.

A sense of anxiety washes over me since I’ve never been involved in matters directly related to the area. Since becoming Commander, all my duties have been strictly related to the zone alone. Marriage tests, mate rejection cases, training… It’s been the most numbing six months of my life.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

“Your old zone will probably be there, too.”

They snap open.

Shit.

“Yeah—I mean, yes, Boss.”

His stare is bouncing off the mirror and burning into me. My palms are almost dripping. Maybe the cold wasn’t too bad.

“We’ve kept you hidden for five years, it was bound to happen.” He’s egging me on. “Are you excited?”

Enough to stab myself with my dagger.

I manage a respectful smile. “Like you said, Boss. It was bound to happen. I’m grateful for the refuge your zone has been.” I’m clenching my fists and curling my toes so hard I think they’ll crack.

He nods, humming. “Perfect response as always.”

Maybe it's the anxiety, but his tone sounds almost disappointed.

We slow to a stop in front of huge gold gates. The Area House. It’s exactly as I imagined it. Painted white and gold, almost as huge as a football stadium. It looks like a castle, but with a sloping roof instead. The gates open, and we drive in. There are four other cars in area, all black, yet so distinctive. It's not hard to tell which is which Zones'. I recognize a certain Bugatti, and chills run up my spine.

"Let's go."He kills the engine, and we get out of the car.

The goosebumps have melted into burning pines. Every inch of my body is being prickled with sharp needles of fear, and my neck is being pulled by an anchor, forcing my head down.

Automatic doors lead us in, then an elevator takes us to the top floor. Everything about this place is pristine. The walls are spotless, the tiles reflect effortlessly, and every single area is air-conditioned. After a few turns, we finally stand in front of a huge white door.

Bile starts to rise in my throat as I smell him. I can’t even think of his name, or last night’s meatloaf will come back for a sequel.

Grayson turns to face me, standing in front of the door. “Remember the mark on your skin. Not the one that’s gone.”

It’s nearly impossible to hide the humiliation from my voice. He can tell that my knees are on the verge of buckling.

I lower my head. “Yes, Boss.”

We walk in.

There’s a huge mahogany table in the middle of the room, allowing 10 seats. Completely bare, the room is. Eyes follow me as I follow Grayson to the other head of the table and sit to his right.

His scent gets stronger, along with the power of his anger.

I manage to finally look in his direction, directly opposite Grayson. He’s already staring at me.

Still the same brown eyes.

“Good morning, leaders of Area 13.” A tall brown guy starts. Judging by the ring on his neck, he must be from Orion, too.

I force myself to keep his gaze.

His lips curl into a smirk.

Damn it.