Silence // Danger Days (Book 1)

02.

Standing outside the door were seven Scarecrows, BLI's law enforcers, led by what seemed to be an Exterminator. They all knew this one. His name was Korse.

Edward attempted to look as if he wasn't scared for his life. This took no effort for Donna.

Korse proceeded to walk over to the table and survey them. "Hello there," he said maliciously.

"Hello, Mister Korse," Edward attempted to smile, "What brings you here?"

"Actually," Korse said matter-of-factly, "I believe it was your dear wife who called us in, to arrest you, no less."

It felt as if a boulder had sank to the bottom of Lucas's stomach. This can't be happening, he told himself, and squeezed his eyes shut, but when he dared to open them again, his father had been pulled from his chair and was kneeling on the ground with his hands above his head.

"Donna," Edward pleaded, "How could you?"

"You don't exactly treat us very well," Donna said tonelessly. "Don't you think being happy all the time would be nice?"

Lucas realized then that his jaw was on the floor, and quickly closed his mouth. He couldn't possibly imagine his mother, the kindest person he knew, turning his father in for treason.

Korse put the barrel of his ray gun against Edward's head. "You know what the price of treason is," he said, grinning like a maniac, which he very likely was. "So, I might as well ask: any last words?"

The man gulped, then looked around the room, attempting to memorize every inch of it. He wasn't sure why he did it, but he felt it was necessary. Then his eyes found his children, peeking their heads out of their bedroom. He looked his son in his eyes, and mouthed one word.

Run.

So they did.

They pulled on their backpacks, and tiptoed out of the room, seemingly unnoticed. They heard Korse saying:

"Nothing? Okay then, I guess we'll just have to go through as normal."

There was a blast, and the sound of something heavy hitting the floor.

Lucas had to use every ounce of his willpower not to cry out for his father. He hadn't been the kindest, but he was still family. And for that matter, where had his mother gone? This woman was nothing like her.

They ducked into their parents' room at the end of the hall, opened the window, and climbed out onto the fire escape. Hailey went down first, climbing the ladder with ease and reaching the street level in record time. Lucas couldn't say the same for himself, but he gave it no mind, for once he landed, they both ran like hell.

He recalled having to memorize a map of the city for his Citizenship class in school and looked to the street signs to determine their best escape route. They were at the intersection of Fourth Street and Delta Avenue, so if they turned left...

Lucas grabbed his sister's hand and led her in the direction he knew to be correct, toward the city line.

They had to stop running after a while, due to their lack of energy, but luckily for them, they had nearly gotten to the edge.

They had entered The Lobby.

They both immediately noticed the difference between this area and the rest of the city. This part hadn't been infested by BLI's control, so it more closely resembled the slums of a city before the Wars.

"What's going on," Hailey asked, seeming scared. "What is this place?"

"I'm not sure, but I think it's called the Lobby," Lucas told her. "It's like the slums."

"I don't think BLI would let that happen," Hailey said.

"Me neither, he agreed. He spotted an alley and pulled his sister into it to get their bearings.

Suddenly, they were both staring down the barrel of a gun.

They immediately put their hands up, and simultaneously said "Don't shoot!"

The gun (which happened to be a dark shade of purple) was being held by a small person, who was unidentifiable due to the hood covering their face. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?" they asked sharply.

"We're not BLI!" Lucas pleaded. "I swear!"

"And how do I know you're telling the truth?" they snapped. "You could just be saying that to-"

"My name is Lucas Castellan," he interrupted, hoping that the stranger would recognize the name. "This is my sister Hailey. Our father is Edward Castellan, the CEO of—"

"Logos Inc?" The stranger's voice was softer now. The person pulled the hood off of their head, revealing a teenage girl with hair the same color as her gun and a pair of strangely decorated goggles pushed into it. She lowered her gun and looked the siblings over. "Well, you certainly look the part. You seem to match the description perfectly."

She lowered her gun, switched the safety on, and shoved it into a holster tied to her leg. "What is your intention here then, if you're not all brainwashed? I thought they would have made sure that someone like Castellan had at least been medicated."

"We want to get to the desert," Hailey told the strange girl. "We're gonna join the rebels."

"You wanna be Killjoys?" the girl asked, surprised. "Well, that doesn't happen every day. Usually, we have to send patrols in to pull people out—" she stopped and whipped her head around.

The siblings followed her gaze and saw that another person was entering the alley. This was a boy, whose hair was short and dyed a metallic silver. He jumped when he saw the Castellans. "Al!" he shouted, and rushed to the girl. "There you are! Are you okay? Who are—"

"Ven, it's okay, they're not BLI," she assured him, then wrapped her arms around his waist. He returned the hug. She then turned to the siblings, who were very confused, and said, "We're gonna get you out of here."