The Girl with the Rose Tattoo

Chapter 4

**1 week after the attack**

(Min Ji's POV)

It was a normal day in the orphanage. I was sitting next to my best friend, Tae, in the living room reading my favourite book, "Wicked Fox", a fantasy romance set in modern day Seoul about a gumiho falling in love with a human boy.

My attention was suddenly drawn away from my book as the drama currently showing on the TV shifted into the familiar sound of the emergency news broadcast. My core is filled with dread, unease blossoming inside me. This couldn't be good...

"A recent attack on the government has led them to take drastic action. All Rose children will be taken into a government facility to keep the rest of society safe."

My eyes fixed on the TV, the words consuming my thoughts, I was completely oblivious to everything going on around me.

"What?"

The confused and slightly fearful exclamation from Tae broke me out of my thoughts as I tried to figure out what to do.

"What do we do? If we leave they're going to find us and if we stay here we're either going to be turned in or they'll search the place."

I soon realised that I'd voiced my thoughts out loud in my desperate attempt to come up with any sort of a plan when I received a panicked response from Tae.

"God I don't know...why are you asking me?! You're the older one here..."

There was only one thing I could think of.

"I guess we just have to stay here and hope they don't find us... Maybe we should hide in the attic?"

Tae gives me a brief nod before following me upstairs into the attic and hiding behind a stack of boxes.

"God I'm scared..."

Her small comment deeply resonated with me. This was my fault. I'm the dangerous one; I'm the one they're after. If it wasn't for me, my best friend wouldn't be in this situation to begin with.

All of a sudden, the sound of deep, intimidating voices drifted up the stairs into the attic where we were currently hidden. Soon after, they were followed by heavy footsteps that were quite obviously getting closer and closer. The only thing I could do was try my best to hide Amber and make sure we didn't get caught. However, I wasn't prepared for what I saw next. Sniffer dogs. The men that had come to catch us had brought dogs that would sniff us out, no matter how good our hiding place was.

The dogs were large, with brindle coats and an extravagant ruff of fur around their necks. I could only watch in terror as they came closer. My heart is pounding in my chest but I try to ignore it and slow my breathing. The only reason I'm not dead right now is because they haven't found me yet. I pull Tae into a tight hug, as I feel the men start to move the boxes in front of us. This is it. They've found us.

"Well look what we have here." The man in front of us smirks before talking into his radio, "We have one low risk and one code red, I need reinforcements. Bring tranquilisers."

I try my best to calm Tae down, who is now fully panicking. "Hey it's okay... we'll be okay..." I tried to reassure her, but to no avail.

"No we won't! No one knows what happens but they are never seen again!" She cries desperately.

A larger group of men were now approaching us, holding what I could only assume were the tranquiliser guns. I knew this wasn't going to end well. Pulling Tae's head into my shoulder, I shielded them from her view, muttering only two words before the dart lodged in my arm began to take effect.