rr (ON HOLD)

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Kaina swiftly climbed out of the window. She headed to Roker Avenue, near the Dime a Dozen.
She just needed some air. Some time to think.

She walked into an alleyway and leant against a wall, giving a sigh. Could she go to LB? It'd be a betrayal, a massive betrayal to the Count... but huh, she'd already smashed whatever ounce of friendship they had left. It wouldn't matter.
But would LB even believe her? It was clear Ruby Redfort didn't.
Am I just kidding myself? Kaina wondered. Did I even see the Count?
She glanced up at the clouds; dark and stormy, ironically matching her mood. Rain was hammering down and Kaina was soaked.
"Who am I kidding," she muttered to herself. You know what, Redfort was probably right, she thought - she probably imagined it, the Count wouldn't have dared to come to the Redforts'. Yeah, Redfort was right - maybe she still was subconsciously working for the Count.
And then she shook her head.
Honestly? The man didn't even pay her, for goodness' sake!
No, she wasn't at fault here. This was his fault. The Count was the only one to blame for this.
She knew what she had seen. She wasn't a liar. She didn't imagine it.

She saw the Count.

So where was he now?
And then Kaina jerked up. Her breathing got heavier.
If the Count was here... in Twinford...
He could be anywhere.
What the hell am I thinking? He could be here right now. I'm putting myself in danger. I need to go back to Redfort.

But it was too late.

As Kaina turned to walk out of the alleyway, she bumped into a tall figure who was blocking her way.
"Watch it, bozo," she said slowly. Then she froze as she looked up. She took a few steps back in fear.
"Hello to you too, Kaina," drawled the Count.
Instantly, Kaina paled.
“You. Mr Pérez… he was you.”
The Count slowly clapped.
“I presume Ms Redfort did not believe you?” he sighed. “Such a pity… and I thought she was quite clever. Ah well, too late now.”
Kaina’s brow furrowed.
“W-what do you mean?” she asked quietly. Her voice was relatively steady and calm though inside she wanted nothing more than to run and never look back.
“Ms Redfort will have now realized that, in fact, you were telling the truth. And you will have led her straight to me. Really, Kaina, I must thank you,” he gave a chilling smile. “Admittedly, this was not how I originally meant for my plan to work, but I still reached my end goal.”
“Your end goal?” repeated Kaina, suddenly uncertain.
The Count waved his hand in gesture.
“I planned for Ms Redfort to believe what you had seen and add up what had happened to Master Crew – naturally she’d come to the assumption that I was at the foreboding of all of this.”
“And then what? Wouldn’t she inform Spectrum?” ventured Kaina.
“Oh no, for it would mean her dearest friend’s life was in danger a little longer. And I’d assume she would have thought Spectrum wouldn’t have believed you… she’d ask you if you knew where my hideout might be. And of course, you know, don’t you?”
Kaina was silent.
The Count was circling her now, his hands clasped behind his back. His sharp, white teeth glinted in the eerie evening light.
It was true, she realized, what he had said. She knew his hideout, it had been in the back of her mind all this time.
“I’d then assume you and Ms Redfort would come to me quite willingly,” the Count continued. He gave a sigh. “But clearly you decide to make my life a little more tiring. But everything worked out in the end, did it not?”
Kaina narrowed her eyes.
“What did Clancy Crew have to do with any of this?” she whispered hoarsely. The Count’s black, void-like eyes met hers.
“He had seen me as Mr Pérez… I didn’t realize how useful he could be until then. Naturally he was going to tell Ms Redfort, so I had to get someone to bug his line. Unfortunately, though, someone else clearly thought likewise.
“After finding out where he was going, I told my accomplice to… how do I put this? To be frank, kidnap him,” the Count gave a cold laugh. “I personally don’t tend to kidnap children, nor to murder them, but one has to make exceptions, if they wish to succeed, do they not?”
Kaina suddenly felt very weak in the legs.
“This other person, the one who’d also bugged Crew’s line – they didn’t happen to be Lorelei von Leyden, did they?”
“So quick. I wonder how you guessed. Perhaps you knew of Ms von Leyden’s plan all along? No matter, not anymore.”
“W-what happened?”
“Unfortunately Ms von Leyden got to Master Crew before my accomplice could.”
Kaina turned very pale. The Count laughed at her.
“Oh no, my accomplice didn’t kill Lorelei… though of course, they offered.”
Kaina noticed how the Count referred to his “accomplice” as ‘they’ – was this merely nothing or did he purposely not specify their gender?
“Who’s your accomplice, then?” Kaina shot. “Pretty sure you killed off all the people you were close to trusting.”
“All but two,” the Count said softly. “It was quite unfortunate, that she died like that.”
“She? I presume you mean Novak?” Kaina interrupted. Then she frowned.  She didn’t understand the tone he had put on the word ‘died’, as if the Australian hadn’t actually died… but that was ridiculous – she, Kaina, she saw as the Australian had fallen into the ice-lake. She would have died.
She had to.
The Count nodded, before continuing, his voice even softer than before, but not without a tone of iciness to it,
“So that left me with one person… you.”
“I’m sorry… did you just say you trust me?” Kaina could barely hold in her splutter of laughter, it seemed so funny, so ironic, so odd. Why would the Count trust her, of all people? She, who had betrayed and lied to him again, and again and again.
"I have stated before that I don't need to count on your loyalty, and perhaps I am right, but tell me, Kaina, why didn't you tell Spectrum of my location?"
The girl was silent. She wouldn't answer. She wouldn't give him that sense of triumph.
She jumped as she felt cold metal pressed against the back of her neck.
A gun, Kaina realised in horror.
"Answer," the Count hissed, his voice so quiet that it was barely audible. "Or I'll shoot."
"Y-you wouldn't," she croaked.
"Oh, you're mistaken, dear thing, for I would and I will."
Kaina's pulse quickened. She wouldn't die like this, not even facing her killer.
"I didn't tell them," she whispered, "because I couldn't. I just couldn't. I couldn't... I couldn't betray you."
She closed her eyes in a moment of weakness as the words, save yourself from a life full of lies and a heart full of pain and sorrow, save yourself from the choices you'll make, because nothing but failure will follow. Save yourself, rung in her ears.
Suicide?
It seemed like the only option, now.
It was sad, honestly, what it had come to. She had never felt like this before; she'd never felt so depressed. And she was sick of always wondering, is it life or death?
She'd never used to feel suicidal - and she had never used to feel so damn lonely. Sometimes, the girl was so fed up of fighting herself constantly that she just wished it would all end. She wanted to take the pain away, but yet she didn't want to die. She was stuck in limbo.
Kaina gave a sigh of relief as she felt the Count take the gun away.
"So," she said in a hoarse whisper, "what do you want?"
She turned around and faced him. She narrowed her eyes.
The Count gave a light smile.
Kaina widened her eyes in puzzlement as he almost seemed to nod.
"Huh," she muttered, as she felt someone grab her from behind. She swivelled round.
And immediately paled; all the colour had disappeared from her face.
"Oh shit," she said. "You again. Don't you ever die?"
The Australian laughed.
"Oh, sweetie. I'm just doing what I'm paid to do. Nothing against you personally, dear."
Bitch, Kaina thought bitterly. She grinded her teeth.
"Sorry, Novak," she spat. She kicked the unexpecting woman and with a gasp, the Australian released her for a second.
Kaina gave a desperate look around. It wasn't looking good; the Count on one side and the Australian blocking the other side. Not exactly the nicest people you'd want to be in an alleyway with.
The Count raised his eyebrows at her, as if saying, that was quite a stupid move.
Shut the fuck up, was what she hoped her eyes said, as she glared back at him.
"Hey uh," she said, "how do you plan to lure Redfort in?"
The Count frowned at her, looking at her suspiciously, like he was trying to find out her game.
"It's an innocent question," she added quickly. "Don't tell me you don't have a plan?"
"Of course I do," the Count replied. "And you're going to make things much easier, so once again I do find myself in your debt."
"Oh, let me record that," the girl snarled sarcastically. "So you're already in my debt? How about then, you let me go and we can do this some other time?"
"If only."
"You're not much of a dealer then, are ya."
"I don't do deals with children."
"You're very arrogant."
"You're very annoying."
"Shucks, thanks, you're too kind."
"It's my pleasure."
Kaina looked around again, and her eyes fell on the litter of metal.
Gotcha.
"Talking about pleasures, it's been a real good one catching up with you again, and I hope your no doubt very-evil plan works, but I'm afraid I gotta go."
She jumped onto the metal, grabbed onto the bar above it, swung herself up and over the alleyway.
"Kaina!" the Count shouted, a look of sudden fury on his face.
"You're not getting Redfort," Kaina said, her voice very quiet.
"I already have," the Count replied. Kaina shook her head.
"Not this time. Never again."

Kaina didn't know where to go. She was alone in this world. This awful, horrific world. And she felt so lonely, at this one moment. She looked up at the sky, dark and grey. There were what, 7 billion? people on this planet, so how come this sudden feeling of loneliness had washed over her?
Happiness had been sapped out of her life as quick as it had entered. And now she had nothing. No one.
Kaina clenched her fists in irritation. She needed to talk to someone, someone she knew.
But she couldn't, could she?
Because she'd fucked up. She kept on doing that - fucking up, and people got messed around. The only heart she was breaking was her own. Maybe she wasn't right in the head. Maybe she was fucked up in the head.
Lorelei was the only one who seemed to understand her. But then again, Lorelei was properly messed up. Not exactly the best comparision.
Tyne, a voice seemed to say.
"Huh?" Kaina said aloud. The street was empty, empty and silent. Not a good sign. She needed to keep walking.
She had to get to the Redforts' house.

When she finally arrived, she knocked on the door. It was locked. Kaina's brow furrowed.
"Mrs Redfort?" Kaina called. There was no reply.
Odd, I'll check around the back.
She stealthily climbed around the house. Everywhere was locked, every-place where you could break in. Except from the windows.
"Oh damn," she muttered, as she smashed one of the windows. She climbed through.
I'm just a living casualty, she thought bitterly, as the glass fell to the floor, almost cutting her.
"Hey, Redfort? You around?" Kaina shouted. Again, no reply. She began searching in each room, but there was no one. The house was empty.
She was alone.
A feeling of dread was slowly creeping up on her.
She checked upstairs, she checked Redfort's room, but that too was empty. And then she glanced at the phone. Should she use it?
Kaina warily approached it and checked the most recent calls.
There were none. They'd all been deleted.
"Weird."
Then she searched in the basement floor, where Hitch's room was. Surely he had to be there. Kaina cautiously opened the door and entered.
It was empty. A still hot coffee was on the desk. Kaina frowned at it. There was a sticky note left to it.
LB, it read, gone to rescue Kaina.
"What?" Kaina spluttered aloud. "I ain't needing no rescuing."
What had happened here, was what Kaina was wondering. Where were Sabina and Brant? Where was Mrs Digby?
There were no signs of a break in, other than her own. No signs of force of hostage. Nothing made sense.

Ten minutes earlier...

Ruby was sitting in her bedroom, thinking. She was beginning to regret what she had said to Kaina - and why hadn't she stopped her? What if the girl actually killed herself?
And then it hit her.
She, Ruby, had been blind to it all along. Kaina was right. Clancy hadn't gone to the Wichitinos. He'd been taken.
She needed to tell Hitch this - and Kaina, she, she could be in danger.
"God Redfort, you're such an ass," Ruby muttered to herself.
Ruby was leaving her room when her donut phone started ringing.
Maybe it's Clancy. Maybe he is alright, Ruby thought desperately. She picked up the phone.
"Hi, who's there?" she said. She didn't have time right now to do her usual greeting when picking up the phone.
"Redfort," came a relieved sounding voice from the other end. "You're here. I need your help. Urgently."
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked, puzzled. "Kaina, is that you?"
"Who else would it be?" snapped the voice. "Just hurry the fuck up and get here. East to Twinford you'll see that large building. Get there, the code's 54971, Crew's here and I need back-up."
"Shall I get Hitch?"
"Sure. Just hurry."
The line went dead. Ruby ran to Hitch's apartment of the house as quick as she could.