It didn't take long at all to realize that Emberly had gone missing. Emberly would be gone for seven, maybe nine, hours at most. But two days? Something was wrong but they were too afraid to think about the unimaginable. Ada couldn't bear having to lose another family member and whenever she was alone, she would bawl her eyes out before facing anyone in the Underworld, including that of her own friends. Olimpia was just as concerned as Ada, if not more dedicated to beginning their search for her. Ada would've been too, if only they had the slightest clue on where to start looking. Feeling desperate yet again, she walked to where Noel usually camped with his confidant, Taps. It was currently the early hours of the afternoon, so he shouldn't have been too hard to find—but it was quite the contrary. Noel was nowhere to be seen and neither was his sales partner. Ada felt herself fall to a newly found level of misery. With sleep already being so hard to come by, she barely got any. At this point, she was back in her claimed part of the train cart, tossing around her belongings out of pure rage. People watched her from both outside and inside the cart, but it was the least of her cares at the moment.
"I told her!" Ada held back tears, "I told her this is why I didn't want her sneaking out!" Her bottom lip began trembling.
"It's okay, we'll find her," Olimpia attempted to console her, "We've done it many times before. I'm sure she's fine."
"You don't really believe that do you?" Ada asked.
The only thing worse than being worried about a loved one was being in denial about them. Therefore, Olimpia didn't answer. She knew that something was wrong with this picture. Emberly may have been a bit rebellious but it was clarified to never be anything personal against Olimpia or Ada. It was just her way of blowing off steam and escaping this harsh reality. Their living conditions weren't great, but she always returned for a sleeping bag, food to eat, and warmth from a barrel fire. There was nothing for her out there and she knew that.
When given enough time, Ada cooled off and decided she was ready to begin their quest for the troubled youth. They hoped that traveling by day would make things easier, however, before they could both push past the turnstiles and fare gates, someone tugged on Olimpia's leather jacket. Seeing that they were in the section occupied by pushers, she assumed that it was someone attempting to make another inappropriate move at her and her "lady friend" yet again. Turning with the intention to shove, she was surprised to see a young boy standing below,
"Hi…" he said with a raspy voice.
"Hi," Olimpia responded. She looked around, thinking someone was responsible for this child, "Can I help you?"
"You know Emberly, right?"
Olimpia immediately got goosebumps and safely guided the young child to the side to avoid getting shoved by incoming wayfarers. She remembered him from somewhere but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Seeing so many faces, you were bound to forget their origins. In this case, it was Newton, the same boy who Emberly gave the pair of shoes—the very shoes would pridefully run to catch up to Olimpia.
"Yes, I know her," she paused, "We're looking for her right now. Do you know where she went?"
Newton didn't like the sound of that,
"Is she okay?" he bit his bottom lip.
"I hope so…" Olimpia glanced away, "Why? What was it you wanted to tell me."
Newton went on about how he grew to like Emberly and, for the past couple of days, had been hoping to see her again. Hearing that she wasn't around, really saddened him. He recalled her dropping something the last time he saw her and reached into the pocket of his thin jacket, pulling out a small box of matches. Olimpia's eyebrows nearly touched her hairline. She certainly recognized it and she knew Ada would too. Seeing that she was unrelenting at the moment, Ada was far out of range and nowhere in sight beyond the fare gates and groups of people. Olimpia requested if she could keep the matches and, without any objection, Newton handed it to her. She thanked him by shaking his hand and promised they would return with her before leaving. Being a bit too considerate for her own good, she allowed some individuals to enter the gates before taking the chance to exit, herself. As she made her way through the main path that connected to multiple others that led the surface, she looked at the vendors that were usually set up and noticed something rather unusual—there was a new set. She continuously walked until she finally made it to the surface, shoving past others who were admitted entrance by the guards on the outside.
She searched around for her anxious companion. Looking over, she spotted the wavy-haired brunette kicking through some overturned trash,
"Nothing valuable here," Ada said, fully aware of the familiar footsteps closing in behind her.
"Look what I've got."
As the pseudo-dumpster diver stood erect, she was presented with a prized box of matches and the auspicious story that came with it. Ada was interested to hear more from this random child who shared the information with Olimpia but figured it would be a waste of time. So, she suggested doing it later whenever they got the chance. Now that Ada had her hand on a rather small item, it led to a very big clue. To Emberly, matches meant lighting a flame, and a flame could only mean one thing: fireworks. Ada practically yanked Olimpia by the wrist and dragged her to the last place she stepped in when she was with Emberly and Noel a few nights before. Within a couple of minutes, Olimpia was on a street she had never been before.
"That's it," Ada said, standing across the street from the notable deli.
It was equivalent to the US version of a bodega: A tiny grocery store that held things such as junk food and toiletries. Currently, it was a stripped mess. The front of the store looked like it had sustained an explosion, having bent metal frames, not a single glass window intact, and it managed to look worse than how she last remembered—a common effect due to the time of day.
Just outside of the deli were three reanimated tripping over miscellaneous debris that somehow made it outside,
"Got any bullets in that thing?" Ada asked, eager to proceed through the dead trio.
Although it was highly unlikely for her formidable cousin, she still convinced herself that there was a possibility that Emberly could be trapped inside the store. Olimpia checked inside the cylinder of her revolver to be sure, seeing only one bullet left. Ada sighed and gave a look of uncertainty. If it were up to her, she would just use the bullet to kill one of them and do whatever else with the others. But it wasn't up to her.
The firearm belonged to Olimpia and she used it as she saw fit. Understanding, somewhat, the desperation that Ada felt, she chose to lure the dead away instead, instructing that Ada continue looking for clues while she returned after getting far enough. Ada nodded, reminding her companion to be careful and to lay low in case this was all a result of foul play. Instantly, Olimpia walked a safe distance away from Ada and whistled the reanimated over towards her. One by one they turned their dull gazes towards her and trudged over the masses of junk in the road. Some tripped but, overall, managed to follow.
Ada, too, followed from afar until she reached the corner of the block, discreetly watching as Olimpia eventually broke into a full-out sprint to lose the dead. As anxious as Ada was for her, it was a risk they had to take to get the answers they were looking for. Quickly, she walked into the deli and carefully examined her surroundings. Following the only path known, she was led from an open space to a thin one—entering a small bathroom with the door stolen off its hinges. Inside had exactly two stalls. Recalling when she and Noel last escorted Emberly here, they trusted her enough for her to properly put her belongings away without supervision. However, although she wasn't an eyewitness, there was something distinct about the ceiling tiles–one out of place. Taking a step forward to further investigate, Ada kicked something with her boot, watching it slide across the moist floors. Bending down to observe, what she detected nearly brought tears to her eyes.
Making out a pair of spectacles with a single crack in one of the lenses, she reached down and held it delicately almost as if it would shatter by the slightest movement. She quickly checked, seeing blood on the end of the temples. Ada's breathing picked up and her sinuses began to sting, feeling as if she would collapse from a panic attack. Eventually, she folded the glasses and placed them into her coat pocket. Lifting her head momentarily, she spotted something else–something she probably would've glossed over hadn't her eyes been so leveled to the restroom floor. In a nearby puddle of what Ada hoped was water, was an unlit cigarette. Cutting into her concentration, Olimpia briskly walked into sight, making Ada jump. Olimpia was breathless from the running. Thankfully, she didn't have to circle an entire block and was able to throw off the reanimated halfway through the street,
"Wha-What are you doing?" she asked, hands on her hips.
Ada snatched the cigarette and took it for herself as evidence before standing. She handed the pair of glasses over to Olimpia. Olimpia, at this point, was overwhelmed by both fatigue and stupefaction. She couldn't believe her eyes. There was no question if it were the same pair she had been looking back at all these months. The only thing missing was a face to wear them. The young women stared at one another, unable to vocalize how they felt about the possibilities. However, Ada couldn't hold it in any longer. She always tried to remain strong, especially around Olimpia. It wasn't ever about not needing her, but one thing she always wanted to make clear to Olimpia was that she no longer had to be accountable for Emberly. She was thankful for everything Olimpia had done for her and she knew there was no way she could ever repay her except take Emberly off her hands, but Olimpia was such a saint—and the rarest kind. She did so much without wanting anything in return and she acted like an older sister. Whenever Ada put on her strongest face, it wasn't just for herself or Emberly—but for Olimpia too. She knew that if she ever presented herself as needy or helpless, Olimpia would worry and be there to pick her up as well. Ada covered her eyes with her forearm as she suddenly wept into it.
"I'm sure she's fine," Olimpia shushed. She pulled her into an embracement, holding back tears of her very own, "We can't give up yet. We just can't," her voice cracked.
"Ugh, she stinks…" the driver said, cracking open the window on the drivers' and passengers' side.
Emberly looked out of the windows as the scenery of woodlands smoothly reeled by like some old-time film. Although she was being abducted yet again, something about this seizing felt unusual. Maybe it had something to do with experiencing this already? Or maybe it had something to do with not fearing her captors. Despite what they were doing, her abductors spoke to one another as if they were in good company and were too good to be called kidnappers. They idiotically hummed along to whatever folk music cassette that played on their radio. Fixing her posture, Emberly scoffed and looked into the rearview mirror, meeting the eye of the redhead male. The strangest part of all is that she knew his name–both of theirs.
For some odd reason, they were trying to be trusted and not be disliked. But when you participated in something as heinous as this, there was nothing one could do to make up for it. From the conversations throughout the drive, she learned that the man's name was Brenton, whereas the woman introduced herself as Dakota but insisted Emberly call her 'Kota' for short. For the majority of the first couple of hours, Dakota tried making conversation, asking questions such as Emberly's name and interests, but Emberly did what Emberly did best and remained quiet…at least for the first couple of hours.
"I have to pee," Emberly finally said.
Dakota looked over her shoulder and then at Brenton, to which he responded that she should wait since they were nearly at their destination, followed by a rude remark of deciding to finally speak. As much as Emberly wanted to make a snooty comment back, she held herself back. However, just as they claimed, the vehicle turned into a neighborhood Emberly could somewhat make out as the vehicle approached. Confirming that her mind wasn't playing tricks on her, she saw exactly what she thought: A fortified area with tall walls of galvanization and a rusted chain-link fence. From a certain distance, you could see the peaks of rooftops and other houses in the area. Emberly peered through the partition in the backseat, as the gates were suddenly opened by someone on the other side. Brenton honked the car as a greeting to whoever it was. Revealing more than one, the men offered warm smiles and waved back at the drivers. Keeping her eyes on them as the vehicle drove past them, neither were men Emberly had seen before.
Facing forward, Emberly's eyes oddly followed the pedestrians in awe as the car carefully cruised through the residential streets. But what was most astonishing to her was seeing what looked like teenagers and other young children unwinding on their lawns and porches. Emberly looked forward, knowing it was too good to be true that she was abducted to be brought into what seemed like a dream of hers.
"Where am I?" she questioned, sounding more like she demanded an answer.
"Just calm down for a sec. You'll know all you need to know soon."
It was unclear how many people truly populated this ominous community, but there seemed to be a good number of pedestrians wandering about. People were wrapped in jackets, walking in pairs to accompany one another on their strolls to wherever.
Presumably, to avoid hitting what could've been a child running into the street after a ball, the drive was too slow and casual for Emberly's liking.
Eventually, the car slowed to a stop as it drove into what was commonly known as a dead-end. Just after the curb in which the vehicle parked, there was a tall wooden fence, presumably blocking off the yard to another's property. Now set perpendicular between two other vehicles, Emberly watched closely as the siblings were the first to exit the car. It was until both of them stood on the driver's side to let her out. Fearful that she would be aggressively dragged out, she started hesitantly, but willingly stepped out seeing that they gave her the choice to do so independently. As soon as Emberly's boots touched the pavement, she felt a sense of promising, yet trivial, security. For the first time in what felt like ages, she could say she felt completely safe from reanimated despite the circumstances.
Before they could start walking, Emberly was given a few rules: To stay close and not try anything funny because nothing rewarding or humourous would come from it. With Brenton leading the way and Dakota on her rear, Emberly traveled sandwiched within them.
Suddenly, a random stranger circled the block and bumped into them. Just then, they all turned back to respond to them, seeing that the siblings knew them. Emberly sized up the grayed-haired woman–wearing nothing but a magenta cardigan and some thick sweat pants and snow boots. She was talking about something she had lost and that she was in a hurry to find it before her husband noticed.
However, Emberly took this as her chance. Only lifting her dark brown eyes from the ground, she could see Brenton's and Dakota's attention facing elsewhere. Not only were they not paying attention, but they were ridiculously relaxed. Brenton had both hands shoved in his pockets and Dakota's arms were crossed with her head tilted to the side. So–Emberly did what she thought was best. She disobeyed and took this as the opportunity to try something hilarious, taking the siblings by total surprise. She sprinted through the streets, pushing past two adults on the sidewalk and causing something of theirs to break. Lacking a backpack, she felt extremely light on her feet and soared through the block almost as if she were gliding above the pavement. It had to be the fastest she'd ever run. From afar, Emberly could see a door of a home, on the opposing side of the street, open up. At first glance, she saw a teenage boy that looked just as surprised to see an unfamiliar face beaming across people's property,
"Aiden!" Brenton loudly called out. Aiden was a fifteen-year-old boy, and although he was just a teen, his existence in this community was prominent. After he heard his name being called, his eyes met Brenton's, "Quick! She's cargo!"
To Emberly's surprise, Aiden was the very boy she noticed exit the house. The teen jumped off the porch and tore through the lawn catching up to Emberly within seconds. Hoping that turning her attention away from him would help her outrun him, Emberly felt a massive jolt as she was tackled to the ground, having the wind knocked out of her. She turned over, seeing Aiden's smug smile as he laid on the lawn beside her, proud as if he was a linebacker preventing a score from the other team. Shortly afterward, Dakota caught up to them, judging Aiden's intentional bruteness no matter how much he said he didn't mean it.
Eventually, Emberly was helped to her feet and given a final chance to comply, which she had no choice but to do. She felt dizzy after taking such a plunge that maybe she needed some time to recover and think. As she was embarrassingly being taken away, she could feel all eyes in the surrounding area on her. She could see people stopping their activities or peering out from their windows, and when she looked back at Aiden, whose smile still hadn't left his face, there was nothing she wanted to do more than to smack it off.
As they strolled further back down the street, a large white ranch house came into view. Unlike a lot of the houses, it wasn't fenced off. Instead, it was open for anyone to enter and it felt like it served some kind of greater purpose.
Emberly was led alongside the ranch, examining her surroundings for anything that could end up being useful. So, far—there was nothing. As they waited by what appeared to be a side entrance, that's when someone answered the door after the redheaded siblings took turns knocking. It was an androgynous-looking person with tanned skin and a chest tattoo of what appeared to be flora underneath their clavicles. Their dark, brunette hair was a pixie cut, they wore a beige and brown flannel top, black skinny jeans, and possessed many accessories such as extra piercings on their ears, and rings and bracelets on their fingers and wrists. Upon opening the door, they studied Emberly through the net of the screen door. They stared at Emberly as if she was your average delinquent, never having seen her face before.
"Can't this wait? I'm busy with an interview right now."
Brenton looked over at Dakota, who was afraid to give a response.
"Is Syed there?" Brenton requested, receiving a head shake from the androgynous individual, "Then It can't," Brenton spoke up.
"And why not?" they sighed.
"Because she already tried running away. Aiden tackled her."
They exchanged a look of indecisiveness with Emberly, causing the youngster to avoid further eye contact
And before Emberly knew it, she was already sealed in what appeared to be a waiting room. Surrounded by four walls, with chairs lined up along all sides except one that consisted of an old large fireplace that felt as if it had grown out of the wall since the beginning of time. Directly in front of Emberly was a small coffee table, and on top of it were bowls of pretzels, a tray of nutter butter cookies, a massive bottle of water, and baby wipes to clean her hands and face with. And as much as she refused their "stupid food" she gave in faster than she ever thought she would, stuffing her face and finishing nearly every cracker and pretzel in front of her. It had been months since she last enjoyed a salted pretzel, and the zing it gave her tastebuds was something she missed, reminding her of the times she would buy snacks with her cousins after school.
After basically chugging her bottle of water, she stood up and explored the room, picking up books underneath the very coffee table—books titled Good to Great, Moby Dick, and To Kill a Mockingbird. High above the fireplace was a framed photograph of the same tattooed person and another woman who seemed to be someone close to her. Friends? Sisters? Maybe even lovers? But Emberly was careful not to humanize her captors.
After two minutes or so, Emberly's eyes met a window. She had noticed it before then but it wasn't until now that it registered in her mind that it could serve as an escape route. However, just in the nick of time, the tattooed stranger returned to open the door and let themselves in. Despite being a weaponless twelve-year-old, Emberly was mentally prepared for anything sudden, frantically searching the room for a potential weapon in case anything went south.
Now that the stranger was in full sight and not being obscured by the net of some old screen door, Emberly presumed her to be female. She was now in a t-shirt, waiting by the doorway, showing off a sleeve of tattoos on her impressively toned arms. From where Emberly could stand, she could see the tattooed woman staring at the half-empty bowl and tray of snacks, followed by a subtle look for a victor. Picking up on Emberly's fear from the moment she laid eyes on her, the stranger harmlessly beckoned Emberly to follow, not exchanging a single word or taking her out of sight until she complied.
The youngster carefully followed the stranger into another room not too far from where she waited. She was led to a half-opened door marked "conference room". Once she was allowed inside, the room looked no different than a mute dining room with white and brown colors and minimalist features. The walls were painted white apart from the carpeted floors and the wooden dinner table had eight chairs in total, seven of them being empty. Sitting at the furthest end at the table was a tall, slender man with a strange device Emberly had never seen before. He, too, wore glasses and had on a light blue-colored shirt and some dark slacks. The room itself was dimly lit, having its only source of lighting be the daylight that peered in behind the seated man.
Taken by surprise, a sleek black feline ran itself between Emberly's legs, brushing up against her and purring loudly,
"Velvet likes you," the tattooed person acknowledged, hardly smiling. She held a composed demeanor that Emberly dared to challenge. She wanted to show these strangers that she wasn't frightened situation so similar to what she faced before. Closing the door behind them, the tattooed woman pointed Emberly to a chair, "Please. Sit," she offered. Just as before, she waited in silence until Emberly prudently did as she was told, continuously looking at the random photographs, file cabinets, and shelved books around the room. Shortly afterward the woman eventually sat across from her and folded her hands over a sheet of paper with a pen resting next to it, "Hello, there," she greeted oddly. Even beforehand, she predicted that Emberly wouldn't be so forthcoming so she went on anyway, "My name's Tues, and I'm guessing you're probably wondering where you are and how you ended up here," she announced. A sudden spark in Emberly's eyes confirmed that was correct, but she couldn't give Tues a lick of glory for something so obvious, "From what I've heard, you've been starting a lot of trouble in the Sub."
"The Sub?" Emberly looked bewildered.
Emberly's eyes then shifted over to the other adult furthest from them. It appeared as though he was using his device each time there was dialogue. Tuesday cleared her throat, attempting to regain Emberly's attention,
Tues exhales and looked down in disappointment,
"The Underworld…it's called the Sub…" Tues sighed, "I don't know how that name stuck."
"Have you ever been there?" Emberly inquired.
Tues' eyes suddenly shot a glare in the child's direct,
"Yes, I have in fact."
"When?" Emberly sneered, "I've never seen you there before."
"I hear you've been stealing from one of my top suppliers," Tues ignored the question. Emberly looked away, feeling relatively ashamed that this is what it had come to. Never in a million years did she think her name would be associated with thievery. What made the feeling even worse was that these were the exact things that Ada warned her about. Tues cut into Emberly's thoughts and continued her phony interrogation, "They may be my suppliers, but you have some pretty dangerous people after you. But you no longer have to worry because you're in a place where we can keep you safe and out of trouble."
Although she sulked in embarrassment, the latter statements, for some odd reason, coaxed her to speak. She felt that maybe if she fessed up, something could be arranged so she could go back home. If this was some form of extrajudicial punishment, Emberly was certainly scared into learning the hard way.
"Am I being arrested?" the child's voice wavered, although it was a question that seemed highly unlikely.
"Not exactly," Tues delivered coldly, "Look at it as more of a…reformatory," Tues paused. She looked at Emberly's unchanging reaction, realizing that this was probably the younger's first time hearing of the term, thus, she continued, "Here, you'll be put to good use. We'll look out for you and you'll be disciplined accordingly," Tues put it bluntly, "And if you do what's asked of you, we just might have a place for you here."
Emberly put on her bravest face. The holding back of tears could be heard in her voice,
"What did I do?"
"You've stolen and you hurt one of my supplier's legs. Someone even reported a gun which isn't even allowed in the Sub," she lifted her eyes from the sheet of paper, "You committed theft and assault. You're lucky you're not being tried for attempted murder."
"But that isn't fair!" Emberly defended herself, "People do horrible things down there all the time! Why aren't they here?!" Emberly didn't expect an answer, but although Tues was attempting to get a word in, the young survivor wasn't finished, "Because they're your supplier and not some random person you don't care about!?"
Tues tried approaching this differently. For the first time in months, Tues could truly say she was being knocked off her game by a child. She repositioned herself, this time folding her hands on the table and breaking eye contact. There was no need to sugarcoat things. Knowing that Emberly was from the Sub, Tues enlightened her by telling her that she was with the Council and that Tues was an integral member of it. That's when it all began to make sense: conference room, the photographs of what was presumably high ranking members. Tues wasn't too precise on what her job on the Council was, but, frankly, Emberly could care less. Instead of owning up to her obvious discrepancy, Tues just wanted to make it seem like she strictly played fair and that this was the way things were carried out. But Emberly was more offended by the fact that she must've been taken for an idiot.
"Why are you covered in blood?" Tues adamantly proceeded.
Suddenly, that's when a surprising knock was heard on the door. Assuming that it was one of her colleagues that could help prevent the situation from worsening, Tues allowed the person to enter. Whomever it was, Emberly wasn't in the mood to face them,
"Oh, hello," Tues' demeanor changed, greeting them as if they were someone she didn't expect or regularly communicate with.
"Just came back for my bag," a man's voice announced, "Left it here by accident."
However, there was something painfully familiar and oddly irresistible about this person's voice. At this point, Emberly felt compelled to look.
Tues, on the other hand, pointed to a stack of three large boxes to the left of where she sat, mentioning she rested it there in hopes that the individual would return for it. That was when the third stranger walked further into the room. Although most of the figure was turned away, Emberly almost instantly recognized features of the stranger–from their movement to their build, to their stained attire, it only spelled one person. As the young man retrieved his messenger bag and hauled it over his shoulders, turning in the process, he was stunned to see Emberly sitting directly across from him.
She nearly burst into tears, squeezing her hands together underneath the table at the sight of Noel, who was gulping back in silence. She regularly gagged at the sight of him but knowing that this could be her only way out nearly made her euphoric. If there was anything Emberly learned from all of this, it was to pick your battles, and choosing to be anti-Leroux wouldn't be the best choice.
Tues, who felt almost invisible, looked back and forth between the poker-faced pair,
"Everything alright?" Tues questioned him out of curiosity. She stood out of her chair, attempting to stand in between them.
Noel, nearly speechless, fought to get something out,
"Y-yeah. I just didn't know you had suppliers so young, that's all..."
Tues forced a smile and then disdainfully chuckled,
"No, this is one of our colleague's children—" she looked over at Emberly, who was severely intrigued by Noel's presence, "Trisha," she introduced.
"Hi…" Noel greeted her.
She stared back hoping for something more than just that. To Noel, the lies instantly led to a red flag and he took a moment to process it. Noel was involved in enough deception to feel unnerved by this. He stood there, almost feeling powerless to do as much as move a muscle. As much as he wanted to grab Emberly and go, he wasn't exactly sure if it would be the right thing to do, even if it was just calling out the leader on her lie. It was very clear that Tues had no intention of letting Emberly loose, so Noel let out a deep exhale and nodded, trying his hardest to conceal how bothered he was by all of this. Too close for comfort, that's when Tues decided it was best to personally escort Noel out. Claiming that she had much more important things to do, she stood by the doorway,
"Please," she insisted as Noel seemed to be firmly stuck in place.
Noel cautiously walked out, having floorboards creak longer with every gradual step he took. Once he was fully out, Tues closed the door behind him, preventing further engagement between the odd pair.
Her hopes of getting some kind of signal were crushed. She turned away and faced forward, looking directly into her lap. She wasn't necessarily looking forward to Noel doing the rescue but she knew that word would get to Ada eventually.
Tues, however, remained at the doorway,
"Do you know him?" she questioned. Immediately, Emberly was prompted to shake her head no, denying the claim, but Tues wasn't easily fooled. She knew it was a load of bullshit and she wasn't buying it. She resumed a strict stance, crossing her toned arms with her legs shoulder-width apart, "Listen to me. Your life is in my hands right now," she said, aggressively pressing her pointer finger against her chest, "So, I'm gonna ask you again: do you know him?"
Emberly glared from the corner of her eye, believing Tues meant every word, but if the truth was what she wanted, it was the truth she was going to get,
"His name is Noel Leroux," Emberly admitted. She paused, squinting her eyes to observe Tue's stance somewhat ease after remaining truthful, "...he murdered my entire family," she had a look in her eye that no one could misinterpret as fiction, "His family owned a farm and his family fought with my family," she sighed, recalling the memories, "he burned down our home..."
Emberly crumbled as she told the story yet again, realizing that all her hopes depended on a man who ultimately changed her life for the worse.
Tues recalled the interview with Noel and there were noteworthy things she could verify as truth such as his surname and a family farm. So, with that out of the way, her main concern was how to recover from lying in Noel's face. Hopefully, it wouldn't ruin things between them.
"I'm sorry," Tues sympathized.
Noel rushed out of the ranch and met with his buddy, Taps, outside. Who was enjoying the view of what was soon to be called his home? Suddenly, Taps felt himself being grabbed up by the shoulder and being forcibly escorted off the property. Taken aback by his friend's approach, yanked himself out of Noel's clutch, asking about the sudden haste,
"We have to leave," Noel encouraged his friend. He eagerly searched the pockets of Tap's tapered slacks and then eventually guided his hands upward to frisk his leather jacket. Taps was so surprised by the swap of erraticism that he couldn't say a word. Once Noel felt what sounded like jiggling coins, he reached into the pocket and pulled out the pair of keys—for a hatchback given to them by the Council as a welcoming gift and trade for their business, "I'll explain it on the way back to the Sub."
"Oh, we're calling it the Sub now?" Taps joked.
Noel hurried into the driver's seat, rushing his buddy Taps in the process. Quickly, he powered the car on and drove through the streets at a speed other residents of the community wouldn't recommend. They received odd stares from the people outside, but the only person who seemed to really give a shit was Taps, thinking it could ruin how they would be perceived by others from here on out. However, once the gates to the community were opened, Noel hit the road like a bat out of hell.
Although the Council was respected, they were notoriously known as a group you wouldn't want to cross. Noel heard stories of them banishing people or meeting up with folks that were never to be seen again. And if this was something Noel could prevent, especially when it came to Ada, he could never forgive himself for letting her down a second time.
Noel ran down the escalators, entering the Underworld without delay. He walked quickly, leaving bewildered Taps in his dust. Taps knew Noel for having quite a temper but as far as he knew, his current mood seemed to be unprovoked,
"Noel, what's going on with you?" Taps power walked after him, "Did you and Tues have a disagreement?" he began rambling like he normally did, "Bruv, I swear if you mess this one up for us like you did last time with that one group, I'll take a shoe and shove it right up your bumho—"
"No, Taps! No!" Noel grew slightly agitated, mostly by the complexity of the situation at hand, "It has nothing to do with Tues. I mean," he buried his face into his palms, sliding them down his face, "...it does but not in that way," Noel said, continuing to push through congregations of Underworld dwellers.
Noel reached the place where Ada and Olimpia normally camped and as if things couldn't be more unfortunate, the two young women were nowhere to be found. Noel asked a couple of familiar faces who didn't know the girls by name but could easily pick them apart upon physical description. Ultimately, no one had seen the girls since morning. It was now past the evening and would soon be nightfall.
Before returning to the world overhead, Noel scoured every inch of the Underworld just in case he missed her. Tired of being dragged everywhere like a cat on a leash, Taps came up with the brilliant, yet self-serving, idea to remain by Ada's camp just in case she showed up.
To no avail, Noel dragged his feet across the stained and dirty platform, taking a seat on top of an unoccupied bucket that was upside down,
"Never saw you lose your mind like that for a couple of broads," Taps said, chewing on something. He received a look of annoyance from the blonde and could sense a feeling of torment through his eyes. It was a look that Taps hadn't seen since Noel's earlier days in the Underworld—when he first came in from the outside. Carefully leaning on the wall with his hands in his pockets, he brought his shoulders to his ears, "What's the deal wif you and that Yank anyway? She your girlfrien' or something?" As much as Noel wanted to ignore him, Taps wasn't standing for it, "You said you were gonna fill me in. Well," he paused mid-shrug, "Now's your chance."
Noel was opposed to it at that very moment. Not only because it was a mouthful, but because he was terrified that it'd ruin things between him and Taps–someone he could actually call a close friend, and that was a title that was hard to earn even before. Even though he couldn't let this sort of secrecy ruin something they both worked hard for, he wondered if there would ever be an illusion of betrayal. Noel grimaced while looking away, feeling like he was being poked nonstop. To Tap's dismay, all Noel could do was promise that he'd know the full story when the time was right.
"Well, I hope that time's now," Taps replied. He lifted his finger and pointed to two attractive figures making it his way, "Look."
Of course, to Noel, Ada was the highlight. The blonde instantly stood up and beckoned Taps to follow, but Taps wasn't nearly as in a rush. When Noel called his former friend's name, it didn't take long for Ada to pick him out from a crowd of hooligans. As they inched closed to one another, Ada skirted around him, almost as if she was automatically repelled,
"Not now," Ada rushed past, barely making eye contact.
Noel followed as Olimpia did the same, stepping in shallow puddles produced by leakage subway ceilings,
"I have something to tell you!"
Olimpia looked over her shoulder, scooting past a group of raucous people, all gambling with dice near the center of the platform,
"Can't it wait?."
"No, it can't!" Noel responded, making his way past the group of gamblers yet again, "It's important," he claimed. Even then, his desperate whines for their attention seemed to do absolutely nothing but get himself disregarded yet again. Stopping in his tracks, he glanced over at Taps for a split second, wondering if keeping his discovery to himself would level the playing field, "I know where Emberly is," he blurted. Just as he expected, both girls stopped in their tracks and looked back at him. Of course, there were looks of suspicion. He couldn't blame them, but he knew they were smart enough to not make such a vulgar accusation. He nervously swallowed, "Is there a place where we can all talk privately?"
In minutes, Noel and Taps were taken to the train cart that Olimpia and Ada shared with other under-dwellers. The final cart of the train was partially stalled in the opening of the subway tunnel. Carefully making sure they weren't followed, Olimpia opened the emergency exit of the cart and climbed out with Ada, carefully landing on the tracks that were a good three feet below them. Once they were all out, Ada took it upon herself to light a measly, pre-existing pile of rocks and sticks with Emberly's handy matches. The flames revealed a somewhat spacious tunnel, blocked off by stacked barrels, chairs, and other trashed belongings that were piled in over the months. Trapped behind the hoard of garbage were reanimated that managed to wander in from tunnels linked to other subway stations. Looking over for himself, Noel could see the reanimated hissing and moaning as they stuck their weak arms through the small openings in the heaps of waste. Joining in were the mice that squeaked and crawled away at the sight of giants that made themselves known.
Once they all got themselves comfortable, Noel informed them of everything as best as he could. Ada and Olimpia stood near a wall opposite the boys, seemingly impatient and manic.
"I have to get her," Ada declared, "I can't let this happen again."
It was a risky choice but if it meant helping Ada get back the one member of her family that she initially thought she lost, it would be demented to not help. It took Noel some time to unpack, but he was in Ada's debt either way. He looked over at Taps, who gave looks of uncertainty and it wasn't until Noel agreed to participate that Taps finally decided it would be best to step out of the shadows and speak up,
"How did she look?" Ada asked, sounding worrisome, "Was she hurt?"
"She looked fine. Aside from the blood on her face,"
"Blood?" Olimpia nearly felt her heart stop.
"Démon blood."
Ada let out the greatest exhale she had all day,
"Oh, thank god," she looked over at Olimpia, sharing the same look of concern, "He means reanimated blood."
"So, what now?" Taps inquired, "You three just gonna waltz in there?"
Despite the girls not knowing Taps from a can of paint, Noel's relationship with Taps made him eligible to speak on Taps' behalf. Most notably, he disliked Tap's passive exclusion of himself,
"Three?" Noel repeated. He scoffed, "Guess the Council really does mean that much to you, huh?" he asked. Unsurprisingly, Taps didn't respond. He didn't know how else to. However, he understood the desperation of wanting a safe place to seek refuge and call home. Taps had hidden scars that proved that this lifestyle just wasn't cutting it. Although he wouldn't admit it, Noel was upset. Hell, he figured that after going through so much together, Taps would pick his side over anyone else. Noel sighed, "But at the end of the day...I can understand why you wouldn't want to give any of this up. I'm sorry Taps," he apologized. He extended out a hand for a handshake.
"Jesus," Taps smacked Noel's hand away, "You're so bloody dramatic. It's not like I'm going to hate you just because you want to help your girlfriend," he teased. Suddenly, there was a long pause between the two of them. Taps briefly shut his eyes in disbelief, "God, I can't believe I'm doing this…" he sighed.
Upon opening his eyes, he was staring in the face of Noel who was presently grinning ear to ear. The Leroux knew what was coming next,
"Thank you!" Noel roughhoused with him.
"Hey! Hey! Hey!" he fought himself free, "I'll do what I can. But I'm leaving the rest of the dirty work for the three of you," he clarified as he straightened out his coat, "There's a bed over there with my name on it and I'm not giving that up."
"That settles it, then…" Ada interjected.
"But you can't just barge in there. They have guns, people…" Taps informed, "We need to come up with some sort of plan first."
It was the last thing any relative of a missing person wanted to hear but putting her impatience aside was the sensible thing to do. This was her baby cousin, and if she genuinely cared, she'd tread lightly if it meant getting to see her in one piece to hug her again. Thinking back to how things used to be, Ada used to once be the logical and calculating one, but now, she often found her judgment constantly clouded by her trauma. She never imagined the day when Noel would be the more level-headed one. Her past with Noel was one thing but Taps was someone who made it abundantly clear that he wanted nothing more than to get a slice of the Council pie–and she respected that bold honesty. Ada swallowed her pride,
"I just hope she's okay."
Emberly did nothing for the entire day except be shown every nook and cranny of the community. Apparently, it was someone else's duty to normally give the community tour, so she was stuck with Tues all evening. It was nearly nightfall and, by the looks of it, this tour guide never seemed to show up despite the Council heavily requesting him.
Almost as if she had disassociated from reality, she couldn't even remember how she wound up in a garage. It was far more spacious than her aunt's garage back in New York and there was circuitry that provided power. The hanging lightbulb gave off a warm light source. Pressed up against one side of the wall were three folding tables, and on the opposite side were numerous gray lockers, every one of them numbered and fastened with a combination lock.
Emberly's inquisitive eyes wandered to the opened doorway that led back to the residency that was joined to the garage. Blocking the path was Tues and an averagely built man who was a few shades darker, with an exposed scalp in the crown area but a well-groomed beard. From what Emberly could overhear between the two adults, his name was Syed,
"He's an irresponsible asshole," Syed mumbled to himself. He was a mid-aged Bangladesh man. He wore an ash gray turtleneck with dark cargos and winter boots. He claimed to be a war vet, but nothing about that seemed particularly interesting to Emberly. Everyone was in their own war with the dead now. He continued complaining, "Why the hell is Zach even a part of this council if he can't do his goddam job?"
"Enough, Syed" Tues groaned, "I understand your frustrations, but sitting here and complaining about it isn't going to make a difference," she said bluntly, "It's been a long day. We'll deal with it in the morning. Just give the kid her stuff so we can all go to bed."
Syed rolled his eyes and did as he was told, quickly opening the locker after the input of a combination. Pulling out a wool blanket and pillowcase, he instructed Emberly to hold out her arms. Doing so, the very fabrics were put in them. That's when Tues was given the green light to go about her business so Syed could take care of the rest,
"I'll only say this once," Syed announced while carrying on, "You can try running and I won't stop you. But once you step foot out of this place, you'll have no idea where to go. And there'll be plenty of Dead out there," he glanced back at her for the first time that night, "So pick your battles."
At that moment, Emberly thought his advice was solid enough to be considered. After he opened the garage door, she followed him outside and realized that the community streets were deserted–lacking the zestful atmosphere it once had before. As the garage door automatically shut behind her, she began to follow Syed down the road, having her attention grabbed by the interior lights of other residents.
That was until they heard indistinct whispers coming from somewhere on the distant lawns. Syed froze in place and looked back at Emberly, who also seemed engrossed. Ordering her to stay put, Syed whipped out a flashlight before taking a few steps towards the sounds. Keeping it pointed at the area the sounds originated from he heard a faint voice,
"Don't shoot! We surrender!" A boy playfully yelped as he stood from behind some bushes.
He giggled as two others exposed themselves with him–one of them being the boy who tackled her earlier. Similar to a neighborhood watch, Syed aimed his flashlight into each of their faces. He could pick up on some inebriation on their part but, instead, warned them about being out past curfew. And even though he sent them off with just a warning, they seemed apprehensive to leave, still finding their discovery something to laugh about. That's when Syed looked to the bushes one last time and noticed a fourth teen sneaking out from the opposite direction. Quickly toggling his flashlight back on, Syed became speechless,
"Ameena?!" he shouted in surprise, "Ameena Aliyev?!"
This kid wasn't as humored as their friends. She stood a little taller than Emberly but was shorter than the other three teens who wandered off. She was chubby, had long locks of hair braided in a ponytail, and wore glasses.
"I didn't do anything, I swear," she whined, "I just watched," Despite being told to return home, Emberly happened to grab her attention despite easily fading into the background, "Who's that?" Ameena asked.
"She's my business and she's none of yours. Now go home," Syed demanded, "We'll chat have a little chat when I come home."
Frowning, Ameena did as she was told and followed her troublesome group of friends down the dark lane. Syed, who appeared to be severely embarrassed and ashamed in front of the seemingly tame runaway, proceeded with his jaunt. As Emberly followed, she momentarily looked over her shoulder, seeing Ameena simultaneously do the same to check on her dad. However, as their eyes met, the young man's daughter decided to wave. Mildly falling back on her innocence, Emeberly blushed and waved back.
The walk wasn't too far off, but her current whereabouts certainly felt isolated from the rest of the community. She was brought to a house, one that was your typical example of an old suburb home, however, it was smaller than the rest of the homes she had seen thus far. It consisted of beige bricks from top to bottom, having a dark-brown rooftop that looked like it was on its very way to rotting through. Protruding more so from the right side of the house was the porch of the house that had about three steps that brought you to the platform before the entrance. Around the platform were thick white columns with the same bricks that served as the base. Decorating the right perimeter of the porch were white wooden handrails with some outdoor furniture covered in plastic. Parked in the driveway on the left of the house was a forsaken car, with flattened tires and dead leaves in the crevasses with the windshield wipers.
Emberly examined her surroundings while patiently waiting until Syed retrieved a pair of keys he was shuffling around for. Unlocking the door, Syed reached in and turned on the light switch that was closest to the doorway and stepped aside, thus allowing Emberly entry before him. Shutting the door behind him, he led her past what looked like a cozy looking living room with two grey sofa couches, a wooden table, lamps, and a hideous cow-spotted rug in the center.
Approaching a doorless room at the start of a corridor on the main floor, he stepped in and knocked on the wall a rapid fifteen to twenty times. Groans and yawns were coming from all parts of the room. Emberly, walking directly behind Syed could make out three bunk beds with figures sleeping in all of them,
"Wake up. Bew roomie," Syed sounded far from enthusiastic.
"Syed…" Emberly heard a low voice as it was smothered into a pillow.
"Hurry. Let's just make this quick so we can all go back to bed," he rushed. Each bunk bed had one girl in it and once they were all awake, Syed left it up to them to properly introduce themselves. He pointed at one of the young dirty blondes, "Lucky pick, Denise. you know what to do. Help her get settled. You have thirty minutes until the lights go back out,"
"Thirty?" her dry voice repeated.
"Fine. Forty," Syed folded.
Denise groaned and threw her head back onto her pillow, tossing the sheets over her head. Syed looked over at Emberly and advised her not to worry and insisted that she'd get along with these girls fine. She awkwardly watched him smile in silence until he turned away and departed. She watched him closely as he exited the residence and slammed the door shut behind him.
Denise, on the other hand, forced herself to sit up. She had bundles of hair that fell a little past her shoulders, clear fair skin, and had captivating, bright blue eyes. She wore black nail polish and a crapload of eyeliner.
"So, what's your name?" Denise questioned, to which Emberly didn't feel comfortable answering. Instead, she rolled her eyes and looked away. Denise, who was impatient of the current bullshit to ruin a good night's rest, climbed out of her top bunk and approached the newbie. However, before she could even step within a foot of her, she aggressively fanned the air and began coughing, nearly gagging. Bringing up both hands to shield her nose, she spoke through a filtered mouth, "Holy crap, you smell like shit."
"Be nice, Denise…" one of the other girls said with a noticeable speech impediment. She was of unclear East Asian descent and had somewhat of a deep, gruff voice. From where she rested, Emberly couldn't get a full image of how she looked.
"No, but she smells really bad. Like, really bad!" Denise briefly looked over her shoulder to justify her reaction. Without much care, she grabbed Emberly's blanket and pillowcase and tossed them on the very bottom of the bunk she was on, careful to not touch any part of Emberly. Afterward, Denise gave a breathy laugh and looked at Emberly before speaking, "Look, I know how it is out there…" she disclaimed, "you can take a quick shower before the lights go out and I can just give you one of my shirts to sleep in," Denise didn't get an answer from her but she kindly advised Emberly to follow if she wanted to experience a shower. Emberly glanced back at the other girls, presuming that something suspicious must've been at hand. Seeing the second girl silently beckon her to follow, Emberly cautiously did as she was told until she was led to a bathroom that was on the same level. It was of moderate size, possessed two sinks, a large mirror, and a bathtub that Emberly would consider luxurious.
Denise pointed to a black t-shirt and some neon blue mesh shorts that were presumably left to air-dry on the towel bar,
"So, as long as you promise to give it back to me, you can wear those for as long as you'd like," Denise briefly stared at Emberly with a compassionate smile, at least expecting some sort of reply. However, realizing that Emberly probably wouldn't open up any time soon, Denise preferred it'd be best to wrap things up, "Remember–water automatically cuts off after ten minutes. You might be tempted to stay longer but try and be quick. We have our own water supply, so it's how we keep enough hot water running and enough water for us in general. After you're finished just come back in the room and go to bed."
And that concluded it. Upon her exit, Denise was kind enough to close the door behind her. This gave Emberly a chance to somewhat process what she had gone through today. She didn't know whether to scream or cry, but what she did know was that she didn't feel like she was in any danger after all. Sitting on the toilet seat in silence, she observed the temporary hand-me-downs to her right. Eventually, she got up and prepared herself for her long-awaited bath. She played with the single-knob tub, testing and adjusting the temperature of the shower until it was perfect just for her. Using just her hands, she lathered herself in soap, momentarily scratching the edges of her forehead and hairline, picking off flakes of dried blood and flesh. Glancing at her hands, she noticed a tinge of red on her fingertips.
Quickly, she took her messy double hair buns apart and quickly ran through them with water and soap. The amount of blood tangled in her roots was indescribable and she could only imagine there had been about ten different reanimated remains in her hair for these past few weeks. Watching the pink water swirl down the drain was somewhat of a weird, yet satisfying, experience. The very monsters she left behind for dead were still with her and this was an odd way of saying goodbye. She was crouched, scrubbing soap into the roots closest to her hairline and realizing that there was even more compiled in the backs of her ears. After giving herself a nice rinse, she was done before the shower could click off on its own.
After she was finished, she quickly changed into Denise's shirt and shorts, having the shirt reach slightly past her thighs. It was oversized for both her and Denise, to be frank, but it was comfortable enough for her to relax in. Looking in the mirror, with what appeared to be removed lightbulbs above it, was the first time in months she had let her hair down. Her head of tight curls grew over the year and was now falling past her shoulders. Due to its texture and recent wash, it appeared more bouffant than it typically did.
Stepping out of the bathroom, the lights in the rest of the house already happened to be turned off, leaving the house in total darkness. Not particularly in a rush, Emberly still took this as her opportunity. She silently fleeted past the bedroom and walked into the opened area that was just before the entrance. The night sky lights meagerly helped assist her as she felt her way around to the entrance. However, she realized that there was no doorknob on the other side. Instead, there was just a flat metallic stump in the place of it, obviously serving the purpose of keeping her and the other teens confined.
Personally, there wasn't much else to do and admittedly, Emberly was more than tired. She was exhausted. She was fed up with always having to sneak and put up a fight. So, for the first time in many months, she threw in the towel. Retracing her steps back to the corridor that was only a few feet back, she wandered into the bedroom and managed to find the bottom bunk that was now assigned her own. She felt around her pillow and blanket and held the folded blanket close to her chest,
"Hey," Denise answered, "You okay?"
"Yeah," Emberly softly responded, burying her face into the wool blanket, "Thanks…"