Betrothed to My Mother’s Killer

Stealing Bodies

We don’t have enough time.” The words sat between us as Katie drove fast.

I gripped the blanket in my lap, my fingers digging into the fabric.

“You go to the door,” I said, thinking out loud. “Keep them busy. I’ll grab him...”

“No.” Katie shook her head. “That won’t work. They’ll be watching for you. They’ll know.”

Silence.

The road blurred past.

“We split,” Katie said.

I turned.

Her eyes were locked ahead.

“You go inside,” she continued. “You face them.”

My stomach dropped. “And I get him out.”

“No,” I whispered. “Katie, I have to be the one… He is my….”

“You’re the only one they’ll let close,” she cut in. “You’re the distraction.”

The word hit harder than it should have. Distraction.

Bait, again.

I swallowed.

“Okay.”

We parked down the street. The house sat quietly. Still.

Then I saw it. For once, luck was on our side. The garage door. It was open.

Sunlight poured in directly onto the cars.

Onto the trunks.

My heart stopped.

“They’re trying to kill him,” I whispered.

Katie followed my gaze. “Oh,” she muttered. “That’s… dark.”

“They’re cooking him,” I said, my voice shaking.

Katie grabbed my arm. “Hey.”

I looked at her.

“He’s not dead,” she said firmly. “We’re getting him out.”

“Go save your future husband.”

Despite everything, I almost laughed.

“Don’t die,” she added.

“You either.”

She grabbed the blanket and slipped out of the car, circling back toward hers. I turned toward the house and walked.

Each step heavier than the last.

I knocked.

Once.

Twice.

The door flew open. “Ruby!”

My mom pulled me inside. I let her hug me, but it was tight.

Too tight.

Relief flooded her face.

“Oh, thank Heaven,” she breathed. “You came back.”

My dad stood behind her. Watching.

Careful.

“We were worried,” he said.

Liar.

“I just needed air,” I said, forcing my voice steady.

They guided me inside. Like nothing had happened. Like, there wasn’t a blood pool in the garage. Like they hadn’t just tried to kill him. Like they weren’t baking him in the hot trunk of a car right now. Like it was a normal Saturday.

“You have to understand,” my mom said quickly. “We were protecting you.”

My jaw tightened. “From what?” I asked.

“From them,” my dad snapped. “From monsters.”

My stomach twisted. “You killed my mother.”

That made them shut up. A look passed between them before they started up again.

“It wasn’t like that.”

“It was an accident.”

“He wouldn’t stop.”

“We had to.”

The words crashed over me again. I couldn’t breathe. My phone buzzed. I snuck a peek down into my hand.

Katie.

The car is locked.

“Ruby,” my mom said softly. “We did this because we love you.”

I tucked my phone into my pocket.

"Pffft...Love."

The word made something inside me snap.

I shifted slightly and reached for the counter. Dad’s keys sat there. I picked them up. Casual. Like I wasn’t shaking.

“What is this?” I demanded suddenly, holding up the storage key. “Why do you need a locker full of weapons?”

They exchanged another look.

Just enough.

My thumb pressed the button.

Click.

Outside,

a faint unlock.

My heart pounded.

“You don’t understand what’s out there,” my dad said.

“Then explain it!” I snapped.

“We are,” my mom insisted. “We’ve always protected you.”

“Protected me from WHAT?” My voice rose from anger and to give cover for any noise my best friend might need.

“Monsters!”

“The world isn’t what you think, Ruby.”

“We’ve been keeping you safe.”

I looked around at what they deemed necessary to keep me safe, and at all the security cameras, all the locked secrets. I realized I hadn’t grown up in a home; I had grown up in a prison. A prison of their making.

Then….

a honk.

Short.

Sharp.

My breath hitched.

She did it.

I stared at them. At the people I thought were my parents. My prison guards in this gilded cage.

“I hope I never see you again,” I screamed, and I threw the keys.

They clattered across the floor.

And I ran.

“RUBY—”

The door slammed behind me. I sprinted. Down the driveway. Toward the car. Toward freedom.

Behind me, I heard, “THEY TOOK THE BODY!” my mom screamed.

My dad’s voice followed furiously.

“I won’t watch you become her. Don’t throw your life away for a monster!”

I jumped in the car.

“You are no daughter of mine!” he yells after me.

I didn’t look back.

I couldn’t.

Katie slammed on the gas.

The house disappeared behind us.

And I didn’t know which hurt more,

the boy bleeding out in the backseat…

or the life

I had just thrown away.