Frozen Time

Saving Them (Chapter 18)

Alex's P.O.V.
I'm so glad that Evelyn is coming to see the transaction through.

~Time-skip~

Evelyn just got here and it's 11:30. I'm so nervous! I don't want either of them to die!

"Alex! There is a car pulling up! There are three people inside!" I was snapped out of my thoughts when a car door slammed.

"Alex," a voice booms from the driver's seat of the car. "I have been awaiting your arrival." I look towards where the voice is coming from and see a woman get out of the car.

"I- but I- I sort of got here first?" I say, confused as to why she would say she was waiting for me.

"Yes," the strange woman replies, further confusing me. Evelyn stands next to me, presumably trying to intimidate this person.

"I was hoping you would come alone," the unknown woman says, smirking at me. I quirk an eyebrow, staring her down.

"You're the one that sent me here?" I look at the woman and step back slightly. "I just want my friends back, and I came here as instructed, so hand them over."

The woman walks over to the back doors of the car. "You know," she says, putting her hand on the door handle. "I could do that, but that's not as fun as, say, making you choose between your friends."

"Choose?" I ask, staring into the car intensely, trying to see the outline of my friends. "What do you mean by choose."

She gives me a pointed look, and when I still seem confused, she exclaims, "As in you pick which one of them I'm going to leave alone, and which one of them gets to stay with me."

I glare at her, glancing at Evelyn and starting to walk closer to the car my friends were being kept in.

"You're not getting in that easily," the woman says, taking her keys and locking the car doors. Evelyn grabs my arm and pulls me back as I continue to get closer to the car.

"Hey," she hisses in my ear, making me glare at her in annoyance. "Don't do anything to upset her. We can try to save both of them, but first we need to get them out of the car."

The woman clears her throat impatiently, seeming annoyed with us. "I'm done with the whispering over there!" She exclaims, tapping her fingers on the door. "Choose one of your friends to come back with you, or don't. You broke the rule anyways, you should be grateful that I'm even letting you save one."

Evelyn pulls out her phone and motions for me to stand in front of her and block her from view.

"What's your name?" I ask, trying to divert the attention off of Evelyn once I realize what she is trying to do.

"I'm not an idiot, so I'll tell you my code name, which is Raven," the woman, 'Raven', says, fiddling with her keys. "You know, if you don't decide soon, I'm going to take both of your 'friends' and you will never see them again."

I glance at Evelyn, who is now speaking quietly on her phone.

"I want to see them both before I decide," I state firmly.

Raven rolls her eyes, but unlocks her car and pulls Ben and Skye out of the car.

Their hands and ankles are tied with zip ties and their mouths are duct taped shut.

Skye looks terrified; Ben looks mildly annoyed.

"The clock is ticking, Alex," Raven chirps, gripping them by their arms.

I hesitate, looking back at Evelyn for help.

"Skye," she mouths at me, gesturing for me to tell Raven that's who I pick, but my mouth betrays me.