Chapter 7 – Weird Day
*A/N: PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! I'm really sorry for the looooooooooooooongggggggg wait! Studying in our school is NO joke. I'm only a sophomore and they treat us like college students! ARGH!
Thank you so MUCH for all the reviews!
pielover123: Nope :) Milligan isn't dead. Promise. Just wait and see :)
Enough of my blabbing. Here's the 7th chapter!
" Goooood Morning!" Kate greeted with a cheeky smile at Reynie and plopped down to the chair beside him.
Constance arched an eyebrow at them. This was going to be an interesting day...
Sticky frowned at the oddity of it all. Kate and Reynie had been treating each other with hostility ever since they arrived. And the fact that Kate was the last to wake up told him that this day was about to get stranger...
Constance didn't need to use her abilities to tell the reason behind the scene that unfolded before her. She could safely conclude that something happened last night. But what that something was, she didn't know.
She knew that she promised to stop peeking into people's thoughts and memories, for they were gained by trust and not taken by force. But she was beyond intrigued, and a little voice inside her was saying that she wouldn't lose anything and gain something in return. Besides, she had a gut feeling that Reynie and Kate have absolutely no intention of telling them what happened. The saying "Curiosity killed the cat" didn't apply to her, at least not anymore. The pain that she experienced every time she meddled with people's heads had gone. She focused her eyes on Kate... Just a little peek...
And in 5 seconds, she knew what happened. It was as if she was part of the memory itself. It was crystal clear, every word they said echoing in her brain. A triumphant grin tugged at her lips. Her eyes twinkled with something that suggested she knew something you didn't.
Sticky, meanwhile remained oblivious. He intended to ask Reynie later. He was curious as to why they would smile at random times. He turned to Constance. Great. Now even SHE was smiling. And if there's one thing Sticky Washington hated, it was being left alone in the dark. Literally and figuratively speaking.
As soon as he and Reynie were left alone to do the dishes, Sticky started to talk, trying to appear nonchalant even though he wanted to do nothing right now but polish his glasses, which, of course was impossible since his contact lens had replaced his trusty spectacles a long time ago. "So..." he said. This was the part he'd been dreading. "You and Kate..." he left the sentence suspended in the air.
"What about us?" Reynie replied, feeling uncomfortable already.
"What's up with two of you? Anything I missed?"
Reynie sighed. "I'm surprised Constance didn't tell you."
"I have to hear this from you."
"We sort of ... called a truce last night."
"A truce?" Sticky asked, thinking about how friendly they were with each other at breakfast. There was no way that could be just a truce. "That's all?"
"Well... Yes, but in a greater level. You could say we made up. We're friends again." Reynie replied after a second of hesitation.
"Well, we all need good news during times of darkness." Sticky said with a smile.
A familiar snort followed his statement. The boys looked around and saw a girl with stick straight blonde hair and blue eyes, only a shade lighter than Kate's. Her arms were crossed across her chest. She scowled at Sticky. What did I do now?He asked himself.
Constance rolled her eyes. "You've liked, memorized the whole dictionary and you used good?"
It was very fortunate that Kate chose that time to enter the kitchen.
Amused looks.
Shy smiles.
Nerve - wrecking silence.
This is what an ordinary observer would notice. But if you look closely, you would see relief washing through Constance's features, the way Sticky's fingers would twitch because of happiness, Kate's slightly uncomfortable posture indicating her guilt, and the rapid rising and falling of Reynie's chest because of nervousness.
Kate opened her mouth to say something but decided against it. Constance noticed this and shot a mean look at her. "Finally knocked some sense into you, eh?"
"Don't talk to her like that." Reynie scolded.
"No, she's right... " Kate said softly, casting her eyes to the floor. "This is my fault. And i need a chance to make everything right again... If you'd let me."
After what she said, no one expected what Constance did next. But again, Constance Contraire tend to be unpredictable at times.
With quick movements that would've made Kate proud, Constance flung her hands around the three of them, tears of relief and joy muffling her voice. "I'm just so glad you two are back to normal! Took you long enough!"
And at that moment, while all of them were leaning their heads on each other, Reynie noticed something he never did before. He could just make out a sliver of metallic gold against Constance's pinkish - white complexion. He could see a curved lump that made dents in her shirt, and he could feel something warm on his chest again. Maybe it was the sense of victory. He'd done it. He didn't just fix the bonds of their friendship, he renewed it. Made it stronger.
Then Constance broke away from the hug, and just like that, all the tension was gone. "I can't believe I just did that." she said, frowning.
Sticky grinned. "Constance giving free hugs." he said then laughed. "Now that would be something worth remembering."
Constance laughed despite herself. They were all happy, but nothing good lasts for long.
Once Rhonda entered the room, the air around them became cooler. They didn't need Constance's special ability to know that Rhonda's presence meant something bad. The look on her face was enough indication that their assumptions were correct.
Rhonda looked at them for a few seconds, pondering on why they seemed so happy, and then sighed. "Mr. Benedict wants to see you." she said.
The happy moment was shattered just by her declaration. The smiles on their faces were replaced by grave looks.
"You wanted to see us, Mr. Benedict?" Reynie asked then closed the door behind him.
"Yes, my dears. Take a seat."
The children all sat on the floor, curious yet wary to hear whatever Mr. Benedict will say.
"I think you would be happy to hear that I, together with Rhonda and Number Two, have formulated a plan not only to retrieve the blueprint, but also to destroy whatever progress Marcus Ericson has made in recreating the Whisperer." he stopped for a moment, giving the children time to absorb this.
Four pairs of eyes widened.
"This plan consists of me creating a blueprint, quite typical to the one Marcus Ericson stole – "
"But how will you know if the one you'll make looks like the real blueprint?" Constance interrupted.
"Ledroptha and I have a common brain, Constance. Though I use mine for the benefit of everybody. As I was saying, once I create the fake blueprint that would sabotage Ericson's work, we swap it with the original one."
Constance opened her mouth but Mr. Benedict raised a hand to stop her from saying anything.
"Ericson's base is located just outside Stonetown, in an abandoned factory. How do I know this? As you all know, I'm quite friendly with Ms. Argent. I borrowed tapes of Stonetown's road activities for the past 6 months. And I saw a man running out of the building where Ledroptha's office was the same day the blueprint was stolen. He rode into a blue van and arrived in that abandoned factory."
"How long will it take you to create the blueprint, though?" Constance asked.
"A few weeks. Maybe a month or two."
The members of the Society looked at each other. A few more weeks of peace before hell broke loose. A month if they were lucky.
Reynie frowned. "But Mr. Benedict, I don't see where the four of us fit in."
Mr. Benedict gave them a very sad smile and Reynie knew that he shouldn't have asked. He had a feeling that he would not like the answer.
"You, my dears, are the ones who are going to swap the fake blueprint with the real one."
All the color was drained from Kate, Reynie, Sticky, and Constance's faces as the statement reached their ears.
*A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger :( But it just came out like that ... *sighs* go ahead and murder me if you want.*