Wicked Blood | Hevie

Chapter 21: Traitor in the Midst

"Get out."

"What?"

"Get out so I can make a mess out of my room before I lose my head."

Carlos slowly backed away from the princess and exited her room, Evie quickly slamming the door behind him. Carlos was to make sure no one entered her room until she said so.

Evie paced around her room, hesitant to destroy her precious belongings, but she had to keep her trust with Mal intact. In the end, it was either the Rotten Four or her amazing wardrobe. It was a tough decision.

"Here goes nothing." She mumbled, slowly toppling over her vanity. She picked up every single piece of jewelry, makeup, and accessory and placed it all in a bag. She then proceeded to stomp on the bag, her face full of tears as she broke her very own soul.

After that, she scattered the broken pieces across her room, making the mess seem believable. She took deep breaths, her heart being shattered like all the things she had just stomped on. She then continued to rip off her fake silk sheets and threw them out the window, flying with the cold breeze.

She wiped her tears and proceeded to open her closet, filled with leather dresses and jackets. She snipped her scissors through her wardrobe, ripping through the various fabrics and pieces. She sent them flying through her window as well, landing in puddles of dirty water below. She then threw her sewing machine, her prized possession. Once it smashed on the ground, she felt as though she could no longer live.

She then turned to face the monster in the room: the graffiti on the wall. How was she going to cover that up, she thought. She bit on her nails, which shocked her as she found such action repulsive. This had brought her to biting her nails and she hated it.

The only way to get rid of the words on her wall was to paint on top of it, and so Evie walked out of her room to find Carlos sitting against her door.

"Can you get me some paint?" Evie asked, peering her head through the doorway.

"Do you need help?" He retorted, quickly standing up.

"No, I need paint. Now go get some." She hissed before shutting the door once again.

Carlos nodded, making his way into Mal's room to search for any intact spray paint cans. Mal quickly took notice, releasing the trash bag she had onto the ground.

"What are you looking for?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Evie wants to paint over some things that were written on her wall. Things about Harry and her." Carlos lied, avoiding Mal's penetrating stare. "I was looking for paint."

"Hm." Mal handed him a bottle of green spray paint that she found in one piece under her bed. "Here, it's not her favorite color but it's something."

Carlos snatched it out her grasp and rushed out of her room, leaving her slightly amused by his behavior. The things the boy would do to get Evie's attention, she thought.

Carlos knocked on the princess's door, stepping back as Evie quickly opened it. She gave him an appreciative look before taking the can from his hands and shutting the door. He then pursed his lips and made his way to pick up the mess in his room.

"The only way that we're gonna find out how Uma got here is by moving from the inside, out." Mal announced, moving her gaze to lock eyes with the three misfits before her.

They had all salvaged what they could from their rooms and they were now sitting in the main room, planning out their course of action. Someone had ratted out their hideout to Uma, and Mal was desperate to find out who.

"Evie." Mal called, snapping the princess from out of her trance. "What do you know?"

"What?" Evie asked, darting her gaze between Carlos and Mal. "Oh, so just because I slept with Harry Hook means that I now know everything about Uma and her crew. Real funny, Mal!" With that she stood up and closed herself off in her room, slamming the door behind her.

"Okay." Mal mumbled, rolling her eyes. "So, we'll begin with our goons, maybe there's a traitor in the mix. Jay, go round up the top ones and question them. We need to work our way out and that begins with them."

Jay nodded and left the room, leaving only Mal and Carlos behind. Carlos went dead silent while Mal paced around the couch.

"Something wrong, Carlos?" Mal asked, standing behind him while sitting her hands on her shoulders.

"No, why would there be something wrong?" He asked, nervously tugging at the ends of his shredded tee. Evie was the best liar of the four, while he was the worst.

"It's just your wounds." She hissed, rounding the now alarmed boy. "They look far too severe to have come from one fight. Unless, of course, you were fighting at least a dozen."

"I wasn't- I ju- Look, you know I'm not the best fighter-"

"Wrong, you're a good fighter."

"Well, in my standards-"

"Carlos, were you here when Uma invaded?" She questioned, narrowing her green irises at him. "You ran off after Evie pissed you off. You probably ran here."

"I wasn't. I told you I ran off and got into a fight to release some anger."

"Bullshit." Mal spat, harshly shoving his shoulder, causing him to wimp at her touch. "I think you came here and that's when Uma came. You were clearly overpowered and you got beaten up so badly, Evie had to sew you up, evident by these horribly made stitches. Maybe she has some sense to when you're in danger and that's why she randomly blew me off to get over here." She grabbed his arm, running up his sleeve to reveal his wounds. "Now I could be wrong, or I may not. That's up to you and what you say right now."

Carlos wore a blank expression, his freckles popping out from his pale skin. Mal noticed him swallowing down before opening his mouth to speak.

"I don't want to be seen as the weak-link of the group." He began, avoiding her gaze. "I got into the gang but I'm constantly reminded that I'm not good—and by good, I mean skilled—enough to be here. I thought if you, and Jay, never found out about this, I could at least keep up the act that I'm just as bad as you guys." He took a deep breath, shaking his head. "I'm just a wimp. And a loser."

Mal took several steps back, never taking her eyes of off his. She softly chewed on her cheek, his words playing back and forth inside her head. She had never thought of him that way. Jay did, she thought, but not her. She studied his expression, feeling a sense of powerlessness radiating from him.

"You're not a wimp." She replied, giving him a slight smirk. "You're one-hundred and one percent evil."

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Welp his secret didn't even last a chapter oops

Mal just wants her kiddies to feel as powerful as her ok ok

Sorry if that last line came off as cringy :/ oh well

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Lots of love, mike ✨