Chapter 46: Fidus Et Audax

7-year-old Lilly was sitting under the kitchen floor as Bronte's men searched the house. It was a bit cramped under the house with the floorboards so low to the ground, but not so much for a child. She was wearing red pants and a white chemise shirt with puppy faces sewn into the fabric. No shoes. Her hair was down and ended at the middle of her back. Lilly decided she hated dresses and swore to never wear one again. Or have ribbons in her hair. The men kept coming back. She'd only been there three days and this was their seventh time back.

"Where is the god damn girl, Mrs. Bartleby?!" one of the men shouted.

"I told you already, she is not here!" Gretchen shouted back. "I am scared to death for her! I wish I knew where she was! Lilly is such a..." Lilly heard Mrs. Bartleby start to cry. "She's such a lovely child! What if she's dead? What if an alligator got her?!"

Lilly sighed quietly and held her legs to her chest. This woman sure knew how to lie.

"Look Gretchen," another man said. "I know this is hard...on all of us. I'm worried sick about her too. But please, if you know anything..."

Lilly recognized the voice. It was George. He wasn't so bad. And he wasn't there that night. Lilly figured he had no knowledge of any of it."George, I swear if I knew-"

"Mrs. Bartleby." Lilly heard Mr. Bronte enter the house. Lilly felt her heart stop for a moment. She covered her mouth to stifle her crying as she shook in fear.

"Mr. Bronte!" Gretchen exclaimed. "I...I swear, sir. Lilly is not here."

"Oh, I'm sure. We've checked your house several times already. I'm only being thorough in my search."

"I understand, sir, but-"

"For example," Bronte said, waltzing over towards the kitchen. "A lot of these houses...they still have secrets, don't they?"

"Sir?"

"Secrets. People used to hide slaves under their houses, sometimes. During the war. To keep them hidden from the Confederates."

Lilly gasped quietly and she looked around for a way to escape. She couldn't find one. Lilly looked down. The dirt. She began to quickly, but silently, dig a hole. Her heart was pounding in her ears.

"Really? I didn't know that. That's a fun fact, isn't it?"

Lilly heard a 'tap tap tap' over where the kitchen was. He was trying to find the trap door, she was sure of it. Lilly kept digging, her heart pounding harder inside her chest.

"Oh, yes. A lot of these houses have a trap door in the floors. The living room," tap tap tap, "the dining room," tap tap tap, "even the kitchens," tap tap tap.

Lilly silently got into the small hole, laying on her back. She started covering herself up. In her mind, she was praying he would not find her.

"Huh. Well, Mr. Bartleby and I, we only moved in half a year ago. Haven't really noticed any trap doors. Don't even know what one looks like."

Lilly heard the rug over the trap door come off. She kept going. "Please don't find me," she whispered to herself.

"Ah, there it is. You never noticed this, Mrs. Bartleby?" Bronte asked.

"Huh. Would ya look at that?" Mrs. Bartleby gasped. "No, can't say I have, Mr. Bronte. That rug was here when we moved in."

The trap door opened. Lilly laid perfectly still and stopped breathing. She dared not open her eyes to check if she was completely covered. Laying there felt like an eternity of waiting. How long was the door going to be open? How long was he going to search for her down here? Lilly found it hard to keep her breath in, scared as she was, as the seconds went by. The trap door shut.

"Well, it looks cozy down there, but no runaway slaves or little flowers."

Lilly lifted her head out of the dirt and took a silent, deep breath. She wiped dirt off her face but dared not spit.

"Well, I hope you're satisfied, Mr. Bronte. The girl is not here. She hasn't been here for quite some time."

"I will never be satisfied until she is FOUND, Mrs. Bartleby!" Bronte shouted.

Lilly calmed her breathing and shut her eyes, begging in her mind for him to go away. "Please go away, please go away, please go away," she mouthed to herself. Tears streamed down the sides of her face.

"Mr. Bronte!" Gretchen snapped. "Why are you shouting at me? I'm just as worried as you are!"

"You're right. I apologize, Mrs. Bartleby. I am merely stressed. She is my daughter."

Lilly felt like she was going to heave, but she repressed the feeling.

"Yes, I understand, sir. I'm sure you will find her soon."

"Good day, Mrs. Bartleby. Men, let's go." Lilly heard multiple footsteps head towards the front door. She heard the door shut, then rapid steps went into the kitchen. The trap door opened.

"Lilly! They're gone!" Lilly got out of the dirt and crawled toward Mrs. Bartleby. When the woman saw Lilly, she sighed. "How did he not see you?"

Lilly stood up. "I hid in the dirt."

Gretchen sighed again. "Clever child. So clever. But you're going to need a-"

The door opened. "Sorry, Mrs. Bartleby, but I forgot my..." It was George. Lilly stared at him wide eyed. "...hat." Gretchen held Lilly's hand. Lilly became terrified as tears ran down her face. George went back to the door and locked it, then went into the kitchen. "You need to remember to lock that door, Mrs. Bartleby. You're lucky it was just me that came back and not one of the other men. Or Bronte."

Lilly sighed in relief but continued to cry. "Please don't let him get me, George. Please."

George patted her head. "I won't say a word, kid. Gretchen, I don't think he'll come back, but I'll try to keep them away from here as much as I can."

"Thank you, George," Mrs. Bartleby breathed out.

George bent down at the waist and put his palms on his knees, looking at Lilly. "I'm so sorry for what he did to you and your brother, kid. And I hate working for him. But Sean and Brian trusted me to help you out. I hope you can trust me too."

Lilly shuddered. "I...I don't think I can trust anyone. Not after any of this."

George sighed. "I understand, Lilly. I'd feel the same as you in this situation. But you have my word that I won't rat you out."

George stood up and walked to the couch to grab his hat. Mrs. Bartleby followed him to the door, and when he left, she locked the door behind him.

For the week following her brother's death, Lilly cried. She mourned. Her young, innocent mind tried to process everything, and it just wouldn't make sense. Why did Papa Bronte do all this? The men that almost harmed her were dead. She'd been forced to kill them. And why was Brian killed over a debt she didn't even know about? When Brian's body was found, he was buried in the cemetary of the Saint Denis church, but Lilly thought he wasn't given a proper funeral. She should have been there, but she was in hiding instead. Then, one night right after that whole week, Bronte's men came by again to search. Lilly once again hid herself in the dirt under the house when they opened the trap door. And while she waited for them to leave, she thought about her dead brother in the cold, dry earth of the cemetery. She thought about all the hardships, all the pain, all the loss she'd gone through her whole life. Brian had been her last family connection, her last pillar of strength.

When Brian found out about the deaths, he'd been furious Lilly had been forced into it. He'd never known what she was being trained for and if he had known, Brian never would have allowed it. Not that he would have been able to do much about it. Lilly was Bronte's property, although he'd not once referred to her as such. No, he always called her "daughter" or his "little flower". She was the only one out of all his students. She'd been special to him, to everyone, not just because of her talents, but because of her character. Brian always said her bite was worse than her bark. Oh, her sweet deartháir mór. Her whole family was gone and she was the last of the O'Callaghan bloodline. Faithful and bold; her family motto. Well, Lilly knew she was faithful. Lilly knew she was bold. Helpless, innocent victims were neither things in her way of thinking.

And was she going to allow herself to be a victim anymore? No. Was she going to allow the death of her brother to be unavenged? No. Was she going to let the last O'Callaghan be broken? Beaten? No. Brian's actions were faithful and bold. So...she was going to be the same. The trap door shut and she emerged from the dirt. As the men left, she decided enough was enough. If Lilly was going to hide, it would no longer be out of fear, but to bide her time and prepare. She could not be innocent or helpless anymore, and she was never going to let anyone hurt her again. Mrs. Bartleby opened the trap door and she crawled her way to it. And when she reached it, she looked up at the lady. Lilly felt different. Lilly felt furious. She felt like...a storm. An angry, violent, deranged storm.

"What's wrong, Lilly?" Gretchen asked.

"I am tired of those men comin' here," Lilly responded.

"I know." The old woman held a hand out to Lilly. Lilly took it and climbed out. "They'll stop comin' eventually, dear."

"No, they wilna stop comin'," Lilly said as she walked into the living room. She pulled out her brother's knife from her waistband and stared at it. "Not unless I make them stop."

"How are you going to make them stop? You're just a child."

"I'm done bein' a child," Lilly turned to face the woman. "Children dunna kill people."

Gretchen stared at the knife and her. "What are you saying, dear?"

Lilly put the knife away and strode to the front door. "I'm goin' tah kill them." She opened the door and walked out into the night.

Barefoot, in black pants, a white buttoned shirt, and her hair in a ponytail, Lilly stormed down the alley with death on her mind. She knew exactly which men came that night. Marco and Alexander. And she knew which way they went. She turned a corner and saw Alex. He was pissing against the wall. She knew it was him from his long black hair and his favorite brown jacket with white decorations on the back. And he wasn't very tall. Only a foot and a half taller than she was. Lilly paced over to him slowly, silently, as he hummed a song to himself.

"Hurry up with your pissin'!" Marco yelled down to the left.

Lilly peeked out and saw Marco had his back to her. He was smoking a cigarette. Lilly looked at Alex with her knife at the ready. How was she to go about killing him? Just then he finished his business and turned around. Lilly sliced his throat open before he could yell to his associate. Blood spattered on her clothes and she backed up out of sight. Alex's body slumped forward to the ground.

"Hey, are you done yet?" Marco shouted. "Alex?" Lilly heard Marco come running. He bent down to check on his companion. "What the-"

Lilly went and shoved the knife sideways into the man's neck, then pulled the blade out. More blood spattered on her clothes. Marco grasped his neck and looked at the angry Irish girl in surprise and pain. Lilly stabbed him in his eye and he collapsed. Lilly yanked the knife out, wiped the blood off the blade on her shirt, and sheathed it. She looked down at all the blood on the ground. She dipped her hands in it and started writing on the wall. It didn't take Lilly long to finish. When she was done, she took a step back to study her work.

"Fidus Et Audax."

Lilly felt numb, and her face was relaxed and blank. She just killed two men but she was done with Angelo Bronte's bullshit. He'd trained her for two years to be a sneaky little assassin. Well, he was going to get exactly what he wanted. A trained killer. And after all his little men were killed, she would go after him next. Lilly turned and headed back to the Bartleby's. Gretchen was waiting for her at the door. When she saw the blood on Lilly, she held a hand to her mouth and sobbed. "Lilly, you got blood all over you!"

The reborn Irish child walked past Mrs. Bartleby. "It ain't my blood."

The next day, Lilly was on a bed in the guest room in the Bartlebys house. She felt strange about murdering those men. The Irish girl couldn't explain it. She didn't feel sorry. Lilly...liked what she did. It felt satisfying. For the first time in her life, she was in control of her life, as any monster would be. Lilly pulled out her brother's knife. It almost had the same sentimental value as her father's pocketwatch. But now, she looked at it differently. It was a weapon. And she killed two men with it. Why was she not upset about that? Shouldn't she be? Lilly heard a knock on the door and she shoved the knife under her pillow."Come in."

Mr. Bartleby walked in, hobbling on his cane. He looked like he was preparing himself for a difficult conversation.

"So, ahem..." he made his way over to the bed. "You gave Mrs. Bartleby quite a scare last night."

"I know," she said blankly. "I wasn't tryin' to."

"I know." The man sat down and groaned. Lilly heard some bones pop and crack. "Good Lord, I sound like...I don't know what I sound like. Anyway," he looked at Lilly. "My wife says you may have killed some men last night."

"I did."

"I see. Well, kid, she's worried about you."

"Are you?"

Oliver chuckled. "No."

Lilly scrunched her face at him. "Really? Why not?"

"Because I was in the war, Lilly. I've killed people. I've watched men die. One of my closest friends, he died from a bullet through the chest," the old man sighed. "Killing a man, watching someone die...that changes people."

"Well, I saw most of my family die and that didn't change me. At least I don't think it did."

"But you didn't see it up close, did you? From what you told me, you never saw their bodies. You saw your mother's, but she was a ways down. You'd think that wouldn't make much difference, but it does."

Lilly shrugged. "I guess that makes sense, but...that whole thing was still awful. A lot of people died on that ship. But we were so busy tryin' to get outta there, I guess I wasn't payin' much attention to anythin' else."

"I would suspect so, kid. But Brian's death? You saw him beaten and shot right in front of you, and you saw his body up close. That..." he sighed again. "Plenty of that happened in the war. And it changes you."

"Is that what's happenin' to me?"

"I believe so."

"I...it feels so strange. I don't even feel bad about killin' those men."

"Well, why did you kill 'em?"

"I'm sick and tired of havin' to hide from them all the time. I hate them botherin' you and Mrs. Bartleby. And...I just...went and did it. I'm tired of feelin' so...so..."

"Scared and helpless?" he asked.

"Yes." Lilly tilted her head.

Oliver patted her leg. "Do you still feel scared and helpless?"

Lilly blinked at him. "No."

"How do you feel now?"

"Like I'm in control of my life. No one can hurt me anymore because I...I guess I can take care of myself now."

"It feels good to rely on someone, Lilly. But if you don't have anyone to rely on, you must rely on yourself."

"Can I rely on you and Mrs. Bartleby?"

"Of course. We won't be around forever, but I think you know that better than most people."

"I do. But...what happens now? Will they still come here?"

"They might, or they might not. I hope you will refrain from killing more of them, but I can't force you to do that."

"You can't?"

Oliver laughed. "As you said, you are in control of your life. I doubt you'd let anyone take that from you. But may I ask what you'd like to do?"

Lilly lowered her head and gazed at the floor. "I want to kill Bronte for what he did to me and my brother. I want those Hilltop Boys to die, I want my father's pocketwatch back. I want them to know what they took from me, what they took from my brother," she growled, tightening her hands into fists. "I want them to hurt. I want them to suffer. I want them to die. What they did was wrong and I want...no, I...I need to make them pay."

"What did they take from Brian and you?"

"...Everything. His life, my happiness, and...I feel like it's my duty to do what the law won't do because he owns most of this city. If they won't do somethin', I have to. No one else will."

"Lilly, I'm going to give you some advice. There is a difference between justice and revenge."

"There is?"

"Yes. Justice is unbiased. Justice is about righting a wrong. Justice gives equal punishment for the crime; it brings balance. Revenge, however, is all about emotions. Hatred, rage, wanting bloodshed and violence. It's very personal and it tends to bring out the worst in people, and causing harm and suffering to the wrongdoer becomes, let's say, pleasureable. So, about those men. Was it justice you wanted, or was it revenge?"

Lilly took a deep breath. "I think, those men...I just wanted Bronte and his men to leave you alone. They won't stop comin'...until they find me or I do somethin' about it."

"Did the crime match the punishment?"

"...No. But I couldn't politely ask them to bugger off, could I?"

Oliver laughed. "No, I think not."

"And who says they haven't commited murder or...other things? I know those two did. Most of Bronte's men do bad things like that, and...it ain't right. I don't want good people to have everythin' taken from them, especially by that Italian pig and his greedy piglets. Because I know how it feels."

Oliver slapped her shoulder softly. "Lilly, I think you may have wanted both."

Lilly crinkled her nose and eyes. "I can want both?"

"Sure you can. I must warn you, though. Revenge is a dangerous thing to carry with you. It can eat you alive, it can rot you to the core and leave a hole inside you. And even when you have gained your vengeance, nothing will fill that hole. Except exacting more harm onto others, even innocents, such as yourself. But it never stays full."

"But I'm not innocent anymore, am I?"

The man hobbled off the bed. "No, but you're not corrupted, either. You, my dear?" he patted her head. "I think you have a good balance between what's right and what's wrong. Never lose that balance. Come on now, I think my wife made you a cake. Strawberries in it. Your favorite."

Lilly gave a soft smile. Perhaps she could retain some innocence from the life she had before. Like how she felt whenever she had strawberry cake. But not even that could cool the flames of her anger. And so that night, Lilly went on the hunt through the dark alleys of Saint Denis. Lilly was stalking one of Bronte's goons. They kept coming to the god damn house. They kept looking for her. She knew they wouldn't stop but she wanted them dead anyway. It wasn't just about making them stop. Lilly needed...experience. To carry out justice...and revenge. So, there she was, near the docks of Saint Denis in the middle of the night, armed with only her dead brother's knife and her bloodthirsty urges.

There was one of Bronte's men, Emilio. Drunker than a skunk and talking to a few sailors. Lilly sunk behind a box near one of the boats. She sat there in silence, waiting. They continued chatting for a few minutes until she heard them disperse. Lilly peeked over and saw her inebriated target slump towards an alley. She glanced around to check for anyone else around. The sailors had their backs to her and were walking away. Lilly got up and walked quietly toward the alley entrance the Bronte man had gone through.

She paced slowly behind him, keeping some distance but not too far to lose him. Lilly saw Emilio turn a corner and she pranced to it, keeping her back against the brick. Lilly looked around the corner to see Emilio stumble over. He laughed at himself drunkenly. Lilly scowled, took her knife, and went towards him. He stayed on his knees and giggled in a drunk state of happiness. She grabbed his hair and cut his throat open.

Lilly watched as the blood spattered out and she shoved Emilio's body to the ground. She bent down, soaked her hands in the blood, and wrote her family's motto on the wall. Fidus Et Audax. Lilly stalked off after sheathing her knife. This was her third kill since leaving Bronte's home. And again, she felt numb and cold. But she knew she'd have to do better than target drunk men. The ones she'd gotten so far were some of the worst she'd known. As she turned another corner, Lilly happened across a man beating on a blonde haired woman. Lilly recognized him as another one of Bronte's men. Francis. He slapped the woman and she went down, crying and holding her cheek.

"You are such a fucking bitch!" Francis yelled. "Who do you think you are, Charlotte?"

"I don't want to be with you anymore!" Charlotte cried. "You're a horrible, evil man! You keep hurting me for no reason!"

"I have reasons! You're a god damn slut!"

"I am not, I swear I haven't been with anyone but you!"

Francis went down to backhand her but Lilly shouted at him. "HEY!"

He looked up and saw the girl. He laughed and stood up. "Well, if it isn't the lost little flower."

Lilly growled and took a step forward. "Leave the lady be, ya bastard!"

Francis laughed. "What are you gonna do about it, little Irish girl?"

Charlotte looked behind her at Lilly. Lilly glanced at the woman, then back at Francis. "The same thing I did tah Marco, Alex, and Emilio."

He laughed again. "That was you? Wait, I didn't hear about Emilio."

Lilly started walking towards him. Her knife was clutched in her hand and her eyes burned with rage. "That's because no one has yet. He's just back there if ya want a look."

Francis shoved Charlotte aside and started barreling to Lilly. He yanked out his gun and aimed it at her. "I'm takin' you back to Bronte, little girl."

Lilly chuckled bitterly. "Oh, ya scared of a little girl, are ya? Ya think ya need that gun?"

Francis stopped, sighed, and holstered it. "No. I think I can tussle with you just fine." He walked towards her again.

Lilly increased her pace. As they closed the distance, Francis reached for Lilly's knife, but she jumped back. "I won't make it easy, Francis. Miss Charlotte? I suggest ya run before ya see bad things happen."

Charlotte got up and went running. Francis turned and shouted at Charlotte. "Get back here!"

Lilly smirked and stabbed him in the gut. He yelled and tried to grab her but Lilly jumped back again. "Ya boys really are stupid. Don't ya know never tah turn away from someone threatenin' ya with a knife?"

Francis held a hand to his stomach, then reached for his gun. Lilly ran forward and plunged the knife up under his ribcage. He yanked the gun out and Lilly plunged the knife into his arm. He dropped it and Lilly stabbed him in the throat. Francis gurgled a bit and went down. Lilly sheathed her knife and sighed. "Stupid Italian." Lilly made her mark on the wall and left.

Over the next six weeks, Lilly picked out targets to kill. They got harder as she went along, but Lilly found she had a natural knack for hunting and killing. Her next victim was Charlie, one of Bronte's most loyal men. She sliced his throat in an alley just outside one of the saloons. And again, she left her mark on the wall. Eventually the men stopped looking for her at the Bartleby residence, but that no longer was her reasoning for killing. She was building up her skills.

When Lilly wasn't killing, she was out climbing trees in the swamps at night. She jumped and leaped from branches to increase her athleticism, although she fell a few times. That didn't stop her. She practiced her stalking on skunks, raccoons, opossums, then she moved on to boars and deer. Lilly would always bring home meat and pelts to her caretakers. When they asked why she was hunting, all she told them was that she was hungry. Lilly insisted that was the only thing she was doing. Hunting. They stopped asking questions eventually, so Lilly was satisfied they knew nothing else. Her next victim was Boris, and she killed him by slicing his guts open in an alley. And again, she left her mark on the wall. The newspapers started giving the killer of these men "The Fidus Et Audax Killer." Lilly went after Lawrence. She cut his throat in the opera house after sneaking in. Then she killed Patrick in an empty warehouse. Stabbed him in his chest five times. With each kill, animal and man alike, Lilly honed her murderous instincts, her stealthy abilities, her quick feet, and her climbing and hiding skills. Her kills became less sloppy. And each night she went out, she stalked and killed Bronte's men. She even took one poor unfortunate Italian named Marlon and hung him from a tall building by his entrails, leaving her mark on the rooftops of Saint Denis. And it wasn't long until her body count was at fifty one before she had two more men to practice on.

The last two men she went after were the creme de la creme of Bronte's men. Herbert and Fabricio. Their deaths did not come easy. They were both naturally suspicious. They actually had brains. But she stalked them like a wild cat, nonetheless. Herbert...she snuck into his home, tiptoed up behind his reading chair, and stabbed him in his temple. And Fabricio. That had truly been her crowning achievement. One night, Lilly snuck into his apartment. She hid in his bedroom closet, waiting for him to come home. She waited for hours. Finally, when that man came home, got himself ready for bed, and went to sleep, Lilly slowly opened the closet doors. Lilly gracefully made her way across the carpet, climbed onto the sleeping man's body, and woke him by whistling. Fabricio sat up as he woke and she sliced his throat open. After taking his blood and leaving her motto on the wall, she knew the time had come. Lilly heard at one point the Hilltop Brothers left town, but she didn't know where. So...she'd have to ask Bronte before she sliced his throat open. And then the night came. It was storming out. It was raining. And she was finally ready.

It wasn't hard for her to smeak into Bronte's house. It was poker night. Most the men would be drunk off their asses and enjoying one upping each other with money. There were a few sentries, sure, but Lilly avoided them as quietly as a mouse. And when she crept up the stairs to Bronte's room, she pulled out her knife and slowly opened the door. She saw Bronte's sleeping form in the bed and her bare feet crossed the threshold as lightning flashed and thunder boomed in the skies above. The last two months had led up to this point. All up to this. The girl hovered over the man in his bed and she dragged the metal down his cheek.

"Paaapaaa..." she whispered.

The man woke up and stared up at her as lightning flashed. Lilly's eyes burned down at the Italian. "Hello, Papa Bronte," she said with a knife to his throat and a hand over his mouth.

Lightning flashed and thunder boomed outside his bedroom window. "I'm goin' tah take me hand off yer mouth," she whispered. "Ya scream, yer dead."

Lilly removed her hand and Mr. Bronte chuckled. "Oh, you silly little girl. You wouldn't kill a defenseless man in his bed."

Lilly pressed the knife in more. "I would. And I will." Light filled the room for a moment, then a clash of thunder came.

"Then what is stopping you?"

"The Hilltop Brothers," Lilly growled. "Where did they go?"

"Oh, them," he laughed. "You want information on their whereabouts, hmm?"

"Yes."

"And what do I get in return for this information?" More lighning and thunder.

Shit, what did she have to offer him? Nothing. "Yer life," she lied.

"Oh, come now. You don't really expect me to believe that now, do you?"

"It's why I haven't killed ya," she growled. "Yet."

"Haha, what a devil of a child you've become. 7-years-old and threatening a mob boss with a knife. But I know you, il piccolo mio fiore." [my little flower]

Lilly slapped him in the face. "Non chiamarmi più così!" [Don't call me that anymore!] Lightning and thunder filled the room once more. "Travis and Steven! Now!"

"Okay, okay, little assassin. I could never resist you or your desires. The Hilltop Brothers. I sent them to Blackwater on business." Lightning and thunder.

"Do they still have me father's pocketwatch?"

"I believe they do. They don't like to rid themselves of trophies."

"...trophies?"

"Yes, little one. You think your brother was the first one they killed on my orders? They do have quite a savage nature...I'm sure you're familiar with savagry now, aren't you?"

"No." Lightning and thunder.

Bronte laughed. "You always were a terrible liar. Now...are you going to honor the deal and spare my life, little one?" Lightning and thunder.

"Yes. But not forever," Lilly snarled. "I will come back fer ya, Bronte. Not today not tomorrow," she leaned closer to his face. "But I will come back. One day. And ya will pay for me brother's death. I can promise ya that, ya fuckin' greasy bastard."

"Oh, such language from my little flower," he smirked.

More lightning and thunder. "I told ya not to call me that!" Lilly sliced the knife down his chest and ran out of the bedroom.

He shouted in pain and yelled for his men. Lilly ran through the corridor of the mansion towards the stairs. A man came running out of the poker room and tried to grab her, but she stabbed him in the leg and he dropped to the floor. Lilly pulled the knife out and fled down the stairs. She almost fell but recovered her footing and jumped to the floor in front of the last step. She turned to the right down the hallway and a man held out his arms to catch her. However, his legs were stretched apart. His mistake. Lilly plopped to her hip and slid under him. The wetness of her clothes made it a simple thing to execute, especially along the hardwood floor. Lilly got back up and ran to the back door. She quickly unlocked it and fled from the house, running into a barrage of heavy raindrops She sped across the back lawn and sheathed her knife. A gunshot echoed just before lightning struck and thunder rumbled through the skies. The bullet missed. Lilly ran to her once favorite climbing tree and leaped up to grab the lowest branch.

Lilly pulled herself up and climbed higher. More gunshots were heard. Lightning and thunder clashed. Lilly trailed along a thick branch towards the wall and jumped. Lilly landed on the top and ran along the edge to get near her box. Bullets flew past her, another lightning bolt flashed, preceeded by a thunder clap. Lilly jumped down and landed on the box, but fell off and hit the ground. Luckily, she wasn't hurt. Lilly sped across the street to an alleyway, still being shot at. Lilly fled through the maze of alleys, the rain never ceasing. She found a hiding spot under a wagon. She climbed to the very back of the wall and took shallow, loud breaths. She covered her mouth and took in air through her nostrils. Lilly eventually got her respiration to calm. More lightning and thunder. Lilly saw feet run by, men yelling out to search for the Irish girl. Minutes passed by and Lilly saw no sign of anyone running by, but she stayed where she was. Lightning and thunder clashed once more, the rain pit pattering on the cobblestones.

Lilly was unsure how long it took for the rain to stop and the storm to cease its terrible lights and sounds, but once it did, she started crawling under the wagon back to the open alley. As she stood, a man grabbed her and she shrieked. "Got ya!" he laughed.

The man was suddenly hit in the head with a metal object and he slumped to the ground. Lilly spotted a boy holding what looked like an old frying pan. "Tá tú ceart go leor, deirfiúr?" he asked. [You're okay, sister?]

Lilly ran to him and hugged him. "Sean! Sea, tá mé ceart go leor!" [Yes, I'm okay!]

Sean held her and kissed her cheek. "Ar mharú tú é?" [Did you kill him?]

"Níl, ach tá a fhios agam cá ndeachaigh Travis agus Steven. Tá siad ar an Abhainn Dhubh. Caithfidh mé dul ann! Píosa ama m'athair." [No, but I know where Travis and Steven went. They are on the Black River. I have to go there! My father's time piece.]

"Alright," 10-year-old Sean said. "But you need to leave tonight. There's a train leavin' for Blackwater in an hour!"

"How do ya know?"

"I checked, ya silly girl! I checked all the trains! Ya didn't think you were all alone in this, did ya? Brian was my friend! And I promised him I would look out for ya!"

"Thank you, deartháir! But wait! I need tah...I need tah do somethin' first!"

"What, love?"

"I need tah say goodbye tah some people."

Sean grabbed her arms. "Okay, but be careful, deirfiúr. I will meet you at the train. One hour. Do not be late!"

Lilly kissed his cheek and ran off through the alleys. She needed to say goodbye to the Bartleby's before leaving, although she was only planning on leaving a note. If they knew what Lilly did and what she was about to do, they would not let her leave.