Fear Me Not (The EVE Chronicles) by Sara Wolf Read Free Book Online

fatal. We’re encouraged to stay calm and get lots of rest, but other than that it’s an extreme emergency that can only be treated, not prevented. It’s the thing Dad was most worried about, until the doctors told him there was a point two percent chance of it ever happening to me.
    “I know, I know.” I sigh. “They told me about ruptures at the clinic. I’ll be careful. Can I go now?”
    “In a moment. Let’s go over your measurements again. Height?” He asks.
    “Six foot seven,” I tease. He scribbles ‘five foot nine’.
    “Blood type?”
    “ABCDEFG.”
    He puts his pen down. “You don’t have to be so evasive, Victoria. This information is confidential. I need it in order to treat you more accurately.”
    “Sorry. Just trying to lighten the mood. It’s hard to stay happy in this weirdo farm.”
    His gentle, down-turned eyes observe me. “If you need to talk, I’m here to listen.”
    ‘Don’t trust anyone.’ Shadus’ voice echoes.
    “Yup. That’s what they all say. Right before they stab you in the back.”
    “You are a mistrustful individual.”
    “You could say that.”
    He scans the paper on the clipboard. “It says here your mother -”
     I clench my jaw. All the feeling in my body drains away - the scar quieting its nervous throbs as it starts to burn, acidic and searing. His voice lowers to a sympathetic murmur as he reads further.
    “She sounds like she was a very strong woman.”
    “Type A.” I spit my blood type, jump off the table, and slam the office door behind me hard enough to have people staring and windows rattling.
    Yulan’s nice. But stupid as hell.
     
                            ***
     
    Dodgeball is the perfect sport for taking my frustrations out on other people legally. I’m crap at sports, but I’m the best at being angry. I lob a ball at a guy’s face and watch him duck in genuine fear. I throw another and hit a girl’s calf hard enough to make her squeal.
    “Hale! Get over here!” Mr. Targe barks. I jog over. “What are you doing out there?”
    “Playing dodge ball. Pretty well, too.”
    “You’re just throwing a ball wanting to hurt people. You’re out for ten minutes. Cool off.”
    I flop on the bench beside another girl and pick at my gym shorts.
    “Your shoes.”
    The voice is so timid I barely hear it. I look over - an EVE sits next to me. Her hair is in a bun, face round and button-nosed cute, her eyes dark. She stares at the floor.
    “What about them?” I ask.
    “They’re falling apart,” She murmurs.
    My converse are dirty, with frayed laces. I’d patched parts that wore thin with black duct tape to make them last longer. It made me nervous to ask for new shoes when we could barely afford Alisa’s medicine.
    “After I get out of here, I’ll buy some really expensive new ones. Gold-plated,” I joke. She smiles, a timid crescent. 
    “My dad’s making me put it in my college fund.”
    “Your dad’s a smart guy.”
    “I-It doesn’t matter. I won’t get into a really good college anyway. I’m not smart enough.” She shakes her head. “S-Sorry. College is a really boring thing to t-talk about.”
    We’re quiet, watching the game and listening to the sneakers squeak on the floor and taunts fly between sides. I swing my legs.
    “I’m Victoria, by the way.”
    “Dakota,” She says. 
    “Why’re you on the bench?”
    “I’m really uncoordinated. I get tagged out on the first ball thrown.”
    “You can’t be that bad.”
    Her smile grows. “J-Just wait till we’re back on the court. You’ll see.”
    Mr. Targe lets us in on the next game. I toss Dakota a ball. She screws up her face and throws it with all her might. A boy catches it with little effort and tosses it back almost guiltily, and though Dakota braces to dodge she ends up flailing into the ball. She catches my eye.
    “S-See? Definitely the worst.”
    “It was a graceful sort of ‘worst’, though,” I laugh.
    “What’s so funny?” A