Read Online Summer Wishes (Desire #1.5) by Kailin Gow - Free Book Online Page B

Coliseum. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing him again, of not knowing what had become of him.
    Matthew grabbed her elbow and forced her away, dragging her out of the alley and onto the main boulevard. “Come on, Jocelyn.”
    She glanced back and was horrified by the sight she saw. An Enforcer reached out, punched the flashing light in the middle of Jacob’s chest and essentially shut him down. Jacob stood motionless, helpless.
    Jocelyn pried her arm free of Matthew’s hold and ran back into the alley.
    “Don’t, Jocelyn,” Jacob shouted. “You can’t do anything to save me.”
    “I can’t leave you.” She stopped when an Enforcer inched closer.
    “I’ve lived my life, Jocelyn, more than you’ll ever know. I’ve known the joys of love, the hardships of banishment and the triumphant satisfaction of knowing just how much I’m capable of.”
    “Jacob,” she whimpered.
    “Don’t throw your life away,” he warned.  “Leave Arcadia.”
    The Enforcers began to drag him away.
    “Don’t wait for your Life’s Plan, Jocelyn.  Don’t wait another day.  Leave.”
    An Enforcer tried to stifle him, but Jacob twisted his head away and continued his warnings.
    “It’s your turn to discover who you are, Jocelyn.  Your turn to be strong  Please be strong.  Tell Melanie I love her.”
    Tears welled in Jocelyn’s eyes as the realization of Jacob’s truth sunk in. There was nothing she could do to save him. She had to save herself. Falling to her knees, she watched them drag her brother away, no doubt to a fate she’d rather not know of.
    “Come on,” Matthew said gently, kissing the top of her forehead in comfort. He pulled her up. “They might send reinforcements to capture us any moment now. You heard Jacob. Don’t let him die in vain, Jocelyn. You have to live. We have to leave Arcadia. Now we have no choice.”

 
    Epilogue
     
    I t was too surreal. The nightmare that had begun earlier had taken a turn for the worse. In a daze, she followed Matthew, trusting him blindly.  They ran until they reached the well-lit portion of the boulevard.
    “You okay?” Matthew stopped and grabbed Jocelyn’s shoulders.
    “No.”
    “I can’t imagine how difficult this is for you, but you do realize we had little choice. We did the best we could to get Jacob out of there.  We’ve tried. Now we have to do all we can to get ourselves out of here, out of Arcadia.”
    “Out of Arcadia and into where, Matthew?  You heard what Melanie said, how difficult life was on the outside.  What chance do we have of surviving out there?”
    Matthew inched closer. “I love you. Whatever chance we have of surviving out there, we have to take it.” He kissed her, transmitting to her the power of his love.
    With a great sense of loss, Jocelyn followed Matthew as they walked down the boulevard. The road was barren with not a soul in sight.
    “There has to be more to it than just that,” Jocelyn said quietly as they strolled hand in hand.  “Something awful is happening to Arcadia. Something had unleashed this barbaric side of the Committee. The Committee are made up of normal decent people…people who are parents to friends we know like Sarah, even Liam. How can this be happening? Can’t you feel it?”
    “After what we saw tonight, I don’t know what I feel. I think I feel I’ve been fooled. We’ve all been fooled into thinking our lives here were one thing, when all along it’s been something else.”
    “But for so long life here was good, Matthew.  Look at my parents; they’re happy.” She stopped suddenly and looked up at him.  “Everything changed when Kama got that Life’s Plan.”
    “I think the changes in Arcadia are due to something more significant than one citizen’s undesired Life’s Plan.”
    “Matthew, Kama’s Life’s Plan wasn’t just unpleasant, it was blank, totally blank. That has never happen in Arcadia history. The Committee does not make mistakes. If so, everyone would be