EXILE,
fourteen
"SO WE'RE REALLY doing the phone tracing thing that never works in the movies?" Mindy sarcastically asked Kirby, a bitter smile along her lips. "It'll be all 'Keep him talking, Sam. Two more minutes, I've almost got him.' And then he hangs up just before we can get a lock." Mindy explained, ignoring how Cale stared at her, mouth slightly agape.
Both Eden and Cale shared a look, their jaws slack as they just glanced between both Kirby and Mindy. "Wow, okay." Cale whispered to Eden.
"I can trace a call in under 15 seconds." Kirby shot back at Mindy, sarcastically smiling at the college student.
Eden pinched the bridge of her nose, just before her head absentmindedly fell against Ethan's shoulder. The boy widened his eyes as he directed his attention towards Chad, mouthing for the Meeks-Martin boy to help him. But it felt right. Felt right knowing Eden was resting her head on his shoulder. Nobody else's. Just Ethan's.
So he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to his body. Then everything felt like it was perfect. Nothing else mattered in that moment. Only Eden and Ethan.
Well, and the killer that was on the loose.
Mindy smiled back at Kirby, trying not to lose the argument. "Well, you've got them out there as bait."
Both Chad and Ethan widened their eyes.
"Because the killer usually calls from somewhere nearby." Kirby shot back, masking her anger with her usual smirk.
Cale threw his head back, while raking his hands through his hair. "If they continue this, I might—"
He was cut off. "And you think they're safe because it's broad daylight in a public place?" Mindy interrogated, leaning forward as she spoke.
"Look, I'm here, okay? And so is Bailey." Kirby reminded Mindy.
"This is exactly how our Uncle Randy died. Broad daylight. Public place. Yanked into a van. Stab, stab, stab. No more Randy." Mindy taunted, raising her voice slightly.
An awkward laugh left Cale's lips as he looked at the others, blinking rapidly. "Oh?"
"Huh." Kirby hummed, lifting her head slightly.
Ethan took a chip from the Cheetos bag, just before he offered some to his best friend. Chad furrowed his eyebrows as he sent Ethan a disgusted look, almost as if he couldn't believe the boy's actions. But the boy simply shook his head, refusing to take Ethan's disgusting chips.
"Told you that nobody wants the original Cheetos." Eden teased, lips curling into a sly smirk. The girl looked down at the chips, just before she looked away. "You're disgusting." She joked, watching as Ethan stared at her with a look of shock.
Kirby looked back at her laptop. "Hey, Sam? Stay frosty out there, okay?" The agent spoke up, waiting for a response.
"We're good." Sam replied, looking at her surroundings. Both her and Tara were trying to identify any suspicious people. Whether it was people on their phones, or maybe even people who were causing both Sam and Tara to feel uncomfortable.
Nothing. Only people conversing with peers, mutuals, and friends. Nothing to feel unsafe about. Instead, it made Sam and Tara feel safer. Well, safer than they were.
When Sam's phone rang, Eden immediately felt nauseous. It was like her limbs had been torn off, she had been deprived of oxygen. Almost as if everything she had vanished in that moment. She couldn't handle any calls, nor texts. If she received a motivation, it would remind her of the person who had been messaging her. The person who teased Anika.
Eden couldn't talk about Anika. It pained her chest when she remembered that her best friend was dead. It hurt Eden even more when she realized that Anika was never going to grow up. The pain in Eden's chest would come back to bite her when she moved past Anika's death for a split second.
Imagining this scenario with Anika made Eden feel better. Her best friend would be sitting next to her, probably holding Mindy's hand. Anika would be laughing about something with Eden (probably something Ethan was doing). She'd be here.
Reality then hit Eden. It was as if the ghost of Anika had vanished. Gone to dust. She just disappeared. Eden then had to face the truth. Anika Kayoko was dead and she wasn't coming back. Somebody Eden trusts killed her. Killed her and didn't feel any remorse.
"You okay?" Ethan whispered quietly, noticing how Eden slightly tensed up. "Eden?"
Eden fixed her jacket. "Yeah, I'm fine." She muttered, twirling her hair with one of her fingers. Old habits were coming back. The old Eden was slowly coming back.
Not the one she wanted, though.
"We can leave, Eden. I can tell that you—"
"I'm fine." Eden harshly replied, slumping back against the wall to the vehicle. The girl silenced herself once Sam accepted the phone call.
"You're gonna die, you know." The Carpenter woman hissed, checking to see if anybody in the park seemed suspicious.
Shortly, the group earned a response. "No, you're gonna die, Samantha! Choking on your own blood while I hack up your sister." The killer seethed, voice loud and clear.
Tara furrowed her eyebrows while she examined hee sister. "Unless we find you first." Sam shot back.
"For a mastermind, you're not very smart. Waiting for me to call, desperately hoping I'm nearby so the police can grab me? But I'm not nearby. I'm a step ahead." They explained, they let out a sound that was resembling a sinister laugh.
"Be seeing you, Samantha."
The call disconnected.
"Did you get it?" Sam asked Kirby, looking down at her cellphone.
Kirby nodded. "Yep. Geolocation coming through right now." The Reed agent replied, pressing random keys to her laptop. The woman's eyebrows furrowed once she received the location.
Eden sat up slowly, eyes filling with worry. "What is it?"
"He's on the Upper West Side." Kirby admitted, a puzzled look plastered on her face. This wasn't how she thought the plan was going to work. Not at all. "He's in an apartment building halfway across the city." Kirby informed everybody.
"On West 96th?" Tara questioned, widening her eyes.
Kirby tilted her head. "How'd you know that?"
"Gale." Both Tara and Sam spoke in unison.
Eden's face fell. Her eyes went cold when the realization hit her. A look of worry crept onto her face as she glanced at her brother, lips parting once Cale figured out why Eden was so heartbroken.
Gale Weathers was next. She was the next target in their game. Mindy was right. Legacy characters were being killed off. Anybody could be next.
And it sickened Eden.
"Oh, my God." Ethan widened his eyes, glancing between Chad and Eden. "Do you think we'll—"
Eden let out a dry cough. "I have to go." She excused herself, grabbing her coffee, just before she abandoned the enclosed van. If Eden had been in there for another minute, she'd probably lose her mind. Possibly go insane.
The Miller leaned her head against the van, eyes clasping shut as everything hit her. The realization. The disgusted feeling. The survivors guilt. It should've been her. She lost the people she loved most, just for this. A life. A life she doesn't even want.
Why can't she be free?
"Sorry if I'm interrupting something." A low voice began. The figure was standing in front of Eden, arms folded over their chest. Gray hairs were covering his upper head, hair styled with a slight hint of expensive hair gel. "Your name is Eden, correct?"
Eden nodded, anxiously picking at the skin around her fingers. "Yeah, why?"
Detective Bailey let out a sigh. "I know that you were close friends with Miss Kayoko." The detective exhaled his long breath.
"She has a name." Eden shot back, growing more irritated. "Also, shouldn't you be saving Gale Weathers? Instead, you're sitting on your ass, not doing anything." Eden seethed.
The man's jaw snapped shut. "I understand—"
"You don't." Eden interrupted, exhaling shakily.
"Eden, we haven't reached out of Miss Kayoko's family members yet. They don't know about what's happening."
The girl's jaw clenched. "Are you fucking kidding me?" Eden growled. "It's been almost two days!" Eden shouted, bottom lip trembling as she held back her tears. "Two days and you haven't built up the courage to tell her family that she was murdered?" Eden hissed.
"We're very sorry."
Eden let out a raspy chuckle. "If you aren't going to tell them, I will." Eden whispered.
"I'm so sorry for your loss." Detective Bailey tried.
"Whatever." Eden breathed out.
SHE COULDN'T DO IT. Holding Anika's cellphone was torturing her. It was like an ancient object that was worth hundreds of dollars. A few days ago, it was just a cellphone, but it was history, now. An object that people would die to buy. A device that was once useless, now meant the world to thousands of film geeks.
And Eden Miller had it in her hands. She had the power. She held Anika Kayoko's cellphone in her trembling hands. Surprisingly, Eden hadn't dropped the cellphone. Well, not yet.
Her thumb hovered over the call button, inches away from activating the button. One move. It would only take one move.
Finally, Eden pressed the button. Her stomach turned once she heard the first ring. No answer, yet. At this point, Eden didn't want them to answer. She just wanted to move past this. She didn't want to be the one to admit that Anika was dead. It would physically hurt her.
"Anika!" A voice answered. If Eden had to guess, the person was probably a teenager. Thirteen or fourteen, probably.
Eden couldn't speak. "Oh." She let out, leaning against the wall to the police station. "Hi," She greeted, voice small and frail. Barely audible.
The young girl seemed to be confused. "Wait, uh, who are you? Oh, my gosh! Are you Mindy?" The girl beamed. "Anika talks about you all the time."
Eden sniffled. "I bet. I— I need to talk with your parents, please." Eden quietly begged, trying her hardest to hold back a sob.
"Mom, Dad!" The young girl called out. "They should be down in a minute." The girl informed Eden. "Also, I'm Mari! Anika's little sister."
The Miller girl let out a shaky laugh. "It's nice to meet you, Mari."
"Mari, what's wrong?" An older woman spoke, her voice echoing throughout Eden's mind. "Who's on the phone?" She questioned.
Mari let out a few giggles. "I'm pretty sure it's Ani's girlfriend." Mari gossiped. Eden could just tell that her lips were curled into a big smirk.
"Oh?"
Eden let out a silent laugh. "Julianna Kayoko?" Eden asked once the woman took her phone from her daughter.
Julianna let out a confused sound. "Who are you? Uh, also, why do you have my daughter's phone?" Julianna asked, rambling slightly.
"I— I'm Eden." Eden admitted. "I don't know if Anika ever talked about me." Eden muttered, closing her eyes slowly.
"Oh, it's nice to finally speak to my daughter's best friend!" Julianna enthusiastically beamed, a bright smile on her face. "Is everything alright? You seem very—"
"That's actually why I called." Eden whispered. "Something bad is happening in New York. And I'm so sorry. I— I wanted to save her. I would've—"
"Wait, what?" Julianna's voice broke. Shattered like a glass plate. She was barely audible anymore. The woman wasn't happy to meet Eden anymore. She was heartbroken. Upset that it wasn't her daughter speaking to her.
"I'm so sorry." Eden sobbed. "I didn't know Anika for that long, but she made everything better."
"My daughter— My precious girl."
"Ma'am, I'm so sorry. It should've been me." Eden breathed out, tears streaming down her cheeks. "We tried everything." Eden whispered, voice small and silent.
"Do— Do you know who did this, Eden?"
Eden couldn't breathe. "No."
"Oh, my God." Sobs continued to leave Julianna's lips. A sound Eden never wants to hear. She wishes that she could take away their pain. Give their pain to her.
"I promise, I'm doing everything I can to bring justice to her name." Eden promised, speaking quietly into the microphone inside of her cellphone. "I swear. On my life."
"Sh, it's okay, Mari." Julianna whispered. "We'll be okay, baby." The woman tried, a quiet sob escaping her lips.
Julianna returned to her conversation with Eden. "Please, please. Please figure out who did this to my daughter, Eden. We're believing in you."
"I will, I promise." Eden rapidly nodded her head.
"Give them hell, Eden." Mari finished.
notes. hi! i just wanted to tell you guys, updates will be slower starting tomorrow, due to school starting. i will try my best to finish this book, because i'm not ending eden and cale's story like this<3