"We saw you, Margo! Don't think you can hide from us." The man calls out as he kicks the front door down.
"That's our door." Luke frowns and I give him a scolding look. "Right, sorry."
"I'll jump and you guys need to toss the bag down to me." I whisper, running into Calum's room as he rises from his bed.
"What's going on?" His question seems genuine, but I don't have time to explain.
"You're not jumping out the window." Luke argues with me and I shake my head, opening the window.
"Luke, it's our only option unless you want to fucking die. Those men work for my father, and they're not scared of going to jail. So unless you want Calum's room to be the last one you see, I suggest you jump through this window." I finally push the window open and slip one of my legs through.
"We're on the second floor, are you insane?" Ashton grabs my arm and I pull away.
"Listen to me when I tell you this because I'm not saying it again, I've been through so much shit that jumping off the second floor is the least of my worries. Either you can follow me or get your brains blown out." I pull myself out of his grasp and pull my other leg through the window. "It's your choice."
I launch myself to the ground, keeping my knees bent so my ankles don't snap on impact. As soon as I regain my balance, I look up to see Ashton pushing himself out of the window the same way I did.
Once Ashton, Luke and I are on the ground, Calum tosses the duffle bag down to us and pushes himself out the window after it.
"Wheres Mikey?" I look around, doing a headcount as if they're children and Luke shakes his head.
"He's not here, he's off with a girl. He left right before you and Ashton came back." He reassures me and I nod before beginning to sprint towards my house as they follow.
I open the back door as Ashton, Calum and Luke struggle to hop the fence.
"What are you doing? We have a front door." Noelle looks at me with a confused look and I ignore her sprinting upstairs as the guys follow.
"If the big scary men next door ask where we are, it's not here. They may try to kill you guys." Luke calls out as they run upstairs.
We get into my room and I lock the door as they collapse onto different parts of my room. Luke on my bed, Calum in the floor, and Ashton in my recliner.
I hurriedly hide the book and file in my safe that only has one key that hangs around my neck.
"What do you think Koleton and Noelle are going to think?" Calum pants and Ashton sits up quickly.
"They won't know. We just won't say anything." Ashton quickly says and I fall to the ground, pressing my hands against my face.
"We have to tell them." Luke chimes in, causing Ashton to groan. "I'm serious, I doubt those men will keep this a secret. Not to mention you could easily win gossip of the year."
They continue arguing about the situation as I try to drown them out and think of a way for us to get out of here safely. After a few minutes, I finally have realization hit me in the face.
"They want me." I look up at them and they all have confusion wash over their faces.
"What?" Luke knits his eyebrows together as I stand up.
"The men, the want me." I turn to my dresser and rummage through it, looking for something.
"If you're thinking what I'm thinking, then I'm not letting you leave this room." Calum walks up behind me.
"I have to, or they'll hurt you guys." I pull the necklace with the key to my safe off of my neck and hand it to Calum. "Take this, it goes to my safe that has nearly everything you'll need to know if I-"
"No!" Calum shoves the key back into my hands. "I said you're not doing that. Stop acting like you're going to die."
"I killed my dad, Calum. They worked for my dad so they're obviously going to kill me. Just please trust me." I hand it to him again. "Do you trust me?"
"I'll always trust you Margo, but-"
"So take this key, okay? My journal where I write everything down and all of my papers are in that safe." I gesture towards the bottom drawer of my dresser without taking my eyes off of his. "Noelle and Koleton already know the plan if I d-"
"Please, don't say it. You're not going to let that happen, okay? There are dozens of ways you can go out and this isn't one of them." He shakes his head and blow out a shaky breath.
"Okay, I'll do everything in my power to stop the from doing that, but I can't make any promises." I nod, my voice barely above a whisper. "My father was a bad man, and I'll never follow in his footsteps. That being said, I need to go out there to stop them from coming in here."
"I don't want this to be our good-bye. There's so many things I haven't gotten to tell you and I don't want you to leave thinking that I-" He begins to ramble so I grab his face, wiping the tears away from his face.
"I know, Calum. We've got a lifetime of memories to make-up. Do you remember what I told you that night?" I quietly reassure him and he sniffles before responding.
"About the soulmates?" He whispers and I nod, causing him to begin to cry again. "I don't want to lose you, Margo. I haven't been able to tell you so many things. I'm so sorry that I ever hurt you."
"Calum, look at me." I turn his head so he's making eye contact with me and I kiss him with even more emotion than I've ever put into anything. "I love you. Please remember to read my journal. Every single word, okay?"
"I will, I promise. I love you too. I love you so much that it hurts to be without you. I love you more than anything, or anyone in this world." His words cause me to begin to tear up as I hug him so tight that I feel he might explode in my arms.
"Tell the stars about me, okay?" I whisper and he nods.
"The stars would be so proud to know that they used their atoms to create someone like you."
———
"What are you-" Koleton stands up as he follows me towards the front door with Noelle.
"I have to go." I mumble, trying not to make eye contact. I can't do anymore good-byes today, not after saying good-bye to Calum and the others upstairs.
"You're not going out there." Koleton stands between me and the door, making me look up at him. "What's going on, Margo?"
"I killed my dad and those men want revenge. So I'm going out there to show them who they're messing with." I grab my gun out of my waist-band and he shakes his head furiously.
"You killed your- what?! You're going to get yourself killed!"
"It's either I go out there and risk my life, or they come in here and kill all of us. Now move, before they make the choice for us." I push him out of the way, surprisingly moving him.
"I'm going with you." He shakes his head and I turn around to look at him.
"No, this is my situation." I push him away from the door.
"You can't be a fucking hero, Margo. Are you a fucking idiot?" He raises his voice and I roll my eyes.
"I'm not a fucking hero, Koleton!" I finally snap, causing Noelle and him both to back away. "This is my villain origin story or something close to it, but this is not the story where I'm the hero. Not all of us can be the hero."
I open the front door and look back at him one more time before leaving the house.
"Margo Roberts, the legend." The first man from earlier smiles as he approaches me, followed by the others. "We thought you ran away like a child."
"I'm many things, but I'm not a coward." I shake my head, approaching them as their height towers over mine. "What's your name? Since we're on first name terms."
"Well, you are your mother's daughter. Sadly, you didn't get many of your father's genes other than his stubbornness." He lets out a loud laugh that rings through the hair like a dark storm cloud. "My name is Chase."
"You can call me many things, but you cannot call me their child. I may share the same genes, but I will never share the same personality." I shake my head, causing the three of them to laugh.
"Watch out boys, little miss perfect moved to the big city and now she's able to make her own decisions." He bends over, lowering himself to my level with a smirk. "Tell me doll-face, where's your big bad bodyguard? Or your little boyfriends? I'm sure they'd love to watch us rip you apart."
"You know," I tap my gun against my chin with a smile. "I knew that you weren't smart from the moment I found out you worked for my dad, but this is a new level of stupid."
He rises back up to his full height, clearly upset by my words. "You eat ass don't you? Theres no way that you don't because you have a lot of shit coming out of your mouth."
He lets out a loud huff as I continue talking, the smile not leaving my face.
"You may not be scared of killing people, but I just so happen to lack the fear of death." I fold my arms over my chest and let out a bitter laugh. "I went through hell and back repeatedly when I lived with in Australia. Out of all the things you should fear, I might as well be at the top of that list."
"Don't listen to her, she's stalling." The skinnier one taps the first guy and I shake my head.
"No, that's where you're wrong. I'm not stalling, but I am going to ask you one simple question. Then you're free to have your fun with me." I shake my head and place my gun back into my waist-band without hesitation.
"Tell me, what do you get when you put three idiots in front of the devil herself?" My question seems to leave them dumbfounded, so I open my mouth the speak again. "I've done many things, but being bullied by three grown men seems to be a new one. Come on Chase, answer the question."
He stands there in silence, confused as to why I'm playing a trivia game with him instead of fighting him.
I let out a loud sigh and grab two of my knives from my thigh. I look down at them, a smile spreading across my lips as I click my tongue and throw them at both of the guys at his sides, causing them to immediately fall to the ground. "Those knives were laced with poison, it's shocking how easy it is to get venom from a store in Hollywood."
He whips his head to look at them, his lips parting as he fumbles to grab his gun from his waist-band.
"Now, tell me Chase." I step towards him, pulling him down to my height by his collar. He begins choking, possibly gasping for air from his right my grip on his neck is. "Have you ever been the one actually chasing? Or is your name just a sad, ironic reminder that you'll never be anything except my father's shadow?"
I pull out my gun and press it to his temple as his lips begin to turn blue and he becomes weaker. "Have fun in hell, cruel motherfucker."
And with that, the gunshot rings out through the hills.