AN: Want to give a huge thank to you those who take the time to review. I know some of you have mentioned that you look forward to my updates – well, I want you all to know that I look equally forward to your reviews. I can't say much about what I do, but I'll just say that my work tends to hold a lot of stress and at times downright tragedy. Glancing at my phone and reading your kind reviews when I get a free minute in the day offers me some brightness on the particularly dark days. I really appreciate you all.

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CHAPTER 13

"Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another, but let him work diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built."

Abraham Lincoln

CATHERINE POV

The sound of the door creaking open has Sara and I both jolting out of our daze, both of us jumping to our feet.

We'd been waiting for what felt like hours, mostly in silence. Both of us lost in our own heads, thoughts filled with fears and theories regarding what happens next.

"Separate."

The man remains by the door, face hidden behind a black mask.

"Now."

Neither Sara nor I move.

His partner enters the room, approaching us.

Sara steps forward, placing herself in front of me, jaw tight.

Wasting no time, the second man grabs Sara, pulling her away.

Sara struggles, but she's no match for her much larger companion. Plus, her companion isn't restrained like she is.

Pulling her back, he drags her to the opposite wall.

"You, come with me."

Seeing that the first man is addressing me, I hesitate.

"Where…"

"Now."

Looking between Sara and him, I slowly move towards him, deciding we really have no choice at this point.

"Catherine," Sara cautions.

I keep walking towards him.

Seeing my intentions, Sara renews her struggles.

Moving with startling speed, the man holding her pivots on his heel and spins, sending a vicious right hook directly into Sara's face.

I scream out in shock as the brunette is leveled, dropping immediately to her knees.

"Now," my man repeats.

Nervously watching Sara struggle for breath, deep crimson trailing from her nose, I step further towards the man.

"Cath…" Sara chokes out.

Seeing her man pulling his arm back, I don't hesitate, all but running towards my man.

We're through the door before I see whether the second hit ever landed.

"Who are you?"

The man remains silent, moving me down a concrete hallway.

"What do you want with us?"

Passing numerous doors, he gestures to the last one on the right.

"Please," he offers, gesturing for me to enter.

As I do, he closes the door behind us.

Taking in the sights, I'm in a plain room with a couple of seats, the far wall a large glass mirror.

It looks like the observation room similar to the ones we have outside our interrogation rooms.

"Double mirror," the man confirms. "She can't see you."

My eyes jerk back to the mirror, for the first time noting the "she" he's referring to.

A woman is curled up in the corner, head resting on her knees. Deep blonde hair obscures her features.

"Who is she?"

"Your first question first," the man responds.

Pulling the mask from his face, he looks at me.

"I'm James Vaughn."

Recalling the name, I search my memory.

"The EMS worker…" I breathe out. "But, you're dead…"

"Clearly not."

I feel my eyes widen as the revelation sinks in.

"We were right with the DNA…it worked…"

"Yes," he smiles. "Quite shocking to me as well. But, not too concerning as I show up as deceased in your system."

"You faked your death?" I shake my head, growing more confused. "Why?"

"That relates to the other 'why' you asked."

He gestures to the mirror.

"I'm doing this to prove a point, to expose and eliminate a certain type of person."

"What?"

He looks over at me, and I'm struck at just how 'normal' he looks. Kind, even.

"I can show you better than I can explain to you."

"Why me?"

"You'll see."

Without another word, he excuses himself, leaving me locked in this new room.

Shortly after, the door to the room I'm observing opens, and I see the second man enter through the double mirror.

He enters with another girl, the girl limping and looking severely beaten.

As she enters, the other girl looks up, the door closing behind them as the man leaves them alone.

"Rachel," she breathes out. "Thank God. Are you alright?"

Rachel nods slowly, moving to sit next to her companion.

Silently, they join hands, seeking comfort from the other. I can see that both have been beaten, malnourished.

James then enters the room, and both girls look up in shock, clearly not expecting this.

"Olivia," he states. "Please come with me."

She hesitates, but eventually separates from Rachel after squeezing her hand.

She leaves, and James reenters the room shortly after.

"Rachel."

Rachel looks up.

"Where's Olivia?" she questions in fear. "Please, don't hurt her anymore…"

"I actually came here to talk about you," he states. "I've decided to let you go."

Rachel watches him, eyes widening slightly but hesitating.

"What?"

"You heard me," he states. "I'm going to let you go."

She continues to stare at him doubtfully.

"You only have to do one thing for me."

She narrows her eyes.

"You need to kill Olivia."

Rachel's eyes widen in shock.

"What? No!"

James shrugs.

"If you decline, I'll kill you and offer the same thing to her for the next person I bring in to replace you."

Rachel pauses, eyes wide in horror, mind running through her options.

"When?" she whispers.

"You have one hour."

"What?! No, I won't!"

He hands her a bottle of water.

"There's a sedative and lethal dose of strychnine in this," he explains. "All you have to do is offer it to her. Let nature do the rest."

"Oh my God," Rachel breathes out.

"Excuse me, I have something to attend to," James smiles. "Remember, it's a one time offer."

"And I'm free if I do this?"

He nods.

"Completely."

Leaving, it's a moment before he reenters my room.

At the same time, Olivia is escorted back into Rachel's room. Looking a bit more haggard then when she entered.

"You can't be serious with this…" I whisper.

"Just wait."

And so we do, waiting as the minutes tick by. Rachel sweating bullets, looking between Olivia, the water, Olivia again.

The hour is almost up when Rachel reaches behind her.

Looking over at Olivia, she closes her eyes, mouthing what almost appears to be a prayer.

Then, she opens them.

"Liv," she whispers. "You want some water?"

"It's human nature," James mutters. "People who swear they'll do anything for someone. The moment their life is the one on the line, however…it all goes out the window."

He looks over at me.

"It's amazing what people will do when their life is in jeopardy. We don't hesitate to kill our own brother to save ourself. In the darkness, when we think no one's watching, every Abel becomes a Cain."

I swallow, watching in horror as Olivia downs nearly the whole bottle.

"Why me?"

"Because you're the only person who could possibly understand why I'm doing this."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Two years ago," he states. "My wife and son were in a car accident. The car skidded off the road into a ravine. It caught on fire."

He shakes his head.

"My wife lived," he says tightly. "But she left our son in there to die."

He turns to me.

"He was only two."

I shake my head, "I'm sorry," I tell him. "I'm sorry you lost your son."

"I'm sorry my wife was such a selfish coward that she saved herself and let him burn to death," he counters. "Review of the accident showed she never even tried to open the back door to get him out. Who does that? What mother does that?"

"I don't know."

"No," he says. "You don't, because you're not that kind of mother. When your daughter, Lindsey, was in that car years ago, drowning, you jumped in, risking your life to save her."

I look at him, feeling pieces of this puzzle starting to click into place.

"That's why you thought I'd understand this."

He turns back towards the window.

"What now?" I whisper, watching the two girls.

"Now I kill Rachel."

"What?" I question. "But Olivia…"

"Will be fine," he states. "There's only water in that bottle. This was Rachel's test."

He turns to me, pulling a switchblade from his pocket.

"She failed."

"What happens with us?" I question when he returns, voice reduced to nothing more than a whisper after watching what I just did, wary of whether I want to know the answer.

"You witness the true nature of humankind. You witness my work until it's complete."

"And when is that?"

"When someone decides to be Abel instead of Cain."

"And Sara?"

"You'll see her again," he says. "Just not likely in the way you'd hoped."

"What…"

He gestures to the mirror.

Sure enough, the door opens, the other man entering, pulling Sara along with him.

"Oh my God," I breathe out. "You can't be serious…"

"It wasn't meant to be her, in fairness," he states. "But she forced our hand a bit when she chased us down."

He shrugs.

"But, just like the others, she'll have a choice."

My heart sinks to my stomach, because I know Sara, and I know what choice the brunette will make.

"She'll die…" I breathe out. "She'll never kill that girl."

"We all reveal ourselves in unexpected ways when put in a corner."

"Not Sara."

"We'll see then," he smiles. "Won't we?"

AN: Thanks for reading.