Adaline, if you let Alexander go your life will be over. I’ve seen the future happen in many different ways, but any without Alexander by your side ends with an early death for you. Alexander is the reason you have made it this far. He is the reason you have survived. If you let him go you will die. Together you have an immense amount of power. Each of you contribute in a certain way, and even without one, you will all fail. If you are reading this it may be too late. Adaline, you have to hurry.
“But I already know he won’t come back. I’ve tried everything,” I whisper to no one in particular, almost as if I was talking to my mother. I flip through the rest of the journal, but all the other pages are blank. It registers to me that this journal will only give me information when my mother would want me to have it. Knowing too much about the future would surely change its course.
I close the journal and put it back in my bag. My eyes catch on Alexander’s navy uniform jacket, still lying on his bed where I had left it this morning. How naive I was to think a jacket could make me feel safe. I truly hadn’t understood the level of forces King Renon had sent after us. I rise and make my way out of the shelter and sprint through the forest.
I go to the one place I know he might still be at, the river. When I reach it I’m terrified to see that he isn’t there anymore.
“Alexander,” I hear myself choke out. What if I am too late?
“Alexander,” I shout.
“Alexander!” I hear myself scream with a deathly shrill, sending birds into the sky, but still nothing. I look on the ground and notice a path of where the leaves have been parted heading down deeper into the forest along the river, right in the direction of Paylon. I turn and run down the path.
As I run my mind starts to bring up memories of the two of us before my life in the prison. Birthday parties and weekend adventures flash in my head. A particular memory starts to surface, the last time we were together before I was taken to the castle. We were so young back then.
The morning of the day my family was taken in as prisoners Alexander and I went out in the woods behind my house. We just walked in silence, listening to the song of the forest. We walked into a clearing full of white daisies. To us, it looked like they stretched on for miles.
“I’ve never seen this before,” I said as I reached down and pulled up a small daisy. I examined its white petals closely.
“We’ve been all over these woods, how have we not seen this before?” Alexander asked confused.
“It’s beautiful,” I said. I took a seat on the ground in a nest of daisies. Alexander sat down next to me and plucked up a flower. He turned to me and gently placed it in my hair behind my ear and said, “You’re my daisy princess.”
I laughed and leaned against him, “Then you’re my daisy prince.” The memory starts to fall away. I can’t lose him.
After running for what feels like hours in the burning summer sun my speed is now nothing, and I’m losing hope since I lost the trail a couple of yards back. The sun has started its descent. It’s early afternoon, but I know there’s no way I’ll find him in the dark. Just when I’m about to turn and go back I hear a low laugh coming from up ahead. I move closer, making sure to stay hidden. I kneel behind a tree and try to make out what is going on.
Looking at the scene it’s hard to make out what’s happening. In front of me is Paylon and the twins standing in a triangular formation, Paylon is front and center as always. I can see the Lost Souls lurking closely behind. Suddenly Alexander steps in to view and I take in a sharp breath.
Paylon and the twins are laughing hysterically at the stupidity of Alexander. All I want to do is leap forward and beg him to come back, but that wouldn’t help. I hear the laughter die down and Paylon begins to speak.
“What do you think you’re doing back here?” he asks, his confident voice booming through the forest.
“I have nowhere left to go,” Alexander responds with a very hoarse and cracked voice. He lifts his head back, making sure to keep eye contact, and reveals his cold, red, swollen eyes.
“What happened? Your girlfriend found out you’re a Sensor and kicked you out?” Chadian spits at him. I watch as he and his brother break into another round of laughter. Alexander’s face twitches and I know he’s trying to process how they had known he had that gift, but he can’t let them faze him.
“She’s not my girlfriend,” Alexander says as he rolls his eyes in frustration, “and she was never even my friend. We needed to get to the same place and that’s all. I’m here to be turned into one of the Lost Souls.” Immediately the forest falls silent. My eyes are filling with tears, and I’m not even sure why. Was it because of what he said about our relationship? Or because I don’t want to lose him and have him be a Lost Soul.
“Really? You’re going to go down without a fight?” Paylon asks, not believing what he is hearing.
“I have nothing left to live for,” he says, hanging his head. I can see it in his face. He is without his friends and his family. His mother and
