The Seventh Immortal (Hearts of Amaranth #1) Read Free

were plastered with
posters showing a familiar face—Mayor Levin invited the city's
inhabitants to join him with artfully crafted propaganda: “The City
Government works for YOU. Will you work for them? Employment
opportunities for citizens of every class, inquire within or at
www.TheCityGovernment.com.”
    Kait didn't know what to think. Even though
he seemed to be behind these ambitious projects, Mayor Levin's
visage terrified her. It reminded her of the awful moment in the
hospital, when she realized that she didn't have any control over
her own fate.
    Cop cars sat on nearly every corner,
watching over the streets. Kait hid her face as she passed them,
afraid that her description might be on the radio by now. No one
stopped her. There were plenty of police, but none of them seemed
to be paying attention.
    It took Kait almost an hour to walk from St.
Louis University Hospital to the courthouse. She spent the time
thinking about her strange condition, and what the mayor wanted
with her. It didn't make sense that a city executive would be the
most interested in the sudden appearance of an immortal woman, even
if it happened in her city. Where was the Federal government? Where
were the scientists and the doctors? Maybe, despite everything, she
was lucky that the the mayor was such a control freak. He'd kept
Kait a secret for his own purposes. But what were his purposes?
    Approaching the courthouse, Kait saw a crowd
gathered around the plaza in front of the building. A small section
of the pavement was cordoned off with police tape. Kait felt a sick
sensation brew in her stomach as she approached the spot. Even
through the crowd, she could see that the concrete was stained with
blood. Her blood.
    Why did she come here? What did she expect
to find, other than this gruesome scene? And why hadn't anyone
cleaned it up yet?
    Kait could hear the crowd murmuring. They
were still talking about her. It had happened hours ago, and yet
people were still coming by to gossip about her apparent suicide.
She overheard someone mention that the woman who fell from the
courthouse roof was still moving when she was taken away.
    Her story was starting to get around, though
fortunately no one would be able to tell it was her. From what Paul
said, it sounded like her face was so badly damaged in the fall
that she would have been unrecognizable to anyone who saw her hit
the ground.
    After pushing her way through the crowd,
Kait stood at the edge of the police tape. Two uniformed officers
were on the scene. One appeared to be collecting evidence—scraping
up a torn piece of fabric from the ground—and the other monitored
the onlookers. Kait didn't want them to see her, but as soon as she
had a full view of the crimson-stained pavement, she was
paralyzed.
    Even now, she didn't remember any of this.
She couldn't recall hurtling towards the ground. She especially
couldn't recall why she tried to end her life.
    The police officer collecting evidence
placed the scrap of fabric in a sealed plastic bag and ducked
underneath the tape holding back the crowd. As he passed Kait, he
turned to look at her. Their eyes met and he seemed transfixed.
Even as he was walking away, he continued to glance back at
her.
    Kait felt her heart jump. Did he recognize
her? Undoubtedly, some people had seen her before she jumped. She
was putting herself at risk coming back here... But maybe she
wanted someone to recognize her. If anyone knew her face, they
might be able to provide some answers about her life before the
fall.
    Despite her worries, the police officer
never came back to talk to her. He didn't grab her or pull her away
from the crowd. Once he'd returned to his car to store the evidence
he collected, he never even seemed to pay her any mind.
    Finally, Kait was able to pull herself away
from the scene of her failed suicide attempt. She could feel her
whole body shaking as she walked away, as if she had just picked
herself up off the pavement a moment ago.
    “