Tale of the Gifted Beings

chapter 29

chapter 29

THE EVENING WAS A CRUEL ONE, and the sky turned into a deep, brooding violet. It was scary. My heart pounded in my chest while I was running, exhausted and tired. But I didn't know where. I didn't know where to go. All I knew was that the salt sting of betrayal is still fresh on my tongue, and I hate it. I really hate it!

Screw him! I'd been used. A pawn in a game masterminded by a man who had worn the name Giusseppi like a cheap mask but was, in truth, Apollo. He was, in truth, the man who even killed my stepfather. His plans had been as intricate as the weave of a spider's web, and I had been trapped. And if something happens to Miss Alice and the others, I will never forgive myself.

Tears streamed down my face, a torrent that was as much a product of my emotional wounds as it was of my physical exertion. The landscape morphed around me, the massive house's concrete and stones giving way to a dense forest. The darkness was all-consuming, the trees rising like silent towers in the night, a scene away from the house I just escaped. My only illumination was the faint, jittery beam from the flashlight on Sergei's phone. But amidst the chaos, there's still hope. I can't give up, not now.

I then remembered the very second I knocked Sergei out cold. I called Leo, taking his card out of my pocket, and contacted him. His information was laid out in big, bold ink. The static buzz of the phone line was a distinct difference from his confusion when he first answered. "Who's this?" he'd asked, his voice wary. I had told him about the orphanage and the danger looming over it like a predatory bird. His confusion deepened. "I don't understand. Who's calling?"

"Leo," I said, my voice trembling slightly. "They're in danger. Please. I don't know what else to do."

There was a pause. "Who's calling?" His voice was wary and cautious, as if he suspected a trap.

I hesitated. "That's not important," I replied, ducking the question. Perhaps it was cowardice, or maybe it was a sense of self-preservation. But I couldn't let him know who I was. He might recognize my voice, but whatever. "If you want to see your twin, you need to hurry."

"What?" The confusion was palpable in his voice. I could almost see the furrow in his brow and the questions swirling in his mind.

"The men in black are coming for the gifted orphans at Miss Alice's academy," I said, urgency creeping into my voice. "I know you are gifted too, Leo. I know you know about the gifted people. I know you know because Lucy and I have known each other. Please, listen to me. Miss Alice and Augustus are still alive, and right now, they are in great danger."

A stunned silence stretched out on the other end of the line. Then he finally spoke. "Who are you?"

Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring my vision. "My identity isn't important," I managed to say, choking back a sob. "Please, Leo. You have to listen to me."

"Go on," he'd responded, his confusion now laced with anxiety. I was as direct as I could be, laying out the grim reality of the situation.

"Miss Alice's academy is in danger. The men in black are coming for the gifted orphans. They are all in danger, including your twin."

There was a pause, then a soft gasp of understanding on the other line.

"My twin... is alive?"

"Yes. He is the right-hand man of Miss Alice in her academy. They opened the orphanage to take in gifted orphans that are hunted down by the men in black."

"And where is this orphanage?" he asked.

"Ellsmere, Therslomau Isle," I said. "I know you're Lucy's son," I added once again, "and if you want to see your twin alive, you should go there. It won't be long before the men in black come."