Underground Legends: The Hunt (BWWM)

Chapter 39 - Abella

Abella Sterling (Female P.O.V)

October 28, 2074

Trees, trees, and more trees surrounded me, making it difficult to discern my whereabouts. The few dirt pathways hidden amongst the foliage had little to no signs indicating which way to go. Everyone else seemed just as clueless as me. And if not for Quinton leading the way, we would probably wander around aimlessly, lost, until by; some stroke of luck, we found our way to safety.

A hand locking around my arm pulled me from my thoughts. Before I can react, I'm nearly dragged to the ground as RoniReign's aunt uses me to lessen her fall.

"Oh my god, Aunt Karen!" RoniReigns exclaimed, dropping to her knees beside her. She took the woman's veiny hands into her own as her wide-blown eyes swept over her. "Are you alright?!"

Her question went unanswered as her aunt's eyes shifted to the others as everyone gathered around.

"Aunt Karen?" RoniReigns softly called, tilting her head and blocking the view of the others.

"Y-yes, dear. I just lost my footing." She smiled shakily at her niece and brushed back a lock of grey hair that clung to her sweaty forehead.

Saint's eyebrow rose in skepticism while taking in her glossy unfocused eyes and reddened cheeks. "Let's take a quick rest the-"

"What?! We're too exposed. They'll be on us in a second." Exterminator X's eyes darted back and forth, and he spoke in a harsh whisper as if the robots could hear him. "We need to keep moving!"

"Hey! Calm down. It's only for a minute or two, and then we'll continue."

Exterminator X raked his fingers through his damp strands and laced them behind his head as he ground out. "A minute or two? That's too long!"

Too long? I stared at him incredulously. Honestly, I'd seen toddlers exhibit more patience than him.

"M-m-maybe we should split up." Exterminator X continued as Saint helped up aunt Karen. "Half of us can keep going to the boat, and once we get there, we can tell the cops your location."

"No, we're all going together." Saint's tone was curt and firm, making it clear the decision wasn't up for further discussion.

For a moment, Exterminator X appeared calm until the lightest rustle nearly sent him leaping out of his skin.

"I-I-I can't stay here." He said, walking backward away from us. "If anyone wants to come with me, feel free."

Almost everyone averted their gazes in a silent decline of the invitation except for one person.

A waifish beauty with dazzling blue eyes and

long brown tresses that fell past her shoulders.

Slowly she moved over to his side, hesitancy in every one of her steps, but Exterminator X didn't seem to notice, or maybe he just didn't care as he took her hand in his.

I wasn't sure of their relationship, and while they didn't share any resemblance, that didn't necessarily exclude her as a relative.

Genetics wasn't the sole determiner of establishing someone as family.

But whoever she was, it would be hard to persuade her against following him. We were strangers. Nobody to her. So why the hell would she listen to us?

"It's not a good idea to separate. What if you run into Cromwell's men or one of those things?" Saint posed.

"We won't. As long as we keep moving, we'll be fine."

Seeing how hell-bent Exterminator X was on doing things his way, Saint didn't try to disparage him again as he turned and led the girl away.

I watched them until they disappeared from view before turning to Saint. "How much farther do we have to go?"

"Not f-"

A sharp crack made him stop at once. He whipped around with his gun raised and took in our surroundings. At first, nothing appeared out of the norm until a pristinely polished head surfaced through the leaves of a small bush. The rest of the rat's body slowly came into view as it weaved through the trees drawing closer to us. Saint stepped in front of us and let off three shots that struck it right in its core. Its glowing red eyes flickered as it crashed to the ground before fading altogether.

"Breaks over. Let's move!" Quinton said, backing us away.

Saint stayed vigilant at the rear as we continued on the trail. Shortly afterward, high-pitched screams ripped through the atmosphere.

"Is that Stu an-"

Before RoniReigns could finish her sentence, Quinton took off in the direction of the screams, and we followed a few seconds after.

Just as we closed in on their position, everything went silent. Or so I thought until broken whimpers carried over to us. I stopped cold with my hand on Logan's shoulder to keep him from going further.

Saint noticed and looked at me with a questioning gleam in his eye.

"We should wait here." I ran my hands over Logan's head, ignoring the knots in my stomach as the anguish-laden sounds grew fainter.

My gut told me whatever lay in the small clearing through the trees wasn't anything good. And my brother didn't need to see it. These last few days provided enough material to fuel his nightmares for years and years to come. And it would be a miracle if he walked away from this without permanent scarring.

"I'll stay with you," Saint said.

I started to tell him to go in case Quinton needed backup, but the others were more than enough.

Saint and I watched from the trail as they approached the clearing and stopped a few feet from the entrance. Suddenly everyone turned back and ran up the path.

Saint and I exchanged confused glances, and just as we were about to join them, a deep voice came from behind us.

"Don't move, or he's dead." He said, but despite the warning, Saint and I whipped around anyway.

My eyes grow wide at the man standing behind my brother with a gun pointed at his head.

"I said don't fucking move!" He snapped, jamming the gun deeper into Logan's curls and making him wince.

"I'm sorry. Please, don't." I begged as a few tear drops escaped Logan's eyes.

"Kramden, let him go! He's just a kid." Saint said with his gun trained on him.

Kramden? He must be the guy that escaped from Quinton. But what was his involvement with this? And why the hell was he holding a gun to my brother's head?

"Shut up! You're not the one calling the shots this time! I am! Now drop your weapons."

I opened my hand at once and let the pipe fall to the ground while Saint tossed his gun aside. Adhering to his commands seemed the only way to ensure no harm came to my brother.

"Alright, we did it. But can you at least tell us why you're doing this?" Saint asked.

"Because the cops are all over the place, and I need her and the boy to help me get off this island."

"If you let them go, I can help you escape."

"No, I don't trust you."

"You ca-"

"Enough! Once I'm safely on my plane, I'll let them go." He turned to me and gestured to the right with his gun. "Now move!"

Logan and I walked in the direction Kramden pointed while he trailed a few steps behind us. His gun stayed leveled on us as he tossed one last warning over his shoulder to Saint. "If I see you or any of your friends following us, they're dead."