Invisible || h.s.

24: Exit with a bang

This is the last chapter of the second part of this story. Be prepared for a bumpy ride, and remember to leave some feedback if you're enjoying your read.

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Just like our time camping in the forest all these weeks ago, staying at the bunker had managed to lull me into a false sense of security, to the point where I believed myself to be practically invincible in the company of my own personal bodyguards. My developing relationship with Harry didn't help the matter either, making the whole situation appear almost domestic.....normal. And it definitely was not normal.

The sad truth is that no one is untouchable—not even Harry, who up until then I had seen as an almost God-like figure; my own personal hero who'd always be there to save the day.

The ambush marked the moment of the bubble officially bursting, and for the first time since that fateful night at the bar, I was truly aware of the ugliness of my own situation. If it weren't for the fact that my head felt clearer than it had been in years, I might have completely broken down.

"I need to know whether you've remembered anything important," Zayn spoke up from his spot at the large communication center in the control room. Although the man had been trying to focus on the situation at hand, his mind clearly kept running back to me and my earlier confession in his office.

Zayn, I remember everything.

"We'll talk about it once we reunite with Harry," I said softly, holding my left hand with the right one to stop its rapid shaking. Despite the fact that I've been doing much better after the weeks spent in the bunker, there were still occasional moments when my anxiety would try to overwhelm me, and that was definitely proving to be one of those times.

"I've lost contact with him while you were still unconscious," Zayn informed me. "They must be jamming the signal in the entire neighborhood; both our phones and the online communication are down."

"They can do that?" I murmured with a hint of surprise in my voice. Although I was far from being an expert on technical stuff, I knew that the only way to disable the communication was to jam the signal from the nearest radio tower, which meant they were not only cutting us off, but also every person in that area. Is that even legal?

"They can do it easily," Zayn sighed, "and before you ask—no, they do not need anyone's permission. ICE is famous for using questionable methods."

"Is there any other way of contacting Harry?"

"No. He was supposed to draw the agents away long enough so we could get out and meet him in the randezvous point," he gestured to the live feed of the cameras outside, showing five agents kneeling behind a makeshift wall with their guns pointed firmly at the entrance to the bunker, "but, as you can clearly see, that didn't happen."

Shaking my head in denial, I lowly murmured, "We need to give him more time."

"It's been four hours," Zayn shook his head with a taunting smile. "He's gone, doll."

A wave of helplessness washed over me as I kept staring at the screen, my thoughts running back to the vision of my mother I had seen in my dreams. 'He's played you' were the words she had uttered to me; a statement which I vehemently refused to believe, and still couldn't, not even with everything pointing to Harry being gone for real this time.

"We need to give him more time," I repeated uncertainly, my voice cracking at the end.

Zayn remained quiet for a couple of seconds, until he got up abruptly, closing the distance between us to look me straight in the eyes. "Harry puts the mission above everything else, and right now, the only way to continue it was by removing himself from this risky situation," he murmured, but I only shook my head harder, not wanting to believe the words falling from his mouth. "I know it's painful, but hurting is what makes us grow stronger. If anyone's a good example of that, it's you, Hope."