I am reaaalllllyyy sorry to everyone for not updating in the last three days...It's been real hectic lately. But soon, I hope I get the opportunity to update daily...haha. I hope.
Ron: Bloody? I bloody love the word! It's so british.
Natalie: You are a sorry excuse for a Brit.
Ian: Natalie, do not insult him.
Natalie: Don't talk to me, Ian.
Ian: Please forgive Natalie. She's grumpy because she is not able to go shopping.
Ron: *nods* I know how creepy girls can get when they're mad. Having one for a best friend-
Hermione: Ronald!
Ron: I am going to buy the 39 Clues books from the bookstore! This series is owned by Scholastic! Help!
Me: Is it just me, or are these Disclaimers getting weirder and weirder?
Ian: It's just you. Nothing is weird if I'm present.
"Get this bloody bug away from me!" Natalie yelled.
Then, she pounded her fisted hand on the trunk of a tree so hard that the leaves even rattled. Her hand was stained with a sticky black liquid. She looked at it, wrinkled her nose in disgust, and wiped it on her orange trousers. Afterwhich, she started inspecting her nails and tightening her ponytail. The rest of the gang looked at her surprisingly.
"Uhm…Natalie?" Phoenix called.
Natalie glared at him with her most poisonous Kabra eyes. "If you even start talking about that bug-"
Phoenix held both his hands up in front of him, palms out. "I wasn't gonna."
Nellie was tending to his foot, ripping up Phoenix's sock and wrapping it around his ankle. Nellie shuddered, startled by Natalie's pissed off tone and Phoenix's calm one.
How certain Cahill business can change you, she thought.
"I was just gonna ask you to rest for a while." Phoenix slightly said.
Natalie tipped her head back and laughed. "If there's one thing that I know about these Vespers-" she spat the word, "-it's that they love to make us suffer while we are engaging in our hobbies and pleasures."
"We know." Reagan interrupted. She was leaning back on a tree, her arms folded in front of her. "But we need as much rest as we can get. Besides, all of us are pretty much capable of watch."
"I can watch while you sleep, thank you very much." Natalie said, sitting down on a stump and rearranging her hair. "I am a Lucian and while you drift off to Lala Land, I will be planning a strategy on how we can get out of here alive."
"While we were asleep these past two days, that was precisely what you have been doing, child." Fiske said, rubbing two twigs together in an attempt to build a fire.
"Ian's fine, Natalie." Phoenix said, looking down at his ankle and wincing.
They were silent for a while, pretending to be busy in their own ways. "Right now, they're prob'ly workin' their heads off tryin' to find us. We're not doin' them any favor by stayin' awake the whole night and not restin' up. Who knows how long we'll be here? And besides," he tried to stand and walk to where Fiske was, blowing on a tiny pile of smoke. "we're Cahills, remember? We never lose."
Natalie's hardened amber eyes softened a bit. She couldn't believe that what woke her up was a speech by a member of the branch the Lucians have been constantly warring against: the descendants of the youngest child, Jane. She opened her palms and saw that they had been stark white, all the blood pushed out while she had been clenching them. She thought about her gorgeous brother, Ian. While she had not been in such close terms with him during the hunt, she still loved him, being her brother and all. And now that their wondrous, caring mother has been sent to prison, and their oh-so-loving father is now in hiding in South America, Ian's pretty much the only family she has left. And now, as seven of the people whom she would have expected could understand her most witnessed her grumpy moodiness, she would not be surprised at all if all members of the Cahill clan detested Natalie Kabra.
But she'd grown tired of her constant whimpering, and screaming, and crying at the Vespers' mercy. Slowly, she built a façade which said Do not mess with Natalie or you'll taste the true wrath of a Lucian. During her past, people feared her because of her parents, Vikram and Isabel Kabra. They feared the deadly good looks of her brother, Ian Kabra. Her? They simply agreed to whatever she said because she always kept her silver dart gun nearby. Whenever anybody displeased her, all she'd need to do is to point her gun at them and repeat her lines over and over again: Would you like to say that to my gun and see how it reacts?
But when she didn't have her gun with her, she always felt vulnerable, as if even a measly Tomas could crush her (possible though, literally). If people didn't know her last name, they would smile at her like they would at a young girl who rather looked like a British version of Barbie, cooing her, and asking who her parents were, as if she was lost. If she didn't have her brother beside her to do the negotiations and trades, they would overlook her and do anything they want, to get the most out of the agreement between their company and the wealthy Kabras.
Well, guess what? She's tired. She's tired of constantly being the underdog. She's tired of being a weakling.
Her eyes returned to their cold, stone-like appearance. "You don't need to remind me. Not only am I a Cahill, I am also a Kabra." In the flames of the fire, her eyes looked as heartless as that of a cobra's. "And it is not your business as to what I do. I have a mind of my own."
With a final glare at her companions, the new, transformed Natalie Kabra walked away from their camp, determined to turn into a ruthless, vicious person just as what a Lucian should be.
Just as what a Vesper is.
-o-
"Thanks to Evan, we were able to pinpoint the location of the hostages." Sinead said, enlarging the images of the 5000-hectare wide forest. "We found out that they were dropped off in the Lionhead forest."
"That place is a thousand times wider than this place!" Dan exclaimed. "How in the world will we be able to find them?"
"Not to mention that Lionhead forest is known for having a complete index on all the feline and cat species." Atticus interrupted, glancing up from his laptop. "And also, six of the most poisonous snakes in the world are found in this lone forest."
"Great." Jake muttered from his position in front of one of the monitors. "Guess what, Ian? There is a very wide diversity of cobras here."
Dan shrugged. "At least Natalie has a more probable survival possibility than the others."
"Thank you, Daniel, for that very interesting fact." Ian groaned.
Amy was pacing in front of the master monitor. She kept staring at it, her mind deep in thought. Lionhead forest in Argentina… There is a majority of Lions there, hence the name. So that's why Vesper One had said that may Ted not be killed by his 'own kind'. However, according to the population of tigers there, they should probably have encountered one already…
Then, an idea popped up in Amy's mind. She quickly accessed the Tomas database and was then browsing through the 'People' and 'Geography' sections. She felt Jake's presence beside her, him gaping up at the huge monitor which was now displaying several images of Tomas agents in Argentina: people holding up lion carcasses and dead anacondas. Behind her, she sensed Hamilton's huge body, staring wide-eyed at the screen and at his relatives.
"'Course…" he muttered. "Argentina is a Tomas colony." He then smacked his forehead with his palm. "How could I have missed that?"
"Figuring that you're a dolt, it would have been a miracle for you to have even remembered it at all." Sinead said, turning her attention to Amy.
"You didn't figure it out either, Starling." Hamilton groaned. "And you call yourself a braniac."
"It was their bad luck to have dropped the hostages down in Argentina where the Tomas clan thrives in abundance." Amy stated, facing the now attentive crowd. "Since they are the most buffed up members of our family. And also, if I am not mistaken, Ian-"
"Yes?" he replied, glancing up from his iPod.
"Don't the Lucians also have a stronghold in Argentina?"
His face lit up. "Indeed we do. It was built as a fort during the Cold War, as an armory, to be exact. But when the wars ended, it was rebuilt by a previous leader who later on renovated it and transformed it to a stronghold."
"Well, such a convenience that we have two branch leaders here." Amy said.
Atticus stood and placed his laptop on Jake's lap. Then he muttered something in his ear which made Jake smile.
"I think I'm getting' what Ames is tryin' to say, yo!" Jonah announced. "Should I call my mom for a conference?"
"No need for that, Jonah. You, as a representative, are fine." Amy opened her account and typed a mail to Eisenhower Holt.
She felt the group's eyes on her. She turned around. "Hey, didn't Atticus say to use our resources to our advantage? Well,…" she then nodded to Ned who was on the phone. Ned nodded back. "I am trying to get every capable Cahill agent in Argentina to scour Lionhead forest for our hostages. I figured that our major actors here would be the-"
"Tomas and Lucians." Ian said, now standing straight.
Amy smiled at him. Finally. He seemed like his old self, eager, and a bit poisonous. "The Tomas are able to survive under the most extreme conditions and that is why I accounted their having Argentina as a colony advantageous. Then, the Lucians have this same talent and, they are more skilled in the part where they get to take care of the vipers."
Ned walked over to Amy's place, a grin on his face. Sinead seemed to have noticed this and she questioningly looked at her brother. "Father had agreed to grant Sinead a temporary authority on the Ekaterina Medical Association."
The atmosphere in the room had somehow lifted. Everyone was smiling, event the distraught Sinead. Jonah was rapping something which included "And them vipers don't stand no chance, yo". Evan was looking at Amy with an amazed expression. Amy had delivered her task as Cahill leader flawlessly, taking out orders and making sure that they go according to plan.
"I want to go to Argentina." Hamilton said, stepping forward.
Sinead's eyes shot to him. He was looking at Amy directly in the eye, his face an unreadable mask. Amy looked at Sinead, concern in her eyes. Hamilton followed Amy and he locked eyes with Sinead. She begged him, with her eyes, begged him to stay. She'd already been feeling the pain of Ted's loss, of his being out there, in the open, exposed to lions and snakes.
I wouldn't take it if you were gone, she thought.
At that, she blushed and looked away. What was she thinking? What a Tomas does is not her business. It would rather be nice if he disappeared, right? So that the Tomas population would diminish. They were getting buffer and the world's already cramped up as it is. Despite that, she couldn't ignore this feeling in the pit of her stomach which seemed to be pulling Hamilton to her. The feeling ached, ached at seeing him volunteer to be tossed into a possible bloodbath.
Amy furrowed her eyebrows. "Are you sure? We already have enough men on the task. I've contacted your branch leader and he sent off every agent he could, including himself."
"I am." Hamilton sturdily replied. "Reagan's out there. I want to find her. She's my sis. I know that some of the guys here feel the same."
Ian lowered his head once again. He turned his attention back to his iPod, blasting the music to the highest volume. He didn't care if he missed the rest of the meeting. So what if he was the Lucian branch's freaking leader? Hamilton was right. He knew the feeling of having his sister out there. But Lucians refuse to show weakness. And he is willing to take that principle up.
"Let him go, Amy." Sinead commanded, her voice raspy from the crying. "Just please…let him go."
She lifted her eyes and she was crying again. Her nose, cheeks, and ears had turned red, and tears were already skidding down her chin. "We need as much help as we can get."
She then buried her face in her hands and she ran out of the command center, her red hair flying behind her. Ned tried to run after her but Amy blocked his way. She shook her head at him. "Now that she left, we need you on the tracking monitor."
Ned bit his lip and nodded. He took Sinead's seat and he started typing into the computer. Amy tapped his shoulder.
"First, could you book Ham a flight for Argentina? Make sure he takes the fastest jet."
Ned nodded and soon, he was the phone with an airline company which seemed to belong to a Mr. Starling.
Amy took out her phone. She dialed someone. She waited, her lips set in a grim line.
"Hello? Ivan? It's Amy." Amy looked at Ham and winked. "We have an agent here and he wants to go on the mission with you. He is a Tomas and I guarantee you that he is one of the best agents I know." she nodded a few times, smiling into the receiver. "It's Hamilton Holt."
Hamilton couldn't believe it. He'll soon find his sister. He's missed her so much. After weeks of worrying, their mother might finally stop her continuous cleaning of Reagan's room, muttering about how she wanted it to stay clean. Their father would then lay off on the spaghetti and start eating real food like chips and soda. And Madison will finally stop daydreaming, talking to an imaginary Reagan, dressing Arnold up in Reagan's clothes, and calling Hamilton Reagan.
Then, as he watched Sinead run out, he started to think that this was a bad idea, if she would even cry over it. Watching her lovely blue eyes blanch, as if seeing a ghost, and her cheeks fill with unnecessary tears. She's gone through a lot. The Starling triplets have. He shuddered at the memory of the Franklin Institute, him seeing the image of three redheads in the hospital, immobilized and helpless. One of them losing his eyesight, and one having hellish headaches.
All the Holts' fault.
Three Child Geniuses Blown Up in Museum Explosion
Suspect: Unknown
"Hamilton," Amy called. He though that this wasn't maybe the first time she tried to get his attention. "Your flight's ready. I've even contacted Ivan Kleister."
"Thanks." Hamilton waved as he went for the door.
"Oh, and, Ham?"
He turned to Amy who was giving him a sad smile. "Please find Ted. For Sinead."
Hamilton nodded.
Besides, even if Amy wouldn't have told him that, he'd do it anyway.
Whew! And here comes the wave of OOC-ness! Haha...Sorry if it's really dramatic. Like a soap opera!
-addicted2reading9: Wow! Congratulations for being the first to answer correctly, and to review the previous chapter. It's amazing how much more I can write and how much farther I get when I have more reviews... XD
-KTRose12: About the Rubix cube...it was actually inspired by my cousin! She was trying to solve it but she could only get to one color...so she took all the minicubes off and put them back with their color groups. Haha...Right now, I'm focusing more on Ian's monologues 'cause I want everyone to read what's in his mind...But to tell you the truth, I'm actually itching for some Amian right now! .
-JesseCPK: Yup! It's my first story. And I'm trying to keep it as original as possible but at FF, I'm reading some really amazing stuff so I often get tempted to get some parts of them to insert in my story... hehe.. Oh and, I'll try to update maybe every two or three days as my everyday update can't be because of school requirements..
-amianfreak19: Thank you so much! I'm trying my best to incorporate this with the books so you would be able to relate. And what I really meant for the previous chapter to do is to show Ian's soft side..so please forgive me if he is OOC.. Also, fill the refrigerator with peanuts was also my first answer when they asked me the question.. Harhar..
-BookwormGirl16: Yipee! Tolliver's a freak. Tolliver's a freak. Tolliver's a freak. Hehe...I think I'm going bananas. Yeah, chap is one of my favorite english words...heehee.
-amianfan102: In my stories, I really want the minor characters to shine. You guys must have noticed how I base the story on different points of view. At one part, it's from Amy's, then it's from Jake's, then Ian's, Phoenix's, Nat's, and so on... I feel like every character has a special nature so I want to emphasize all of them as much as possible!
-Sadie A. Cahill: Love Square and Spoiled Fruit I think are my most used phrases...haha. And I picked these up around FF...Thank you for adding this to your favorites! I really appreciate it...I want to put cheesy moments but refrain from doing so because I fear that most people hate them... :)))
-clara0414: Again, for the editing, thank you SOOOO MUCH! Oh, for triplets' age, how much older are they than Ian, Amy, Ham, and Jonah? Yeah, you're right...For the tenses, I don't really pay attention to them much but I think I use the past tense more often. Descriptions are also one of my weaknesses. I tend to describe only the general parts but I'll make sure to be more detailed in the future. Thanks also for the thesaurus and as for the punctuation, I'm doing all I can to improve myself...hehe. It's just that I don't want to bother anyone with checking my work...I just feel 'off' when I ask somebody else to edit it. I guess it's because I grew up having others let me check their grammar than the other way around.. But I'll think about getting a beta. Thank you a bunch once again! ^^
-nellieawesomegomez: So the Starlings are five or three years older than Amy? ...I'm getting confused..
Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! This chapter received ten (Sadie reviewed twice :D), which is the most in a chapter SO FAR! I hope... So the answer to the previous chapter's question is...
Open the door, pick the elephant up, put it in the refrigerator, and close the door.
addicted2reading9 is the only one who got the correct answer! *.* For that, I shall ask you to give me a pairing in the 39 Clues series. Any pairing at all, no matter how ridiculous it is! (ex. Nellie and Ian) It's fine whether it's a funny pair or a cute one (Amian)...it's all up to you! And, I will make a one-shot basing on the pair you gave me, and it will be dedicated to you! :-3
Question 2:
How do you put the giraffe in the refrigerator?
Haha! Another special reward for those who get it! ^-^ 'Til Chap 7!
~.twihardtribute.