“But that’s not okay.” Her tone goes soft and she sighs almost in defeat.
Maybe I’m going about this all wrong. “I get it sucks, but I’m here for you.” We need to focus back on task. Anyone could stumble across us.
“You’re right, but I feel so betrayed.” She points toward the gym. “When they first wouldn’t tell me about it, I thought it was because they weren’t allowed. That the leads on the job forbid them from discussing it with me.” She laughs, but a frown crosses her face. “But it was them. They hid it from me.”
I hadn’t thought of it like that. Shit, they’ve hurt her once again. Sometimes I wonder if it’s to see how far they can push her.
“They could have told me, Beth.” A tear falls down her cheek and she brushes it away. “They had the authority to let me on it and to bring me. To let me be part of this and they chose not to. Why? They know I don’t measure up. It’s because my powers are so different from everyone’s. They are ashamed of me.”
“Sometimes it isn’t about us.” I put my arm around her and pull her into my side. “You’re meant for big things. I’ve told you that. I think people around us can feel that and your parents don’t know how to relate to you.”
“If I was made to do great things, my parents would be ecstatic.” She lays her head on my shoulder. “That would mean they would be closer to the council.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” Her parents are more self-centered. They want on the council, not her. She has enough on her plate. “They are weird. They don’t even seem to love each other. I think they only know how to love their selves.”
After a moment of silence, she lets out a deep breath. “Yeah, you may be right.” She pulls me into a hug. “Sorry for my mini meltdown.”
“Anytime.” I squeeze her back. “That’s what friends are for.”
“All right, let’s head back.” She turns and makes her way back toward the gym. “Before this goes down. I’m not sure what their plans were, and we need to know what’s going on.”
We hurry back to the area we had been snooping, and they’re all still in a circle.
Christina’s dad and mom are in the middle of the circle. Her dad waves a hand and smiles wide. “We have a special guest tonight that will allow us to have some magical abilities for tonight only.”
He points to a lady who blends in with the dark room except for her bright red hair. She is kneeling and murmuring words that echo against the walls.
He puffs out his chest. “Every reaper in this prison will be granted something called the shadow effect.” He pauses for a moment. “That means we will be cloaked with the dark, so the guards and prisoners won’t see us, and we can reap without the worry of being spotted. With these many reapers at one time, we had to figure out a solution.”
Of course they did, and they would want to spring it on everyone. Her parents are power hungry and love to have the upper hand.
“But if it’s chaotic, people won’t recognize us.” Charlie glances at the witch, “Did we really need a witch casting spells?”
“We can’t take chances and we need it for the next step.” Frank glares at him.
“I don’t like how this part was sprung on us.” My brother’s forehead wrinkles. “I would think this would have been discussed with us all before we got here.”
“Well, of course we have to do something in order for us to reap everyone at one time? We are in charge and don’t have to discuss those type of details with you.” Christina’s mom’s tone is full of condescension.
My brother’s body stiffen.
Her dad’s face spreads into a huge smile. “Someone is about to blow the whole building down. However, the prisoners will not be able to escape because we are protecting them and will blow that portion down later after we reap them. That way the humans can blame the targeted culprit for the whole thing.”
Shits about to go down.
11
This is so freaking exciting. My heart is pounding so hard it’s almost hard to hear anything else at this point. I can’t wait to see how this will all go down.
Christina grabs my arm and tugs me backward. “What the hell are you doing? You can’t just walk in there.”
I glance down and realize I had been walking toward them and hadn’t even been aware. “Let’s go to the prisoners.”
“We need to go to the cell blocks,” she takes a few steps back. “But not to the reapers. We need to hurry.”
As if on cue, her mom’s voice rings through the air. “The bomber is now on site. It’s time. Let’s begin.”
Who the hell is this bomber? And what had the whole prison ever done to the Council? It shouldn’t matter to me. I wouldn’t be here otherwise.
“Come on.” Christina’s tone is low and aggravated. “We have to hurry.”
Right, we can’t get caught. I hurry to catch up to her and we turn left, going down the hallways the opposite way we came. I’m hoping she knows which direction she’s going, but I keep my mouth shut. She hasn’t failed us yet.
This prison would be easy to get lost in. Hell, to me it already seems like we’ve passed this same point over and over, but every once in a while, something new will pop up.
A deep, male voice startles me from behind. “Something weird is going on.”
Holy crap. What do we do? My adrenaline spikes.
Then a few steps are taken before they pause. “So many things aren’t adding up. I don’t know why Rufus isn’t calling in for backup.”
Not sure what to do, I glance at Christina. The only other option we have is to run
