In The Scenes

Seventeenth

WARNING: May be mentions of abuse, panic attacks, trauma, blood, etc. If you are sensitive to these topics, please don't read.

Micah POV:

The funeral came and passed within the blink of an eye. Alex gave a eulogy, but it was more painful than inspiring.

"I won't stop until the trio are murdered," he said, glaring at our friends' graves.

In the middle of his speech, people noticed that he was scratching himself until he was bleeding. Lia grabbed his hands and Alex cried. I wanted to stop him from hurting himself but I couldn't bring myself to do anything.

"Hey. You okay?" Mindy asked, walking into my room.

"No. I found my sister after years of being alone and now she's taken from me again. Right after my mom."

Mindy hugged me and I cried. I didn't stop myself. All I wanted was a happy ending. Is that too much to ask? I wiped my tears and laid on my bed. Mindy followed suit.

"What the hell is going on?" she asked.

The was no answer. I was about to say something when Alex barged into the room.

"I've got it," he said.

"What?" I asked.

"I know how we can get the trio in jail. Meet me in the kitchen in 10 minutes."

Alex ran out of the room. He's probably going to tell the others. Mindy and I stood up and walked to the kitchen. Bryce was already there.

"I'm guessing you got Alex's message too," he said.

Mindy and I nodded. Lia and Jane joined us and we sat in silence. Finally, Alex showed up with a police officer. Alex had dark circles around his eyes and looked like he hadn't slept in ages.

"Everyone, this is Officer Eel. I did some digging about the trio and found out more about my ex-foster mother. Her maiden name was Eel so, with Bryce's help, I tracked people with the last name Eel. That's how I found Officer Eel, my ex-foster mother's brother. He's willing to help us put the trio in jail."

This interested me. If we can get revenge for Asha and Mattheo, then we might finally come to terms with their death.

"Alex, I know you were hurt by their death. How do you know this plan is your best work?" Lia asked.

Alex took a deep breath. I thought he would start crying but instead, he had a determined look on his face.

"I'm not resting until they pay for what they did. I've been developing this for ages. Now, I can do this alone or I can do this with you guys. I'd rather do it alone and keep you all safe but I'm letting you guys choose. Do you want in or not?"

Alex put his hand in the middle. We all hesitated before saying yes. Doing this will put a target on our heads and can get us killed at any moment. Rejecting this would never give us peace.

"I'm in." Lia stepped forward, putting her hand on his. "If my stepfather assisted in the murder of my friends, I want to confront him."

"If you're going, I'm going." Jane put her hand over theirs. "He's my stepfather too. Plus, I'm pretty good with planning."

"Me too," Bryce said, putting his hand on top of theirs. "I'm not letting them get away with murder. I'm not letting them get away with any of this." 

It was down to Mindy and me. On one hand, I wanted revenge and justice for Asha and Mattheo. On the other hand, I was scared of dying. I thought about what Asha would say.

Hell yeah, count me in. Let's take these guys down.

I knew what I had to do. I put my hand on top of theirs.

"For Asha and Mattheo," I said.

I felt Mindy's hand on mine.

"For Asha and Mattheo," she echoed.

"Are you all sure?" Alex asked.

We nodded. We knew the risk but we were all willing to take it.

"Okay. Officer Eel, please explain the plan."

Mindy POV:

"We believe we know where they are. The car that was used to abduct Alex and Lia has been found parked outside of a house. We don't know who owns the house but we believe whomever lives there is helping the trio."

"Can't you see who bought the house?" I asked.

"We tried tracking down the buyer but nobody showed up in the database. We went to the house to meet the owner but nobody was there. Anyway, we will send two of you into the backyard. We'll do this at night so we have the element of darkness and surprise. They will have cameras and earpieces attached to them so we can see what's going on."

"What about the rest of us?" Micah asked.

"I will need one of you to be on standby in case we need to call 911. It could be an injured person, we lose sight of them, or some other dangerous thing. Two other people will be hiding in the bushes of the house next door."

"Is that allowed?" Bryce asked.

"That house belongs to a dear friend of mine who is willing to help us. The last one of you will be on visuals and sound. You will be able to see what they are seeing and warn them if there is something you see that they can't. Are you guys still up for this?"

We nodded.

"I think it's best if I go into the house," Alex said. "They're my ex-foster parents."

"Mine too," I said.

"I'm older. It's better if I go."

"No point in arguing with you."

"My stepfather's in there too. I'll be the second person," Lia said.

"Mine too," Jane said.

"Again, I'm older."

"Fine. I'll be on standby," Jane said.

"Micah and I can hide in the bushes," I said. "Bryce is the best on cameras anyway."

Micah agreed with me. We all knew what had to be done.

"Now, once you're in there, three of my team members will follow you in to make sure you don't get hurt," Officer Eel said. "Here comes the dangerous part. Once you're in and you see someone, you need to find out their identity. If this house belongs to an innocent civilian, you need to explain what happened and that you have police authority to look around. If they don't believe you, my team members will show the owner proof."

"Why's that dangerous?" Jane asked.

"If the house belongs to someone who knows the trio, you need to somehow get them to reveal themselves and confess to the murder of Asha and Mattheo. If you don't, they get to walk free. If you do, they could have 15 years added to their sentence. Maybe more. Getting them to confess could put both of you in harm's way." Officer Eel looked at Lia and Alex. "You need to be careful."

"We know what we're doing," Alex said. He looked at us. "How does 'The Cobra Plan' sound?"