Lucky and the Killer ✔

Shh

The basement of the palace was still just as open as the rest of the place, but it was darker. Red runes lined the bricks along the hall. Flame flickered as they walked. Bella rubbed her arms in the chill of the air. Lucky traced her hand against the stone, and in a few steps, they would be out in the open again. A thousand thoughts were marring her mind. The skirt was sticking to her knees, and she just wanted her jeans again. She wanted Earth again—anything would be better than sneaking around in a damp basement on another planet.

"She's this way," Bella whispered. "When we get out, stick to the sides. Be silent. I can be caught, but if you get caught, everything gets screwed up."

"Bella," Lucky whispered back, "I'm...I gotta talk. I know we don't have a lot of time, but there are just some things that I gotta know. I mean, not long ago, I was working behind a desk with Anna...getting coffee, and then he showed up. I don't know who is who. I don't believe in other worlds, but here I am. I don't believe in royalty, either, but, the mark was there just like you said. My brother...is he really that bad? Am I really that bad? Am I so bad that King wanted to kill me when he found me? How come I can't remember things when everyone else remembers me?"

Bella's eyes stared down at the floor. The buttery glow of what little light they had bounced in her dark eyes. Her fingers gripped the corner of the wall, and she tried to breathe right.

"You were your father's favorite," she sighed. "I know you have questions. I know there's a lot to tell. I can give you some answers, but I can't give them to you now. I'm sorry, princess, but you understand, right? I'm going to get to Sarah if it kills me."

"I understand," Lucky said. She straightened back up against the wall. Her cheeks got hot, and she retreated further behind Bella. She had more than questions. It felt like her feet were falling out from beneath her. Everything was numb, and she was alone. The only person she really had left was Zee, but she couldn't remember him, either. There was no one back on Earth. It was always just her. For a minute, the thought of having a real life with a family that actually cared enticed her. For once, couldn't things just work out?

"This way," Bella whispered in front of her.

The room was gray, empty, and wide—the kind of room that said things weren't going to work out. Shadows were black around the room's edges. There was no moonlight. There was just air. The air opened up all around them and made them both feel exposed.

They headed for the darkest part of the room, the left edge, while carefully tip-toeing and holding their breath. Sarah would be in the third room from the right. That was where they put her—in the cell opposite from Bella's.

"Here," Bella said.

She groped around in the darkness for the lock. She gripped the key Felix passed her in her steady hands, but it was just too quiet. There was no noise. There were no guards.

"Bella," Lucky stammered as she tapped on her shoulder. "Bella, something isn't right. It's too quiet."

"That's because I'm here," a voice came from behind them.

Lucky whirled around, but he caught her shoulders in his arms. He moved a hand to her lips—gently placing a finger to them so that she wouldn't scream.

"Hello, princess," King said into the blackness. "Stay quiet. The last thing we need is for your brother to show up."

Lucky shrugged his arm off of her shoulder and stepped away from him. She could barely see his face in the shadows, but his sharp, blue eyes were unmistakable. In her mind, she could see the rose on the balcony and flashes of his smile. But, she could also see the gun, and beneath his hand, Anna's dead eyes.