Violet Path (32 page)

“Our hands are tied with rope?” I could feel the rough threads chewing at my wrists. It wasn’t Matthew’s usual choice, not being electrically reliable.

“They only have one pair of electromagnetic ones, and they need them for Alexia, Matthew’s heir. That’s why they’re here. They think we’ve been hiding her at The Shadows. I don’t know what’s keeping them from attacking us, but the interrogations are violent, so don’t start anything. Just be very careful,” Nick said with courage.

Just then, the door flew open and four H.S.H.S. soldiers walked in. My heart sank as I recognized Zachary. I silently prayed that he wouldn’t recognize me.

“Glad to see you’re awake, Alex. My name is Zachary. You see, I’m looking for someone. Her name is Alexia. Your friends haven’t been much help, so maybe you can tell me where she is,” he said with a sly grin.

My heart swelled with hate. I angrily glared into his burning eyes. Zachary then kicked my jaw, but I remained silent, absorbing the pain. I got a blow to the stomach, but his methods were no different from Orion and Keith’s; he wouldn’t get anything from me. He was about to strike me again, but Nick intervened.

“Leave him alone!” Nick screamed.

Zachary took out a knife and pressed it against my throat. “You want me to leave him alone? Then answer me!” Zachary screamed with wild eyes. He turned to one of his soldiers; the soldier knelt by Nick and pulled out a Taser gun. Nick hung his head in fear, and the red dots from the Taser gun showed on his neck.

“You’re that afraid of us?” Sam said in a raspy voice. “Your methods aren’t effective. No matter how many times you kick us down, we’ll always get back up. We can’t tell you where Alexia is because we don’t know. No woman is allowed at The Shadows.”

Zachary let go of me and accosted Sam. “When will you learn to speak only when you’re told?” He kicked Sam repeatedly.

“How do you plan on telling Matthew that you’ve failed? Your hands are covered in blood, and you are still ignorant of Alexia’s refuge.” Sam’s words rang in the frozen air.

Zachary dragged Sam over to us.“Not for long,” he sneered.

“What else could you possibly do?” Sam dangerously challenged. “Shoot me?”

Zachary threw Sam to one of the soldiers. “Take him. He wants to know what else I can do; he’ll find out. Any other volunteers?” The words flickered off his tongue. We stayed silent as he glared at us and then left.

“You okay?” I quickly asked Nick.

“Yes,” he whispered.

I had a plan. I told him about the dagger in my boot, but I couldn’t reach it because my hands were tied. He nodded, then slid his hand down my shin and pulled out the dagger.

“Cut your rope and pass the knife down. When everyone is free, run.”

“Alex, that’s a terrible plan!” Nick whispered.

“You’re right, but it’s all I have.”

“What about your rope?” he asked.

“I’ll cut my rope last.” I knew Nick would disagree, but what I said wasn’t a proposal, but an order.

Zachary came back with Sam, who was being lugged by two soldiers. His face was bleeding. He was shirtless, revealing fresh cuts and bruises. I closed my eyes, unable to bear the sight.

“Afraid?” Zachary asked.

I leaned on my side to divert his attention away from Nick’s cut rope. “Not of you,” I answered. I knew that I could survive whatever they had given to Sam, especially because I had the S.S. Pill on my side.

“Aren’t you kind of young to be a soldier? And to wear armor?” Zachary smirked.

“Aren’t you kind of young to fail a mission? Terrible start to your career,” I snapped, and in return I received a punch to the abdomen. Then he cut my rope and brought me to my feet.

“Good. Another candidate.” He smiled and escorted me away with five soldiers.

I was taken to a small tent on the other side of their camp. It was dimly lit, and thousands of weapons and tools, from old iron ones to electrical and solar-powered ones, littered the ground. The room smelled of fresh blood. I was terrified.

“Last chance. Tell us where Alexia is, and you can walk away unharmed.” Zachary sounded bored, as if this was his daily routine and he was simply reciting lines.

I didn’t respond.

“As you wish,” Zachary shrugged. A soldier stepped forward with a long piece of cloth. He forced it between my teeth and tied it behind my head. Another soldier walked up to me with a needle and I started to squirm.

“This will numb specific facial muscles so you cannot scream, because the pain isn’t exactly tolerable. If you change your mind and would like to share any information, please signal me however you can. I must admit that I feel terrible scarring you at such a young age. You’re about Alexia’s age. You can blame her for your torture, but you can put an end to it. Just keep that in mind.” He was completely emotionless.

I closed my eyes, said a small prayer, then kicked the soldier holding the needle. Four soldiers tightened their grips on my arms and shoulders, but I twisted to get free. With my hands behind me, I could only kick as I worked my way out of the tent to freedom.When I stepped outside, Zachary was holding me at gunpoint. “Impressive, but the party’s over. You can’t dodge a bullet.”

I leapt forward and kicked the gun out of his hands. I then kicked his jaw and he fell. I took his dagger and liberated myself. I found my bow, but not my arrows, and sprinted out. I looked back at Zachary one last time, bleeding with desire to hurt him for what he had done to Sam. He lay there unarmed, defenseless, but I refused to fall to Matthew’s level and play his game. Instead, I took his laser gun and snuck out, trying to find my friends. I heard someone running, so I quickly hid in the shadows and waited.

“Alex!” Nick sprinted over, and my knees went weak with relief. I lowered the gun. “Let’s go. The others have already left and are waiting for us not too far from here. Danny and Sam started for Maria to see Megan. Are you all right?” His eyes kept scanning the horizon as he whispered.

We twirled around to see Zachary holding two guns at us. He told us to lower our weapons, and Nick obeyed, but I didn’t. I couldn’t give in so easily after the fight Sam had put up.

“Come on, Alex. Put it down. You’re only hurting your friend. You’re too young to be carrying that.” Zachary was still mocking me, adding fuel to a fire, and I was ready to explode. He shot a round into the sky; he was growing impatient. Before he could shoot again, I fired the laser gun at his right shoulder and he dropped his weapon. Nick forcefully pinned him to the ground.

“You haven’t won. You haven’t told me where Alexia is, but Matthew will find her. Maybe you don’t know her whereabouts, because Andrew is hiding her amongst you. I may be your enemy, but your real danger is your leader. We know for a fact that she is at The Shadows. It’s only a matter of time until we find her. We kick you down, you get back up, you gun me down, and another takes my place. No matter what, Matthew will win, and his weapon—your death—is Alexia, the one you’re hiding.” Zachary evilly laughed.

Nick knocked Zachary out with one blow to the head, and we left in silence. I didn’t know what to do. Knowing Matthew and having lived at H.S.H.S., I knew his next move and it frightened me. He was going to attack The Shadows to prove his point and power. I rummaged for the right words to warn Nick as we ran to meet up with the rest of our group.

“Matthew is going to attack The Shadows in the next five hours,” I said bluntly.

Nick looked at me perplexed. “Alex, that’s not going to happen. Calm down.”

“I’m serious. You have to trust me! Please.” I looked in his eyes for a sign of faith, but I was only a young, troubled, scared teenage boy to him. My words were weightless.

“How do you know this?”

I couldn’t tell him the truth, but a lie seemed too weak. “He’s looking for Alexia,” I said, hoping he would figure it out on his own.

“He’s not going to attack now. Relax. Even if he does, we have leverage. Alexia is amongst The Shadows. We can either turn her in for freedom or get information out of her,” Nick said.

As we headed back to The Shadows, Nick kept talking of how Alexia was a game piece and the only end was death. The Shadows wanted my blood.

“What do you mean ‘amongst The Shadows’?” I asked worriedly, afraid of the answer.

“You heard Zachary, and he’s probably right. I’m sure Andrew knows something about her. He’s ignorant of nothing, and he’s been hiding something.”

I had to defend Maxime. He hadn’t done anything wrong. He had only helped me, but that was enough to cost him everything, and Nick wasn’t the type to give up until he reached the truth. “You don’t actually believe him? Do you? I mean come on . . . Zachary is just trying to scare us to destroy us from the inside out, dividing us.” I tried to be persuasive, but my gravestone had already been carved.

The Shadows seemed deserted.

“We’re going to Andrew to find out where Alexia is,” Nick said with fire in his eyes. Without warning, he kicked Andrew’s door open.

“Where have you been? What’s wrong?” Maxime quickly sat up and examined us in disbelief.

“What’s wrong?! Matthew’s men just ambushed us and tortured Sam. They were asking us where Alexia is! So, please enlighten us. Where the hell is she?” Nick’s veins emerged from his skin, pulsing his rage. My heart pounded from rib to rib, suffocating my lungs.

“Is Sam all right?” Maxime asked.

“Andrew, cut the crap. We know she’s here. We can do this the easy way or hard way. Either you tell us where she is and we take care of this matter quickly, or we search every soldier until we find her,” Nick said.

“What would happen to her?” Maxime spoke to the floor. I knew he was considering revealing my identity.

“You know the answer to that question very well,” Nick said in a calm voice.

“But she didn’t do anything!” Maxime yelled, exploding with colorful fury.

“You don’t know that.”

“She’s innocent until proven guilty.”

“No, guilty until proven innocent. You know who she is and what is to happen, so tell us where she is.” Nick started to raise his voice with impatience.

“I won’t.” Maxime started to pace, showing his uneasiness and instability, giving away all of his leverage.

“You won’t have to. After this, you may face the same penalty.” Nick took a step closer to Maxime to prove a point. “Get Anton. I’m sure he would be interested in this. And call for David,” Nick ordered, and two soldiers ran off. I didn’t see why we needed to bring in more people, but my opinions were insignificant even though the situation always revolved around me. I wanted to scream.

“David had nothing to do with this,” Maxime said.

“Good. Then he will understand where we stand,” Nick said confidently.

“This is insane!” Maxime’s eyes darkened.

“No, you are. All you have to do is tell us where she is.”

“Forget it. She didn’t do anything wrong. I brought her here; she didn’t even want to stay.” He avoided eye contact with me while I burned inside, asphyxiated. I could feel my heart bruising from hammering against my rib cage.

“You know what you’re doing, right?” Nick asked.

“Yes, but you don’t.”

Anton and David suddenly entered, were briefed quickly, and then Anton exploded. He started cursing at Maxime. No matter the threats, Maxime didn’t answer or move. Then Anton punched Maxime’s abdomen. Nick held Anton back, telling him that the violence was unnecessary. I closed my eyes and tried to escape the nightmare.

“Where is she? This is your last chance, Andrew. Do I need to remind you that you’re facing the death penalty? We’re willing to take death row off the table if you tell us where she is. Do you not realize who and what she is? I’m sorry, but I can’t help you if you remain silent. I saw you build this camp from nothing, and I don’t want to see you go out like this: for her.” Nick seemed sincere, although it was obvious that no one would have pity for me. Maxime remained silent, his eyes fixated on the floor. I felt my shins sink into my boots as I leaned in; I needed Maxime to turn me in, but he didn’t say a word.

“Take him away,” Nick ordered, and my chest tightened.

I had been at The Shadows, the one place I truly called home, for over months, and I had managed to keep my identity a secret. And now, just like that, everything was falling apart. All of this was my fault, and I couldn’t take it anymore. It was eating at me from the inside out, and I couldn’t have the secret consume Maxime.

“No! Wait!” I screamed.

Everyone stared at me.

“I’m . . . Alexia,” I confessed.

I wasn’t drowning anymore. A weight had been lifted off my shoulders, but the look of horror on everyone’s faces made me realize that my battle wasn’t over.

“Alex?” Nick’s eyes betrayed his soft voice. He was in disbelief, but I saw the hate building up behind his firm lips.

“Alexia,” I said quietly.

Anton raised his hand to strike, but I met it with a strong block. He was ready to try to strike again, but Nick held him back. I honestly couldn’t blame them for their reactions.

“I don’t believe it. I can’t. But you . . . how couldn’t I see it?” Nick was shaking his head, unable to face me, but his words shot right through my heart. He had looked out for me, and I had taken advantage of it.

“That doesn’t matter right now. Matthew is most likely on his way here. We need to do something!” I screamed. There was no turning back now. They knew who I was, and the fact of the matter was that Matthew was going to attack us all.

“How do you expect us to trust you?” Nick looked at me with repulsion. His loathing voice pierced through my ears.

“I haven’t given you a reason not to.”

“On the contrary,” Anton cut in, “and you don’t have a say in anything here. Not only are you a girl, but a spy and traitor. You shouldn’t even be standing now. How could you just—”

“No, she’s not!” Maxime defended me, but it was useless. He had already lost everything.

“Please, listen . . .” I begged.

“Take her away,” Nick said without looking at me.

John walked up behind me and raised my hands above my head. He took all of my weapons and handed them to Sam. He tied my wrists together without saying a word. I was escorted out by five of my group members and Anton, who glared at me in disgust.