We are in the inn. We get a private room with just two beds. Sarafine and Demona take one bed. The rest of us make room on the floor. It's awkward as fuck. When one person in the group lets the rest of us know that he is the son of the guy who trapped us in this game I'd assume it was going to get awkward.
"I'm not your enemy," Hunter says out of nowhere, "When I found out what my father was doing I wanted to stop him. Not everyone at the Manolo Corporation wanted this. Some people wanted to help. They paid some moderators to help me get into the game. They told me to look for Sarafine. They told me I needed to protect her. No matter what. That's all I know. I promise. I'm not lying to you people..."
He's defending himself in an aggressive way. It's almost as though he knows the rest of us are judgmental. The only one who doesn't seem to have pure distrust in their eyes is Sarafine. She has already fallen asleep on the bed. She doesn't seem the least bit worried about what is going on around her.
"Ok," I tell Hunter.
"Ok? That's all you have to say?" he asks me, "Killian I saved you multiple times. Judge me on my actions not who I was born as."
Hunter is upset. His lips purse out. Those sexy little dimples of his disappear. He takes rubs his fingers through his long hair as though frustrated that we aren't just falling behind him at that moment.
"Actually you weren't born a Manolo. You're adopted, remember?"
"If you don't trust me. Fine. Let me take Sarafine and be on my way," Hunter says.
"She stays."
Hunter sighs, "Then I stay. I guess we are stuck with one another."
"Fine," I state.
We get quiet. It's awkward as hell. Demona is glaring bullets at Hunter. Madden is doing the same thing. Noah is tapping his fingers with an annoying pace at the side of the bed. I'm attempting to avoid eye contact with Hunter but I can feel his eyes glaring at me. I can feel his eyes glaring—THROUGH me.
You can cut the tension with a knife at that moment. I want to believe Hunter. I want to believe everything he is saying but his fucking father trapped us in a game. For a year I spent my life hating Phineas Manolo. I spent a year wanting to be in the real world. I spent a year afraid that I would die because Phineas trapped us in this fucking dangerous game.
Now I was meeting his son.
"I'm going to go to the market," he says, "I'm gonna get some items."
I watch in the corner of my eye as Hunter puts back on his black metal mask. He opens the door and disappears a few minutes later in his silent footsteps.
"You can't trust that guy," Madden tells me.
I don't, "Noah."
"Yes?"
"Follow him."
Noah nods, "Yes sir."
Noah jumps out of the window and scales the side of the building following Hunter down to the street. Noah was a Thief. He was the only one who had the chance of following an Assassin without getting caught.
"We should hold Hunter hostage," Demona suggests, "Maybe they'll let us leave if we threaten to kill him."
"Phineas Manolo and Hunter Manolo have had strained relationships for years," Madden explains, "It was all in the media. That doesn't mean we should trust him though. We should send him to the Warriors of Light."
"I'm not doing that," I state.
"Maybe they'll leave us alone."
"What about Sarafine. They want her too," I explain to Madden, "You want to send her to your guild too? Did Tiger put you up to that Madden? Right now I don't know who I can trust...including you."
