Dark Blood

Chapter 8

No.

She stared at the somber army man sitting next to her on the bed. Were they sitting? She couldn't tell. To her, it felt more like she was sinking. Something tugged on her limbs, on her heart, on her mind. Begging to be pulled deep into the cold bed beneath her. To escape this room, to escape the words that had just dribbled from the soldier's mouth like a poison. Flashes of their faces appeared in the mind. Her mother. Her father. Her friends. Her grandparents and relatives. Her beloved brother...

No.

It was killing her. Killing her slowly. The yearning to know. The desperation to find them. But also the fear. Anxiety. What state would they be in when she did find them? If she found them.

She opened her mouth, but it just hung slack. Nothing came out. Just a halting "what" that sounded more like a cough or grunt. It was like her mind was glitching. Someone had tried updating her but had forgotten to add a new operating system.

No.

That's what her entire being was screaming. No, they can't be gone. No, they can't have disappeared. All the hotel occupants? No, this can't be happening. The understanding look on the soldier's face, masking his true fear beneath his sad gaze, confirmed that it was indeed happening. He put an awkward arm around her and patted her shoulder in a form of comfort, but it didn't register. They were all gone. Everyone. She closed her eyes, rubbing her temple. Her mind throbbed with the complete and utter hopelessness of the situation. She couldn't think of anything, nothing, that she could do. What could she of a people, a girl with no sort of combat or tactical training and no life, do now to help her family.

Kara shook herself from her shock. Her mind, though still rattled, had started functioning again. She needed to focus. She needed to start working this out and prioritizing, deciding what questions she needed to ask, what she needed to know, and what the best course of action was. When she entered this state of logistical focus, she felt no real emotion. Her walls were raised, her subconscious completely shut down. No distractions. Just pure, steadfast determination and desperation to solve whatever chaotic problem she faced. In this case, the disappearance of her entire family. Well, at least it wasn't calculus.

"How?" Her voice shook and was barely audible. The soldier turned to her.

"What?"

Kara cleared her throat. Come on, be strong. They need you. She opened her eyes and met the soldier's gaze. "How?"

The soldier straightened. He recognized the look on her face. Touchy-feeling-sad time was over.

"The assailants came through via the balcony," he nodded in the direction of the sliding glass door. "All of them were open, none of them were locked."

"Why would they be? We're on the third floor."

He sighed. "Understandable. And unfortunately, an advantage. They are incredible climbers."

He started to continue about the surprising lack of destruction in the rooms, but Kara cut him off. It was pointless information that she didn't need.

"Who's they? Who are the assailants?"

An extremely tense silence enveloped the room. Kara could even feel the tension coming from those still in the hallway. Her nerves tingled and jumped under her skin. Whoever they were, these guys feared them whole-heartedly. Not good.

The men shuffled unsteadily on their feet, shifting their guns around and grinding their teeth. The one on the bed looked at her with a stern gaze. No, was it stern? Pleading. She could see that he desperately wanted to tell her, but something was holding him back.