Fortune Favors the Bold

9

Hiromi was dead by the time they arrived, his body barely visible between the machinery far beneath the bridge everyone clambered onto.

Aurora's face was pale and tears pooled into her eyes. Kalani leaned onto Mason as they caught up to the others, her attention on the piece of missing railing that seemed to have fallen with the boy.

"...maybe he just tripped and fell," Tamara offered optimistically. By the looks of all the others, nobody seems to consider her hopeful thought. Accidents didn't happen –not here.

"Who was the first one here?" Chidi looked around, trying to identify the killer before anybody else was hurt.

But it wouldn't be that easy. No. The killer was smart.

"Assad and Junfeng were already here when I came over," she continued, pointing at the two boys for an answer. "Which one of you was here first? That'll be the killer. That's the person who did this."

The person Kalani expected to respond first straightened, immediately pointing at the other. "He was already here when I came in. He looked rugged and breathless when I came in, just like someone who just attacked someone," Junfeng pointed an accusing finger at Assad, who raised his eyebrows at the allegation.

"Yeah, from running over," he defended himself.

"Running over from where? Down there where you were making sure he was dead?" Junfeng fired.

Kalani limped forward, leaning on Mason. "Assad didn't do it. If anything, the person who gets the most defensive is usually the one who committed the crime," she glared at the attacker across from them.

He snorted, looking down at her leg. "Why are you limping then?" She opened her mouth to question his point, but the cocky bastard hardly allowed her to speak before continuing his devoted rant. "I think it was you. Hiromi clearly fought back and you got hurt. A girl like you could never take someone like him down without getting hurt."

Mason shook his head. "No, she kicked the wall. I saw her."

"Are you two working together?" Chidi asked.

Kalani's eyes widened at the girl's question, not having expected it from her. "I was getting ice from his room, I-," she blinked in shock. Her gaze momentarily met with Not-Castiel's as his gaze slipped from her feet to the boy lying on the ground beneath them. His jaw clenched like he was trying to keep his emotions controlled.

Maybe he had a heart after all.

"It would make sense," Chidi shrugged. "I mean, his Pair was the first victim then you killed the person who was going to expose you. We're only being realistic," she wrapped her hand around Not-Castiel's wrist like she was protecting him from the two of them.

"Oh, piss off Chidi," Assad spat. "I didn't think you'd be the one senseless enough to bite onto Junfeng's conspiracies."

She raised her hands in defense. "I'm pointing out the obvious."

"The obvious is that you're both stupid," Tamara spoke up.

"You're on their team, too?" Junfeng asked, then snorted. "I'm not surprised."

"I'll give you something to be surprised about, you-."

Aurora shook her head. "Please stop fighting. We won't get anything out of arguing like this," she looked over the group. "We need to work together to find out who did this. They want to divide us like this and, if that happens, it'll be a bloodbath."

Junfeng spat. "It's already a bloodbath."

"They?" Not-Castiel asked her, finally speaking up.

The girl nodded. "The people who put us here. For all we know, they could be the ones killing us and hiding in the walls while we fight."