Rebels

Ch. 14

Knocking at the door, Jack wavered uneasily in his step. He felt a bit out of place going back to Lyla and Luca's, but he had no other option. He awkwardly glanced around him at the numerous people who had awoken within the last few hours, and of whom were wandering aimlessly about, searching for ways to either gain or lose the money in their pockets.

Jack could hear the doorknob from within the house begin to shake, and he averted his attention back at the door. It opened, and Lyla appeared. A somewhat surprised expression was on her face. She crossed her arms and raised both of her eyebrows. "So, you came back?"

Jack couldn't help but roll his eyes as he stepped past her, suddenly feeling uneasy being out in the open, where he could just as easily be taken away as Arin was. He stepped into the house, hearing Lyla close the door behind him. He recognized the bed in the corner along with the television in the middle of the wall; the couch opposite the bed and the table in between; the countertop and the wilting flowers on the dining table, and the separate bedroom of which the door was open. He had secretly missed the place and hasn't forgotten a detail about it.

Luca lie sprawled out on the couch, having propped his head up with his hands. He strained to twist his head to see who had entered the home, and he nearly fell off of the couch out of surprise.

Jack walked to the bed and sat down on the edge, propping his head in his hands. Slowly, he shook his head, dissapointed of himself as he replayed what had happened earlier that morning.

Lyla noticed this, and she slowly walked towards Jack, thinking of how to approach him.

Luca beat her to it, recovering himself from the couch incident. "What's wrong, Jake?"

"Jack." Lyla hissed, glaring at her brother. "Jack, what's going on?"

Jack took a deep breath and lifted his head, staring at the wall across the room. "Arin's gone. They took him, and killed him."

Luca recognized that the situation was of no laughing manner, and for a very rare moment he became serious. "What do you mean?"

Jack stood, anger beginning to boil inside of him. "The officers found where Arin and I were staying. We hid, but they found Arin, and took him away. Now he's dead!"

"How do you know he is dead?" Lyla asked.

"It makes sense." Jack said plainly. In his eyes, the officers were malevolent, and very ignorant men, and the King was a malevolent idiot. If he were king, it would only make sense to kill Arin; a soldier of the enemy, living without surveillance, prisoner who was on the run, and the list could go on.

Luca threw his hands into the air. "Why should I care?"

Lyla stepped towards her idiotic brother, about ready to give him what he deserved. "Luca!" She hissed.

Jack stood, giving off a deep sigh. "No, he's right." He looked to Luca, who stood in front of Jack. Both men didn't break stare, and for once Jack noticed Luca's bloodshot, pale eyes. He could tell his eyes were once a vibrant blue, but now they were faded. Jack shoved that observation into the back of his mind for later thought. "I need to know at this very moment whether you both are in with the rebellion, or not."

Lyla concluded she was in a room of amateurs. "If you've never met the rebellion, then you can't just join it without their knowing."

Luca took this opportunity to remind Lyla that Jack was not completely insane, no matter how much that fact bothered Luca. "The rebellion is down, Lyla. Don't you remember?" He stooped down to the table behind him and grasped the remote, turning the television on. It revealed the same image of the body on the ground with the white smoke in the background.

Luca dropped the remote carelessly back down on the table and placed his hand heavily on Jack's shoulder, who uncomfortably wiggled out of his hold. Nevertheless, Luca continued, "I'm not going to sit in this dump any longer. I've got nothing to lose!" He threw his arms into the air once more.

Lyla became frustrated now with her brother. "I don't want to see you dead, Luca. This isn't a fantasy where you can just wish it all away when things start to get bad."

Luca walked over to his sister, resting his elbow against her shoulder. "I appreciate your concern, sis, but seeming as I'm the older brother, I can take responsibility of whatever happens." He straightened, worried now that his sister wouldn't join them. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he knew that his sister made better out of him. If it weren't for her, he would probably be stuck in a drunk stupor everyday for so long, that he would most likely be dead at the moment.

"Lyla, if you don't want to go with us, I can't stop you. But, this pal, Jack," he said, pointing behind him back at Jack, who shifted uncomfortably on the spot, "stuck with us. You chose to save that rugged thing of a man for a reason, Lyla."

Jack pretended not to take offense to that last part Luca had said. He was getting tired of just standing around, and the guilt was beginning to take its toll. "Lyla, I know you're not very fond of me, but I need to hear your answer. I already have a plan, and I will follow it through whether you stay or come."

Lyla sighed, knowing she had no choice but to go with the boys. "We get Arin and then we're done, correct?" She asked.

Jack shrugged. "Presumably."

Lyla bit her lip, contemplating on what the future would look like for the three of them. She knew that deep down inside, a beast full of the urge for adventure and something new was clawing to get out. "Okay, I'm in."