I'm so sorry for not updating sooner. I just got finished with the most horrible project ever known to mankind History day shudder. Anyways school has been really hectic, like I just totally failed my last geo test. But ya I guess that's no excuse, but this weekend we had to drive to LA and back…twice, so I wrote this chapter then. I know it's not nearly long enough to make up for the time I've been gone but it's something. I'm not really sure where I'm going now…so as of right now this story is improve. AS for those of you who were confused on the Circle under the CIA thing so basically they were so far underground that the CIA never suspected they were right underneath their noses the entire time. And remember those four exits I mentioned earlier that weren't pretty, well ya they let out far away from the base that's how the CIA didn't know people were coming out of the base. Anyways I have a little contest of sorts. IF you guess who the fourth person who knew about the escape exit was the next chapter will be dedicated to you. Yes the person was mentioned in the story the third person was Joe Solomon if you guys didn't know. Also I need to work on my valentine for Zach ;) he's going to send me one back super excited. Sorry really long AN but I felt it was kinda necessary. Anyways, Read, Enjoy, Review.
We did exactly as Grant told us, running back to Gallagher. We knew that it was going to take longer because we couldn't do anything to fix Zach's broken arm. After the exhilaration of reaching the outside world and escaping the Circle, we hitchhiked for hours taking different routes and trucks to get back to Gallagher. Security had definitely been upgraded since I left. I saw twice as many guards patrolling the campus, and noticed about fifty times the amounts of cameras, and I bet I'm missing a few. There was definitely no walking through the front door.
I grabbed Zach's good arm and lead him into Roseville. Our only hope of getting back into Gallagher was using the secret passage Macey and I used to tail my sisters sophomore year.
We ran over to the football stadium. Images of Josh, Carson, and Mr. Solomon came flooding back to me, and I almost collapsed in hysterics. Zach put a reassuring hand on my shoulder and silently nodded to me. I'm sure that if anyone saw us right now, two rag-tag kids in dirty clothes with a copious amount of injuries. I searched around and was able to find the entrance back into Gallagher. We traveled through the dusty passageway and arrived at the back of the painting. I listened for footsteps or any sign that there was someone on the other side. I heard nothing.
I motioned for Zach to follow me and gave the universal signal for him to be quite while doing so. I pushed open the painting and did a quick scan of the hall to make sure that no one was there. I heard giggling and shoved Zach back into the passage. The two girls stopped right in front of the painting and all previous giggling stopped.
"Where do you think she is now?" Voice number one asked.
"I bet she's probably off on some grand adventure, but when I get my bloody hands on her for not taking me with her, she'll wish she was still gone." Voice number two replied angrily, but I had a pretty good idea about who it was, being that there's only been one British Gallagher girl…ever.
"Remember when she broke me out of this place and we tailed you guys on the CoveOps mission?" A third voice added.
"I'd rather not, you scared us half to death there Mace," The first voice reprimanded.
"I know, I just miss her, I want her to come home." Macey replied. Little did they know I was listening no more than a foot away.
"Come on, we're late for COW" Liz told them. I could hear the sadness dripping from their voice, the heartbreak that I caused. I wanted so badly to just jump out and scream, "Here I am! I'm safe!" but I had to restrain myself.
Hearing the last of their footsteps recede,, I pushed the painting open again and pulled Zach with me. He was cradling his arm, and I could tell that the pain was immense.
"Were those your friends?" he asked me.
"Ya, but probably not for much longer, once they find out that I came back and didn't tell them first I'm as good as dead." I replied shrugging my shoulders. Everything Carson had told me started flooding back, and I wanted so much to talk to them about it, fix the friendship I had so selfishly ruined.
"So, where are we going?" Zach inquired.
"We need to talk to my mom." Right now we were in the Hall of History, which was close to by where my mom's office was. We stuck to the walls and tried to blend as much as we could. When we reached my mom's room, I nervously knocked on the door. There was no immediate response, but who answered the door wasn't who I expected it to be.
"Abby?" I asked.
"Cam?" She stared at me with a look of complete disbelief. After that, she went into full on spy mode. She wasn't my loveable aunt who had lost a niece; no, no she was Abby Cameron, top FBI agent, and kick-butt spy. "Come in, you have people waiting."
I stepped in my mother's office, and that's when Abby saw Zach. "You," she warned, "You little- I knew she never should have trusted you! You got her taken! You got her locked up!" She was about to lunge for Zach when I screamed "Abby!"
"Cam?" Three voices echoed behind us. Bex, Macey, and Liz were all standing there behind us. Well, actually, Bex and Macey were carrying Liz and her uniform was soaked in blood.
"Girls," Abby said, composing herself, "What are you doing out of class?"
"Erm, well," Macey stuttered, "Liz got a paper cut, like a really bad paper cut and we were taking her to the nurse. Cam, is that really you?"
"That is not of piority. Ms. Baxter, Ms. McHenry, please escort Ms. Sutton to the nurse and return to your class. No questions asked. If you mention anything about what just happened to any of your peers, especially Ms. Walters, you will be expelled, given tea, and returned to normal life." Bex, Macey and Liz gulped and quickly pushed pass us.
"Now, Cameron, Zachary, follow me." Abby lead us into my mother's office and told us to sit down.
"Abby it's no-" I began, but was quickly cut off by Abby.
"What do you think you're doing? Especially with him? Where did you go Cameron, you went MIA after the paintball game Townsend lead you on. We told people you ran away, but we need to know what happened right from the start. Lastly, why I shouldn't call the FBI, M16, CIA, or the NCA right now to have him arrested and put on death row. "
"Abby, it's not that simple. There's some basic information you need to know first. First, yes this is Zach, but no this isn't the Zach you know."
"Squirt that doesn't make any sense." Abby said while shaking her head.
"Just tell me that you'll believe everything I say first. Also, I need two people to come here right now before I tell you anything."
"I can't promise I'll believe everything, but I'll try. And who do you need."
"I need you to call up Grant and Jonas, they said that they'd meet me back here. That's really the only reason I came back, I can't risk putting all of you guys in danger just for my own selfish purposes. There's also critical information that you need."
"Cam, Grant and Jonas left with the rest of the Blackthorn Boys. We haven't seen them. After you went missing, Dr. Steve called all the Blackthorn boys back because it was too dangerous for them to stay here. I can try to contact them to see if we can get them here, but even so, the soonest I'll be able to get them here is tomorrow, and in a spy school, even you can't stay hidden for that long." Abby informed me. They're not here? Where are they? This isn't good.
"But, they said they'd meet me there. Alert the teachers and the guards, tell them to keep an eye out for them." I commanded. They have to be okay. I knew it was a horrible idea to leave them behind. I never should have trusted Grant when he said they'd be okay.
"Cam, you said you had critical information you need to give me. If it's as important as you make it out to be, I need to know. What is so important?"
"Let me start from the beginning. Just tell me you'll believe everything." I pleaded to her.
"Fine, Squirt, I'll try." Thus began my tale. I told Abby about being kidnapped by Carson, about being tortured by him and his mother, meeting Zach, and finally our escape.
"So, let me get this strait. There is a Circle base under the CIA Langley headquarters?" I nodded my head. "This is not good, this is very not good. Cam, got to your old room, stay there and don't come out. I need to make some calls. As for you, Zach, or whatever your name is. Go with her, but know, I see all."
"Abby, Zach's arm is still broken though, we need to get it treated." I reminded her.
"Yes, yes, I'll send someone to fix it. Just go." She pointed to the door, and Zach and I took that as our signal leave or I'll make you leave.
Zach made our way up to my room, carefully avoiding my sisters. We made it to my room and I saw that it was empty. My stuff was all still there, but Macey's closet, Liz's computer, and Bex's practice dummy were all gone. Did they really move out? I slowly stalked to my bed and collapsed on its fluffy wonderfulness. Zach came and sat beside me, still cradling his arm. No more than two minutes later, a nurse came in. She looked young, and new. I'd never seen her before. She quickly tended to Zach's arm, setting the bone then wrapping it in gauze. Then, as quickly as she came, she was gone.
"We can't stay." I told Zach after ten minutes of waiting.
"What?" He asked clearly surprised.
"We can't stay," I repeated. This was the most obvious place for us to go after our escape. They're going to come after us. We have to leave."
"But not right now." Zach objected. "Jonas and Grant could be on their way, plus neither of us are in traveling condition. We need more time."
"I guess your right, but I'm nearly positive that Grant and Jonas aren't coming. Something just doesn't feel right. We have a week, maybe less." I relented. We can't stay though; they'll come for us again. Then we'll escape again and they'll come again. Nothing we do anymore can be permanent.
Zach and I sat in silence for an hour before someone brought in food for us. This was worse than house arrest, because then at least you're not stuck in the same room forever. I changed out of my old torn clothes and into a new uniform. Zach was kind of harder to deal with because obviously I'm a girl and he's a guy. I found a super big sweatshirt and a pair of sweatpants and gave them to him. I would have given him the jacket that Carson gave me, but I decided against it. It was so strange; doesn't the boy usually give the girl the clothes? Anyways, after we got cleaned up, our wounds tended to, and a good meal in us, we just sat on the couch, pondering over the events that had happened in the last twenty-four hours.
"Cam," Zach said breaking me out of my thoughts, "I-I need to ask you something."
"Okay, shoot," I responded causally.
"What was that?"
"What was what?" I questioned.
"In that tunnel, why didn't you leave me behind? I'm just dead weight anyways. I've had minimal training, and-and now you have to lug me around where ever you go."
"You were there from the start, when all hell broke loose, and I fully intend on taking you through it and back right there with me." Was my casual response.
"I get that, but I mean, the other thing." Oh, he was referring to the kiss.
"I had to get you to move, didn't I?" I know it sounded harsh, but I didn't quite know my self.
"I know, but it's just-I mean- just- ugh," he said frustrated, "never mind."
"No, I want to know what you were talking about." I sat up to look him. He was pacing around the room, rubbing his cast subconsciously.
"It's nothing, never mind. Just forget I said anything."
"No, tell me. I've been kept ignorant for too long, if you have something to say, I want to know what it is. I want answers when I ask questions so. Now. What did you mean?"
He turned towards me, his face holding mixed emotions. Frustration, anger, compassion, irritation, et cetra. I know I should have expected what happened next, but I was sleepy from the food and fatigue. Zach turned to me, grabbed my by the hand and forcefully placed his lips on mine. I was taken by so much surprise I had no time to react, so I stood there…like an idiot. Zach released me from his grip and stared at me.
"I just had to know how you felt."
Then, he turned away from me, and left.
