My heart pounded erratically as my iPad continued to ring. All I wanted to do was talk to my mom. It would get my mind off the kisses when we were found, Hercule's lecture when I got home, and his worry about the threat to my safety.
Tapping my fingers against my inner elbow, I waited and waited.
Finally, the ringing stopped. Rushing to the device, I threw myself into the chair and smiled before realizing that I was looking at Carlos, and not my mom.
"Hello, Miss, how may I help you?" Sweat coated his bare shoulders and I gulped. Had I interrupted a workout session of his?
"By any chance, have you seen my mom? I just need some motherly advice right now."
Carlos smiled sympathetically before throwing a shirt on and sitting down. "I'm afraid that she's in a meeting, but I'm here and more than happy to help if I can." He seemed all ears as I settled down in the chair.
"Well, alright then." Taking a breath, I let it out of my mouth before looking at him. "Carlos, be honest with me, have you ever looked at someone and felt like your stomach has erupted in butterflies? Or that you felt lighter... almost more giddy and smiley?"
A chuckle broke through his facade before he cleared his throat and looked at me, "I have."
Nodding my head, I sighed, "why?"
Carlos looked at me and dragged a stray piece of hair off his forehead. "Well, when you find someone you like, a crush, per se, it results in these feelings." His eyes seemed to stray beyond me as he continued, "sometimes it's only a patter of your heart, but other times, other times you can feel it deep in your bones and heart, or maybe your mind too if you're lucky." Chocolate eyes finally met mine through the device, and I got a crooked smile. "Then there's the times where you really aren't sure where the person's thoughts are, but you know that you'd do anything for them, as sure as the sun rises each morning. Why?"
I tilted my head back and sighed, "I think I have that, a crush." That seemed to catch his interest as he leaned closer to the screen, "she's everything a person should be: kind, compassionate, empathetic, understanding. She doesn't judge me for what I look like, but for who I am... nobody's ever done that to me before. Each time I look at her, I feel like my whole body has erupted in flames before getting doused in cold water, but instead of a shiver, I get a giddy jump in my step and a smile that won't go away, or maybe even a smear of rouge across my cheeks."
Sadness seemed to seep from the iPad as Carlos leaned back, the crooked smile replaced by a sad and forlorn one, making him look like a lost teen instead of the fearsome mafia man he was. "What's her name? She must be important if you've thought about it this much."
Grinning at him, I laughed, "her name's Audrey, and she's everything I never thought I would find in a person." I looked at Carlos again, "thanks for listening to me, I never thought I would have another friend who would just listen and give advice... that's normally her role... thanks."
"Right, well, I'm happy that I can be that friend for you. You know where to find me if you ever need anything else." His eyes seemed glossy as he reached forward and ended the call. A second too late, I tried to tell him I hadn't talked to my mom yet, but I really didn't think she would mind... he didn't seem in the best mindset after our talk anyways.
Someone knocked at the door, drawing my attention away from my iPad. "Nadia? Are you in here?" Getting up, I stalked towards it. "There you are! Get changed, our training session starts in ten!" A groan tried to escape my mouth but I muffled it with a tight-lipped smile.
***
The gym seemed abnormally large as I stepped into it. Everyone else had already arrived, meaning that all attention was on me. I cringed as I realized that the door would close with a loud clang, knowing that if I tried to stop it, I would be a second too late.
"You're late." Grunting at Hercule, I made my way to the sparring ring. Alexandre smiled at me from where he stood and I frowned. It was bad enough that I was here, not to mention the fact that he wanted me to do something with a knife. Who knew what I would do with a weapon I hadn't been trained to use...
"I just want you to show me what you can do in combat with a knife. I won't put you against a dummy because I know you know what you're doing, so instead, I'll put you against Léon." Both me and Léon had a layer of surprise on our faces as his words marinated in the air. A question was growing in my head and I struggled to hold it in—wasn't Léon a dummy too? Like, if he didn't want me to face a dummy, why pair me with him?
"No." Léon crossed his arms over his chest and sat back further in his chair. At least someone wasn't afraid to voice their thoughts.
"It wasn't a question; you're going to be the one to spar with Nadia whether you like it or not."
"And why are you not fighting her, oh great and powerful fighter."
Alexandre didn't take the bait, only bringing the two of us knives. "I want you to both push as hard as you can, the first to draw blood wins." It seemed harsh that he chose that the first to draw blood would win. What if one of us accidentally hurt the other one badly?
"Really, how is this fair? The poor girl hasn't ever touched a knife!" Léon pouted as he took his knife into steady hands.
"Just watch, you'll see." Alexandre left us in the middle of the sparring mats and counted us down.
The fight began slowly, both of us trying to get a feel of the other person's motives. Finally, he took a step forward, trying to distract me from the knife that was hidden in a reverse grip, parallel to his forearm.
Suddenly, his arm swung out in an ark towards me. Quickly doing a backbend, I was able to avoid the sharp object. I stood back up, and forced my foot out, crashing it into the back of his knees and sending him to the ground. I followed his movements with my knife and brain, blocking each of his tries and attacking whenever I was given the chance to.
"You... really... should give up... now." Both of us were panting as we started to round each other again. I had no idea how long we'd been at this, but I knew that it had been much longer than anyone had expected me to last.
"I'll only give in if you give in," I blew a stray curl out of my face, wishing that I had tied my hair in a tighter bun.
Flipping the knife between my fingers, I decided on a hammer grip and lunged. I pushed his attempts to get to me with my elbow, forcing him back further and further, until there was nowhere left to go. Pulling back, I stood and smirked, "and I believe that that means I won."
Léon stood up on shaky feet and scowled, "you didn't even touch me though! How did you win?"
The room was silent as everyone looked at him. "Uhm, Leo, you may want to look at your shirt, there seems to be something on it." Armel's gentle voice broke through the silent room and Léon rushed to a mirror on the wall.
He pulled the shirt off his sweaty body and grimaced, "oh, shit." A deep red streak had appeared at some point on the edge of the material. In the back of my head, I had made sure that I missed any important veins when I made my move. The last thing I wanted was for another death to be on my hands. Even though I hadn't killed them, I still blamed myself for Rachel and Neil's deaths. They were truly despicable people yet they didn't deserve to die. All people could be given a second chance because all people had some fragment of humanity that needed to be fed. Then there was Archie... I didn't blame myself for his death in the slightest, I only blamed myself for the fact that it came to that. What would've happened if I had put up a fight all those nights? Or if I had forced myself to miscarry him?
"I can't believe she beat you; like, truly beat you." I was snapped back into reality as Matthieu looked at the stain of red.
"Yeah, I know, I was there when it happened. So tell me, dear sister, when did you learn to fight like that? I hadn't even seen when you moved the knife to cut me. Hell, I hadn't felt it!"
Shrugging, I turned from him, "can I head back to my room now? It's getting late and I still have school in the morning." I could feel everyone exchange glances before Hercule finally cleared his throat. Nothing in my memory had hinted at me being able to fight like that... In all honesty, I was just as curious as them—where had I learned to fight like that?
"Of course, we'll all be back to the house soon. Sleep well, mon bijou." Turning, I gave them all a small smile before leaving the gym and the creepy building behind. Why couldn't they be slightly more normal and have the gym in the mansion or something? At least that way I wouldn't have to walk through the place where I saw a kid who didn't have some of his fingers. Shivering at the thought, I wrapped my arms tighter around my torso and took off toward the house.
***
I shook as the cold night air was torn from my skin.
"You don't think I'll get in trouble for this! Of course, I know they'll find out!" My ears perked up at the sound of arguing. Following the voice, I peered into an open room, only to see Remy on the phone with someone.
Each time I had tried to snoop I had been caught, but whatever he was yelling about seemed important... and dangerous. If there had ever been the time to, now seemed like it. "Nobody will know that I was in... yes, I know." He sighed and rubbed his eyebrows before pinching the bridge of his nose. His eyes darted across the room, before landing on the sliver of the door I was staring through. Narrowing his gaze, he stalked towards me.
Taking a step back, I took in a breath of air, feeling like I had been saved when the floor decided it was important to creak loudly. His steps sped up as he realized that someone had been listening, "I'll see you soon." The phone was put back into his pocket, but I was off before I could see anything else, running into the first room I came across.
"Chérie! Quel is la problème ?" Shaking my head, I joined her at the island and started to help her chop fruits up.
"Nadia! When did you get here?" I was startled as Remy's calm and soft voice seemed to appear from thin air. Looking up, I gave him a small smile and opened my mouth.
"She's been here tout la night, why?"
Remy sighed and shook his head as Annette narrowed her eyes at the man, her white lie rolling straight over his head, "no reason... enjoy your cooking."
Annette shooed him out then turned back to me. "Do I want to know comment you lied to your guard?"
I sighed and slumped against the counter, the knife and fruit forgotten for the moment. "I heard him on the phone, that's all..." She nodded her head, probably sensing that I didn't want to share more.
"Go get some sleep Chérie... you have l'école demain, yes?"
"Yes, ma'am." Giving her a quick peck on the cheek, I left the fragrant room and headed for my own.
***
The car pulled out of the garage achingly slowly as I ate my chocolate croissant. My alarm had been set late and I had barely made it to the car, yet I somehow still had found my way into the kitchen to steal the decadent pastry.
Biting into the gooey chocolate-filled dough, I moaned.
While I was too busy savoring my food to pay attention, Alexandre leaned over and took a bite of it.
"Hey! That's mine!" Crossing my arms, I huffed and tried to ensure the remainder of my breakfast was hidden.
"Do you want it back?" Being the child he was, Alexandre stuck his tongue out, showing me the nasty, half-chewed mush that was once my beautiful croissant.
"No, no I don't Alexandre..." Putting the rest of the pastry in my bag, I leaned back in the chair and closed my eyes. "Can you just wake me up when we get there?"
"I would... but we just pulled into the lot." My eyes snapped open and I groaned. Why couldn't I be back in my warm bed, where I felt safe and cozy? It didn't seem fair that when I left, Valentin and Matthieu were still asleep. Like, maybe they could fill in for me or something? I shouldn't have to do all the work!
Alexandre pulled my door open and I climbed out, immediately shielding my eyes from the sun. "No gym today, right?"
"Yep! And thank goodness for that! I don't think I could take a second day of that retched class! Honestly, what's even the point of it?! An hour of physical activity won't change anything."
"... I'd say you're really passionate about that, Miss." Remy pushed his sunglasses onto his nose as he rounded the car to us, stepping behind my left shoulder.
"Very." I began to walk towards the school as soon as both my people were ready to go. Even though I had just got here, I still wanted to see Audrey. Scanning the throngs of girls, I tried to hide the disappointment I felt when I didn't see her. It wasn't that I needed to see her, I just really wanted to see her, especially after our kiss last night.
My brain had turned to mush as soon as that happened, barely registering that she had said she was sorry. But what was she sorry for? There was nothing she had done to warrant an apology, so why would she?
Shaking my head, I put an extra pep into my step and got to my advisory just as the bell rang.
"You're late, Renaud." The teacher didn't look up as I shuffled to a seat in the front, "and that's not your seat."
"Thank you for informing me but I'd like to say: A) I arrived before the bell, and B) I would prefer to sit here today, thank you very much." I sent my teacher a serene smile and he shook his head, going back to work on his computer.
For the rest of the period, I just sat and worked on my assignments, trying to carve a dent into the pile but failing miserably.
As soon as the bell rang, I was off to the races.
I had barely made it out of my room when Brigitte ran up to me, her hands taking me by my arms. "Brigitte... what's wrong?"
"There's... something's happened..." She was shaking badly as her eyes frantically searched mine for reassurance.
"What's happened?" Carefully, I steered her away from the flow of people.
"I heard screaming... and burly men were wearing all black... it seemed like they were searching for someone..." As soon as the words were out, people were screaming and running, the sound of bullets echoing through the halls.
"We need to go!" Brigitte froze in my arms as the voices and shooting continued to grow closer. "Now!" Finally, she seemed to understand and we took off, racing up the nearest staircase before sharply turning down a different hall.
The voices were fading but the screaming wasn't, forcing me to push us further into the school, trying to outrun the danger that seemed to have sprouted from nowhere.
Brigitte tugged on my arm, urging me to slow as she pointed to an open door of an empty room. Nodding at her, we rushed inside and locked it.
My breath was ragged as I stalked to the window and glanced outside, only to see kids getting pushed around and separated by armed guards. Backing away, I tried to find my breath, my fingers tapping before just digging into my skin, drawing blood. There was no way this would end well.
"This isn't good... this isn't good at all."
"Nadia, what's going on?" My eyes turned to Brigitte only to see her on the verge of tears and hyperventilating.
I forced myself to get it together, if not for my sanity than for hers. "They're looking for someone... Have you seen my brother or Remy at all?"
"Remy?"
"My other guard? I don't think I saw them when we ran." She shook her head and sighed, "No worries, I'm sure they're safe."
We were silent for a few minutes before another realization came to me, "Shit!" Brigitte looked at me wide-eyed and I frowned, "Have you seen Audrey?" She shook her head again and I let out a long string of curses.
Pounding at the door caused the line of words to come to an abrupt end, both of us dropping to our stomachs as a shadow loomed in the small window, trying to see if anyone was in the room. "Open up!"
"We need to get out of here... NOW!" My breathing was becoming more erratic as I realized that our being in this room had put us in more danger instead of less. Touching my sock, I let out a sigh when I realized that the knife was still hidden within it. After we had finished sparring last night, I hadn't given the knife back, opting to make it a tape sheath and hiding it on me in case something were to happen. Thank goodness we had that with us.
"Nadia?"
Looking at my best friend, I tried to give her a confident smile. Pulling the knife out of my sock, I showed it to her, "can you hold this for me?" Her eyes widened but she bobbed her head nonetheless, carefully taking the hilt into her shaking hands.
Thanking her, I duck-walked to the wall of windows, trying to see if there was any way we could sneak out and not be shot.
"We're stuck in here... we'll just have to wait it out..." I trailed off because I knew we had a better chance of dying than surviving in the room.
"What about the science closets?" My head whipped to her so quickly that I got whiplash.
"The what?"
A giddy look broke out on her face as she realized she could help out, "The science closets! These rooms were meant to be the science rooms before the layout was changed! They're all connected by the closets! If we can find out where it's at, we can escape the room without being seen or heard!" My eyes slid to the shadow that was still trying to figure out if anyone was in the room and I nodded.
Together, we moved across the space and began to search for secret handles or anything that could get us out of this room.
A thud came from the door and I turned my head to see it shifting from something hitting it. "Got it!" I turned my head back to Brigitte elated that she had a small cabinet open, revealing a dark cavern behind it.
"Perfect, give me my knife back, you go through first and stay in the dark till I get in there."
She had disappeared through the small opening by the time I had turned back to her. "Ok, you can turn some light on now." I heard a subtle fumbling before the familiar orb of a phone flashlight helped to illuminate the cramped space. Shutting the door once I'd gotten through, I sighed. "Now, to wait this out, do you know if there's power in these? It'd be best to conserve our phone batteries."
Brigitte turned her phone towards the wall and we slowly found a light switch. Flipping it up, we waited as the light flickered before turning on and showcasing the space. A small beanbag was in one corner, with a fridge loaded with beer and water next to it.
"Looks like we just found someone's secret lair..." Her eyes wavered as she realized what this would mean for us if we were caught. I, however, was trying not to remember how this felt eerily similar to my secret lair, back in the Foster's house.
"Shouldn't we try to find help?"
I shook my head and sighed, "as much as I'd like to say yes... we can't without risking our position and safety..."
***
Time passed slowly as we both tried to distract ourselves from our impending doom. Numerous times, we had heard people around us, searching, but we were yet to be found out, only making noises when truly necessary and when we were thought to be alone. Annette's late-night sign language classes were finally paying off as Brigitte and I signed back and forth, creating dumb stories and games to try and keep ourselves entertained.
It felt like hours had passed when the intercom suddenly crackled on. Harsh breathing filled the speakers first before a petrified voice took over. "Nadia, if you can hear me, I need help. These men have trapped me... and" a sniffle broke through her barriers and I heard yelling before she screeched, "and if you're there... please... please come and save me... I-I love you."
Brigitte and I exchanged looks before I was rushing to get up. "Nadia, Nadia!" I was blinded by the thought of her being in danger that it didn't even register when Brigitte pulled me into her chest. "You can't go out there! You'll be killed the second someone sees you!"
My breath seemed to escape me as I realized what she said, what it meant. "But she's out there, she needs help."
"What if she's being forced to say it and is being monitored? Think about it Nadia, there's nothing you can do."
Pulling away from my friend, I made my way to the doorway, "I can try, and that's enough. Stay here if you want, but I'm going to save my friend."
She mumbled something under her breath but got up and moved to where I was nonetheless. "If I die, my blood is on your hands." Even though I nodded my head at what she said, I knew I wouldn't be able to survive if another person ended up dead because of me.
I grimaced at the thought and tried to figure out a game plan. "Just stay behind me, I'll protect you from whatever I can." Footsteps passed outside of our alcove and we both went silent, straining to hear when they had passed. Nodding at her, I pushed open the door and crawled out, waiting for her to join me before standing.
My voice was barely audible as I turned slightly to her, "we need to head towards the main entrance, that's the only spot the intercom works from."
A quick thumbs-up was thrown my way before we both sprinted down a hall, using the wall as a shield against any oncoming people.
***
The halls were all desolate as we wandered, taking twisting turns and odd staircases to try and skirt around any of the men.
Our luck seemed to run dry though when we ran into a man in the next hall. "YOU!"
Pushing Brigitte to the side, I unsheathed my knife and ran towards the man, making sure to zig-zag so it would be harder for him to aim.
When I was on him, I flipped the knife, plunging it into his stomach and twisting it deeper. I could hear a gasp behind me but I wasn't worried as I gently set him on the floor before yanking my knife out. Blood gushed from the wound as I pulled Brigitte with me, "More will be behind him if we wait any longer." Words seemed to evade her as she tried to grasp what I had done, blood still wet on my hands. "I wouldn't have if I didn't think it was truly necessary."
The next hall seemed to loom on forever but I knew the office was at the end of it. Suddenly, a man appeared, and we changed direction, running further from the office in the hopes that we could find another path there.
I was about to turn down another hall when screaming drew my attention. Letting go of Brigitte's hand, I stalked closer to where the voice was, making sure to keep hidden from sight.
"You said she'd be here by now!" A mumbled voice came from somewhere within before it cried out. "Time's up!"
"Please! She'll be here! Just give her another minute!" My blood froze as I realized who was in that room, that eerily familiar room. Brigitte and I exchanged a glance before she lunged for me and I ran into the room, panting and out of breath.
"Stop!" A man wearing a mask smirked at me, his gun not wavering from its target.
"Well she wasn't kidding; alas, I already said times up sooo..." He pulled the trigger and I flinched as the body fell to the ground. The man pulled the trigger, again and again, sending a round into the engorged belly.
Crying, I lunged for Mrs. Bird, only to find that someone was holding me back. She was still taking shallow breaths, but I knew it wouldn't be long until she either bled out or choked on her blood or tongue.
"You murderer!" I was blinded by the salty water as I stared at the man and Mrs. Bird's body. "She was innocent!" Mrs. Bird had finally stopped moving, a soft gurgling telling me she died from drowning in her blood.
The man seemed to grin beneath his mask as he stalked toward me, ripping the knife from my hand and throwing it somewhere far out of my reach as I was forced to the ground.
Letting a grunt out, I tried to ignore the pain in my knees. "Where is she?"
He sent me another smile and played with the safety of his pistol, "She's fine. You, however, won't be after you pulled this stunt."
I pushed forward, trying to use surprise to my advantage and get to the guy. The person holding me down pulled me back harshly by my curls and I clenched my teeth. "Now, who's this behind you?"
"Leave her alone, do whatever you want with me." The person behind me moved as soon as they realized I wasn't going to run. "I'll submit if you let her go free, she's done nothing to deserve any of this." I couldn't add to my body count, Mrs. Bird took the last spot I didn't know was open.
The man seemed to debate it and I took the chance to sign to Brigitte telling her to: "run, go find my brothers, tell them what's happened. Don't come back for me, I'll be fine... save yourself..."
"Tie her hands up... this instant!" Looking up through my curls, I took in the other person I wanted to save. Someone rushed behind me and brutely tied my hands behind my back. "And stop her!" Looking over my shoulder, I smiled as I was forced to my belly, letting out a dark laugh. Brigitte had done it, she had managed to get out of here, and survive. If I died, at least she made it out and I wouldn't have her blood on me too.
A foot to my spine caused my laughing to stop and the man took the moment to cackle. "Not so strong after all, huh? All bark and no bite this one."
"If you put it near me, I'll happily bite it off." The man paled and removed his foot from my back. A slap across my cheek pulled me from my joking manner and I looked at her.
"Get this sorted out before..." she trailed off, the men hanging onto her every word before she strolled away. My eyes narrowed as I took in the multiple men approaching. Was she not in trouble? Had it been a ruse? Who was she?
"Audrey!" She paused but didn't look back.
"W-what's going on?" Finally, she turned. Gone was the girl who had cajoled me through panic attacks, gone was the girl who had lovingly kissed me. The person in front of me was not who I had known for months and grown to like more than I thought I could ever like someone. She had been replaced by a cold-hearted monster who looked at me without a hint of remorse.
She crouched down in front of me and took my chin in between her forefinger and thumb tightly, "Honey, it's about time you join the game you were born to play." My eyebrows scrunched before I felt a familiar pinch. That's when the panic hit me; this wasn't some dream, this was real and I was in big trouble.
Fighting back, I tried to push the men away. It was too late though, angles were no longer sharp and lines were no longer straight as I slipped from the world and fell into the arms of the girl I thought I loved.