A/N: The reviews I got on the last chapter made me realize that I need to refresh your memories on how long the gang has actually been on El Jardín xD
They've only been there for around 4 days, despite the wacky sunsets and sunrises on the mountain, so Bella's hesitance to confide in anyone but Benjamin is kind of justified.
Yes, she and Edward are kind of a thing, but she doesn't really know him either.
Okay, I just wanted to get that out there!
I'm gonna continue putting the disclaimer here just be sure that everyone are aware of where this story originated.
This story isn't 100 % mine. I have transformed it into a story from an interactive story app called Choices (an app I am completely obsessed with atm) and the creators are Pixelberry Studios.
So here's my disclaimer: I don't own the characters or the plot of this story. All recognizable content belongs to their respective owner. No copyright infringement intended. Names and places have been changed for the purpose of Fanfiction.
{Chapter 13}
All of us surveyed the island from The Ethereal's rooftop garden, twenty stories up. All was quiet.
"Any sign of them?"
Beside me, Garrett scanned the horizon through binoculars. "I think we're safe."
"For now. Bella heard what they said. They're coming for us," Edward said from my other side.
"Then why are they leaving us alone, now?" Tanya asked.
"The sun is going down. They could be waiting 'til dawn," Leah suggested darkly.
"I'm sorry, but who exactly were they?" Kate asked. "What were they?"
The strange, muscular figures loomed toward me out of my memory. The leader's golden eyes bored into my soul. His words, known only somewhere deep in my subconscious, echoed in my skull. "Makla ... est razzen ..." You cannot hide. You cannot run. We WILL take you ... We MUST.
"They seemed pretty human to me," Victoria said.
"And pretty stylish. What were they doing wearing masquerade masks?" Benjamin asked, but no one had the answer, obviously.
"I think they're the island's inhabitants," I told the others, but before I could elaborate further, Rosalie gave me a sarcastic reply.
"Oh my gosh, do you really think so? The people inhabiting the island are the inhabitants? Wow, you're real smart."
Alice jumped in to defend me. "But Bella's right. One thing's clear; they must have been here a long time ... I just don't know how nobody noticed them before."
"Just because nobody told you about them, Alice doesn't mean they weren't noticed," Kate told Alice who stared at her as if it was preposterous that she wouldn't have been told about these inhabitants.
Edward spoke over the both of them. "What we do know is that they've been watching us for a long time. They seemed to know me. To know Garrett."
Peter frowned. "Well, whoever these ... these 'Watchers' are, they're coming for us. And we'll be ready."
Garrett agreed with his best friend. "Peter's right. We've gotta barricade ourselves in. Block the entrances. Gather weapons, anything we can use to protect ourselves."
Kate sneered. "Oh, sure, great plan. Then what?! We just established that we've got no help coming, and a giant sea monster won't let us leave."
"Current analysis does project a 0.4% chance of survival."
Tanya looked at Iris, crestfallen. "We can't hold these Watchers off forever ... so what's the point?"
I frowned at her. "Doesn't matter. I'm not giving up! I'm not lying down. I've never quit on something in my life, and I'm not about to start."
"I cannot say your rationale is logically sound. Weighted calculations suggest the best option is to 'Capitulate and Welcome Death.'"
Rosalie stared at Iris in disbelief. "Who programmed this thing?"
Kate crossed her arms and shook her head. "I say hell no. I'm with Bella. And we're not going down without a fight either."
"Um, literally all of that sounds scary to me," Tanya said quietly.
Garrett inhaled deeply and stepped up as the motivator as always. "Stay focused, everybody. Let's split up and get to work. We can't be caught unprepared."
As Garrett led the group back toward the elevator, Furball nuzzled at my ankles. "Yeah ... I'm scared too."
I noticed Benjamin biting his lip, not moving with the others. "Benji? What's wrong?"
"Besides everything?"
I gave him an apologetic smile. "Yeah, besides that."
"It's just ... sure, I get the plan. We're sealing ourselves in, but who are we sealing ourselves in with?"
My thoughts went to the dossiers we'd found and remembered Benjamin had four more that I had not seen yet.
"Nothing here is adding up," Benjamin continued. "And remember what we talked about when we got here? How there are eleven students on this trip when there were supposed to be ten? One of us ... isn't supposed to be here."
I thought about it but then shook my head. "All of us are supposed to be here." I lowered my voice further so the others couldn't hear."Remember those dossiers. Someone analyzed us before we arrived, and I don't think us being here and not being able to get away is a coincidence."
"Do you really think so?"
"I do ... and I was hoping you could show me the dossiers you have right now."
Benjamin nodded, and the two of us got out of the elevator on the floor of his room.
"Hey, where are you two going?" Garrett called after us. "We need to go over the plan!"
"We'll be right down," I told him. "We just have to get something in our rooms."
"Bu—"
Edward stopped Garrett from following us. "Relax, QB, Bella said they'll be right down. It's not like we have anywhere to be."
Garrett conceded after a few seconds. "Yeah ... okay."
The elevator door closed and Benjamin and I went to his room. As soon as the door was closed and locked from the inside, Benjamin reached underneath his mattress and brought out four familiar brown manila-folders. He handed them to me and the first one I opened held Garrett's award-winning smile attached to it.
Target Analysis
Clearance: Epsilon
Surname: Gayle
First: Garrett
Middle: Liam
D.O.B.: 1995 May 14
Birthplace: Jacksonville, FL
Background: Gayle is the 2nd son of Hall of Famer Marcus Gayle whose career was cut short by head injuries. Marcus then lost his fortune in a series of bad investments. Family's hopes ride on Garrett.
Psychological Profile: Courageous, Resilient, Born Leader. Already a National hero, he has too much riding on his success to rock the boat.
Threat Assessment: 4
I knew there was a reason why Garrett was such a go-getter. He's never had a choice but to be one, what with all the pressure he must have felt from home.
I studied the stamp next to his picture, and it was an eagle. I wondered if it had any connection to the fact that the Watchers' leader had also called him 'The Eagle.'
I put the folder down and reached for the next one.
The picture on this one was very blurry, and most of the fields were left empty or crossed out. If I squinted my eyes enough, I believed the picture was of Leah, but it was difficult to be sure.
Target Analysis
Clearance: Alpha
Surname: Clearwater
First:
Middle:
D.O.B.: January -96?
Birthplace: Colombia
Background: Clearwater is ... Vanishing for years at a time, she last surfaced in the military coup at ... she will stop at nothing to ...
Psychological Profile: Exceptionally determined, with the skills to pull off her goal thanks to her ex-mentor ... untimely demise.
Threat Assessment: DO NOT APPROACH!
I wondered how the person who made these analyses had not been able to find anything else on Leah. She was a mystery, that was true, but she must be enrolled at our school, which meant her basic information like her name and birthday was most definitely in the school records.
She didn't even have a threat assessment, and her stamp was in the shape of a dragon.
"Leah's report is very cryptic. The picture is blurry, but I can see it's her. I wonder why they didn't find anything," I said, and Benjamin nodded.
"Leah is a mystery in herself. Are you sure we can trust her?"
"Yes. I'm sure of it. She saved my life when we went looking for the Observatory and I got bit by a snake. She didn't even hesitate to suck the venom out of the bite."
Benjamin gaped at me. "Seriously? She did that?"
I took up the next folder and gasped. "Is that a mugshot of Tanya?"
"Yeah, I reacted to that as well. And it says she's got a criminal record."
"But ... Tanya? Really?"
"Well, we don't really know any one of these people."
"No, I guess we don't."
Target Analysis
Clearance: Epsilon
Surname: Miller
First: Tanya
Middle: Denise
D.O.B.: 1996 Apr 4
Birthplace: Washington, DC
Background: Daughter of Tempus Transglobal E.V.P. Irina Miller, Tanya matches her mother's brilliance in every way ... because she must. Anything less is not an option.
Psychological Profile: Family pressures take their toll. Criminal record suggests a history of lashing out. Use this when necessary.
Threat Assessment: 6
Caution: Actions may be unpredictable
Her stamp was a swan, but what caused me to frown was the note in the corner about her unpredictability.
The last folder was of Emmett, and what immediately caught my eyes was that his symbol was the exact same as the one on the frying pan that he found in the kitchen two days ago. It looked like a centaur.
Target Analysis
Clearance: Epsilon
Surname: McCarty
First: Emmett
Middle: Seamus
D.O.B.: 1995 Oct 7
Birthplace: Queens, NY
Background: Business major, but spends most of his time getting high. Reports show nothing special. (Listed I.Q. of 178 must be a typo) Role remains uncertain.
Psychological Profile: Non-threat. The most danger he poses is the property damage he can do at a party. (See Sigma Chi Incident, 3/7/16)
Threat Assessment: 1
I placed all the folders next to me and then counted off the dossiers in my head. "At the Observatory, I found dossiers on Edward, Rosalie ... and you."
"There was one on me?"
"Yeah, but there was nothing in it that I didn't already know, and as I told you, I didn't show anyone else. But with the three we found at the docks for Peter, Victoria, and Kate, and these four on Garrett, Emmett, Leah, and Tanya, that only leaves Alistair, Alice, and me..." I trailed off and wondered where the last ones would show up.
"Where do you think those could be hidden?"
"I have no idea. Probably somewhere someone wouldn't just happen to stumble upon them on accident."
Benjamin and I sat on the floor of his room for a few minutes in total silence, but then, he broke it. "Bella ... I have to tell you ... that I am so relieved that I at least have you in all of this. You're the only one I feel I can trust right now."
I leaned in and hugged him. "I feel the exact same way. You and I need to stick together. BFF's forever, right?"
"I'm about to deliver the corniest line that has ever appeared in a movie, but I'm gonna deliver it all the same. You can always count on me."
A few minutes later the two of us went down to the lobby where the others were stacking furniture in front of the entrance. I joined them, and together with Benjamin, I strained to lift a massive sofa on top of the furniture mountain.
"Okay, let's go a little to the left!" he called to me.
"My left or your left?!"
Soon, the sofa was placed securely. I took a moment to catch my breath and wiped sweat from my brow.
Peter walked by with a massive table casually under one arm. "You guys good?"
"Kate, your lifting technique is suboptimal. Avoid muscle strain by using your—"
"Are you just gonna float there doing nothing and talking crap, or are you gonna help with something?"
"I apologize. I lack corporeal form to assist with manual labor. I also must advise, your efforts to barricade the building will prove fruitless unless you also blockade the subterranean tunnel."
Victoria whipped around toward Iris. "Wait, what did you just say?"
"Accessing log. Hm, I'm not quite sure what I'm referring to. I appear to have accessed a partially reconstructed memory file ... I recall that a hidden tunnel exists, leading into the main resort tower."
"If the Watchers find it, there'll be no stopping them," Victoria gasped.
"Iris, do you know where the entrance is?"
"Scanning. No blueprints found. Cross-referencing ... Matches four files containing term 'wine cellar.'"
I frowned. "It's in the wine cellar? Where is that?"
"I think I saw the stairs down to it in the restaurant! I'll head over there and see if I can find this secret tunnel. Do ... you want to come with? I'm not sure I could find it on my own," Victoria said and gazed innocently at me.
I looked back at the heavy lobby furniture and all the windows we still had to block off, but there were many working on that already, and if Victoria didn't find the tunnel, we'd be defenseless. "I'll go with you. The two of us should be able to find the tunnel quickly."
"Great! Let's go!"
Victoria lead me toward 'Lagoon,' The Ethereal's famous restaurant. We wound through the kitchen until Victoria pointed at a trap door.
"Here it is!"
Together, we lifted the door, revealing a spiral staircase leading down into darkness.
"Think it's safe down there?" she asked.
"I guess we'll have to find out."
Victoria held her hand out toward the staircase. "By all means. After you."
She took my hand to stabilize herself, and I led her down into the dark. The first thing that hit me was the aroma; cork, grapes, and the earthy smell of the wooden barrels mixed and filled me with peace. My eyes adjusted to the light of the dim lamps, revealing row after row of gleaming, dark, wine bottles.
"This is an absurd wine collection, Bella! Look, they've got 1954 ... 1908 ... 1873?!"
I paused by a small rinse basin. A pair of wine glasses stood on napkins, with a little Cabernet left in the bottom. "I wonder if people were down here for a tasting when ... when it happened ... whatever it was."
I noticed Victoria had fallen silent. Even in the dim light, I could tell that her eyes were glistening.
"What do you think is going to happen, Bella? To us, I mean."
I shrugged. "It's up to us. Our destiny is always a matter of choice. What we do from now on will decide what happens. The choice will always be ours."
"I'm not so sure. Sometimes ... sometimes things are just out of your hands. And as much as you wish you could control everything, you can't. But I really admire that you're the kind of person who wants to have your fate in your hands. I just wish it were possible." She smiled at me. "Now let's find that secret tunnel. We can't block it off if we don't know where the entrance is."
We wandered together in the dark, staying close, surrounded by immeasurable craft and wealth, like a modern pharaoh's tomb. Victoria suddenly stopped by a particular bottle and examined the label. "Oh wow! Domaine de Marceau 1865! I've heard of this. It's supposed to be absolutely amazing."
"You recognize the vintage? You must be quite the connoisseur."
"Well, not really. It's more that ... No, it's silly."
"Tell me."
Victoria sighed. "You're gonna laugh, but ... I like wine because it makes me feel sophisticated. Like I lived a full life. When you can dive into all the minutiae of something like wine, it's because you don't really have anything serious to worry about. And somehow, the thought of that is so ... peaceful to me."
I didn't laugh. "But challenges are what make you strong. It's obvious you've been through a lot in your life, Victoria. But that's what makes you so amazing. What's life but struggle after struggle?"
She laughed softly. "You sound like my pastor. And you're both probably right. But maybe I don't want to be strong anymore. Maybe I'm tired of being strong." Victoria glided gracefully up to a wall of rough stone, running her fingers along the crevices. "This separation here ... Do you think this could be the door to the tunnel?"
I walked up to her. "Where?"
Victoria took my hand and gently placed my fingers against the smooth groove. "Here." She looked at me in the dark, our faces close. The light from behind her bloomed in her hair, making it look ablaze. I couldn't help breaking out into a silly grin. "Hey! What so funny? Are you laughing at me?" she asked and broke out into her own smile.
"No, it's just ... the world has gone completely crazy, but when I think about going back to before all this, back to where it was all safe and normal ... I realize I'd rather have endured all this, just so I'd meet you. You're a fresh breeze, Vicky."
Victoria rubbed my arm and smiled. "I was just thinking the exact same thing." She looked down and frowned. "Hey, do you see that? On the floor?" She knelt down and picked up a cocktail napkin that had fallen under the table. "There is handwriting on the back of this napkin."
I leaned closer to her. "What's it say? ... Huh. 'A = B + C – D.'"
"A math formula? Could this somehow be a clue to finding the tunnel entrance?"
I thought about it. "Four letters ... standing in for four numbers?"
"We're in a wine cellar, so it must be a year, right? Look around, we're surrounded by strings of four numbers in a row ... the vintage year on the wine bottles!" she realized excitedly.
"You're right! So we're looking for a year, where the four numbers would work with the formula on that napkin. What was it again?" I read it aloud. "'A = B + C – D.'"
I searched through the wine bottles, hunting for a vintage that matched the clue and mumbled to myself. "Every year starts with '1' so ... A = 1 and then B + C – D must equal 1 ... hmm..."
And then I saw it. "Vicky! I think I found it! The year that matches is 1908!"
Victoria came over to where I was standing. "1908! 1 equals 9 plus 0 minus 8. It works!"
I tried to pick up the 1908 bottle only to realize it was fake.
"It's a lever. Pull it!"
I yanked the bottle by the neck and heard a cranking sound. Behind us, one wall of wine racks swung out on a hinge.
"The hidden tunnel!" I exclaimed in shock. I couldn't believe we had actually found it.
"So this is where people could sneak into the resort. Why would they even need such a thing?"
I chuckled. "I've been asking 'why' pretty much non-stop since we landed. Like, why 1908?"
"I bet these numbers were special to Cullen, somehow. We should close this up and make sure nobody can get in through here."
Soon, Victoria and I had closed the tunnel entrance and barricaded it with wine barrels. I tested the secret lever, but the entrance stayed closed.
"Mission accomplished. Try getting through that!"
We headed back toward the spiral staircase, but she stopped me before we could climb back up.
"I just wanna say thanks, Bella. For coming with me." She gave me a tight hug, and I wondered, not for the first time, if Victoria had a thing for me, or if I was just imagining everything.
Back upstairs, Victoria went back to the lobby, but I noticed Tanya and Alistair carrying armfuls of various trinkets toward the ballroom, and so I followed them and found Kate, Emmett, and Alice waiting next to a table piled high with all manner of materials.
"What is all this?" I asked.
"Isn't it self-evident? We're setting traps," Alistair replied.
"Like Home Alone! Dude, that movie was super violent if you think about it," Emmett said excitedly.
"I've already scattered broken glass along a number of hallways. We'll hear the crunch if any intruders sneak in."
Tanya looked wonderingly at the wires in front of Alice. "And, um, what are you doing now?"
Alice absently looked down. She was stripping the thick bundle of electrical wires from their protection. "Oh, this? I ripped them out of the wall. We can flood the entrance with a very thin layer of water and leave the exposed wiring in the puddle ... That way, we just have to flip the switch and instantly electrocute any intruder! Easy peasy!"
I swallowed, feeling rather uneasy. "You're, uh, pretty good at setting traps, Alice. How did you learn to do all this?"
She shrugged. "You know. Girl Scouts."
"Preeeeetty sure they don't teach that in Girl Scouts," Emmett pointed out.
"In any case, we have some more materials to use," Alistair said and gestured toward the box he and Tanya had brought. "The question is, what do we do with them? For instance, this can of oil-based paint. Very slick. And I shouldn't have to say this, but given present company, I feel I must: please don't get it in your eyes. In fact, I suggest we—"
"—dump it on a staircase so the Watchers slip down and can't follow us up! Ha, sweet!" Emmett did a little dance, and I laughed at him.
Alistair wasn't amused and cleared his throat to regain the attention. "I was going to suggest we fill these balloons with it and use them to blind our enemies."
Emmett pouted. "Aw, man."
"Either way, it's sure to cause devastating injuries. How exciting!" Alice clapped her hands together.
"And look what I found!" Emmett put his own box of things on the table. "Let's see, I got one of those curly straws ... a walkie-talkie ... and this big-ass picture frame to whack people with!"
Alistair frowned at him, unimpressed by his findings. "A frame? What the devil is the point of ... Hrm? What's this?" He turned over the frame to reveal the black-and-white photo held within. In a candid shot, Carlisle Cullen grinned broadly as he played an arcade cabinet in a game room.
"Hm, what's the inscription say? 'The Ethereal's proprietor Carlisle A. Cullen gets a perfect score yet again on his favorite arcade game, a prized possession.'"
Emmett gaped. "Dude, there must be a game room somewhere around here!"
Alistair scoffed. "Needless to say, this junk will prove utterly worthless. Thank you, as always, for your contribution, Emmett."
"We still have the matter of this compressed oxygen tank we found. It was in a suitcase of scuba gear," Alice said and dragged said tank forward.
"Oh, nice! That tank is highly pressurized. If we knock off the nozzle cap, we could launch it like a missile! That'd do some damage," Kate said with a smile.
Tanya held up her hand timidly. "Hm, well, my idea isn't exactly a 'trap,' but ... if we store the tank underwater, say, behind the waterfall of the pool ... We could hide down there in case we're being chased, without having to come up for air."
"It's always smart to have a possible escape-plan," I mused, and Tanya's face lit up.
"Really? You like my idea?"
Kate huffed. "Fine. Don't come crying to me when you die."
Alice clapped once again, and I wondered if everything was quite alright with her. "Hooray! Good thinking, team. We're capable of all sorts of destruction when we work together! Let's finish setting up these traps now."
I left the guys in the ballroom, and in the hallway, I bumped into Edward and Leah, each carrying a bunch of blunt instruments. "And what are you guys up to?" I asked.
Edward grinned when he saw me. "Steve Rogers said we needed weapons, so we're getting weapons."
"Baseball bats and stuff. Not that they'll make a difference."
"Why do you say that?" I asked and frowned in confusion. Weapons were better than no weapons, after all.
Leah stared into my eyes, and it felt like she could read my mind. "Doesn't matter what you put in someone's hands. If they don't know how to fight, they don't know how to fight."
Edward's grin fell and he nodded in agreement. "And nobody else here knows how to fight, trust me."
"What about, like, Garrett and Peter?" I suggested. I was sure they could fight. They dealt with hard tackles on the field every day during football season.
"Big, tough, strong? Sure. Probably been in schoolyard fist fights. But that's nothing like when it's life or death," Edward pointed out, and Leah agreed.
"When it all hits the fan, Bella, you're gonna wish you knew a thing or two about self-defense."
Edward walked up to me and leaned closer. "You know ... I could teach you if you want. We could head down to the beach for some one-on-one time. We haven't barricaded the rear entrance yet, but it's inside the resort walls, so we'd be safe. Well, that's if you think you could handle things getting … a little rough."
I smiled at him flirtatiously, but Leah interjected.
"Or you could go there with me, someone you could actually learn something from."
"Then why don't you both teach me?" I proposed. Maybe it would be for the best anyway. If Edward and I went down to the beach alone, I was beginning to believe that there wouldn't be a whole lot of self-defense lessons taking place.
Edward shrugged with one shoulder nonchalantly. "Works for me. Come on down to the beach. There it won't hurt so much when you get knocked on your ass."
Soon, I was standing in ankle-deep water in the high tide, facing off against Edward. He had taken off his shirt and rolled up the legs of his pants.
"Alright, widen your stance a little now," he instructed.
I did as he told. "Like this?"
"Better. Not great. Pretty bad, actually, but better," he said, and I rolled my eyes at him.
"Not much of a teacher, are you, Pilot?" Leah said from her place on the beach.
He turned to her. "Is that so?" He made a small bow. "Alright, O Captain My Captain, why don't you show us your tricks?"
Leah immediately peeled off her clothes, neatly folding and stacking them atop a rock on the beach. She joined us in the water.
"Ever been in a fight before, Bella?" she asked.
I shook my head. "I've never needed fists to get what I want."
She smirked in response. "Oh, yeah?"
"Nobody ever wants to fight me. I usually just charm the pants off people," I said honestly and it caused both Leah and Edward to laugh.
"Literally?" she asked.
I shrugged. "If the situation calls for it," I said honestly.
"That's what I like to hear," Edward said and crossed his arms over his chest, looking at me with admiration. I looked right back at him and winked.
Leah snapped her fingers to snap us out of our eye-lock. "In any case, if you want to stay alive, forget everything you know. Blank slate. Everyone's worst enemy is themselves. All you have to do is turn that against them."
Edward frowned. "What in the hell is this philosophical mumbo-jumbo?"
Leah raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought I was teaching Bella, here, but maybe you need a lesson, too."
He rolled his eyes. "Look. All you gotta know is to attack with everything you've got. Be relentless. Keep them on the defensive. Don't let them collect themselves."
"No, you should use the enemy's movements against them. Redirect their momentum and exploit it," Leah insisted.
"Clearly, we have different styles, so I guess it's up to Princess which way we go."
I weighed my options and then turned to Leah with an apologetic expression. "I want to try Edward's offensive technique. I'm sure your way is great, Leah, but I don't think I have the time to get all Zen right now."
"That's what I thought."
She dismissed us both. "It's your funeral."
I lined up opposite Edward, with the water sloshing about my ankles.
Edward waved me forward. "Alright, now come at me. Gimme everything you got, as fast as you can. Don't give me a second to recuperate, got it?"
I hesitated. I knew he was military trained, but if I did something completely unexpected, I didn't want to hurt him. "Are you sure?"
He smirked. "I can block it, don't worry."
I nodded and threw myself at Edward, hammering him with punches and kicks as quickly as I could muster. He deflected them all but had trouble keeping up.
"Whoa, nice! Just like that!" he praised me and then turned to Leah. "What'd you think, Imperator Furiosa?"
"Decent."
"I'll take it!" I said, pleased I didn't completely suck.
After an hour of practicing technique, I found myself struggling to catch my breath.
"Tired?" Leah asked. "Good. Now comes the hard part."
"That wasn't the hard part?!" I asked as I took support on my thighs while breathing hard.
"You have to spar one of us and try out what you've learned in full-speed."
"Think you can handle it?" Edward asked.
"But I'm exhausted!"
"That's precisely when your enemies will come for you," Leah pointed out.
I inhaled deeply and straightened out. "Fine. Then I'll spar with Edward."
"Me? Sure you don't wanna start with someone a little easier?"
Leah narrowed her eyes at him. "Oh, stuff it, idiot."
"Alright, let's see what you got, Princess."
I charged at Edward and launched into a flurry of strikes.
"Keep it up!" he ordered when he noticed that I was slowing down.
I redoubled my attacks, and finally, one of my punches got past Edward's block and pounded into his abs. He coughed slightly, obviously not prepared for the blow.
"Good ... one."
He toppled over, splashing down into the water. I pounced on him, pinning him against the soft sand. "Surrender?" I asked with a wide smile, and he gave me his own lop-sided smirk in return.
"To you? Always."
I laughed and gave him a quick peck on the lips—not sure if he would want it now that we weren't on the brink of death anymore—but he cupped my neck to keep me in place and deepened the kiss before I could pull away.
I was too aware of Leah, though, and I used my hands on his chest to push away, and while he made a small sound of protest, he allowed me to get off him.
Another hour later, the three of us were toweling off and getting dressed.
"So? How'd I do?" I asked and wrung the water from my hair.
"Well, you definitely showed some mettle. Those tricks will come in handy," Leah said.
Edward agreed. "Yeah. When all hell breaks loose, I bet you'll even last five, six seconds!"
"Maybe even seven."
I looked at them, unamused. "Great. Thanks for the vote of confidence, guys."
I headed back inside when I heard a cheer go up from a nearby room. I separated from Edward and Leah and peeked past a door and found a room filled with card tables, dart boards, and arcade cabinets.
"You guys found the game room!" I exclaimed.
Furball scurried over to welcome me, climbing up my side and perching on my shoulder.
Benjamin grinned. "We were totally looking for windows to barricade, I swear. But we got a little ... distracted."
"Isn't this place dope?" Peter said and leaned on a pool cue.
"Will you guys pipe down for once? I'm trying to focus!" Rosalie stuck her tongue out in concentration as she leaned down over her pool cue. There was just one striped ball and the 8-ball on the table.
"Peter's beating Rosalie. She's toast unless she makes this shot," Benjamin told me.
"I said, shut it!"
"Rosalie, projectile analysis predicts that, at your current angle, you will miss. Allow me to assist." Iris projected a holographic display onto the pool table, highlighting the exact direction Rosalie should hit the cue ball.
Rosalie smiled. "Nice! Corner pocket, callin' it."
Peter gaped. "What the hell, bro? That's cheating!"
Rosalie adjusted her aim and struck the cue ball. It ricocheted around the table, knocking in both her last striped ball and the 8-ball.
"Aw yeah! Unh, unh, unh! How's defeat taste, Peter? Salty like your tears!"
Furball hopped off my shoulder and bounced around mimicking Rosalie's dancing.
"Hey, looks like Furball has some moves, too! Adorable!"
Smiling, I looked past Rosalie and my gaze fell on a game cabinet nestled against the wall. "Hey ... I recognize this. Emmett found a picture of Cullen playing this game."
I thought back to the inscription on the photo. 'The Ethereal's proprietor Carlisle A. Cullen gets a perfect score, yet again, on his favorite arcade game, a prized possession.'
"Most Wanted 2? That's that series based on those crazy murder cases in L.A., right?" Rosalie asked us all.
Benjamin nodded. "Yeah, total cult classic."
I rested my hands on the controls, and a strange feeling came over me. "Why am I getting the crazy feeling that this game is important somehow?"
"Why don't you give it a try? See what happens?" Peter suggested.
"Warning: the game is notoriously difficult. Few can match Mr. Cullen's perfect score."
I turned to the game and on the screen, it said that the high score was over one million, and it asked me to enter my initials with three letters before starting. On a whim, I decided to enter Cullen's initials, CAC, instead of my own to see if anything special happened.
A new menu started blinking.
'Welcome back, Mr. Cullen. Please enter your code for confirmation.'
It was a four number code and I thought back to the clue in the wine cellar. 1908. Victoria thought the number had some kind of significance to Cullen, and therefore I tried entering that number into the game.
'Thank you, Mr. Cullen. God Mode unlocked.'
The game started and without doing anything, it played itself, getting a perfect score.
Benjamin gasped. "Whoa! How'd you know the code?"
"Down in the wine cellar, Victoria and I found this set of numbers that seemed important to Cullen. I'm not surprised he put them in," I answered.
Rosalie scoffed. "Pfft. I bet he never actually beat this game legit. Cheating is for losers."
Peter stared at her. "What are you talking about? You just cheated to beat me in pool!"
She rolled her eyes. "It's fine when I do it. Try to keep up, Peter."
"Guys! Look!"
Behind us, a panel appeared in the wall and slid open, revealing a hall.
"Now that's what I'm talking about! Let's see what Mr. Boss Cullen was hiding!"
I ventured first into the hidden hallway. "What is this place?"
"It appears to be some kind of security command center."
I examined the console and stopped by a large red button. "T.E.R.S.? What's this?"
"Searching. Reconstructing corrupted memory ... It's the Tsunami Emergency Response System. In the event of a tidal wave, The Ethereal was built with industrial steel shutters that can descend and seal off all doors and windows on the lower ten floors. Once activated, the shutters remain on lockdown for twelve hours."
"Sealing off the bottom half of the hotel from any ground attack? Hey, that sounds pretty good right about now!" Benjamin said.
"Yeah, no way those rainforest peeps could get through that! This is a no-brainer!"
"For you, Peter, everything is a no-brainer," Rosalie said.
"You don't think we should do it, Rosalie?" I asked.
"I'm just saying ... it's a twelve-hour lockdown. If they can't get in, then we can't get out. So, if something happens ... Let's just say I'm somebody who likes to know her escape route."
I looked down at the button. "Rosalie's right. If we lock ourselves in here, and somebody gets in anyway, we're fish in a barrel."
She nodded. "Yes. I don't need you to make my point for me, but yes."
Benjamin bit his lip insecurely. "Your call, Bella. I just know I'd sleep a lot more soundly if we had giant metal plates protecting us."
"Maybe there's some other stuff in this security center we can use," I said to lift his spirit again.
I rummaged through a couple of drawers when I heard a tremble in Peter's voice.
"Uh, Bella? You're gonna wanna take a look at this." Peter offered me something in his hand ... a plain manila folder. The kind I'd seen before on this island. And on the Polaroid clipped to the front was a picture of myself.
"Oh, my god."
"You gotta read it, Bella." Benjamin gave me a look that the others didn't see, and I nodded as I opened the folder with a lump in my throat.
Target Analysis
Clearance: Omega
Surname:
First:
Middle:
D.O.B.: 1996 Jan 1
Birthplace: El Jardín, Greater Antilles
Background:
Psychological Profile:
Threat Assessment: 10
WHO IS SHE?
"Wh ... what's this supposed to mean?!" I exclaimed. I didn't understand anything in the rapport, and even more confusing was the 'WHO IS SHE?' written in bold letters over the entire thing.
"And why does it say you were born on El Jardín? I thought you were from Washington," Benjamin said.
"I wasn't! I wasn't born here!" I insisted.
Just then, a second sheet fell out of the folder, dropping onto the floor. I knelt to pick it up. The new one was on much newer paper as if it had just been printed. And I instantly recognized the face in the photo on it.
I.R.I.S.
System-Wide Alert
TIMESTAMP: 07:30 hrs
UPDATE: Asset codenamed SERPENS (b. 19 Aug 1995, Cambridge, England) had somehow gained access to the plane. He is on his way to El Jardín. The guide responsible will be fired.
ANALYSIS: Situation appears problematic, but the statistics predict that this may turn out to be a good development... so long as the "selected" never learn his identity. Carlisle must be contacted immediately upon plane's arrival.
THREAT ASSESSMENT: 8
"Is ... is this for real?" I turned over the paper, hoping I'd find something on the back that said it was all a joke.
Rosalie took the paper from me. "Dude. This lists Alistair as a Cullen International asset."
Peter turned to Iris. "What the hell, Iris? Why didn't you say something? This report has your name on it."
"It certainly does, but I can assure you, I have no recollection of this data. My system restore point is from far earlier."
Benjamin looked at me with wide eyes. "You know what this means, right? Alistair is the eleventh winner. The one who shouldn't be here. He's been in contact with Carlisle Cullen? Bella, he's been in on it from the beginning."
I frowned, feeling my anger rise. "I think it's time we had a little chat with our classmate."
I gathered the others and tracked down Alistair up at the rooftop garden. We found him talking awkwardly with Tanya by the railing.
"Ahem ... or rather ... what I'm trying to tell you is..."
"Yes, Alistair?"
"It's simply a matter of ... wanting to be forthright."
I stepped in between them. "Maybe you can start being forthright about this!"
Alistair and Tanya turned to see the rest of the group facing them. Each one of them eyed Alistair coldly.
"Wha ... what in heaven's name are you blathering about?" he asked.
"You owe us an explanation. I thought we were your friends, Alistair. You owe us at least that much."
Peter protested. "What the hell, Bella? This freak isn't our friend! He's a spy!"
"Why are you taking it so easy on him?" Rosalie questioned.
Tanya turned to me with worried eyes. "Bella, what's happening? Why is everyone so angry?"
"That's what we're here to find out." I handed Alistair the report we found. As his eyes scanned the words, his face went cold.
Tanya read from behind him. Her eyes flicked up to Alistair, and betrayal washed over her expression. She backed away. "Alistair ... you ... you're..."
"Tanya, it's not what it looks like."
I thought I could see tears welling up in his eyes.
"It's time to tell the truth, Alistair. You've got one chance to tell us everything," Garrett said, stepping in front of everyone else.
Edward glared. "How long have you been working for Carlisle Cullen?"
"I'm not—" Alistair began, but Kate interrupted him.
"Quit lying! It says right there that Carlisle was to be contacted when you arrived! You're working with him—"
"I am not! I can't be!" he insisted.
"Why not?!" I questioned.
"Because I am Carlisle Cullen!" he exclaimed.
In an instant, everyone fell silent. Alistair's eyes fell to his shoes. He spoke through a grimace.
"Not ... Not the Carlisle Cullen. My name ... is Carlisle Alistair Cullen, the Second. The man who built this place, the man who brought all of you here ... is my father."
A/N: Okay, how many suspected it? And be honest if I really threw you off a loop there!
But, really, why did Tanya have a mugshot? Why are Leah and Bella such mysteries? Do you think Victoria has a thing for Bella? And do you think Bella made the right call about not using the shutters?
Well, the usual here, one review equals a teaser ;-)
Until next week,
Stay awesome!
