A/N I know I said I had a busy week but I had an idea and had to act on it. When I got started I just kept writing and, as a result, I now have chapter 10 up (11 if you're counting the prologue). Have a read and see how you like it. This chapter isn't so much action. Quite a bit of dialogue though but next chapter should have a bit more action. This story seems to be coming to an end. There will probably be a few more chapters but if anyone has any ideas to make it longer or any events that you want to have happen to them, please review and tell me! I love feedback and suck it up like a vacuum.
'We have to wait until tomorrow night. They are planning on having a little party to celebrate the recent success; a whole load of babies just got shipped out. Apparently everyone's going to be there except for us.' Li pouted. 'We have to sit in this cold cell while they party. Is that unfair or what?' Paulo gave an exasperated sigh and put his head in his hands.
'Li. Can you focus for once in your life?' Li grinned and patted him on the shoulder.
'Sure thing buddy. I propose that we pick the lock and get out then. On our way back from chatting with Mr Cho, I saw a guard go into a shed across from our cell. There was some ropes and stuff in there so I guess that's where we can get our climbing gear from. Amber and I can get that while you two-' she pointed to Paulo and Alex, 'can get that lump of human to the cliff.' Hex looked insulted and Li laughed. 'Well your not much use are you, Hex?'
'So once we have the gear and are down the cliff, what do we do?' Amber asked.
'Paulo can hotwire a car and we'll be off.' Alex frowned.
'Won't they hear?' Li shook her head.
'If they're partying hard enough they shouldn't.'
Alpha Force sat in silence for a moment, glad to have a plan, then Paulo sat up and seized the jar of ointment.
'Righto Hex. Let me at your bruises.' He pulled his friend's t-shirt back and unscrewed the lid of the jar. A hideous smell filled the room. It smelt as if something had lived in the container for quite a few years before dieing in there. Amber retched and shuffled away. Hex looked horrified.
'No way am I having that on me!' he protested loudly. Alex and Li had their fingers clamped over their noses and had retreated to the far corner of the room along with Amber. Paulo was the only one who didn't seem affected by the smell. Li shook her head, an amused expression on her face.
'Trust him. Disgusting to everyone else, roses to Paulo.'
Taking hold of one of the discarded chopsticks, Paulo stirred the concoction with a serene expression. Eventually the smell left the room and the others moved back to Paulo and Hex. The ointment had lost almost all of its smell and they all peered down at the white, pasty mixture.
'What is in that? Anyone know?' Amber asked. Four heads shook and she sighed. 'I don't really want to know anyway. Just curious.' Paulo smeared the stuff over Hex's stomach, then left the t-shirt folded up over his chest while the mixture soaked in.
'Um. Guys? Don't mean to be a pain, but this is kinda freaking me out,' Hex said as Paulo, Alex, Li and Amber stared at his stomach. 'Why don't you go do something?'
'What's there to do?' Alex asked.
'Sleep?' With Hex's comment, Alpha Force got ready for bed. The bucket was in the corner of the room and everyone used it, even Amber, though she did so reluctantly.
With only two blankets, they five friends had to huddle together on the floor. Thankfully their captors had provided them with a rug to lie on instead of the concrete floor. Amber lay down as far as possible from Hex given the limited space, but after all of the jostling and trying to get comfortable, she found herself lying next to him. Stifling a groan, Amber lay with her back to Hex and found herself staring into Li's eyes. The Anglo-Chinese girl gave a wicked grin and blew Amber a kiss. Amber's eyes narrowed and she sat up.
'Hey Paulo. Wanna swap spots?' Paulo was lying next to Li and he shook his head immediately.
'No thank you. I am quite comfortable right here.' He smiled at Li's back and Amber turned to Alex.
'Can I swap with you Alex?' Alex was sleeping on the other side of Hex, but at least Amber wouldn't have to put up with Li's mischievous grins and nudges. Alex shrugged.
'Why do you want to swap?'
'Can't stand her,' Amber replied jerking a thumb behind her in Li's direction. Alex got up and he and Amber traded spots.
As soon as she lay down, Amber regretted changing spots with Alex. She was on the edge of the rug and had to lay even closer to Hex to stay on the material. Hex turned his head in Amber's direction.
'You ok? Do you want me to move over?' Amber craned her neck over his body to see how the space situation was on the other half of the rug, then shook her head.
'It's ok. They don't have much room.' She lay there in the dark, feeling the cold air on one side of her and the warmth of Hex on the other. She could see why Alex had been so keen to move. Amber eventually drifted off to sleep, thoughts turning over in her head.
Hex woke up in first. The painkillers had worn off and he felt awful. Every inch of his body ached and his head thumped in time with his heart. He moved his head to get into a more comfortable position as it was still dark and he wanted to try and get a few more hours sleep. His head touched the top of Amber's head and he quickly flipped it back. He suddenly became aware of how close he was to her. Paulo, Li and Alex had gradually pushed him over and Amber had been forced closer to him as a result of trying to stay on the rug. She was huddled in a ball, pressed to his side and looked incredibly vulnerable. He slipped his arm out from between the two of them and shook it in the air a few times to get the feeling back. Amber shuffled closer to him and he couldn't get his back down next to hi side. He slipped his arm around Amber and held her close as he drifted back into sleep, headache and bruises forgotten.
When Amber woke up, the sun was just starting to peak its head up. With a yawn, she tried to shift her position but found it impossible. What the...? she thought, suddenly aware of Hex's arm around her. Amber wriggled in the cramped space and used her other hand to push Hex's arm away from her. Just as she was about to get up, Li's face popped up in front of her. Amber gave a startled squeak, then relaxed as she saw who it was. Li gave a grin and waggled her eyebrows at Amber and she felt her split section relaxation fade.
Li helped Amber up and pulled her to the opposite corner of the room. After pushing Amber into a corner, Li sat down in front of her friend, her feet pressed over Amber's so she couldn't escape.
'What do you want Li?' Amber grumbled.
'To talk,' Li replied cheerfully.
'What if I don't want to talk to you?'
'I'll make you.' Amber gave a frustrated sigh and gave in.
'Fine. What do you want to talk to me about,' Amber said. She had a bad feeling about the way this conversation was going.
'Oh, you know. Nothing in particular. Just stuff.'
'Go on Li. Ask me. I know your dieing to.' Amber gave Li a scowl and Li feigned innocence.
'Ask you about what?' Amber hit her hand against her forehead. She stared at Li. When her friend didn't say anything, Amber pushed Li's knees and tried to stand up.
'Wait. I'll ask.' Li paused for a moment and lost her cheerful, bouncy look. Instead she had a curious, interested expression on her face. 'So... Just out of casual interest, what's going on between you and Hex?' Amber went to glare at Li, but checked herself just in time. Better to keep poker-faced, Amber told herself. Then I won't give anything away.
'What do you mean?' she asked.
'Oh come off it Amber. I saw you two in the truck. And what about when Hex got hurt?' She was about to say more when Amber cut her off.
'I would have reacted the same way of it was you or Paulo or Alex.' Li shrugged and studied Amber's face carefully. She's good. Not giving anything away yet, but I can make her break. Her goal set, Li pressed the issue harder.
'But what about the truck. You were clinging to him like a barnacle on a boat and he wasn't exactly pushing you away.' It was Amber's turn to shrug. Woops. I thought she was asleep.
'So? Like I said before. I would have been a blubbering mess and clung to anyone who came along. Hex just happened to be closest.'
'So what you're saying is that you don't think of Hex as anything more than a really good friend? That you think of him the same as you think of me, Paulo and Alex?' Amber smirked.
'Alex and Paulo yeah. You.' She gave a short burst of laughter. 'At the moment you're way down my list of favourite people. You're just above Ling Cho right now.' Li wasn't put off.
'Just because I'm making you face the facts Amber doesn't mean you have to be mean.' Amber was getting frustrated. She had been holding it together pretty well so far, but she knew that she would give the game away if she was pushed much longer.
'What facts? Li. Do you want me to spell it out? I-don't-think-of-Hex-in-that-sort-of-way. Clear enough for you or do I have to say it again.' Li shook her head.
'Clear.' Amber sighed inwardly. Saved!
'Can I go?' Li nodded and sat back off Amber's toes. The ebony skinned girl bounded off to the backpack to get a drink of water. Li smiled. While Amber hadn't admitted it- Li hadn't expected her to- she had finally cracked in the end. It wasn't much, but Li had seen a faint flicker in Amber's eyes and knew she was lying. Now I just have to get her to admit it. Li rubbed her hands. She loved a challenge and getting Amber to admit something like that was as big a challenge as they come.
Hex lay on the blanket. He had woken up when Amber shifted his arm and now lay with his eyes closed as he listened to Li and Amber chatting in the corner. Amber's voice rose as she replied to a comment Li had made and Hex immediately gave the conversation his full attention.
'Go on Li. Ask me. I know your dieing to.' Amber's voice was tinged with annoyance.
'Ask you about what?' There was a dull slapping sound like someone hitting flesh with flesh then a pause. 'Wait. I'll ask.' There was another pause then Li spoke again. 'So... Just out of casual interest, what's going on between you and Hex?' Hex held his breath and waited for Amber's response.
'What do you mean?' Hex strained his ears to hear but the next part of the conversation was too quiet. Then Amber's voice rose.
'What facts? Li. Do you want me to spell it out? I-don't-think-of-Hex-in-that-sort-of-way. Clear enough for you or do I have to say it again.' Hex gave a sigh and felt his shoulders drop. He let out of breath that he hadn't even realised he was holding and felt a wave of disappointment wash over him. When they had been captured and in the truck and when he had got hurt... Just for a moment he had thought that maybe Amber did feel the same way towards him that he felt towards her. But that didn't appear to be correct. Hex was just glad that he had kept his mouth shut and not blurted anything out. He heard Li get up and Amber rush to the backpack. Li walked past and peered at Hex's face. He kept his eyes shut and deep breathed so she thought he was still asleep. Li seemed satisfied because she nudged him with her foot.
'Hex. Hex. Wake up.' Hex feigned sleep for a few more moments then sat up and rubbed his eyes.
'It's barely light Li. What is so important that you had to wake me up this early?' Li thought about telling Hex her assumptions about Amber but decided against it when she saw Amber watching them carefully.
'Just thought you'd want some more painkillers, that's all.' Hex suddenly realised how much his head hurt. He nodded gratefully then pressed a hand to his forehead as pain blossomed behind his eyes. Li skipped over to the backpack and fished out the painkillers, ointment jar, a cup and the half filled bottle of water. On her way back to Hex, Li poured some of the water over Paulo. He spluttered and snapped awake.
'Li!' he growled. 'What is it with people waking me up in the most horrible ways?' Li laughed and Paulo gave her a smile to show that he hadn't really meant his words.
'Your patient needs some treatment.' Paulo happily seized the bottle and rubbed some of the contents onto Hex's bruises. Li gaped at his stomach.
'What? What's wrong,' Hex said worriedly as he tried to see what had made Li look like that.
'This is some good stuff.' While the bruises weren't completely gone, they hadn't got any worse and could have possibly gone down overnight.
'What is in this?' Li murmured as she peered at the container, hoping to find an ingredients label somewhere.
'I don't care as long as it gets rid of the bruises. I don't know how I'm going to explain them to my family or my sport teacher when I go home otherwise,' Hex remarked.
Alex sat up as their breakfast was delivered. The same mushy meat and rice and two more bottles of water. Amber was given the bucket and escorted outside to empty it, much to her disgust. The rest of the day passed by slowly. Li was a bundle of energy, literally bouncing off the walls. Alex sat quietly while Hex slept almost the entire day. Paulo looked after Hex and watched Li perform various acrobatic displays. Amber kept to herself but her thoughts weren't on what Alpha Force would be attempting that night. She was thinking about her conversation with Li and wondering whether she had said the right thing. Li's face had looked triumphant, not frustrated when she had let Amber go. Had she said something or let an emotion show on her face. Amber hoped not or Li would follow it up and she would get no peace.
Finally the festivities began and Alpha Force could put their plan into action. Paulo picked the lock with the metal handle of the bucket, then the two groups split up. Amber and Li headed off towards the storage shed while Alex and Paulo carried Hex to the most remote part of the cliff. It was behind their cell and shouldn't be able to be seen from the main building where everyone had gathered.
The three boys soon reached the cliff and sat huddled on the ground. Paulo and Hex were casting worried glances towards the storage shed and Alex tried to sooth them.
'They're fine. We have to get the climbing gear, then we're off. Everyone's in the main building. That's how sure they are that we won't escape. Li probably just taking her time, trying to find the best gear.' Paulo nodded and Hex stayed silent. Despite his calm words, Alex felt a rush of worry. The storage shed was in view of the main building. Come on, he thought. All three of them sat in the darkness, waiting for two shadowy figures to come out of the storage shed.
When Li and Amber hadn't emerged five minutes later, Paulo stood up.
'I will go see if they are ok.' Alex nodded, then watched Paulo slip away into the night. Alex couldn't help but worry. What if they got captured? This plan had as many holes as a colander and three of his friends were in potential danger. Alex stuck his head in his hands and waited.