Bloodlust | lrh

27. Child's play

Soka ran for the front door as soon as Ashton brought her out into the hall. He tried to stop her, but adrenaline had her sprinting faster than he could keep up with. He watched her run toward the front gate which was no longer functional, but he stopped short and let her go. She'd come back, at least that's what he thought.

That was three days ago, and Ashton still hasn't grown the balls to tell his boss that the girl ran, and this time didn't come back. Luke's been in his room, against his wishes, but remaining in bed. Jenson has been with him almost every waking moment to prevent him from getting up other than to use the bathroom. He'd rather do that than stitch him up for a third time.

Calum and Mike know that Soka's gone, but without Luke's help they can't really do anything. They only know which building she lives in, which is where they started the search today. No one knew her by the description they gave, and there's no way they can go through every unit.

They even checked the store she worked for, but it was closed today. The three guys are driving aimlessly around Chemin, hoping that maybe they'll stumble across her. Soka didn't go home, or to the store though, she went straight to Leah's house. When the door opened Leah nearly fainted, tears of joy pouring down her cheeks as her favorite girl stood right in front of her.

She warned Leah about the men who might come looking for her, so she planned on staying home from the store for a few days until the dust settled. She's making the girl her fifth cup of tea today, Soka waiting for it from her spot on the couch. Leah set her up with blankets and pillows and has been tending to her every need for days, regardless of how many times Soka tells her not to go so far out of her way.

She hasn't wanted to talk about the last three months of her life though, even when Leah begs her to. She can't imagine what the girl has gone through, and she only wants to know so she can be there for her. But Soka isn't on the market for opening up, as the most she's shared has been the warning about people out looking for her.

"How did you get away?" Leah asks gently. After she hands Soka another cup of tea she sits on the chair in the living room, a silence falling over them that's been common the last few days. Soka doesn't answer, she just takes a sip of her tea. It's like the girl Leah knew no longer exists, which is more or less true. "Please talk to me Soka."

"It only matters that I'm here now." She says plainly, her face as emotionless now as it was when she arrived at the front door. Another silence falls over them, only this time it's interrupted by a knock on the door. It sends Soka into a panic as she rushes to her feet to hide.

"Get in my closet." Leah whispers to her, shooing her off down the hall.

Soka runs and pushes herself as far into the closet as she can, holding onto an empty piece of luggage to hide her body more. Her heart feels like it's going to beat out of her chest as she hears the front door open.

Voices are muffled and only last for a short time before a gunshot makes her jump. She knows Luke wouldn't kill her, but she is going to kill him if Leah is dead on the floor. She throws the luggage down and pulls the pistol out that she's been keeping on her at every waking moment since she left.

Soka slowly opens the bedroom door until she can jump out, the gun aiming where ever she looks. She can feel herself hyperventilating as tears stream down her cheeks. Leah's body lays with a pool of blood at the front door, but it's not Luke standing over her.

Before she can get a shot off at her killer a man steps in front of her. Soka shoots him without hesitation, but another guy steps up after and grabs the gun. He pulls her arms behind her back and holds her still as Amelia struts over to where they stand.

"What Luke did to you is child's play compared to what I have planned." She smiles, evil radiating off of her body. Soka spits in her face, which was probably the worst choice she could've made, but there's no going back now. The last thing she sees is Amelia wiping her cheek, and then her eyes widen as the stock of a pistol comes straight towards her forehead.