Death Before Disco: Hopeless Hearts trilogy book 1

If We Lose This War

Party Poison POV

        We returned to Dr. D's hideaway early the next morning. I ran through the door, excited to see Harm. Kobra and I could not find them anywhere we looked. We were searching another hallway when a voice stopped us. "If you're searching for the girls, you should stop. You won't find them," Dr. D said.

        "What?" I asked, worried, but Dr. D brushed my question off. It wasn't until all four of us were seated in their office that he explained anything.

        "I knew the girls before BL/Ind. took over, they interned for my radio show," he started. "They were inseparable best friends who did a punk show. What was only supposed to be only a semester became years of working through the air waves. Chem was dating Jason, Harm's brother. Music was an escape for them. The take over by BL/Ind. was especially difficult for Chem, with her love buying everything they said, and of course, the matter of her father, Korse—"

        "Wait, what?" Kobra Kid interrupted.

        "Yes. Now if you will let me continue. Harm's parents immediately became Draculoids, but Chem's mother would not be fooled. She refused to take the pills and wouldn’t let either of them take anything BL/Ind. gave them. She created maps of the city and what she knew of the zones for Chem, until she was killed by none other than  her own husband. That's when I became even more of a father to the girls, using the handmade maps to help us escape. The last thing they tried to do was to get Jason to run away with them, but he was too far gone to be saved," Dr. D finished.

        "They’re even more badass  than we thought," Ghoul said, in awe of how they handled everything this world has thrown at them.

        "So where are they?" asked Kobra.

        "Now that is something that I cannot tell you. However I will tell you that they left because they felt that they were putting you in danger. And that they wouldn’t have decided to go where they have gone to protect you if they didn’t care about you.”

        I couldn’t speak, I’d gone numb, almost like Chem had yesterday. But I shook myself out of it. I was less angry than I thought I would have been. It still hurt, losing someone to the unknown. It was almost like Harm was dead, but it was so much worse. She was somewhere. Just not here. Just not with me. Wherever she was, wherever Chem was too, I hoped they were safe.

        I noticed Kobra had left the room at some point, but I was still standing where I was when Dr. D told us. As suddenly as that numbness had swept through me, it left and for a moment I just deflated. Then pain and anger took it’s place. In a blind fury, I punched through the wall nearest me with a howl. It hurt, but I didn’t even notice. I was incapable of caring.

        I marched over to Dr. D and got right in face. “What do you fucking mean by we can’t know where they are?!” I shouted in his face.

        “To start, you just spit in my face. Second, back up because you are crowding me. And lastly, it was their request not to tell you,” he said, softly. “I would love to tell you where they are so that you can prevent them from doing anything stupid. However, I will not disrespect their wishes.”

        “That’s not an excuse! What if they’re in danger? If they die, you will be the only one to blame. Could you live with yourself if you were the reason they died?” I ranted, near hysteria.

        “Party, stop being so melodramatic. They are fine, and if there is ever a point where they are in danger, believe me, you will be the first to know,” Dr. D looked back as he left the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.