Katya's eyes shot towards the floor, feigning blissful ignorance. If they truly were being watched, darting, incredulous glimpses at passing civilians would only make them seem more vulnerable. As inconspicuously as she could, she heeded a patent warning.
"Whatever you do, do not look around for cameras like you're on The Office. It'll make it even more evident that you're a group of uncultured, inexperienced teenagers with no clue of what to do." she said this all with her gaze still calmly fixated on the silky water.
At a distant glance, it might have seemed as though their eyes were screwed shut from drowsy idleness and inertia. In reality, Annika and Violet were attempting to rid themselves of crawling fear. It was the deadly kind; slowly submerging them within an endlessly darkening sky, before yanking them out and abruptly flinging them into a state of oblivion.
Meanwhile, Maddie felt that their constant lingering fear was, at this point, abominable. After being fully aware of what they could do, they were still afraid of lumbering old men and puny mortals. (She'd been hiding from Lucian hours ago, but she digressed.)
"What exactly are we afraid of, again?" Leah piped. "We're stronger and have allies we don't even know of, resting and revitalizing all over Europe before they intervene. Does Sonia completely shut you guys out or something?"
A ghost of a smile appeared on Katya's lips. "Finally - someone who's not a wuss. Keep in mind this mission has been years in the making, our powers drawn from the rarest depths of magical bloodlines. Don't forget you are more than a mortal, and always will be."
"Hey!" Asher protested. "Speak for yourself. Alex and I have been working at the MIC for longer than all of you combined. We were simply letting you know so you wouldn't freak if someone tried to assassinate us."
Yea right, Maddie thought. You looked like you'd woken up from death two minutes ago.
Violet narrowed her eyes at him and his flaunting outburst. "I thought we were being watched?"
Asher's lips rose into a playful smirk. "We are."
"What she's trying to say is stop exposing us," Alex pointed out, a broad smile playing on his sharp features. His soft, empty green eyes surfed the water before reaching Maddie. A small glint of affection glimmered in his eyes as she met his gaze. A nonchalant expression rested on her face, which Alex continued to stare at for the next twenty seconds.
Maddie shook her head with an amused, velvety laugh. Distant golden lights engulfed her in a warm cast of blurred amber as she turned away from his burning stare.
Soon, the golden haze edged closer. They were nearing the hotel now, and unlike last time the boys quickly swept the shopping bags up into their arms before striding across the cobblestone floors. All of them went upstairs together, escorting each other to their rooms.
Surprisingly, no one attempted to kill them before they went to sleep that night.
The next morning, Leah woke up from a horrid nightmare.
Beads of shimmering sweat mingled with crystal tears, running down her cheeks as she pulled back the pink waves of hair plastered to her warm neck. The brightness of her curly hair was bleeding into a pale bubblegum, a metamorphosis she'd observed within the reflection of the floors she'd resorted to for a good puke.
It was the same dream as before: a large, tattooed man bursting through the wooden door of her crappy apartment, with her mother's neck in his hand, a knife between his fingers. This time, instead of the police arriving and taking him away, Leah watched him slit her mother's throat.
Six years ago, when that same man had barged into their apartment, he'd been met with the violent swinging of a lamp. Leah had been on guard all night. She'd known he would come, after countless threats and messages.
After she'd ensured he was no longer conscious, she bound him to the sink and called the cops. It was labeled as self-defense, which was mostly true, so they dragged his ass to the police station. Twenty minutes later, they realized he was dead.
In her dream, she'd been sleeping on the couch when he came in. When it had actually happened, and for weeks afterward, she hadn't gotten a break. But that was years ago now, and today was today, so it shouldn't have mattered. It shouldn't have still haunted her. But hell, it really did.
With a sigh, she slipped out from underneath the suffocating duvet covers. Already she could imagine floating in a bathtub brimming with numbingly cold water, hoping to emerge with a cooler mind and cooler nerves. Everything in the room felt like it'd been struck by saturated humidity, including herself.
Maddie's blankets were left unruly at the foot of the bed, which could only mean she had already gotten up. What an ungodly hour, too. The sky was still flushed with blurred reds and bleeding pinks. Liquid purple pooled amongst the inky, dyed clouds.
She was probably out with Alex, Leah thought agitatedly. And Violet with Asher. At times, she wondered if Annika and Katya wished there were other boys on the mission. In Katya's case she already knew the answer: if men weren't a priority, men had to go. With Annika, however, Leah simply couldn't tell.
The bathroom was large enough to be its own hotel room. A wide stretch of marble, with sunlight pouring in from the white balcony doors gazing at the sea. Facing the streams of light from the large windows was the bathtub, and to either side of it a separate sink, flowered vase, and mirror.
Leah's mind suddenly reverted to the events of last night. Asher's words. The thought of her every breath being analyzed as intricately as an Emily Dickinson poem, all by a single soul. Pinpricks of fear nipped at her skin, ribbons of arctic air wedged between her small bones.
Leah shuddered. Opting for licking flames seemed more desirable now.
After twenty minutes of burning bliss, the click of Maddie's room card sounded at the door. Leah crawled out of from the pearly porcelain and onto the marble floors, draping a fuzzy bathrobe over her skin whilst wringing the water out of her pink hair.
Maddie's next words had already been predicted - Breakfast soon.
___
After the carmelized lattes and lemon tarts, they all agreed it would be best to explore the city. Being watched didn't necessarily eliminate touristy behavior; certainly not when they had to familiarize themselves with hidden routes and runaway bridges.
Eventually, some kind of definite evil would be chasing them down these Venetian streets. What better time to strike an acquaintance with sharp turns and twisting tunnels, if not now? It was only logical.
It took Maddie and Alex quite some time to convince the BSM to let them all go alone. Big Spy Men were not happy, but eventually, they gave in. Sonia had all authority, and Sonia too agreed that some semblance of freedom would be needed for the group. Afterall, venturing all alone in the city allowed for future confidence. Confidence in dreaded times, times in which they would have to finally fend for themselves.
Asher decided they would be the one to plan the trip. He booked a free walking tour, where the others would be accompanied by a local and directed towards secret installations and hidden city gems.
Every crevice of every cream-colored cathedral, every vein in every facade; they were all embedded into the same worn pages of history. No one tale held superiority. There was a deep-rooted appreciation for even the slightest of ravaged beauty.
During the later hours of the day, they went on to explore the Secret Gardens of Venice. Violet's boots sunk into the plush grass as she studied a cluster of adorable children running and squealing a few meters away.
The tour guide would glance at them irritably every time their jolts of laughter interrupted his sentence. A crazed whirl of happiness surrounded them as they competed in numerous races and games. Each time, they'd collapse onto the grass, rolling around lazily in the sun before springing up again.
Cartwheels, handstands, Bulldogs, Tag. Their naked feet looked like blossoms, flushed pink and dancing with the wind. Their current game was hide and seek, where they would run to the ends of the earth if only to remain a mystery.
Asher joined Violet in amused observation. It was only a matter of time before Hide and Seek was abandoned. Their parents had been searching for them, offering a small blessing in exchange for the reassurance that they weren't completely hopeless at their duties.
Now, a single purse of small coins lay between the children, and they huddled around their newly-acquired wealth in awe. Their eyebrows furrowed as they traced out numbers in the grass, discussing among themselves on which flavored lolly was better.
Finally, they settled on orange. One girl rose from the grass carpet, shaking the coins in her hands excitedly. The others would accompany her on the endeavor that was making her first purchase. In a mingled chain of wide smiles and ruffled hair, they sprinted towards a trusted ice-cream stall.
But they'd run too far now, and their parents were too busy chatting animatedly to realize that their children's giddy laughs could no longer be heard. Or perhaps they were too exhausted to spot the hooded figure that had just lured their three children into an ice-cream van.
Our beloved, meddling rich kids certainly were not.
AN: Hey guys! I just wanted to let you all know that I probably won't be updating for the next two weeks because I have my end of year exams hurray -_-
I won't be able to update with so much excite in my smol life :/ So please don't get too frustrated with the sucky end to this chapter lel. I might change it if I hate it too much, so don't get too attached to this chapter haHA (as if).
Anyways, wish me luck! In the meantime, enjoy this small insight into my daily study routine :)