Side Effects

Before: Halia Brinley

She ran.

The dark woods rose above her as she sped through the forest, knowing her only chance of survival was to get the heck out of here. The tight black of her spandex suit surprisingly seemed to help her breathe rather then to squeeze all her innards together. Between the foliage, misty shimmers of moonlight escaped from sight. She knew relying on the inconsistent moon wasn't smart, but light was light after all.

Shouts from behind her echoed in her ears as she pushed forward. More. Just a little more, she promised myself. All her long days running on treadmills, dirt hills, and red tracks as training weren't going to go down the drain. Stupid coaches trying to make us faster, she thought bitterly.

She thought back to the moments before the attack she orchestrated; the ball was lovely, everyone swirling around in vibrant dresses, the air filled with drunk people faking every thing they said. That was expected of rich people. Everybody at the ball would just think it was an accident that the chandelier fell onto Tonga's prime minister, but in reality...

Knowing she couldn't possibly handle running much more, she developed a plan: to duck into a tree somewhere and wait everything out. Seeing a windy trail that nobody in their right mind would take, she trusted it as her savior and swiftly stepped into the trail. A blur of about three men and two huge dogs flew by, not even noticing the dark haired girl stupidly still visible between two trees. She puffed out a breathe of relief. Don't rely on luck, she reminded herself.

Her plan had worked brilliantly, as usual, and she knew she would get recognition when she was back. Another achievement to add to my long list of accomplishments.

Unfortunately, she also wasn't aware of the fact that FOUR men were sent to retrieve her back, not just three. She had no idea that a fourth man loomed close by.

So, while she thought about everybody else's faces at HQ when she showed up with----

                   To be continued.