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It was almost nearing a full twenty-four hours since Alec's phone call. The sky was fast approaching the darkness of the night, though it was only five in the evening, since the year was still lingering in the winter. Yet, despite it being a Montana winter, I stood in a simple loose tank-top and tights, sweat dripping down my neck as I ducked a punch from my brother, who let a grin spread his lips.
"Your reflexes are getting sharper with each match," he complimented.
"Just admit that--" I swung my fist towards him, but he swerved out of my aim-- "you're getting to old for this stuff."
"Old?" He took the offensive again, pushing me onto defense with ease. "You call this unbelievably youthful and toned, not to mention attractive, body old?"
"You forgot wrinkly," I added as I attempted to take back the offensive. However, Archer just kept pushing back my advances until my wrists were caught in his hands. The two of us were panting heavily, the heat of our duel fending off the February cold.
"Me? Wrinkly?" Archer made a face of horrified disgust. "What a traumatizing thought."
"It's not as traumatizing as having to look at your face every morning."
"Now, now, just because you're planning on murdering a certain Darkwood doesn't mean that you have to be mean to me too," Archer frowned as the two of us headed back into Elijah's house.
It was nearing a full day, and I hadn't slept a bit. Anger and determination rushed through my veins with every breath I took as I thought about everything that happened. Every time I heard Darkwood's voice playing in my mind, Logan's last words to me echoing around me when all was silent, something broke inside of me. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't relax, making it impossible for me to sleep.
After last night, Archer immediately phoned the Order of the Dragons and beckoned them to visit Paradise. Now we were waiting for their flights to arrive, and though Archer had promised me that he would put a plan into action soon, an anxiety pulsed in me as I thought about the clock ticking down the time that Logan had left to live.
When Six hadn't been discovered in any of the vans, and the agents who had been attacked reported seeing Six with Alec before they blacked out, Archer declared him a traitor to the dragons and the agency. Minnie and Zen had headed back to the dance after Archer requested that they keep an eye on Sophia, as well as to clear up the rumors that surrounded our trio due to our abrupt departure (apparently, the mystery girl with the brown hair hanging around Minnie and Zen as the three charged out of the building caused quite the gossip to travel).
But, according to Zen and Minnie's texts, Sophia didn't seem like a threat whatsoever, seeing as how she hadn't left her brother's apartment ever since she got home from the formal.
Since the majority of Archer and Elijah's equipment was held in Elijah's house and not the apartment, we returned there instead. While my brother and cousin conversed quietly in the kitchen, drawing up plans and exchanging inaudible words, I took my frustration out on Elijah's punching bag out in his backyard. I had been at it for hours, doing everything I could to relieve the tension in my muscles, thriving off of black coffee and water.
How could he do this? I thought as I slumped down at the kitchen island, running a hand through my roots. We were his friends, we were his family. How could he just threaten Logan's life as though it meant nothing to him? As though hurting me was nothing but a game.
I replayed Darkwood's words again in my mind, understanding the message that he had sent me. Pot of gold, rainbow. It made me think of leprechauns and the moral of the stories of what really lay at the end of a quest for gold. He the green lands of Ireland, and I wondered if Darkwood had chosen the location. Flynn lived in Ireland. Was Darkwood also planning on finishing off his half-brother as well?
I wouldn't put it past him to do something like that to his family.
Archer was humming a song as he prepared another batch of coffee. The violet shadows under his eyes had gotten worse since last night's events. The weeks of insomnia and irregular sleeping patterns was now finally catching up to him. His complexion was a great deal paler than it should've been, and there were moments when I caught him standing with his eyes closed for minutes before he would wake up, seeming in a daze.
Then my thoughts strayed to the fifth level floor where Logan had stared at me, lost in thought, before he took me for a dance around the room. I could still feel his arms around my waist, the way his cologne clung to his blazer, the sound of his voice as he told me about our past, about the first time he danced with me.
This is all my fault, I thought angrily as Archer slid a mug of coffee towards me. If only I hadn't insisted on going after Alec. If only I had understood that I wasn't the only one that could've stopped him. Logan would still be here--safe and alive.
Now he was gone and his life was in grave danger--all because I was too stubborn to accept the truth.
Archer's phone rang loudly, breaking the silence of the kitchen. He answered it as he poured his tenth cup of caffeine but instantly, he set down the cup. With his phone still pressed to his ear, he turned to me, a devilish glint in his eyes. With a wickedness in his smile that sent a chill up my spine, Archer said:
"The Dragons are here."
* * *
"You know, you don't have to break every single speed limit when you drive," I groaned as I stumbled out of the car, feeling my heart still beat rapidly as it tried to recover from Archer's street-racing fantasies.
"Little Sparrow," Archer clucked, sending me a disapproving frown as we began to head deeper into the forest. "You'll never go far with that mindset."
"I can avoid getting arrested with my mindset."
"Where's the fun in that?"
"Not getting arrested is actually really entertaining, believe it or not."
Archer snickered, hopping over a fallen tree trunk. "There's a certain thrill to be arrested, little Sparrow. You'll never know until you experience it yourself."
I sighed, my boots crunching on the snow. "Why am I not surprised that you've been arrested?"
Apparently, the Dragons decided to host their gathering in the middle of the forest instead of somewhere normal like a meeting room or Elijah's house. No, we had to drive all the way out of the city and hike through the freezing, empty woods like we were rebels of a kingdom, rendezvousing to discuss our secret revolution because hey, why not?
Archer began whistling a Cimerian folk song. The tune pierced through the silence of the forest, and I found myself singing the words along to his melody as we walked. The small pathway we had been using began to fade the further we got, and soon enough, I relied on Archer's confident lead, for leaves and thick roots mounted out from the white blankets of snow, making it hard for us to stick to a straight line.
It took around ten minutes, but Archer and I finally walked into a small clearing. The grass here grew to my thighs, defying the layers of snow, and the blades brushed against the hem of my coat and fingertips as I passed into the sea of green. A fallen tree split the clearing in half, its bark peeling and ashen.
"How did you even find this place?" I asked, looking at my brother. He was glancing around the clearing, his eyes narrowed as he peered at the surrounding trees.
"I found it on Halloween night," Archer explained. "While you were in the hospital, I was searching the areas to find anyone who managed to escape."
"And you remembered how to find it again?"
Archer flashed a grin at me. "You see, due to my youth and sharp mind, my memory is uncannily on point."
"Please stop talking about yourself," someone sighed as they walked into the clearing. Elijah lead a group of three, rolling his eyes as he waded his way through the snow and grass. I arched a brow as I saw Minnie and Zen behind him--as well as Sophia.
"Don't ask us," Minnie said, holding up her hands and shrugging as I looked to her. "We were just taken along for the ride. I have no idea why she's here."
"I don't know why I'm here either," Sophia frowned, looking tentatively at all of us. "Is this about my brother? Is he hurt? He didn't come home last night."
I opened my mouth to tell her the truth--that Six was a lying bastard that I was going to toss into Mount Doom--but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Archer give a sharp jerk of his head, narrowing his eyes a slight fraction. Though confused, I understood that as a sign that I couldn't tell Sophia about her brother yet.
"Alec kidnapped Logan," I said instead. "We're all here to save him."
Sophia then stood a little straighter, her lips falling open in an 'o' shape. She stumbled back, a gloved hand pressed to her mouth. "Not Logan," she whispered in a hoarse voice. "But...Alec?" Sophia looked at me, her eyes large and full of bewilderment. "Aren't you guys friends?"
"That's what we all thought," Zen answered, his voice curt and lips curling at the mention of Darkwood. Minnie nodded to his words, a similar look of distaste on her face as Zen began muttering a string of curse words regarding the traitor.
"Is that Zen Li?" a lilting voice sang as a new set of footsteps entered the vicinity.Turning my head, I saw Iris Berkeley, a tall sharp-eyed girl with sleek blakc hair plunging to her waist, approaching us. Her dark blue eyes held a sparkle under the long lashes and she threw her arms around Zen, who picked her up with ease, despite her being four years older than both of us. Iris was often one of our rescuers when the two of us got in a bit of a tricky situation (the only one that didn't make fun of us when we were saved). However, the last adventure Zen and I had gone on was may years ago, making it a while since we had last set eyes on her.
"You've dyed your hair," she smiled, ruffling his temporary Ronald McDonald strands. She looked to me, grinning widely. "You're both so tall--I feel so short compared to you." Which was a complete lie, for Iris had the figure and height of a model, willowy and lean. "And even Minnie's here!" She embraced Minnie with zeal. "I didn't think your mother would let you anywhere near Park after the Christmas incident, but it's so good to see you!"
"Zen persuaded her to let me attend school here," Minnie explained. Iris, the infinitely optimistic girl, continued smiling from ear to ear as she looked to me and cupped my face into her hands.
"I'm so thankful I haven't seen you until now. It means you finally stayed safe," she cooed. "You know, you look just like your brother." And Iris's smile slid off her face as she glowered at Archer, who merely winked at her as she let go of me and stalked over to where he stood.
"You do realize that being a Dragon means you have to keep in contact with us, not just Flynn," she snapped, crossing her arms and tilting her head up to meet my brother's smile.
"I left you a voicemail, Iris," Archer sighed, swerving away from Iris' punch.
"A voicemail? You break up with me and disappear into the night, and all I get is a voicemail? I didn't hear from you until Flynn called to let me know that you were going to Park," Iris fumed. "As your senior in this organization, I should've been--"
"Dear gods," Elijah groaned under his breath as Iris and Archer began bickering, my brother looking exasperated at having to explain why he disappeared without a word, as though it was a perfectly normal thing to leave and not tell anybody.
"They look like they left things off on a good note," Zen snickered. "Must have been because he wore those ugly-ass sneakers on their first date."
"Technically, they did leave things off in a good note," Elijah corrected. "But when Archer was supposed to meet Iris after their mission finished for the extraction, he disappeared and left her waiting at the rendezvous point for a few hours before his voicemail was finally delivered."
Minnie made a scathing noise in the back of her throat. Archer's gaze flickered over to us, his glare fixated on Elijah.
"Elijah, you better not be talking about me again," he growled threateningly.
Another member arrived right then, stopping by Elijah without a hint of his arrival that many of us jumped when he spoke. "No one wants to talk about you, Sparrow, you're not that fantastic."
"Sevasatian's here," Elijah announced through gritted teeth and a forced smile. Zen stiffened beside me and indiscreetly inched back until I was shielding his side, purposely avoiding eye contact with Sevastian Zolnerowich, the walking definition of pessimistic and retribution, an actual ice king among society.
Sophia also came closer to me, keeping her head down and away from Sevastian's cold gaze. "He doesn't look very nice," she murmured.
"I can hear you," Sevastian spoke up, his Russian accent tinged with contempt. "You're just as impolite as your brother."
"Just because she's telling the truth doesn't mean she's impolite," Elijah retorted.
"Well, Bishop, then I'm simply pointing out the truth, too. It's not like the Misser siblings are known for their manners," Sevastian replied, shooting Sophia another dark stare before moving past her, nodding his head at me as his way of hello.
"It's good to see you in one piece, little Sparrow," he greeted before plopping down besides Iris by the fallen tree.
"Why does Sevastian talk to you and not me?" Zen grumbled. "He rescues the both of us as well, it's not fair that he likes the girl who gets us in trouble in the first place."
"You set his hair on fire," I reminded him.
"It's not like you were innocent in that as well."
"I put the fire out."
The two of us turned to look at Sevastian's pale hair. Once upon a dreadful long time ago, his hair had been long enough that he tied it into a ponytail, but due to an "unfortunate" incident (complete with fire and black tea), Sevastian had been forced to shave all of his strands of. Now the platinum color grew messily on his head, the awful ponytail no longer in existence.
Park and Zen--the ultimate masters of hair-styling.
Archer barked an order at the group, the Cimerian word rolling off his tongue sharply, and suddenly, the Dragons stood and began filing away. Iris and Sevastian were engaged in a low-tone conversation, while Elijah was hissing something at Archer, his eyes flashing towards us, but too soon were they out of the clearing, their words fading as their figures distanced in the woods.
"And to think I was needed," Minnie said with a dry laugh, walking over to the tree and swinging her legs onto the surface.
"Flynn's not here," Zen mused out loud, looking at me with a bemused expression. "You'd think after hearing what his brother did, he'd want to be all hands on deck."
"Darkwood's in Ireland," I informed him, "so maybe Flynn stayed behind to keep an eye on any suspicious activity."
"What about my brother?" Sophia chimed in, her voice wavering. "Has he been..."
None of us answered, and I avoided glancing over at Zen to make sure I wouldn't give anything away. There was a reason Archer cut me off from telling Sophia the truth, though I was wondering why. Sophia deserved to know what her brother was, she didn't need to be kept in the dark.
"You'll see him soon, Sophia," I said softly. "It won't be long before you come face to face with him."
Sophia must've invested a great deal of trust in me after the Halloween incident, for she visibly relaxed, a relieved sigh escaping from her lips as her smile grew a bit more assured. Guilt stabbed through me for keeping this a secret from her, but I knew my brother. He always had a purpose to his choices and actions, and with Logan's life in danger, I didn't want to damage any part of Archer's plan.
The short minutes began to drag into longer ones as we waited. Zen and Sophia sat on the tree with Minnie and I began to pace around the clearing, growing more and more discomposed the longer I was left alone with my thoughts. Frustration and paranoia began to cluster beneath my skin and I couldn't stop my nails from digging into the palms of my hands, where pink crescent-moons began to mark my flesh.
My mind began picturing Logan, tied up, bloodied and broken. My heart began to accelerate as I imagined the worst before my eyes--that I wasn't able to save him.
Can I do this? I thought desperately, wandering a few feet away from the clearing to sit against a tree trunk. The night had completely fallen, and the only source of light was the moonlight on the pale snow. All was quiet except for Zen's soft humming back int he clearing. and the occasional hoot of an owl somewhere nearby.
Will I be able to make it in time? Can we stop all of this?
I took a shuddering breath. Can I stop Alec Darkwood? If it comes down to it, will I be able to shoot him?
My eyes shut tightly, my fingers shaking as I imagined them wrapping around the handle of a gun, pressing down on a trigger, hearing the blast echo in my ear. Anguish shot through me as I envisioned it all.
"Park," Minnie's voice said, gentle and kind, "your brother's back."
I opened, which were burning beneath my lashes, to see her crouched in front of me. In the darkness, it was hard to make out her expression, but a small second of focus showed her smile and her hand came to rest on my kneecap.
"I know you're afraid," she said while Archer called our names from the clearing. "It's okay to be scared, Park. You don't have to hide from us in order to show how you really feel inside."
"I don't want to kill anybody," I confessed. "Especially not my friend."
She cocked her head to the side, her teeth showing in her smile now. "Your heart is something I've always loved, Park. You never really do give up on people because you tend to see the best in them, even if there isn't enough to show the world. You'll see this through the right way and you'll make the right choice when it comes down to it."
She got to her feet and held a hand out to me right as Zen jogged up to us, huffing an angry breath. "I have a Sparrow throwing snow at me because you two are taking forever and he's bored. Come on!"
We laughed at Zen's annoyance and I gripped Minnie's hand, hauling myself up so that the three of us could head back to the clearing. Archer had a snowball in his hand, preparing to toss it though he lowered his arm as Zen pushed me in front of him.
"Finally," he crowed as we stopped in front of him. He held his phone in his free hand, the light emitting from the back providing some visual between the five of us. "Took you long enough."
"Don't be complaining," I frowned. "The sun set like, three millennials ago, Archer, the great kingdom of Camelot had its second rising and fall since you were away."
"I am not entertained with your sass," he replied, making a face until he watched me brush my hands under my eyes, making sure that no tears fell through. He bit his lips, a tender look about him before he cleared his throat.
"Tonight, the four of you are leaving for Ireland," he began. "Flynn will meet you there to execute you with your part of the plan."
"You're not coming with me?" I interrupted.
"Why are we going?" Minnie added, looking nonplussed as she gestured between herself and Sophia. "I'm not sure if you've heard, but I've only been on two of Park's daredevil adventures. I can't fight. Neither can this little bottle of sunshine here."
"You kill with your words, Minnie, that's good enough," my brother teased, but the alarm and confusion didn't wash off our expressions. However, he ignored our questions and pressed on with his explanation.
"Once you arrive in Ireland, you'll track down where Alec and the others are residing. Remember, he gave you four days. This is day one. The flight will carry over into day two. You have two days to hunt him down with Flynn. He's in charge of your roles once you track down Alec's location, so whatever he says to do, do it. We'll be there the next day, but the plane could only fit four of you tonight and--"
"That's your plan?" Zen spoke up, incredulity in his voice.
Again, Archer only smiled at our bewilderment. "Don't worry, Zen--some things are deeper than they seem."
"Archer," I said, recalling Darkwood's words, "if they know I'm bringing help, they'll kill Logan."
"Logan won't die." His voice surged with confidence, not a hint of falsehood in it, but my heartbeat couldn't calm down.
"I have to go alone if we're to protect him."
"I'm not letting you die," Archer countered. "If you think I'm letting you walk into enemy territory without immediate backup, you must think I'm crazier than I actually am."
"This is Logan we're talking about!"
"Trust me, Park," uttered Archer, complete sincerity in his words. He held my gaze with a steady faith, a stare so full assurance that I couldn't help but step back and let my brother's certainty wash over me.
He looked at each and every one of us. "I need all of you to arrive at Elijah's house by eight thirty tonight. Bring what's only necessary and tell no one where you're going." Archer's words were acknowledged with sharp nods, eyes bright and gleaming with determination. Even Sophia gave a tough smile before she headed away from the clearing with Minnie and Zen.
Archer and I followed a few minutes after, wandering through the darkness. Archer's flashlight brightened our path by a bit, so that we avoided walking straight into trees or tripping over the large roots that protruded from the earth. And as we walked, I began to connect the curiosities of the circumstances.
"How'd you put this plan together so fast?" I wondered aloud.
The Dragons had gotten here within a day on short notice, as though Archer had already called for their arrival earlier than he said he had. He'd also gotten ahold of all our passports and managed to book four tickets to Ireland within twenty-four hours. He had hinted at the depth of his plan, like were still a few tricks up his sleeve.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched him and wondered just how devious was my brother? Just how far would he go to complete a mission?
"That's a tale you'll hear after all of this passes," Archer replied. He smiled apologetically at me. "I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but I operate on a need-to-know basis and you don't need to know anymore than what I've told you."
"You've learnt how to keep secrets pretty well since you've been gone," I half-laughed. It was like nothing could surprise my brother anymore, but he was still surprising me. He hadn't even seemed fazed with the news of Six' betrayal and the way he spoke of his plan told me that this was something he had spent countless time and energy into developing and perfecting--time and energy he didn't have in a single day.
"Will you be okay?" he asked, switching the topic, slightly throwing me off. "You were crying earlier."
The trees were less dense now, growing thinner and more spaced as we continued through the woods. The night air bit at my cheeks and my breath came out in puffs in the darkness. My eyes stung at the edges from the tears that had spilled, making it hard to blink.
"I made a mistake, Archer," I said. "Now I have to fix it, but I'm afraid I won't be able to follow through."
If it really came down to it, did I have it in me to end Darkwood, to end her, to end all of this?
For a while, Archer didn't speak. It wasn't until we came to a stop by the car did Archer answer, and when he did, his voice was comforting and it resonated a sense of faith that was unbreakable. A faith in me.
"Mistakes are just bad choices, little Sparrow," he began , propping his arms onto the hood of the car, looking over to me. "And it's our choices that make us who we are today. I stand here in front of you today because of all the choices I've made has pushed me on the path that I needed to be on. You'll reach that moment in your life when you recognize the choice that put you on the right path and it won't be a mistake anymore."
"Are you saying that trusting Darkwood isn't actually a mistake?"
"No. It's simply a choice that you made, and it's a choice that'll show you the right thing to do when the moment calls for it," he finished. He got into the car and revved up the engine, the sound echoing in a ghostly manner throughout the forest. I got in as well and shut the door, my fingers curled into fists on my lap.
"Remember, Park--when the moment calls for it, you'll know what to do," Archer advised, reaching over to ruffle my hair.
I took a deep breath and organized my mindset, trying to pull away from the thoughts that I held for the future. Everyone was right. Frightening myself, doubting myself--it wouldn't help anything. Fly to Ireland, meet Flynn, find Darkwood. Rescue Logan. And that's where I would end all of this, whether it be through a bullet or a phone call to the authorities of Cimeria. I would find my answer in time, just like I always did.
Fortune favors the bold, I thought, recalling the Latin idiom that was the Sparrow clan's motto.
"So, tell me," I began, trying to lighten up the mood thinking that this could be the last conversation that I had with my brother. "How did you get arrested?" I needed to hear him laugh, see him grin one more time.
Archer laughed, a grin forming on his face as he glanced over at me. 'Well, it involved a tiger, a lot of Smirnoff bottles being set on fire, and uh, a port..."