G.U.A.R.D. Book #2: Aberrations

-16-

    I fiddled with the new wrapping around my left hand. The land went by in a blur below the car, but my mind was elsewhere. After the incident with Lady Scarlet, the people staying in the motel—and the people running it—were in a state of panic. I guess gunfights weren't normal for Lake Watson. We slipped away in the frenzy, looking like a strange family just as scared as the everyone else. By the noise level of the sirens, I knew the police showed up not long after. Mustard said G.U.A.R.D. would take care of it. Again.

Before we made our escape, Ninja wrapped up my left hand, and the commander bagged the knife as evidence while everyone else packed up the two vehicles. However, before I could join the others, Max ran back up the steps to the room. Mustard gave him a look that clearly said to make it quick, then ordered Ninja to stay put and guard us.

My friend took one look at me, and I could tell he was mad. He had been doing his best to ignore me ever since the incident with the League, but now he looked me straight in the eye.

I couldn't think of anything else to say, so I began with, "You're not the only one who's upset-"

"And do you know why I'm upset, Dustin?" he responded with a strong voice. "I gave you a choice. I warned you that we didn't know what we were up against. I said you could leave Cindy behind. She didn't have to die."

"So you're blaming this on me." It wasn't a question. It was statement. A fact. I said it with a straight face, but more anger burned in my heart. And yet the hurt stabbed deeper.

"Well, what do you expect me to do? Winter's broken. We lost Ally, our parents, and now Cindy."

"I was set up! I couldn't do anything. Lady Scarlet planned it from the start. And don't forget—you could have stopped Cindy from coming, too."

There was a tough moment of tension. Ninja glanced over for a second, then turned her gaze back to the parking lot. Then Max unexpectedly stepped forward and embraced me strongly in his one good arm. I was way too surprised to react. My eyes widened. When he finally drew back, Max grabbed my shoulder with his left hand and looked me in the eye.

"Thanks for bringing my little brother back, Dustin. And I know I could've stopped Cindy. But... I wasn't the one who liked her. And I'm not the one with parents in a secret agency. I gave the choice to you because it was you who was endangering her. What she did saved both you and Conner... but I want you to keep asking yourself this: 'Did I make the right choice?'"

Now I sat in Mustard's car with her driving, Ninja in the passenger's seat, and Anthony across from me. He seemed mad, too, but I couldn't tell if it was at me or not. If anything, actually, the guy seemed to be trying to keep it together, but I occasionally heard a sniff. I continued staring at the window.

So many things were zooming in my mind, it was hard to make sense of it. What Lady Scarlet said really got to me. The League would always be there. They would be always be shadowing my every step, trying any way possible to get close to me. Since the moment Ally was picked up and flown to G.U.A.R.D, my life completely changed—it wasn't my life anymore. It was a tug-of-war between G.U.A.R.D. and the League.

I sighed and unclipped my seat belt, lifting my feet up on the vacant seat by my side. I felt so guilty towards Cindy's death, part of me was glad Winter was in the other car. I mean, sure, she was using a sleeper, but at least she wasn't right next to me, dreaming about what happened.

I pulled out the pictures from my cargo pants. Anthony glanced over for a second, then resumed his stare at the ground.

My eyes gazed at the picture of Mom's family. Her two brothers. Sister. Parents. It was so weird. I had uncles. And an aunt. And if I had them, I was bound to have cousins, right? That was almost weirder than the thought of Mom being with someone before Dad.