Amanita: Poison Shot

Chapter 47: My Hot Friend, My Future Boss

I left Amanita when Agape practically kicked all of us out of her office so that she could start working on the mosquitoes immediately.

All the rebels had stuff to do that afternoon. Siegfried had to go to hockey practice with Gabi, for example. His mood was downcast, detached and cold again, whereas the rest was in a much brighter mood after Agape's fit of passion.

"I can't give you a ride home, Daphne," Siegfried told me in a sad mood, but trying to veil it, while he got on his bike. "The coach will kill me if I'm late again. I can drop you off by our hockey court if that's okay with you."

"Don't worry. I'll walk the rest of the way home from there," I replied gently. "I don't mind."

He didn't say anything further as he put on his helmet, and then I got on his bike behind him, and we rode away with Gabi.

When we got there, their coach spotted me and gave me the evil eye, but didn't say a word. I guess he didn't want me there. I assumed many girls might go there to fangirl while the guys trained, and when I saw some teenage girls frantically yell at Siegfried, I understood.

So, we said our farewells and I went home alone. Luckily, my father was still working at the chocolate factory when I got a call on our landline that would turn my life upside-down.

"Daphne! Are you okay?!" Eros asked as if his own life was on the line. "I just called Replica Ltd., and they told me you were sick! Are you hurt?!"

"No, no, I'm fine. More or less fine," I replied trying to calm him down. "Just a runny nose and a low fever, that's all. Dr Bentnose sent me home just to be on the safe side. The clients would complain, you know."

"For a second I worried that you had got injured as you fled from my home or something!" he exclaimed with genuine worry. "I was worried sick when... when my father's got home and you had to flee through the bathroom window. He's locked me with him in the safe room in our basement for an hour until our bodyguards and the GSNS have given us the green light to go out. And when I've gone to my bathroom and seen the badly locked window, I've guessed you left it that way... and that you must've fled through the garden."

"Yeah, that was me," I replied admitting the truth. "You guessed right. B-but... w-what's happened? Why did you have to go into the safe room?" I asked with fake naivety.

"The terrorists have murdered eight of my father's best friends," he explained seriously. "They were either colleagues from Parliament or important people in high places, like the media president or some of the GSNS' CEOs, for example. Their families or immediate co-workers have been murdered too – for as long as they were with them at that precise moment. All the witnesses have been murdered."

"Oh my..." I whispered weakly over the phone while getting paler.

"It's a huge mess, Daphne. But don't worry. I'm fine," he added in a hurry. "My parents are fine, too."

I sighed with relief. I'd hate to hear that he was hurt, or that Mrs Nevermore would've been murdered. Agape had promised me both of them would be safe.

"What about your father?" I asked him with a grim tone of voice. "Has he beaten you because of me?"

"Don't worry about that either. He was too busy with the current crisis to bother about us."

I sighed in relief.

"But he might do something about it later, when he's not so busy, I'm afraid," I replied, imagining what might happen to Eros soon. "Are you worried that he might...?"

"Just... just don't worry about me, Daphne. I'm used to it," he replied in a heartbeat with a tired tone of voice, but then he added with determination: "I swear I shall protect you – from everything."