Chapter 45

Chloe's POV

When Theo comes back from the call, his face is pale and his whole body shakes. I instantly know that something's wrong with Beca so I spring from the couch and toward him.

"What happened?" I demand, not wanting to beat around the bush.

"There was an… accident. Beca doesn't have much time so we have to leave now. Jessica and Ashley are going to grab her and take her down to the fourth floor where she'll make her escape. Hopefully, we can get there in time to give her a ride. If not, well, let's not go into that right now."

"Alright, move out," I yell and toss the keys to Chicago. "You drive." He nods and everybody heads out to the pack van. It's the only van that will fit all of us even though it's used mainly for the pack because of the lack of seats in the back. Thankfully, Eli's the head of the pack now so he's letting us use it.

"Chloe," my mom stops me and I give her a quick hug. "Be careful."

"I will. I promise," I add when I see her look. "I know you want me to stay in the van, not take any risks, but I can't do that when it comes to Beca. I went a year without her and I'm ready to have her back. For good this time."

"I know baby. Just be careful. You may need to have Beca back, but I need to have you." With one more quick hug, we seperate and I head out to the van. I sit in the passenger seat while Theo sits behind the driver's seat to give directions. Chicago is the only one I trust with driving because I know that he'll do what he can to hurry.

"I have a general idea of where it is, but I'll need your help once we get closer," Chicago tells Theo who nods and stares down at his phone. He looks really worried which concerns me. What happened to Beca to make this suddenly so urgent? The van roars down the highway, but it can't cover the sound of nervous chatter.

In the back, Jesse's leg flies up and down as he talks about anything and everything. Emily stares out the back with a hopeful expression on her face and Eli looks worried, much like Theo. Chicago's jaw is set with determination as he drives as fast as he can. When I catch my reflection in the mirror, I see a calm facade but in my eyes, I see what I feel. Nervousness, hope, and anger all wrapped up in one. When we get Beca back, that doctor is going down.

"Turn right up here," Theo orders and Chicago obeys. When he points out the lab, I frown. It doesn't look dark and mysterious like I expected, but instead like an everyday building. One you picture lawyers or accountants in.

"This is it?" Jesse asks. I guess I'm not the only one feeling this way.

"Don't be mistaken by how it looks." Theo stares at the building, pointing to where Chicago needs to go. "Now, go down into the garage. The last floor underground is the fourth so just keep going until you can't."

"Isn't there a checkpoint?" Chicago asks, gesturing to where guards stand at the entrance to the garage. Theo curses and looks at me.

"You said you could do this. Is that still true?"

"I don't know, but we're about to find out." I slip my sunglasses on and Chicago pulls up to the gate. Two guards walk toward us and tap on the window which Chicago rolls down.

"ID," one no-nonsense guard asks.

"You see, we don't have any," I say sweetly. "We're here to pick up a friend." The guard frowns and looks behind him at the other one.

"I'm sorry but we can't let you through without any ID."

"You sure?"

"Yes. Now, if you don't have any, I need you to turn around and leave." Sighing, I sit back.

Just get the fucking point, why don't you? Fucking idiots. The guard's thoughts roll through me and something in my gut urges to try again. This time, with my mind.

Let us through. We don't need any ID. The guard shakes his head and looks at me. Taking off my sunglasses, I stare him straight in the eyes and repeat it. I know the moment it works because his face goes emotionless and his eyes glassy.

"You may go through," he says and steps back. The other guard starts our way but I stop him, this time letting my thoughts reach out to both of them.

Both of you will let us pass. You will forget we ever came through here and will wipe the tapes after we leave. Both guards nod and go into the booth, already working on getting the tapes pulled up.

"Let's go," I say to Chicago, patting his shoulder. Not needing to be told twice, he peels out of there and into the garage. Everybody starts talking immediately, wondering what just happened.

"Everybody, just shut up!" I scream. "After we get out of here, we can talk about this."

"Sorry," Jesse says, knowing that he started it. I just nod and turn back around. My leg jumps nervously as we get closer to the fourth floor and closer to Beca. When Theo's phone rings, we all jump.

"Ashley?"

"Hey, so we dropped Beca off and are just going to go ahead and drive to the safehouse. Should we meet there?"

"Yes. We arrived and are just waiting for Beca. It's up to her now." Theo sighs and looks ahead. "Park up there. We'll wait but not for too long."

"Theo? What do you think Dr. Fergus will do to us if we get caught?" The girl's voice sounds small and scared. Theo doesn't look too far off from that at the moment.

"I don't know. Just don't get caught. Go with Jessica to the safe house now. Be safe." He hangs up and a tense silence settles restlessly around us as we wait for the door to open and the tiny brunette to come out.

"Where is she?" Theo wonders out loud what we're all thinking. "The guards would've switched by now." Several minutes pass by and nothing happens.

"Maybe we're wrong about the time," Emily pipes up, having first spoken since we got in the van.

"No but something is wrong." Chicago whines, staring longingly at the door.

"If she doesn't come out soon, I'm going in," I announce but before anyone can object, the door flies open. A large silver wolf comes barreling out, chased by a set of guards.

Go! Beca's voice screams in my head and I tell Chicago. He stomps on the gas and even though he continues to speed up, Beca manages to stay right behind us. When I see her start slowing down, I panic.

"Switch," I order Theo and yank him into the passenger seat. "You guys might want to sit back." With that warning, I push open the back doors and slide over to give Beca room.

"Jump!"

"Are you crazy?" Theo yells. "She's bigger than the fucking van and you want her to jump?"

"Just trust me," I scream and look back at Beca who's slowed down tremendously.

Come on baby. Please jump. I plead with Beca who doesn't respond. Instead, she picks up her pace and at last, lunges toward the door, partially shifting in the process. The small brunette hits the floor of the van with a thump and Jesse helps me close the doors quickly. Gunshots ring off the van until we exit the garage and leave them behind. My attention quickly turns to the girl trying to sit up.

"Beca!" Grabbing her face in my hands, I focus on making sure she's okay. She's thin, too thin with large shadows under her eyes. There are bruises and cuts lining her face, but I can see them slowly healing. What worries me is her eyes. If she has any scars or wounds from her time at the lab, they're all mental. Even with the bright silver, her eyes are dark and haunted. I frantically search for any of the craziness that had taken over in the past, but I don't see any. Just pain and guilt.

"Chloe, there's so much I need to tell you," Beca whispers, but even as she speaks, her eyes droop. Smiling softly, I lean down and put my mouth near her ear.

"I love you." When I sit back up, Beca is out.

For the next hour, we drive in silence. Beca's head lays in my lap as she sleeps. Her body curls into a tight ball and a few times, she wakes up reaching out for me. It's as if she needs to reassure herself that I'm here, that it isn't a dream. To be honest, I do too. My hand strokes through her hair, keeping me grounded.

Eli constantly texts on his phone, letting my mom know we're alright and what happened. Emily and Jesse stare at Beca and I with grins, obviously happy to have her back. Theo glances nervously at her, though I'm not sure why. Though he should be focused on the road, Chicago continues to look back at Beca, a look of awe on his face which I understand. My eyes barely leave Beca's face, memorizing every feature and still not completely convinced that she's real. A year without her seemed like a lifetime and now that I have her back, all I want to do is forget it.

So many things have changed. I'll be a sophomore in college soon whereas Beca will have to start from scratch. Her brother is here and her dad is alive which means that he'll want to see her. What will he think? Will he like me? Who knows what his views are and frankly, I don't give a damn. With what he did to Beca, he can go screw himself if he has a problem with us being together.

"It's right up here," Chicago announces, knocking everybody out of their trance. We all lean forward, trying to see where we'll be staying for who knows how long. It's practically a mansion with an iron gate wrapped all around. When we pull up to it, Chicago leans out and taps in a code which turns into a handprint scanner. He places his hand on there and then presses a button.

"Chicago Mitchell," he says and it beeps, recognizing his voice. The gate swings open and we roll through. The driveway is long and lined with colorful flowers. A marble fountain stands in the middle of the driveway, water flowing down the sides. It's all so beautiful yet sad at the same time. We're only here because we have to hide from Dr. Fergus. All I want to do is take Beca home and lay in bed, keeping her with me and safe.

"The others will meet us over the next couple of days so that way we'll all be safe. At least until Project P.I.T.C.H is destroyed. I'll be back in a few. I'm going to dump the van out back. Just make yourself at home and get her some food. I doubt they fed her very well there." Chicago motions to Beca and I just nod, not wanting to wake Beca up. But knowing that I have to, I kiss her forehead and stroke her face.

"Beca. We're here." Beca's eyes flutter and I'm met with liquid silver. This is the first time face to face seeing it longer than a second and it's shocking. Beautiful and strangely mesmerizing.

"Where?" Beca clears her throat and sits up, grimacing.

"The safehouse." She nods and starts to stand up. I rush to help her out of the van, where she stops. The sunlight washes over us and Beca closes her eyes. A small smile flicks across her face until the sound of the van starting startles her. Beca opens her eyes and surveys the surroundings.

"Where are we?" Beca's melodic voice flows through my ears, making me instinctively smile.

"I'm not sure. Not very far from the lab though. Chicago was afraid they would catch us before we got somewhere safe and apparently this place is the best place to stay."

"Chicago?" Oh dear. How to explain this?

"So um… Chicago is your brother," I blurt it out, not knowing any other way to say it.

"My brother?" I nod and Beca rakes her hands through her hair.

"He's really nice," Emily pipes up and I notice her arms are shaking when she suddenly rushes toward Beca. "I'm so sorry. I don't know how Chloe is doing it, but I couldn't go another second without hugging you."

"Count me in," Jesse shouts and wraps his arms around both of them. They all laugh and Beca hugs them back.

"Alright you two, get inside," Eli orders and both of them scramble off. "It's good to have you back." Eli pats Beca on the shoulder and starts to walk away when she stops him with a hug. Surprised, he hugs her back before heading inside. For the first time in a year, Beca and I are left alone.

"So, how have you held back?" Beca asks and I see some of her old insecurities rising up.

"I almost didn't. Holding you in the van was enough for a little while, but I wanted to give you some space. No one knows what exactly you went through in there and I wasn't sure how you would react." Beca stares at me for a second, her head cocked sideways. Without saying anything she walks to me and grabs my face with her hands.

"No matter what I go through, no matter what happens, I will always want you." My heart flutters as Beca kisses me. Feelings that have been hidden for so long, fly up to the surface, almost too overwhelming.

"Ready to go in," I say, breathless and Beca nods, grabbing my hand.

"Together," she grins and looks up at me. "Finally.