The Alliance (The Alliance #1)

Chapter 9

"Wait a minute! Just hold on, please put the gun down." Dave is standing feet from Evelyn and Archer, trying to calm everyone down. Archer doesn't fight, he knows one small movement can upset her.

And kill him.

Just the thought of her pulling the trigger and killing him on the spot makes me want to scream. My eyes water immediately.

"He was my prisoner!" Evelyn yells. Archer closes his eyes as she shakes. Her eyes scan the crowd and they land on me. "And she helped him!" Her finger rests on me, and I feel everyone's stare.

"Well, they are here now. They live here now, put the gun down," Dave explains.

"I didn't get to finish business," Evelyn says, pushing the end of the gun even tighter to Archer's head. I see him tense up.

And then I start to cry.

I've never been in this situation. Watching and not being able to do anything about it scares me. I cry so hard it goes quiet.

"Sweetie." Tessa is next to me, trying to get me to walk away. I cry even more.

"Mia." I hear his voice again. The way he says my name, like I'm the one who should have the attention right now. I look at Archer, who looks like he forgot there's a gun resting on his temple.

"Stop it!" I cry. "Put the gun down!" I scream this time. I feel Tessa's arm around me.

Why do I feel like the one who's dying?

"Just put the gun down," I say, more tears pouring down my eyes. I see Archer staring at me, frowning. Evelyn's face is blank.

"Let's talk about this, okay? There's gotta be rules," Dave says. I cover my face with my hands, fearing the sound of gunfire.

I can't do this.

I go on my knees, keeping my face covered. I cry so hard I don't hear anything else, not for a while. Then, I feel a hand on my shoulder. A warm but shaky one. I quickly look up and see Archer. I sob right in front of his face.

"Hey, it's all right," he says, wrapping his arm around me.

"I couldn't.." I sob again. "I...I couldn't....handle it." I cry so hard I have a raging headache. "Did she leave?"

"They are talking about it right now," he says, and I cry out again.

"Calm down Mia, your going to drown both of us." He jokes, but I look up and glare at him.

"Stop that!" I say, and his eyes grow serious.

"What?"

"Stop saying that your going to be fine! Stop trying to make me feel better when your the one with the gun to your head!" I yell, maybe a little bit too loud.

"I do that for myself more than anybody else. Its called a distraction, Mia. Forget that I'm the one who's in trouble by looking after others," he says. I look up at his serious face and nod. He helps me to my feet and we go sit at a table.

"What happens if we lose?" I ask.

"Tami you and I are going back to the dome," Archer says. I wipe my eyes, trying to stay calm. What would Evelyn do to Tami and I?

"I thought nobody could leave their dome."

"Mayors can do whatever the hell they want," Archer says.

"And I've never seen that car."

"They have a bunch of stuff people don't know about."

Stress consumes me, I don't know what to do. But more tears fall from my eyes. I look at Archer, then I can't control my fear. I hug him, dig my head into his shoulder and cry a bit more. Maybe he doesn't know what a hug even is. But then his arms wrap around me. I stay there, not wanting to let go. Cause if I do, Evelyn might separate us, and I can't have that happen. I close my eyes, I could fall asleep right here.

"There she is," I hear Archer, and I let him go and look at Evelyn. She walks pasts us, glaring at us until we are out of her sight. I hear the car engine turn on and drive away. Then Dave is next to us.

"Thank you, sir," Archer says standing up.

"It's not a problem. I think she's just a maniac. Apparently, if she catches you out of this fence alone, she can get you. Not like she'll be camping here or anything," Dave smiles.

We thank him once again, and I spot Tami walking toward us. I grow angry.

"I'll leave you two alone," Archer says, and he walks past Tami. She seems to be trying to talk to him, but he keeps walking. Good. She then sits by me.

"Are you okay?" She asks, and I glare at her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. And so is Archer. Oh, but he had a gun to his head and I was screaming and crying my head off. Maybe you were too busy talking to your new friends to even notice, huh?!" I shout, and Tami's face goes pale.

"Mia.."

"Yeah, you know, I needed you Tami. I needed your comfort. And maybe Archer would of liked that too. But I guess something new happened in your life, so you forgot the old. You said that to me, but I still was with you. I didn't totally ignore you like your doing to me!"

"Gosh Mia, I'm sorry. Geez." She says.

"You don't mean it." I say, and I walk up and leave her.

And I can tell she really didn't mean it. Once her new friends grow old, she'll come back to me and apologize. Little does she know it'll take a hell of a lot more than a sorry to have me forgive her. I'm done feeling weak. I want to be useful, not the one who cries helplessly.

Dinner is served outside, and I get my food and take a seat by Archer, Adam and Dana. I see Tami sitting by her other friends. Archer's eyes widen at the amount of food on my plate.

"Hungry?" Dana jokes.

"If I want to be on the mission, I need to grow stronger. Run tomorrow morning, Dana?" I ask, and she nods.

I glance at Archer, and he gives me a little smile. Not like the one he always gives, but a more proud one. I smile back at him and nod.

Tami might not want to be on the mission, but I don't need her. I don't want to be weak anymore. I don't want to follow someone else's footsteps. I want to help, I want to be strong.

I want to belong to the Alliance.

HELLO!!! So, how do you like the story so far?! Exciting? Boring? Blah? PLEASE LET ME KNOW!!!! I will answer any questions if you have them, and I will for sure consider your feedback! Thank u😊☺️💕

-Grace✍