Chapter 6

Eve entered the hide out's gate and ran as fast as her legs could carry her, into the house.

"Train! Sven!" She shouted. She heard, with relief, scrambling as Train and Sven raced to the hallway.

"What is it?"

"What's wrong?"

"Bade found me with Rins. She has him occupied, but he's targeted Sven."

"I thought he was after just me," Train said.

"He said that if I didn't go with him, than Sven's life would be in danger," Eve explained, trying to catch her breath.

The Sweepers looked at each other than back at Eve. "Where are they?"

"Two blocks west from here," she said. "I'll go with you."

"No," Sven said flatly. "Train, would you mind staying here. If we're targeted, then most likely Eve is too."

"Are you insane?" Train asked Sven. "What if something happens and I'm not there to help?"

"That's why I need you to stay with Eve. I'll go help Rinslet and call Jenos. Get him to help his fiancé before anything happens."

Train, Eve noticed, looked rather nervous, but said no more. When Sven left, his cache weapon case in his hand, Eve turned to Train.

She gathered her courage in the core of her body, if she was going to tell him, she'd need to do so now.

"Train, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," Train agreed, following her to the living room. Eve felt clammy and each footstep towards the living room seemed to last forever. When she finally sat on the couch she realized her hands were shaking.

This really is much different than fighting bad-guys, she thought, staring at her hands.

Train sat next to her, waiting for her to begin.

Eve gulped and opened her mouth. No sound came out at first. Closing her mouth, Eve reassured herself that she could, and would, tell Train. "Train," she began, her voice shaking. "I lo—"

Train shushed her, putting a finger on her lips to silence her. "I know."

Eve blinked. Was I that readable, she asked herself. She fought the blush down, but she still felt a little warm.

"I'm not saying it was obvious, but lately I've been getting a feeling that you were in love with me."

"What convinced you?"

Train blinked and thought about it for a moment. "I'd say it was after I realized I felt the same. When I was running around town looking for you."

Eve wanted to shout that she knew that his hug felt differently than before, but she kept it to herself. She feared that if she said a word, everything would get mixed up and her emotions would spill over. She was having a hard enough time keeping her blush down and her mouth strait as every fiber in her being told her to smile. Her mouth hurt so much from trying to stay stoic that she felt tears weld up behind her eyes.

Train leaned down towards her.

Isn't this a little fast, she thought, her heartbeat dancing rapidly, but he rested his forehead against hers instead.

"Sven and I won't let anything happen to us, Princess. And we would never let anything happen to you," he reassured her. Eve nodded.

"I know. I wouldn't have trusted you both this far if I didn't know that."

Train stood, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Trust us more. Bade won't get away with anything he tries. He never did."

"Train," Eve said. He turned back to her. "Who exactly is Bade, other than Creed's brother?"

Train looked away, contemplating how to best explain who Bade is to Eve. "He's critically insane, not that Creed wasn't crazy himself, but Bade…Bade was in an asylum for nearly ten years before breaking out and disappearing without a trace. He was hunted by the Chrono Numbers, but never found. I don't know if he had any contact with Creed since his escape, but Creed had nothing to do with his brother's escape. Creed was just as shocked as anyone else when he heard that Bade broke out of his prison. Creed may have been radical and psychotic, but Bade was…is worse. He doesn't look like it, but Bade is extremely sick, he just doesn't know it. He thinks that everything he does is rational." He paused and turned back to Eve. "We don't know everything that happened to him during his time in the loony-bin. Creed, on several occasions, would ask, beg, and even demand that he be allowed to put his brother out of his misery before something went wrong."

"Like him escaping the asylum," Eve stated.

Train nodded, "Yeah. Exactly like that. Creed's requests were always rejected. The Elders didn't want to risk anything and Creed's requests to kill Bade seemed too risky to them: too many possibilities for Bade to escape."

"But it would have been a risk they should have taken, otherwise, none of this would have happened," Eve said, her head bowed.

Train sat next to her again and cupped her chin gently. "Not all of what's happened so far is bad," he said.

He's right, Eve thought. I finally told him, well, he figured it out already, but still…it feels good not having to keep it in all the time now.

"You have school again tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, it's still Wednesday."

Train pouted. "Could you play hooky?" he asked. Eve glared at him.

"I couldn't tell my teacher that I was kidnapped, so instead I'm in trouble for playing 'hooky' already."

Train frowned. "What did you tell him?"

"That you and Sven needed my expertise on how to capture a certain criminal," she answered, growling. Train blinked at her than burst into laughter.

Eve scowled as he rolled on the floor, laughing so loudly that the windows could shudder.

"It's not funny," Eve shouted. Train wiped the tears coming to his eyes.

"Sorry," he chuckled. "I was caught off guard."

Eve pouted, averting her face away from Train. Realization hit her as she thought over what Train said about Bade.

"Train," she said. "We need to help Sven! If Bade's really psychotic then…"

"I know," Train said with a smile. "I guess I felt that you needed to know what we're up against. And you probably already knew."

"I guess I did," Eve stated.

"Come on," Train said, pocketing Hades. "We have a bounty to catch."

Eve blinked, smiled, and nodded. She followed him out of the house and down the street towards the fight.

Eve stopped as did Train when they saw the scene: Bade was gone. Sven was standing over Jenos, who was on the ground cradling something, but what?

Oh no, Eve thought. NO!

"What happened?" Train shouted. Sven turned to them, his face lined with sorrow.

"Rinslet's dead."

I know, you hate me now. Flame me if you want. I don't care. I hate myself for killing Rins as it is. :(

This chapter is shorter and fluffier than the others, I know that too.