“Fuck,” Caspian says to himself. “We need to get out of here. Now.”
How the fuck are we supposed to go anywhere? We are trapped in a one-way in-and-out situation.
They don’t seem to be coming in our direction, just walking out of the complex toward an inconspicuous van in the alley. I think back to what Caspian said about them ensuring the newbies don’t know where they are dropped off.Will they drive around in circles for a few blocks before letting them out? Or are we worth the risk being this close?
The blindfolded soldiers move in perfect synchrony, steps aligned and falling in perfect time. If I couldn’t see the coverings myself, I would never believe they couldn’t see where they were going.
“How do they know which way to go?” I ask Caspian, dumbfounded by their hive mind.
“Here, lemme see,” Isla reaches for the binoculars, squinting one eye to get a better look through her 151 goggles. “Oh, that one is the leader there.” She points to the man in the middle. “See? He can see. They move in tandem with him.”
“So what’s the plan?” Bel asks, her fear becoming overwhelming. I reach out and smooth her hair down in an attempt to calm her nerves.
Caspian assures her, “They’ll probably pack into that van, and that’s when we move.”
“Why don’t we just kill that guy in the middle and call it a day?” Isla asks.It’s not a bad idea. More efficient, certainly. Caspian could eat him. Then we can go home and never do anything this stupid and reckless again.
“Because we aren’t cold-blooded killers,” Caspian tells her.
“Speak for yourself, Cas- actually, no. Don’t. Wearein fact cold-blooded killers, or did you forget?” I remind him.
“I— yes, okay,sometimeswe are. But not when we don’t have to be.”
I hold back an eye-roll.
Sometimes, Caspian can be so boring.
In tense silence, we watch the dozen men move—though men isn’t the right term. They’re barely past childhood. Lambs led to the slaughter and told their suffering is righteous. It almost makes me sick. These boys are still innocent, just looking to their leaders for guidance, not knowing that the only things they’re willing to guide them to is an early grave or a lifetime of servitude.
Once the van has disappeared into the distance, not even the rumbling of its engine still lingering, we slowly stand and head toward the fire escape we used to climb the building. Caspian heads down first to help the girls down should they need him. I wait at the top until the last possible second, ensuring we have eyes on the compound for as long as we can.
Something niggles in the back of my mind, like we’re missing something important. We creep around the building, heading back to where we parked our car in the shadows a few blocks away.
“Huh, I just realized something,” Isla notes as we walk. “None of them were women.”
“What?” Bel asks.
“Well, Eamon called me a hunter. But I didn’t see one female amongst them. Did you guys see any when you were…” she chooses her words carefully, “in there?”
Caspian seems thoughtful for a moment, “I can’t say I really paid attention, though I don’t recall seeing any.”
“Me neither,” Bel whispers, “Just lots of armored men. The only women I saw were in cages.” Her loud swallow fills the alleyway, twisting my heart into knots.
“That’s so strange,” Isla comments. “What do you suppose they do with the women hunters?”
“If I’m being honest, I’m not sure I want the answer to that question,” Bel nervously laughs, and I have to agree. I can only imagine the way they treat the women in their circle if how they behaved with Bel is any indication.
“It’s fairly simple, actually,” a voice rumbles from ahead, stopping us dead in our tracks. “Women blessed with the gift are for continuing the bloodline and blessing our weapons.”
Bel’s heart rate skyrockets and I already know before he emerges from the light that this is the man who still torments Belissenda in her worst nightmares. His torture of her never ended, and his sadistic grin as he steps in front of our car in the dim streetlight confirms it.
“Good to see you again, Red. Though I suppose that name isn’t really fitting anymore, is it?” he taunts, sauntering closer.
On instinct, I push Bel behind me, daring him to come closer. Readying my worst threat, I open my mouth only to be interrupted.
“Alastor?” Isla’s shock is written all over her face. Her face that is jarringly similar to the man standing in front of us.
Though he seems utterly unfazed by her presence, even almost amused by it, responding, “Hey cuz. Long time, no see.”
