Contents
CHAPTER 96: JAMESON
Overview
Jameson leads a frantic dig through the ruins, uncovering multiple dead, including Emily, Alice, the other Candidate, the Kyrie head, Toby, and Eve. Toby died shielding Eve. At last, Jameson finds a hidden metal refuge: Oren emerges first, then Avery, alive. Grief gives way to relief as Jameson reunites with her.
Summary
Jameson digs relentlessly through the rubble, bloodied and single-minded, recalling his history with Avery and clinging to the possibility that she found a path to survive. Grayson, Nash, Lyra, Alisa, and later Xander work beside him as Bowen’s team coordinates the search.
A call draws them to a recovery: Emily’s red hair appears, and her broken body confirms her death. Another body with dark hair is removed, kept from Jameson’s view. Alice follows, neck broken and blood-soaked. A pale-haired young woman—the other Candidate—is found, then a second pale-haired woman Jameson assumes is the Kyrie’s head.
Progress stalls until three massive slabs are moved, revealing Toby curled protectively around Eve. Toby’s back is broken; he absorbed the impact. Eve’s body is nearly unmarred but lifeless, a wound at her temple. Jameson forces himself past the grief, convinced Avery survived somehow.
Jameson strikes metal. Bowen’s team cuts through, and John Oren emerges from the hidden space. He reaches back and lifts Avery out—tangled hair, tattered ballgown—and Jameson gathers her into his arms.
Overwhelmed, Jameson kisses Avery’s forehead and lips, whispering “Heads or tails.” Avery, hoarse but alive, answers, “Hide and Seek. You found me.”
Who Appears
- Jameson HawthorneLeads the desperate dig; witnesses multiple deaths; uncovers a metal refuge and finds Avery alive.
- Avery Kylie GrambsFound alive in a hidden metal shelter with Oren; reunites with Jameson.
- John OrenEmerges first from the hidden refuge beneath the rubble, preceding Avery.
- Tobias “Toby” Hawthorne IIDiscovered dead, back broken; died shielding Eve from falling slabs.
- EveFound dead beneath Toby; nearly unmarked except for a temple wound.
- Emily LaughlinRecovered with unmistakable fatal injuries, confirming her death.
- AliceFound dead, neck broken and bloodied; earlier had saved Jameson.
- Grayson HawthorneDigs beside Jameson through the ruins searching for Avery.
- Nash HawthorneSupports Jameson during the search; tries to steady him.
- LyraAllowed to join the dig, aiding the search efforts.
- AlisaAssists the brothers in the rubble excavation.
- Xander HawthorneArrives to help dig as the search intensifies.
- BowenHis team manages the site; cuts into the metal refuge.
- Unknown CandidatePale-haired young woman recovered dead; not Avery or Eve.
- Head of the KyrieSecond pale-haired woman recovered dead in the ruins.