Chapter 4

Bryn wasn't exactly the most trusting of people, but Nina persisted in talking to her. In just three days, Nina had exhausted every piece of information about herself except for anything related to IT. But Bryn barely replied, staring into space, crying silently.

"I shouldn't be here," Bryn whispered one day, leaning against the little window, her thin frame sagging limply.

"Yeah," Nina replied dully. "At least you know that."

"How is it good to know I'll be stuck here for my life?"

"Yeah, the feeling isn't great," Nina agreed hopelessly, blowing her lank bangs away from her forehead. It wasn't the best of days.

"It doesn't really matter for you, does it?" Bryn murmured, propping her head against her arm and looking into Nina's silver eyes.

Nina was puzzled. "What do you mean?"

Bryn sighed. "It's not like you're going to be here for long, is it? I mean, you know what's going to happen to you. You said so yourself."

Nina felt her face burn red-hot and her fingers contracted into fists. "Shut the hell up." Her voice was low and cool, lethal. Impregnated and sloshing with venom. "You don't know anything about me. So shut up!"

Nina ran to the corner of her cell but the tears had already streaked down her face.

(One hour later)

Nina regretted what she'd said to Bryn, currently the only reason she was still sane. But was she really going to be executed? What was stopping them from killing her? She was nothing to them. She wouldn't be missed.

Maybe she was bitter, but secretly Nina knew no one cared for her. Tony, Jack, Mason, Jamey…she'd betrayed them all. Lied to them. Killed Jamey. All of them had trusted her, all of them had watched her decimate every knotted tie between them.

What could she do? There was no way she'd be able to handle this, so they should kill her. Everyone would be pleased.

The door rattled urgently, and Nina lifted her head off the floor. Anderson. She dropped it again, curling up tightly to the ground, holding herself rigidly. Cautious. Afraid.

"Ms. Myers, you are to be taken to trial in two days. The jury wishes for you to be assigned an attorney to plead your case. Thank you."

He started to walk away, but Nina stopped him with the words that had been running through her head for a week now.

"I'm going to die, aren't I?"

He broke in his stride, pivoting slowly to face Nina, who'd sat up, looking calmly at his face speculatively. Anderson stared hardly at her.

"It doesn't necessarily mean you're going to be executed…it depends on the judge, the jury…" His voice trailed off.

"But they want me dead," she said emotionlessly, daring him to disagree. "You want me dead." Despite Nina's bravado, her voice broke slightly.

Anderson opened his mouth to speak, but Nina cut him off. "Sorry."

"I do not believe in the death penalty," he said fiercely. "I believe you should be here for a long time, but I do not think you deserve to die."

He strode briskly away, leaving Nina more confused than ever. She went to go apologize to Bryn.

Bryn was sitting on the bench, her head held in her hands. Nina tapped on the bars hesitantly. Bryn looked up, then turned away.

"Hey," Nina said breathily, slipping her fingers around the bars. "I'm sorry. It's just…you're right. I'm probably going to be executed." Her voice was brittle. Blunt.

Bryn looked at Nina, her face red and dewy with fallen tears. "No, I'm sorry. I know I'm wrong." She walked to Nina and touched her fingers gently through the bars. "I don't know what I'd do without you to talk to."

Nina smiled wryly. "I don't know either." She sighed lightly. "But the odds are always stacked against me. And this time, they're too high."

Settling back against the wall, she regretted contributing to them. She'd never really tried to save herself. She'd always been too weak, succumbing to what they wanted. There was one time she'd tried to explain to Tony, though. Despondently, she recalled the memory, holding to it, clinging to it. It was the one shred of truth that proved she wasn't as bad as she thought.

Flashback

"Tony," Nina pleaded. "I feel like…like I'm not doing my job." She willed herself to just confess to him, to explain, but hadn't the courage.

"Nina," Tony said, rubbing her hand, his fingers interlocked with hers. "You're the best at everything you do."

"No, Tony, I'm not. I – "

He pressed a finger to her fine lips, silencing her. "Nina, don't."

She sighed, feeling guiltier boy the second. "Hey," he said, looking at her. "You're great at what you do. Better than anyone else I know."

She kissed him softly, clenching her eyes shut against the tears wetting her eyes. "Thank you," she'd whispered desperately.

"I love you, Nina."

"I love you too, Tony."

End Flashback

How were they going to kill her? Would it be soft and sweet, like falling to sleep? Or would there be pain? Would she know it was happening to her, or would she be clueless?

God. Nina wished she'd been given a chance to truly say goodbye. Even if Tony didn't want to see her alive, even though Jack had almost killed her, she wanted to see them before she died.

"Hey," Bryn called softly, pressing her round face to the bars. "Good luck tomorrow."

Nina was startled. "Thank you." She didn't realize Bryn had listened to Anderson's rambling.

"Look, Bryn, you never did tell me why you're here," Nina said, curious. Bryn's face blanched through the bars. Nina could taste her reluctance to confide. It was palpable.

"Please, Bryn. As a friend." Nina implored innocently.

"It's not that I don't trust you or something," Bryn said carefully, twisting her hair around her finger. "Like I said, you're the only friend I have now. Or whatever is closest to that. It's just that…you won't believe I'm innocent."

Nina laughed ironically, smiling wretchedly. It was time to lay down the facts. "Bryn, I'm accused of murder and treason. And I am guilty. Well, sort of. So I honestly couldn't think any less of you at all." She tried to convey sheer honesty to Bryn.

Bryn looked troubled, but opened her mouth. "I'm charged with the murder of ten teenagers," she said expressionlessly, her eyes wild with fear. She looked away. Nina sensed her hesitation, so she rose clumsily to her feet and walked over to the barred frame of the window, slipping her slender hands between them.

"I don't know who killed them. But I had no alibi for that night and the evidence at the house where the teenagers were proved me guilty."

"Where were you that night?" Nina pressed inquisitively, curious.

Bryn hesitated. "I was at a party. It got crazy; things were out of control. I got high," she admitted finally, the sobs suppressed in her mouth. Bryn's shoulders shook slightly. "I couldn't recall anything I did, anything anyone did to me, and somehow my purse was at the house. The people who died were partying, too, so it looked like there was some sort of rivalry between the partiers, and they got shot in the process. I was the suspect; they arrested me. Simple."

Nina reached over for Bryn's fingers and squeezed them tenderly, trying hard to be strong for her. Soothing her.

"Well, not to disappoint you, but I think I win in terms of crimes committed." Nina smirked, daring Bryn to laugh. She did.

Bryn laughed easily through her tears, smiling weakly. Nina felt a sudden twinge of empathy rush through her. It startled her, for she didn't know she could still fell, but she was relieved to know she wasn't some sort of sociopath. It was nice to know she could at least feel.

"You're not a bad person, though," Bryn assured Nina comfortingly, brushing away her tears clumsily with the back of her hand. Nina half-smiled, looking away, a faraway gaze in her eye.

Am I? she wondered.

No.