Changing You ✦ The Sequel

Chapter 45 {R}

The sudden lack of resistance caused Zach to lose his balance.

He fell forward, barely catching himself in time. The chain — still securely around his wrist but very much past its purpose — slumped to the ground, his left arm still tied back, the other one dreadfully free.

"Strong enough, huh?" He spat, his breathing pattern so messed up I wondered if he was getting enough oxygen.

We stared at each other as if it was a silent argument, our gazes battling the other off.

He gestured towards the syringe that had fallen out of my hands and rolled back across the ground. "Give it to me. I'll do it myself."

I pursed my lips. Shook my head. "There's a better way."

For a second I thought he was actually going to burst out of his skin and explode. There were bullets in his mouth and he looked like he was ready to fire them all.

But then his head shot up, his attention captured by something else and he stilled.

"What is it?"

"Shut-" He went quiet, his head slightly tilted as he continued listening to silence, it seemed.

"You can hear through these walls?"

His eyes flickered to mine. "You can't?"

I shook my head. I barely got time to wonder how he was able to hear through noise cancelling walls, or break out of chains that had never been broken before, when he said: "Jack's at the front door. He's talking to Isla, convincing her to let him in."

"I told her she couldn't," I said, panic pulsing through my body and I didn't even try to hide it from him. "She promised, they all promised to not let anyone in — and especially not Jack."

Zach cursed through his teeth. "This is her brother, this is your brother, of course she's going to let him in."

I wanted to scold at him. I wanted to scold and shout that I had warned him coming here was a mistake, but I knew it wouldn't make a difference anymore. Too little, too late.

So I got up, leaving an only halfway chained up, partially shifted Zach right where he was as I headed for the metal door that kept him locked in — and everyone else out.

If I go back and think about — if only I had been able to hear through these walls, and if only Zach hadn't been too focused on Jack — all I can do is wonder how differently things would have turned out.

Because I never would have opened that door.

When the first thing I saw was a pair of eyes — two bright, honey coloured eyes, finished off by a touch of gold — I didn't know how quickly to jam the door back shut, realising attempting to stop Isla was already too late.

Before the door could grasp completely onto its lock, she had already pushed back, hard enough to keep it from closing.

"Oh, thank you, so much," Camila said, her voice dripping with fake kindness, and yet genuine amusement. "Because I had no idea how to open this thing up."

I shoved my whole body, using every bit of strength, against that door, and watched it have barely any impact.

"You know, as a sister myself, I don't think it's very cool of you to kick your brother out of his own house. I'm pretty sure you hurt his feelings."

"So badly that he needed you to tell me that and he couldn't do it himself?" I scolded, giving the door another, useless, shove.

"Yeah, well, Jack's talking to Isla and your parents. We thought it would probably be best to not let them get in the middle of this. Don't you?"