All For Not

Page 29

The bag over my head, properly took away my sight and my wrists were cinched together tightly. However as soon as the bag disappeared and my senses were restored I frowned with a sigh, "disappointment fills me..." A throat cleared and suddenly the deep voiced mask spoke, "who dares breach our inner sanctum?" Wednesday spoke first, "you can take the mask off, Bianca." The projector was turned off and immediately every robed figure was removing their masks, "wait, I preferred you with it on." I sat listening, "how did you get down here?"

"Rowan showed me. Left pocket." Xavier was here, and he wasn't looking my way, a slight bitterness accompanied the thought as he walked to my sister and reached into her pocket, "I tracked the watermark to the Poe statue. Then I solved the riddle." He pulled out her drawing, unraveling the paper as Kent then spoke up, "wait, there's a riddle? I thought we just snapped twice." I paused taking the sight of him in, "well, aren't you the brightest in the bunch?" His eyes caught mine and he turned his face, breaking contact.

"The Nightshades are an elite social club. Emphasis on elite." My brows knitted together at the new voice and then I was looking around at the faces, "we have roof parties, campouts, the occasional midnight skinny-dip." Besides Xavier, Kent and Bianca, another siren stood around, right next to Bianca, and then there was Yoko, "and Yoko's an amateur mixologist, she makes a killer virgin mojito." Think of a name and they'll appear, it seems even Ajax was present, "it can get pretty wild." My eyes shut and I began to undo my ropes that bound my wrists tightly, "Wow. Do you guys even have a bedtime? Last I heard, the Nightshades had been disbanded."

"Yeah, the group kind of lost its charter 30 years ago after some normie kid died." Yoko's voice popped up and my eyes slowly opened, a wave of fatigue drifting over me, "but we have a lot of wealthy alumni, so Weems looks the other way as long as nobody makes any waves." I grasped the rope and finally finished, sitting for a minute longer as they spoke, my strength on a dwindling platform, "someone like Rowan?"

"We booted that loser last semester. Question is, what are we gonna do with them?" Everyone was silent for a moment before she spoke again, "only members are allowed in this library." I rolled my eyes just as his voice appeared, "I say we invite them to pledge."

"What?" Safe to say some were shocked, "they are legacies." Bianca scoffed, "only one of them is and after the crap they pulled in the Poe Cup, there's no way in hell. We talk about not making waves? She's a tsunami." She purposefully meant Wednesday in multiple points of her words, "just because I beat you at your own game? Let me save you the trouble, I'm not interested in joining." Bianca's face turned nasty at the words from her mouth, "you're seriously turning us down?" I sighed as Wednesday entertained the situation, furthering everything, "can you believe it?" My eyes rolled as I commented, "I really am surrounded by trifling children..."

"Untie them," I took that as my cue and stood almost drowsily, dropping the rope onto the chair before twisting around my wrists as the feeling and the blood rushed back in, "what the hell?" Wednesday stood then, holding out the rope and speaking for herself, "I freed myself five minutes ago." I sighed tiredly, the action turning into an exhausted yawn, "excuse us, a cold damp hole in the ground isn't exactly a viable napping place." I walked towards the staircase, Wednesday joining my side when Kent stepped in the way at a nod from Bianca, "do you want a matching black eye?"

Wednesday thrust the rope against his chest and when he still didn't budge she glared, leaving me to speak in the midst of another yawn, "haven't you done enough already?" It seemed harsh but so was the pain still lingering under my skin and pulsing with every beat of my heart. At my words his eyes flickered to mine, regret filling them as he moved to the side and allowed us to pass. On the way up Wednesday grabbed my hand, cold but not clammy and I wanted to shy away, my body already far too chilled after the past hour, "it's amateurs like you who give kidnapping a bad name." Her paused step didn't take long as I yawned once more, even covering my mouth with my oversized jacket while I stared at the steps before us, not once looking back.

Unfortunately due to my weakened state, (because that's what I am blaming my situation on until I'm no longer able to use it as an excuse) on the last few steps towards Edgar Allan Poe's statue, I tripped. I went down fast after my shoe caught the lip of the step, smacking my hands and my hip into the rest of the staircase on impact. A deep groan left me as Wednesday stood behind me, shocked, disturbed, absolutely terrified at the sight, "are, are you alright, sister?"

I didn't bother with the pained noises wanting to escape from my lips, instead I spoke tiredly, "leave me to rot..." She frowned deeply and even though I couldn't see it I could feel it, "it seems as though you are still too weak, perhaps we should have waited a few nights after all," I only sighed in response as she bent down to help me ungracefully get off of the stoney bricked stairs.