Wanted Assassins

We lost more than we won

I force myself to stand up and walk into the hallway. I feel numb, as if I'm in a dream.

The guards lay still on the floor. The cold, white tile is stained red. It doesn't take an expert to see that they're dead.

Alice and Brenna are speaking in hushed voices at the end of the hallway, glancing up every few seconds to see if anyone is coming. 

I walk over slowly, still in a daze. Kai is dead. I still can't believe it. Yet every time I blink, I see Kai's lifeless face.

"...friends in the organization we can get to help," I hear Alice say as I walk over.

Alice and Brenna glance up as I approach. Brenna gives me a sympathetic smile. Alice doesn't do anything, but I can see in her eyes she's hurting just as much as I am. Kai was her friend too, after all.

"What's the plan?" I ask. My voice sounds scratchy and raw.

"We're going to get Lukas and Morgan to help us. They probably will," Alice says, glancing over her shoulder. "We should move."

"Lead the way," Brenna says. 

Alice walks down the classroom hallway toward the dorm hallway. Brenna follows her. 

I trail the girls. Kai is dead. I can't get it out of my head. 

As we turn down the dorm hallways, we run into three guards. Alice shoots one in the head. Brenna shoots another in the chest. The third collapses. I realize my arm is outstretched, gun in hand. I don't even remember pulling the trigger.

A dorm door opens. A girl pokes her head out. It takes me a minute to recognize her as Morgan.

"Alice?" Morgan whispers.

Alice nods. Morgan runs into the hallway and throws her arms around Alice. She looks over Alice's shoulder and sees me.

"Hey, Blaze," Morgan says, nodding and stepping away from Alice.

Morgan's gaze shifts to Brenna. "Who's this?" Morgan asks.

"I could ask the same thing to you," Brenna says, crossing her arms.

"That's Brenna," Alice says.

Morgan nods at Brenna, then turns to us. "Where's Kai and Lucy?" She asks.

My throat swells up. I feel like I'm spinning. My vision blurs, probably from tears.

Alice shakes her head at Morgan. "Lucy betrayed us and Kai...he's..." Alice trails off.

Morgan presses a hand over her mouth. "No," She whispers.

"I know," Alice says.

"What do you need me to do?" Morgan asks, wiping a tear from her eye.

"Get Lukas and get everyone out of the building. We're blowing it up," Alice says.

Morgan nods. "I can do that. Don't blow the place up for another twenty minutes, though. I don't feel like being blown up today."

Alice shrugs. "That's fair."

Morgan jogs over to the dorm Lukas is in. Alice turns and runs over to the stairwell. Brenna and I are close behind.

I'm hit with a tsunami of anger about Kai. I suddenly feel like I need to kill someone. I need to kill every worker in The Organization.

I run up the stairs as fast as possible to the third floor; the highest floor. I throw open the stairwell door. A guard rounds the corner. I shoot him before he realizes I'm there.