Our Forbidden Love 2

32: Alexander

"Have you used it?" Weedy asks.
I take a wild guess at whether my next statement will Flicker the air or not.
"Not in the way you wanted to," I say. No lie. We all exhale, relieved.
"Did you take it to Kiwi Civitatem?"
I have an answer prepared but Starley thinks hers through before I can say mine.
"No," she answers before I can talk. No lie.
"B***h. I wasn't talking to you," Weedy says. She turns back to me. Starley looks down at the floor again.
"Alex, did you take it to the city?"
Quickly, approximately one million thoughts fly in and out of my brain, but then I hit a lightbulb moment. Weedy hadn't specified what city she was referring to. Referring to Kiwi Civitatem then yes, I did take it, but referring to Oceanum Villa, no, I didn't take it.
"No. No, I did not," I say, deciding to go with the Oceanum Villa story which would help us out a bit here by telling the truth once again.

Out of the corner of my eye I see Peter, looking at Starley, taking in every inch of her body that's visible. Standing next to me, Starley is looking down and I see her start crying once again, the memory of Peter and herself obviously having resurfaced in her mind again. I feel Rhylee's flicker wave rush over the group of us but then they give Weedy the signal of 'no lie'. Great! I think. My plan had worked. Fate had interpreted the question the same way as I had, and therefore I hadn't told a lie.

Under all her crying, sobbing and other emotions, Starley still feels confused as to how that was registered as a no-lie.
Later, I tell her and she abandons the subject, going back to revisiting the traumatic near-rape experience.
"You right there, Starley?" Weedy asks, though I know she has no care for her well-being and is only asking for the sake of asking.
"Yes," she says, looking up, her face light purple from crying, Peter's handprint still darker on her face and eyes puffy from tears. "Yes, I'm fine."
"Then do you mind paying attention to the conversation? Please and thank you."
Starley instantly looks back down at the floor, she hadn't expected that reaction.
"Don't worry, Weedy, I'll take care of her," says Peter, getting closer to her and putting his arm around her waist. I see black magic seeping out of his hand into her body, keeping her in place beside him. Starley's energetic presence leaves my mind again. When she tries to move out of his arm, he grips tighter around her waist and  injects more dark magic keeping her close to him.
"Get away from her!" I scream trying to get closer to them. Pain and trauma is written all over Starley's face as she looks back at me for desperate help. Peter throws a wall in-front of me and there is no way through or around it to get to them on the other side. While I'm securely on this side of the wall, Peter pulls her in to kiss her. One arm is around her waist and the other is on the side of her neck, covering the hickey I'd given her only yesterday. He's making out with her now, deep and open-mouthed, like how I do it. I bash my fists against the wall that runs the length of the room putting Peter and Starley on one side and Rhylee, Binah, Weedy, me and a lifeless Whitney on the other.

The wall is blocking out sound. I know this because I can see Starley's mouth opening, I assume screaming as he moves his kisses down her body, starting by going down her neck. When he moves further down her body to kiss her there instead, I can see another hickey left on her neck. He gave her one! His is bigger, about the size of the palm of her hand. It's massive compared to mine and his is done out of spite and abuse. His, in comparison is just ugly. I'm called back to the group of this side of the wall and I have no choice but to leave my girlfriend and Peter alone together.

"Give me one good reason as to why you're so interested in the Stonal Shell," demands Binah.
"I just love history. It's an important part of our city, you know."
"Quit playing smart, why are you so interested in the Shell?" she asks again.
"Why do you think?"
Weedy turns the question onto Binah to answer, but she doesn't. I answer instead, anger and hopelessness firing in sparks through my body.
"Because your life is just so pathetic and sad that you have nothing better to do than make an alliance with that sick man," I point at Peter who is now holding Starley's breasts and kissing her along her collarbone and jawline, "and to follow me around worrying about a f*****g shell."
Weedy feigns offence, she was obviously assuming I'd say something like that.
"Don't worry Alex, Peter will take good care of your girl while she's in his care. I wouldn't dream of hurting her."
"F**k off," I say. It's the only thing I can say. I so badly want to be on the other side of that wall helping Starley instead of being on this side and having no choice in the matter.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Weedy throws a knife at me. I stick out my spare hand and I catch it cleanly by the handle, surprising both myself and everyone else in the room. I now have two knives one in each hand. I throw one to Binah and cleanly she catches it. I figure that it would be better for us each to have one rather than me have two.
"Let her go!" I demand, pointing to Starley and Peter on the other side of the transparent wall.
"Why? It's not like she's your wife or something. She's just a girl you like."
"No she's not, Weedy! Starley is my whole f*****g world. She keeps me together sometimes when I feel like I could fall apart. She will be my wife she just doesn't know it yet."
"That's not the point Alex," Weedy says. "The point is that you no longer have the Stonal Shell and we're keeping you captive here until we find it."
Weedy takes down the wall and Starley's terrified screaming instantly fills the air.
"Get off me! Argh! Peter! Get away from me!"
"C'mon Peter," Weedy says and reluctantly he gets up off of Starley. Rhylee follows them both out and they use dark magic to lock the door.
"Alex..." Starley whimpers. "Alex... help me..."