Gods of Blood and Bone (Seeds of Chaos Book 1) Read Free Page B

I go to get away from my own head? Besides, I barely had the strength to get to the bathroom. Did he think I’d run away? Jump out the window?
    I took my hands away from my face and nodded, and he bolted away, the piece of bread now squished in his fist, forgotten.  
    The bread was so ludicrous, so removed from everything my crazy brain was trying to smash me with that I couldn’t help but laugh.
    I was still giggling when another window popped up, different than the others.  
    EVE, YOU’RE PERILOUSLY CLOSE TO BREAKING THE RULE ABOUT DISCLOSING GAME INFORMATION TO NON-PLAYERS. YOU REALLY DON’T WANT TO DO THAT.
    —Bunny—
    My laughter died in my chest, and I froze.  
    WHEN HE COMES BACK, YOU BETTER REALIZE THAT YOU’RE FEELING SICK AND FEVERISH, AND HAD ANOTHER HALLUCINATION, IF YOU CARE FOR HIS OR YOUR OWN SAFETY.
    OH, AND BY THE WAY…NICE TO MEET YOU. :P
    —Bunny—
    “Who are you?”
    I’M BUNNY, YOUR GAME MODERATOR.
    —Bunny—

Chapter 3
    I desire the things that will destroy me in the end.
    — Sylvia Plath

    Zed sat watching me eat, concern etched all over his face.  
    I stuffed the fresh sausage, eggs, biscuits, and gravy into my mouth ravenously, both to satiate my hunger and to excuse me from discussing my “hallucination” with him.  
    My heart was beating fast, too fast, as if I’d had too much caffeine and couldn’t calm down. It was a sour feeling.  
    When I’d finished, I licked the plate and plopped backward onto my pillows with a big sigh.  
    He pushed a glass of cloudy yellow liquid toward me. “Drink this. It’s vitamix and lemon water. You need to get some nutrients to help rebuild your strength.”
    I sighed and shot my little brother a look.  
    He grinned back at me and rolled his eyes. “It’s good for you. Just drink it. Doctor’s orders.”  
    “Oh, really?”
    “Yeah, just think of this as practice for when I join the Peace Corps. You’re my dummy patient.”  
    I snorted and complied, gulping down the mixture made only slightly better by the taste of lemon. “Okay, I feel better now. I think I just needed something in my stomach.” I let out a loud yawn, not fake at all. “I’m really tired now. I don’t think I’ll need that pill. I’m just gonna go back to sleep.” I studied his worn face and bloodshot eyes. “You should probably go to sleep, too. I know you don’t have anything important to do. And I’m fine, so you don’t need to keep ‘mother hen-ing’ me.”
    He studied me for a moment while I did my best to look sane, calm, and not as if I was trying to make him leave for some ulterior motive. Even though I was hallucinating invisible screens who called themselves Bunny, freaking out, and trying to shoo Zed away so I could talk to them. In short, I was lying.  
    “Okay. If you need anything, just shout.”
    “Roger.”  
    Zed was a genuinely good person, and the opposite of me in almost every way. Brave, popular, handsome, and he had an unselfish nature.  
    That’s why I sent him away, and didn’t say anything about the reason my heart was beating so frighteningly hard. Because if I wasn’t crazy, whatever was going on wasn’t good, and he didn’t deserve to be involved in it. And if I was crazy, it would pass along with my lingering sickness, and no harm would come of it.  
    Alone, I took a deep breath and whispered, “Umm … Bunny? Are you there?”
    YES. NOW THAT HE’S GONE, LET ME EXPLAIN WHAT’S GOING ON.
    —Bunny—
    “First things first, am I crazy? Is this a paranoid delusion?”
    NO. THE DOCTOR WAS ONE OF OURS. HE TOLD YOUR FAMILY THAT SO THEY WOULD IGNORE ANY STRANGE ACTIONS OR ACCUSATIONS YOU MIGHT MAKE ABOUT BEING ATTACKED OR THE GAME.
    —Bunny—
    “That’s just what a paranoid delusion would say. How do I know you’re really there?   Is this really happening? And why do you want to keep it a secret?”
    THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF PROOF, IN TIME. THE FIRST PIECE BEING THAT YOUR BROTHER ACKNOWLEDGED THE