Marked by Destiny

5

Pov Selene Veyra.

The car was moving faster; it seemed like we were getting close.

I was in a part of the city I had never seen before.

I was born in the USA, in the city of Silver Hollow.

But I had never really known the city.

I only stayed in the orphanage, in a poorer neighborhood, and I rarely left there.

Now I was actually seeing the city where I was born.

Well, a little bit of it.

This morning it was a little cold, and I was glad I was wearing a jacket.

As I saw some pretty houses, a few buildings…

I glanced at Vivianne, and then she started talking to me.

We were almost there, but I wanted to know more before going into the school.

“Okay, Selene, after school, I’m going to take you to my house. You’ll go back to your uncle’s place at night. I’ll be able to tell you everything in more detail later, but for now, I need to warn you about something.”

My eyes widened.

I just nodded silently.

“We have some suspects. Your uncle and I… we’ve been looking for information for a long time, and it seems that the children of the ones who did this to your parents are going to be at the same school as you.”

What, wait?

The children of the people—or monsters—who did this to my parents will be at the school? Are they monsters too? That can’t be.

“What do you mean?” I asked, a little nervous about the situation.

“That’s right. They will definitely be at the school, Selene, and we need you to be able to identify them.” She paused and stopped the car.

She turned to look at me.

How was I supposed to do that? How?

She saw how scared I was, but she put a hand on my shoulder and tried to comfort me.

“You’ll be safe, trust me. Just do what I’m asking you.”

I tried to stay calm and nodded.

“You just need to… get close to them, Selene. If you feel or notice something strange about some of the students, try your best to find out anything— their names, and tell us everything about them. Then your uncle and I… will do our part to find their location, and their parents’ too.” She gave a faint smile, like she was sure everything would work out.

Well… that was what I wanted. For them to pay for it.

I had to do my part.

“We’re going to put an end to this, Selene, once and for all. You deserve to have a happy life, without worries, without fear.” She gently rubbed my shoulder, and I smiled, not forcing it… a smile that actually felt sincere.

“Thank you… I really want that. I want them to pay for everything.”

“Look, Selene, you’re not the only one who lost important people… I want justice for you and for someone else.”

She moved her hand away from my shoulder and tugged down on the sleeve of her blouse.

My eyes went there…

What was she doing?

I kept wondering if she was feeling pain… or if it was some kind of injury.

But she took a deep breath and then looked at me again.

“We’re going to get our justice, I know that.” I said, looking back at her.

Vivianne looked forward and then said:

“We’re here, Selene. Better not be late.”

I looked at the front of the school.

Silver Hollow High School.

It seemed like a pretty big school, a lot of students were on the steps, talking to each other.

And I… would be the new girl.

That… well, would be weird.

I took a deep breath and grabbed my bracelet, the one I had tried to fix. It didn’t look bad.

I put it on my wrist and kept running my fingers over it.

As if I were asking it to give me strength for today. It was the only good thing I had… the only thing that gave me hope.

I looked at Vivianne who, well… stared at me for a moment and then at my bracelet… she looked at it for too long, in a strange way.

Or was that just my imagination?

She looked back at me and said:

“Your classes start in a few minutes… At 2:30 p.m. I’ll be here to take you home and we’ll talk more… Have a good day at school!”

She wished me luck, and I thanked her.

I got out of the car and stayed there, looking at the front of the school…

Well… today is when everything begins…

I need to be smart, pay attention to details…

I can do this…

I’m going to find out who’s behind all of this.

Who these boys are.

The sons of the ones responsible for my parents’ deaths.

I bit my lip, feeling my heart beating way too fast…

Today would be the beginning of my justice.