It's Complicated

Chapter 23: Travis Stanton

I stare at the gunmen lined up in front of the door, all five of them pointing guns at us. I feel like a deer in headlights, staring down the barrels. I know I can’t tell these guys off, because unlike Cyrus at the time, these men can, and will shoot me dead. I have to remind myself to breathe.

“Travis,” the man says. “I see you are, in fact, alive.”

“Sorry to disappoint you,” I say, trying to put on my best fake smile.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Kacey’s hand twitch ever so slightly. She gets an annoyed look on her face. I don’t understand why she doesn’t go for her knives that I know she keeps hidden. I glance at her hands and make out silhouettes along the inside of her sleeves that look like knife sheaths. That’s why she’s annoyed. She left her knives in the room, and she keeps trying to go for something that isn’t there. I want to laugh, but it sticks in my throat.

"Let them go," Kacey tells the man. "I'm who you want, not them. Let them go, and I swear they won't say a word. And I won't fight."

"Kacey," I whisper. "You know I'll never leave without you." She glances at me out of the corner of her eye before her eyes flick back to the men, examining them. Absentmindedly, her gloved hand slides into mine, our fingers intertwining.

"Ms. Emerson, I believe both of us know that isn't an option," the man says casually. "They will say something to someone, and I can't have that happening. So they will die with you." Kacey's grip tightens slightly on my hand, and she flinches ever so slightly. She opens her mouth to say something, but then immediately shuts it. She stares at the gunmen, a small smile appearing on her lips for a fraction of a second. What could possibly make her smile now?

“Guys,” Kacey mumbles. “Run.”

“Now, now, now,” the man says, moving off of the door. “Let’s not do anything rash.” At the same time, every gunman cocks his respective handgun.

“Guys,” Kacey whispers slowly. “Trust me on this one. Run.” I want to trust her. But I can’t. Not with loaded guns pointing at us.

“Three.” Wait. What is she doing?

“Two.” Why is she counting down? Does she want us to run on zero?

“One.” No. I won’t run. I won’t do it.

“Run!” she yells. I spin on the ball of my foot and run in the opposite direction. Gunshots echo through the hallway, but nothing hits me. I glance behind me and find Kacey, Phil, and Carson running after me. We are all fine. Kacey catches up to me as another round of shots goes off. I duck a little, as if it would help. But Kacey doesn’t break stride.

“How did you know they’d miss?” I gasp as we run. My lungs scream for air, but I know we can’t stop. Not until we are clear of this building. I see Kacey’s limp more clearly as she runs, but she tries to hide it. We turn a corner and keep running.

“I didn’t know they’d miss,” she says smoothly. I turn my head towards her and stare at her, dumbfounded. I see a glint in her eye. “But, I did know that nothing would hit us.” She smiles, breathing with a little difficulty, but not near as bad as I am. Why is all of this so confusing? As if sensing I’m confused, she goes on, “Come on Travis. Fill in the blanks.” Fill in the blanks? Blanks?

“No!” I laugh. “You didn’t!” She didn’t replace all of their bullets with blanks! She couldn’t!

“You doubt my skills?” she asks, smiling over at me. We turn another corner.

“Heck no!” I pant. We turn another corner. “I just didn’t know that was possible! How did you switch all of their guns?”

“A magician never reveals her secrets,” she says. But there is no humor in it. She seems distant at the moment, thinking.

We turn another corner and there is a glass door at the end of the hallway. I can see trees through the dirty glass. About one-hundred feet left. Kacey starts to lag behind, but it’s not because of the limp. She stops, and I stay next to her.

“Kacey?” I say, still breathing hard. “Come on! The door’s right there!” I grab her arm and pull her in the direction of the exit. She keeps her feet firmly planted. “Kacey, what’s wrong?” She glances back at the way we came. Oh no.

“Kacey. No,” I say quietly. “Kacey. Don’t do something stupid.”

“It’ll only take a minute. I’ll meet you all outside,” she says, looking me in the eye. I know that look. She’s going to do something stupid.

“Kacey. It’s not worth—” I stop. She is already sprinting down the hallway, back into the heart of the building. I want to yell after her, but it’s no use. She has already turned a corner and is out of my sight. Again.