Arielle
It was already dark when Isabelle dropped me off. I could tell that she was really hesitant about leaving me alone in the dark, even though the location of the safe house was in a rather nice neighbourhood. After I got out of her car, I made sure to walk the opposite way, not turning back to head to the location until I had seen her drive off.
When I arrived at the safe house, the doors were all bolted shut. Trey hadn't given me a key yet, so I sent Rex a message saying that I was there. Several seconds later, Rex unlocked the front door. The first thing I noticed was that he was covered in blood. My eyes widened as he ushered me inside.
"What happened?! You need to get to a hospital!" I shrieked as soon as the door was bolted again.
"Calm down!" Rex panted, running his hands through his hair. "It's not mine, not most of it anyway."
"What happened?" I pressed a little more calmly. It was then that I truly took in his frazzled appearance, torn and blood-stained clothes, and the bruises on his face.
He grabbed my arm and guided me forwards. I silently followed him until we stopped in front of a door. Rex didn't bother to knock and just pushed the door open. He gestured for me to enter first. I gasped as soon as I saw Trey. His entire face was swollen with a gash on the left side of his cheek.
I immediately hurried over to him and pulled out the mini first aid kit from my bag. He grunted and tried to pull away. "Stop it! What happened?!" I growled as I pulled apart a piece of cotton and poured some antiseptic on it. I lightly dabbed at the cut and he clenched his fists, but didn't speak.
"Is no one going to tell me what happened?" I hissed as I cut a sheet of gauze and pressed it to the cut. "Hold this in place." I ordered.
Rex finally broke the silence. "You remember us telling you that we had reason to believe that the Sapphire Blood gang had infiltrated us?" I suddenly recalled Chase's warning as well.
"No..." I stumbled backwards. "They didn't-"
"They somehow managed to attack the estate in the late afternoon today while boss was out communicating instructions to the guys handling the latest shipment."
"Why were you guys at the estate?" I frowned in confusion.
"Boss wanted us to file the reports for the shipment." Rex explained. "When we got there, the first thing we noticed was that the security system had been shut down. We were heading to the control room to see what had happened when we were ambushed by Versailles' men. We managed to fend them off, but there were too many of them and they clearly got what they came for. I'd never seen boss so pissed."
"And what did they come for?" I asked with urgency.
"No idea." Trey muttered and stood up. "Boss will be joining us at the safe house later tomorrow. Rex and I have to go back to the estate to clean up the mess."
"Mess?"
"Blood everywhere, shattered windows, cut electrical wires, the estate is like a scene out of a horror movie right now." Rex explained gruffly. "One of Versailles' men even left a message. Decapitated one of our guys and wrote on the wall with his blood."
"What did it say?" My head spun and I tried hard not to vomit. Rex coughed uncomfortably.
"This is for Lady Elena. Her killers will be slaughtered one by one, and we'll rip out your eyes last, so you can watch." Trey muttered.
I walked over and took a seat in front of Trey, holding my head in my hands. "I-I'll come help." I forced myself to say.
Rex gave Trey an uneasy look before clearing his throat. "You need to stay here."
"What? I can help. I think I've proven myself to you by this point, haven't I?" I raised an eyebrow at him.
Trey walked in front of me. "That's not what we mean. Boss has requested your presence in a meeting."
It took me several seconds to process what Trey had just said and even then, all I could do was stare blankly at him. This explained why they had asked me to come here right now. When I finally spoke, it was only one word: "Why?"
"No idea. We were told to inform you before coming here." Trey said flatly. His tone indicated that he didn't like this anymore than I did. Deep down, I worried. Surely he couldn't suspect me? I knew I was new...but Rex had said my connection to Trey would give me protection.
My face must have looked very pale because Rex placed his hand on my shoulder and spoke to me softly. "He might just want to talk about what he wants us to do next. I wouldn't worry too much about it."
"Talk to me alone?" I asked, my voice raising a pitch. "Really?"
"Well maybe he just wanted to meet you. Word of that day we were nearly busted by the cops did get around." Rex suggested.
"I have classes tomorrow." I stated flatly.
"You need to be here at noon. That's when boss will arrive."
I bit my lip. "Fine. Then I'm going home for the night. I'll be back in the morning."
Trey eyed me for a moment before stepping back so I could stand up. "I'll walk you out and lock up."
Rex moved his hand off of my shoulder as I stood and walked to the door. I walked down the stairs silently, with Trey following me a distance behind. "I hope you're not intending on doing anything stupid."
I turned on my heel and raised an eyebrow at him. "What exactly is that supposed to mean?"
"It means that if you aren't here tomorrow, boss won't forget about it. There will be consequences. For you and me both."
I met his eyes boldly as he began to walk towards me. "Is that a threat?"
He stayed silent until he stopped right in front of me. "It's a friendly warning."
"Friendly??" I repeated incredulously. I tried to ignore the urge to step back and put some space in between us.
He looked at me with a serious expression. "I don't forget my debts. I may have done you a favour by bringing you here, but you have saved my life twice now. I can't speak to Tristan on your behalf because that would be more dangerous. I don't know his intentions, or I would tell you. I am letting you know that if you don't come, he will be after you and your family. Everyone who knows you or may have any information on your whereabouts will be in danger. He is not one to be messed with. This is a friendly warning." He repeated.
I sighed. "I wasn't even thinking about running, Trey. I'm not stupid, okay? And don't worry about owing me anything. Friends don't owe each other favours." His entire demeanor changed at my words.
"We are not friends." Then, he proceeded to slam the door in my face. I rolled my eyes and walked a safe distance away before calling Celine. Even if someone had followed me, seeing me be picked up by a girl would be less suspicious than a guy.
She began to drive towards the office as soon as I got in the car. I had briefly explained the situation to her over the phone and I could tell that it was enough to alarm her.
The literal minute that we had arrived, I noticed that Chase had been waiting outside with his arms crossed and he proceeded to drag me into the building by my arm. He was silent throughout the elevator ride and stormed into his office, forcing me to run to keep up with his pace.
I closed the door as I walked in and he proceeded to sit down behind his desk silently and place his head in his hands. "What does he want with you?"
I shrugged and sighed. "Well I'm about to find out whether I want to or not."
"Not if I can help it." I leaned forwards and slammed my palms down on his desk.
"Chase Evans! It's about bloody time that you stop trying to hide me from my problems. I've told you what Trey said and I don't have a choice! If I leave then what? Let them go after my parents? Do I change my identity and drop out of school too?"
You'd have to leave Isabelle without an explanation too.
That thought hurt. "We can talk to your parents. None of those things are more important than your life."
"My sister is." I stated harshly. Chase's jaw clenched. "Sir..." I said in a softer tone. "This may be a good opportunity to get the boss to trust me and get some information. We're closer than we've ever been. I can feel it-"
"Arielle, it's been ten years! I understand your desperation, but is it worth throwing away your own life? You've been making more and more impulsive decisions without running them by me at all. Does your own life not matter to you?" He snapped at me.
"Anything is worth it if I can find Clara alive and bring her home." I ignored his other comment.
"And if she's not?" I froze, an expression of betrayal coming over my face. Chase's face also paled upon realizing that he had screwed up. "Look Ari, I didn't mean-"
"Then what the f*ck did you mean?" I snapped back harshly. Chase looked at me in stunned silence, but I didn't stop there. "You told me that you could help me find her. This whole time, you know that that was the only reason I joined. If you don't believe that she could still be alive, then why did you recruit me?" I hissed in Chase's face angrily.
His expression was one of slight guilt, but also sadness, yet he made no move to explain. "I thought I could trust you, but I guess even you have ulterior motives." I scoffed.
Not letting him get another word in, I stormed out of the room, hurried up the stairs, and ran out of the main entrance in tears. Celine glanced at me briefly before walking over. "I'll drive you home." She knew not to ask anything else right now.
I had never appreciated the silence more than I did on the ride home. In a way, it helped me come to terms that I was pretty much on my own now.
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*edited*
Hey everyone,
Long wait, I know. Been so sick, but I'm trying to catch up.
-Cindy