Greatest challenge/Peter Pan (Completed)

Chapter 16: Sting of Betrayal

I grasped my hands nervously as I looked ahead of me. Nibs led me to the rim of the World-Warpers camp, right in the bushes, just below a ditch. No one would even see me unless I wanted them too. And how well versed these Lost Boys were at hiding made me realize that what little chance we actually thought we had was blissful ignorance. I hated the fact that I was actually listening to Peter Pan.  But I needed to get Quinton out of the firing range. Even if the boys snuck in and snuck out without being caught; the risk was too big. Rather safe than sorry.

I spotted him talking to Gus. He did not look pleased, but Gus was smiling as usual. They were standing in the tent closer to the rim, and by its lavish decorations, I knew it belonged to Gus. After flinging his hands up, and Gus gently patting him on the shoulder, Quinton stomped off, gun in hand, furious. 

He was just about to pass the bushes, "Quinton," I whispered.

Quinton froze and stared at the bushes. I rustled it a bit and took a step out. Quinton's eyes stretched and pushed me back following along. "Are you crazy? You could get caught," Quinton hissed and we trudged further into the bushes. Quinton looked back repeatedly.

"I know what I'm doing," I whispered and grinned, but Quinton did not return it. His finger brushed my cheek.

"What happened? Peter do this to you? That ..."

"He didn't do it, one of the lost boys did, it was a mock fight," I said. But Quinton still looked furious. 

"I gonna make whoever did this to you, pay," Quinton seethed. "You told me you'd be safe there."

"I did, and I am safe, I asked for it, I asked to fight him...I needed to vent," I said.

Quinton frowned. "Normally it's guys who vent like that."

"Yeah, well, I tried skipping rocks and looking at the birds, but that didn't quite cut it," I said. "Did you manage to contact headquarters?"

"Nope, normally when a person goes on a quest, the benefactor brings you back when he senses that the mission is complete," Quinton said. "But now our lovely benefactor, Gus, is here, and he controls who goes back and who stays."

"Thus the argument?" I said.

Quinton nodded. "If he dies, no one goes back."

"Oh,"

"Precisely," Quinton said. Quinton shuffled to the ground. "I read your file, they brought it here..."

I stand frozen and looked at Quinton with an expressionless face. "And?"

"I'm sorry, about everything that Gus has put you through...if it wasn't for the fact that only he is the portal to headquarters, I might have just put a bullet in his head," Quinton said.

"Prisoners have no real rights, only a small glimmer of hope to earn their freedom," I said. I stared back at the camp. "So there is no way to contact headquarters?"

"Nope, I think Gus did that on purpose," Quinton said. 

I tried to think but failed to come up with any immediate solutions. 

"I don't think we're going to get out of this one casualty-free," Quinton said, as he holstered his gun. He put his hand on my shoulder. "I just need more time."

I nodded and swallowed. I stared up at the leaves on the tree then at Quinton. He tried to smile encouragingly, but it came out as more of a grimace. 

Shots echoed from the camp, and my heart stopped.

"What the..."

"They were caught," I whispered to myself. Quinton stared at me, his eyes wide, and his jaw suddenly clenched.

"The Lost Boys, you knew they'd attack?"

"No, they weren't supposed to attack!" 

"You...You drew me out here...you distracted me.."

"Quinton.," I said as a soft plea.

"You have become one of them..." Quinton took a few steps back. The sting of betrayal marked clearly on his face. "So this is how you work now? You switch sides, and you don't care about who gets hurt?"

"I care about you!"

"Well, I care about some of those people in the camp! Some of them are my friends! Stay away from me! I'll find you when I have a way out...but then we're through!" Quinton snapped and dashed to the camp. I stayed, tears streaming from my eyes.

Yes, I was thinking of Quinton and Quinton alone. I did not consider that there were others perhaps in the camp he cared about. I was stupid. But then, I realized, this was precisely what Peter Pan had wanted. He had again toyed with me, and now I have just lost what friendship I had with Quinton. 

Anger burned inside of me, as I ran back to the Lost Boys camp. I tripped and fell, and gave a gasp. I stayed there, my hands in front of me, staying down on the ground. I was frozen, panicked. 

My mother's voice, out of the blue, echoed inside of me.

"Get up, each time you fall, get up..."

I remembered for a sweet and bitter moment, how soft and gently her voice was. I crawled to the tree and grabbed my legs with my arms. I was a fighter, but for tonight, I was just a lost girl, all alone, in the woods, wishing for this nightmare to be over. But it would never be if my plan failed, I was would be stuck here forever. An everlasting nightmare.  I shook my head. I needed to snap out of it. But a part of me couldn't. I wanted to despair.

I stood up, slowly. It would be nightfall soon. The gunshots had stopped, and I needed to find out if anyone got hurt. It'll act at least as some form of solace.

I trudged into the camp, the lost boys were already back, and I could see them laughing and whooping. "Good job," Felix said. "Quinton arrived just as we left."

"So he's safe?" I asked.

"Safe and furious," Felix walked past me. He knew precisely what to say to rile me up. He did not even have a mark on him after our fight. Yet, I am left with a split lip and a bruised cheek and stomach and legs, but then...I couldn't see the rest of his body. Hopefully, I left some mark. 

My eyes scanned the camp, until I spotted him, Peter Pan. He was walking amongst the Lost Boys, with a broad smile. He was arrogant, and he was smug. 

My hands started shaking in anger at him. Quinton was also right. He's been manipulating me. He's been playing a game, and he's been winning. I saw him walking into the forest, away from camp, and I followed him. I picked up a club that was lying on the floor along the way. 

After all, I wasn't going into a fight without a weapon.