New Enemy or Old Lover (Final book in the "Love or Lust" trilogy)

Chapter 18:

We ran.

No, we sprinted.

Hoots and hollers were heard echoing behind us as we dashed through the sewers. They were chanting, proud because they knew we were down here. We didn't know who "they" were per say but they wouldn't be down in the sewers if they were our friends.

I ran in between Andy and Behemoth, Andy leading the way. He knew his ways around the sewer systems, while Behemoth protected from behind. The sound of footsteps sounded behind us, causing us to pick up the pace.

I turned my head to the side, glancing over my shoulder. My eyes tried focusing on the shadows that followed behind us, but Behemoth nudged me forward, forcing me to turn my head back.

"Don't look, just run!" He shouted.

Water soaked my converse as we continued to run along the sides of the sewer. Andy lead the way, rounding corners and slipping through broken cracks. It's like he knew where he was. The hoots and hollers were getting closer, and I heard Andy curse under his breath.

"They're following us!" Behemoth yelled.

"No shit dumb ass!" Andy replied, and I could already feel him rolling his eyes at his stupid comment, "We need to get somewhere louder!"

"Louder?!" We both questioned.

Andy nodded, "We'll go down here. It leads under the main streets of Chicago! They won't be able to hear us over the cars above us!" Andy said, picking up the pace. He motioned for us to follow, and we obeyed. I hopped over a few stray boxes that laid in our pathway, and shrieked as something brushed against my leg, but continued to move on.

I could hear the roar of cars coming closer and closer. We ran further into the sewers, our loud foot steps now being muffled by the honks from above. Soon, it was as if we weren't even down here, for the loud noises from above were so loud the echoed through the sewers. It left no trace of us, which was exactly what we wanted.

"Come on! Keep up!" Andy shouted.

"You think we lose them?" I asked, breathing heavily. We were running a lot, and I hated running. My lungs pounded against my rib cage, begging to break free.

"I think they're-Gah!" Andy fell to the floor, clutching at his shoulder. Behemoth and I skidded to a stop just above him, our eyes wide with shock. I fell to my knees, running my hands over Andy's body frantically.

"Andy!" I shrieked.

My eyes scanned over him. His face was twisted with pain and anger, and I followed my gaze along his arm, stopping at his shoulder. There, lodged deep inside, was a sleek shiny black arrow. It looked small and fragile, but it sliced through the skin deep enough for Andy to be unable to pull it out. He hissed angrily in pain, shaking his head.

"Lover boy is down," I heard someone say loudly, and I flicked my head up. Three young pale men emerged from the shadows. Two were scrawny, with dark black hair and pale skin that clung to their bones. The third, who led the group, was tall. He had a built body, and short blonde hair, and had a smug smile that matched the other two's. He held a small cross bow atop his shoulder, and I gritted my teeth as I saw no arrow loaded inside.

"It's a little loud down here," He continued, his smile never fading. He waved one of the younger boys, and without notice we all watched as he hopped to the ceiling, holding himself in place. The boy crawled on- as if he had glue stick to his hands- and slid over the pipes until he reached one of the small sewer holes. With one hand, he held his place as he reached in his jacket pocket with the other, slipping out a small metal device.

My eyes studied over it. It was small, silverish color, with a bright red light in the center. The boy stuck it directly on the closed sewer hole and pressed the inside, and my heart paused for a moment. The red light immediately faded to an electric blue, sending out small blue waves all across the sewers. I turned around, watching as the waves went further and further down. Just as they began to disappear, I noticed something; it was quiet. No sounds, no cars. Nothing.