How To Ruin A City

Chapter Sixteen

Nic

Catalina looked between the three of us. "I might have already made the same deal with Zack tonight. I mean, he wasn't trying to blackmail me like you are, but I offered to help take down the Saviors and Blazing and Polar."

Okay, hold the fuck up. Let's back up a step here.

Luna's eyes narrowed. "Really?"

Catalina nodded. "Yeah, really. Don't get me wrong. I could say I don't want people to get hurt when I can stop it, and I don't want people to get hurt, but I'm not doing this to be a hero. I want to make Blazing and Polar pay. Plus, with the Saviors out of my way, I could commit a lot more crimes without having to worry about getting murdered."

Luna was staring to smile until she heard the last part.

I took off my mask, still bothered by the fact Catalina made a deal with Zack and didn't tell me. It wasn't like she really had the chance to, but still. "We need to start being honest with each other. Right now. No more lies, no more secrets. This isn't ever going to work if we can't trust each other."

Zack took off his mask too. Luna and him were wearing matching expressions that shined with interest. Catalina just looked over with me with a blank stare and I was suddenly reminded that I still barely knew her.

"I'll start from the beginning," I said.

Zack facepalmed.

"When Glacier first robbed that gas station, I showed up to stop her and we made a deal. I'd let her go each time we fought so I could keep making money from the fights and preventing property damage and stuff."

Catalina smiled to herself, staring down at the floor. I started to smile too and forced myself to stop.

"We figured each other's identities out not too long after we first met."

Yeah, that's one way of saying what happened on that Ferris wheel.

"At Fright Fest," Catalina chimed in. "And then we ran into each other at school."

I rolled my eyes at that memory. "Apparently our moms are close friends, so we kept having opportunities to spend time together. I guess we became friends pretty quickly. I obviously didn't tell either of you to the truth, but Zack found out on his own."

Zack scowled.

I sighed and turned to Luna. "I threatened him to keep it a secret. And now you know."

"That's all I really have to say from my side," Zack said.

Catalina cleared her throat, meeting my eyes. I stared her down for a moment, taking in the guilty look, before she looked away.

It's funny how she can be so close to me but feel so far away. I could just reach out and touch her arm, but at the same time, it feels like there's something holding me back. This is weird. I hate it. I just want us to go back to normal.

"I..." Catalina trailed off and sighed uneasily. "I've been hiding something or keeping it to myself or whatever. I didn't want to tell you because...I just...There's this girl at school named Chloe. She works for the Saviors."

Dead silence.

Luna paled and Zack's eyes widened. I don't know how I was reacting. I know how I felt, though. Hot. It was a struggle to keep myself from burning something. I started tapping my foot and fidgeting each time Catalina took in a breath to release the pent up energy.

"Chloe told me she needed me to get some files on Viper and Oleander. She told me I couldn't tell you or else she'd kill me. And you." Catalina looked down. "I'm sorry, Nic."