It was pitch black outside when James woke up. Groggily, he wiped the sleep from his eyes, yawning. He blinked at the glowing lights of the digital clock until his eyes finally focused.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCSjZZvMn2x
4:45
Counting the hours, he knew he had a little over four hours until he and his co-workers would meet to discuss their assignment. So, he slipped out of the warm bed and readjusted it, leaving no wrinkles behind. He left his brother's room and padded across the cold wooden floor until he reached his and changed into a new set of clothes, grabbing his gym bag and duffel for the mission.
He settled for his jacket as he frisked out the door, the chilly air crystallizing his breath before him. His car waited for him in the driveway, accompanied by his parents’ cars, and he jumped inside, quickly turning over the engine. It roared to life and heat blasted him, sending away the lingering chills, then he drove away from his house until it disappeared from his rear-view window.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9P4CANGnkQ
The tall work building was too quiet, even at this hour for James. He went straight up to the top floor in the elevator, pinging once it reached the top. The doors opened, revealing heavy weight machines, punching bags, treadmills, among other things. He sighed in relief. When he needed a quiet morning, or when he needed to release some frustration, this is where he'd come. He went straight to the punching bags, dropping his things a few feet away from it and slipped on his gloves.
He zoned in, calming his heartbeat, and let instinct take over. He did a series of left and right punches, the sounds of each punch like music to his ears. Before long, he was into his full workout, and his mind drifted to last night. His father screaming and disgracing Nate. The anger resurfaced, boiling in his stomach, and the bag became his father's face. Angry tears streamed down his face as the anger turned from his father to himself, images from that night reminding him how reckless he was, reminding him how he waved off the final minutes with his brother as a mere second of millions more. A pain grew in his chest, expanding and becoming stronger with every punch he threw.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcPeM7ai0nh
If he could have just paid more attention… If he’d just been more prepared… If he had just a few more minutes with Nate… James gave it one final swing, putting all his weight into it, and knocked the punching bag off the chain. It hit the floor with a thunk! He spun around, angry tears running down his face. His knees gave out from beneath him, and he collapsed. James took deep, slow breaths, trying to recover his composure. Wiping the tears from his face, he stood and took a seat on the bench nearby and pulled off the gloves. Resting his head on his hand, he shifted his gaze to the mirror, seeing his reflection stare right back at him. Dried blood still spotted his face and heavy bags underlined his eyes. Sighing, he put his face in his hands. The anger that had built up inside him had released, and what was left was the guilty pit in his stomach. None of this would be the way it was if he hadn't...
James shook the thought instantly. He shouldn’t think about things that he couldn’t change… not matter how much he wanted to. He stood and reattached the punching bag to the chain and went to the showers. Maybe he could finally get off his mind what had been eating at him for far too long.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBUv1KasAdz
After a cold shower, James redressed, forgetting the shirt, and wrapped his towel around his neck. He then went straight to his office two floors down, his bare feet slapping against the tile floor. The place was still relatively quiet, but more people were bustling in for an early start. He was surprised to see many office lights on at six-thirty in the morning. He came to his door and stepped inside the dark office. The smell of lemons wafted toward him and he dropped his things in the nearest chair before heading to his desk. He spun around, cracking his knuckles, and brought his computer to life. “What else can we find on you, Lucy?” he muttered, and began typing away on his computer, hair still dripping wet and all.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTVYSQRSgID
James was so lost in his information search that for the first few knocks, he didn't even hear that someone was behind the door. Blinking hard, he managed to break his concentration and went to the door, opening it a crack, and saw a pale guy with so dark of eyes that James couldn't see where his irises ended and his pupils began. Austin Moore.
“We're all here when you're ready.”
Leaning against the door, James replied, “What time is it?”
Austin gave a concerned look. “It’s almost nine o’clock. How long have you been here?”
Sighing, James ran a hand over his face. “Too long. Just have everyone join me in the meeting room, Austin. We have a lot to discuss.”
Austin ran a hand through his black hair and nodded. “Alright. See you in ten?”
James nodded and shut the door. He gathered his duffel bag and shoved the extra information he had printed and tossed it in the bag, then threw it over his shoulder. Right as he reached the door, his hand still on the knob, he realized he still hadn't thrown on a shirt. Cursing, he dropped the bag and went to his desk, shifting in the bottom drawer until he found an extra shirt he saved for a moment like this. Tugging his shirt over his head, he hurried back to the door, slung the bag onto his shoulder, and left his office. Like habit, he tapped his fingers against his side as he went down the long hallway, until he reached the fourth door from the end. He swung the door open wide and his four co-workers turned to face him. He noticed all of them wore tired expression, except for Aaron, who never seemed to be phased with an early start. Austin stood off to the side, leaning against the wall, arms crossed. When he noticed James, he pushed off the wall in greeting.
“Good morning.” James pulled the folders he had prepared and handed them to his co-workers as he passed.
Xavier yawned as he received one of the files. “Too early for it to be good, if you ask me.” He ran a hand over his scarred face and jet black hair, as if it'd help him stay awake.
James chuckled under his breath and shook his head. He handed another folder to Aaron, who bounced in his seat.
“There's coffee if you want any. It's really good today.” Aaron said, wide green eyes everywhere and nowhere at once.
Cursing, James gave his other co-workers a glare. “Who let the ginger have coffee. We've already had this discussion with him and caffeine.”
Austin chuckled as he received his folder. “No one let Aaron have coffee. He went and got his own before he came in here.”
James rolled his eyes and gave the last folder, besides his own, to Justice, who sat on his left. Her blue eyes didn't even glance up to meet his. She took the folder and immediately began studying the information inside, her long blonde hair covering her face. A lump began to form in his throat, but swallowed it down. He didn't have time to fix their problem. Not for a while. He sighed and sat down at the head of the table and his co-workers settled down in their seats too, scanning their material.
“We've been assigned to capture the terrorist of twenty-thirty-nine alive. I've already done research on our target and I believe it is Lucy Rodriguez.” He crossed his arms over his chest, waiting for them to examine the info he gave them.
“Where'd you get the info on her from? Some of this seems a little sketchy.” Xavier cut his dark eyes over to him, his eyebrows furrowed in question.
James shrugged. “I looked in our database. Then when I didn't get much information on her then, I hacked into her records and online bases and found some things there too. There's not much on her besides that her parents died when she was five. There's no more information about her from her records.” His co-workers prepared a retort, but he threw a hand up to silent their thoughts and continued. “Says she should be at some foster home, but her online and social media, luckily, gave me an address where she lives, and I was able to pinpoint her home. Maybe there's a foster home out there, but it beats me. She disappeared until she was thirteen, two years ago, when she created her social media accounts. Who knows where she was until then.”
“Seems fishy to me,” Aaron said, flipping at the little information that they did have. “For someone to have caused a terrorist attack, her profile and history doesn't add up to this.”
James shook his head in response. “It doesn't. Which is why we're going scouting today. Meeting is over. We're heading out in twenty.”
A little over three hours later, James finally pulled off onto a bumpy dirt road, littered with potholes, heading straight up a hill where the manor was. He was glad that he didn't have to go up in their business van. He put the car in park and took his duffel that laid between him and Justice in the front seats. He pulled out a walkie-talkies and binoculars, handing each of them to the guys in the back. “Welcome to Lucy Rodriguez's home. Or manor, really.” While he waited on them, he studied their gear, double-checking everything. They had changed before leaving, exchanging their jeans and T-shirts for their dark, tighter fitted clothes for stealth. They're guns hung at their sides, locked and ready to use at any moment. Their walkie-talkies were at their shoulder when needed, and four pockets, one on each ankle and wrist, which held four knives in case their weapon went out of service. He and Justice also wore like outfits.
Once he finished his mental list, he spoke. “Here's the plan. You three will form a perimeter around the manor and keep an eye out. Xavier, take the high ground; you’ll be our lookout. Do not make contact with the target. Remember the protocol: The only time you make contact is if one of the guards see you. If you’re seen, you are to radio in with the walkie and meet back here. I'd like to keep this as covert as possible. So only use your gun if it's absolutely necessary. Understand?”
The three boys all gave solemn nods.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzZiW7ry1Dg
James sighed. “Any questions?”
“How long will we be out here?” Xavier tapped the watch on his wrist.
“We’re going to be staked out here for a while, at least until eight tonight,” James answered. He waited a few more moments, and when no one spoke up, he unlocked the doors. ` “Now, get into your positions.”
The three guys climbed out of the back and waited as James rolled down the window. “Our main goal today is surveillance. I’ll radio you at 2000 to check your status. If everything goes well, I’ll order pizza tonight. My treat.” They gave him a curt nod before disappearing into the greenery before them, surrounding the perimeter of the manor. As soon as they had left, James rolled up his window and fell back against the headrest. He sighed deeply, a dull pain growing around his ribs and torso. Probably from last night. He readjusted in his seat, but the pain didn't weaken like he'd hoped. He peeked a glance over at Justice, who hadn't said a word to him the entire day, which was odd for her. He swallowed down the lump beginning to form in his throat. She couldn't possibly still be mad about the other day, could she?
As if on cue, Justice spoke up then. “Look, I know we’re on a mission, but we need to talk, James. About the fight we had.” she asked.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3vm6pWXbjn
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James sighed again and looked sidelong at her. When he looked into her electric blue eyes, he felt his stomach tighten and his mouth turn to cotton, like always. He didn’t want to lose her and didn’t like where this was heading. He thought back to their fight, and grimaced inwardly at the memory. A party they’d planned to attend. The night before, his father beat him, the worst he had yet, and there was no way he could dance at a party after that. But she didn’t know that. He should've just told her the truth. But telling her meant admitting he was weak. Admitting that he wasn’t strong enough to handle his life.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmUEmCTflzL
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"What’s there to talk about, JJ? Just sit back and enjoy the warmth and music,” James said finally. He turned away and switched on the radio and heat to full blast, hoping it would end the conversation. He used her nickname he'd given her when they were kids, hoping it would take away some of the harshness in his words. He remembered he'd given her the name when they'd first met. He couldn't say her name right, so he called her JJ. He smiled slightly, still remembering his lack of pronunciation skills.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhLfYlqE9OY
“So, that’s it? We’re done. Just like that. You’re not going to try to fix any of this?”875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ68pd6ZvsMC
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The pain in his side was beginning to worsen. He knew he should've taken some pain medicine before he left, but he didn't. He clenched his teeth together. What was there to say to her?875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHlq4Cpk6Ko
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“I can’t believe you! After six months, you’re just going to drop it like—”
James cringed at her harsh words. He reached over and clasped his hand in one of hers, his grip so tight that it shocked her to silence. “I'm not suggesting we break up, JJ.” He took a deep breath, swallowing down the pain of his probably bruised ribs. “That's the last thing I'd suggest.” James looked over at her and bit his lower lip. Should he tell her the truth, the whole truth? “I'm just... It's been really hard lately—” His voice betrayed him and cracked. No. Too dangerous. He cleared his throat and released her hand. “You wouldn't understand.”
For a few moments Justice was silent, giving him a chance to calm himself. Can't reveal too much, he thought. Keep your barriers up, she has to be distant. She has to.
But finally, she spoke so small that he barely heard her. “I want to understand.” She waited for a few moments, as if wanting him to reply, then pressed. “Tell me, so I do.”
His brows came together in pain as he brought his fist up to his mouth and bit hard into his knuckles. He looked out the driver's side window, keeping his face from her. His throat felt tight and his tongue was heavy in his mouth. Breathing deeply, he pushed down the emotions threatening to bubble up. “It's better that you don't.” Because if you know, you could get hurt. I can't allow that.
He heard her intake a breath and he braced himself, expecting to hear a break-up. His heart sunk a little. Another friend lost. It seemed that's all he could do now. Lose.
“James?”
He forced himself to look over at her and saw she was studying him quizzically. “Yeah?”
“Your face... it's swollen a little, on your left side.” She brought her hand up to his face, barely touching his cheek.
He swallowed hard, cursing himself inwardly. He hoped the swelling had gone down after his cold shower and ice pack he'd had on his face. He dropped his gaze from hers.
“Did he... did he hurt you?”
James stayed silent.
“He hurt you that day too… didn’t he?”
James bit his lip, keeping his gaze away. “Justice…stop.”
She frowned, sinking back into her seat, but instead of ignoring him, like he expected, she took his free hand in hers, locking fingers. He glanced over at her right as she lifted their hands and kissed the back of his. “You don’t have to hide this from me. I already know what goes on. And I promised I would be there for you. I'm not going anywhere.”
He turned his head back to the window and closed his eyes. I'm not going anywhere. That's what his brother had said, countless times. He was gone. She's going to go too, some day, he told himself. But even as he thought it, he hoped—he wished he was wrong.
The sun sank behind the manor, and the sky turned from its orange hue to a darker blue. James dropped the binoculars in his lap and leaned back. “Looks like we'll be leaving soon.” Sighing, he rubbed a hand over his face.
“And it looks like you'll be ordering pizza tonight too.” Justice cracked a smile.
It was late in the afternoon and, thankfully, there had been no problems reported. A smirk crossed James' face for the first time that day. “I did promise them, didn't I?”
“Remember to order Xavier two large ones for himself. You know how he is,” Justice muttered.
James shook his head. “I still don't understand how he can eat so much junk without gaining a pound.”
Justice laughed and pulled down the visor to see her reflection in the mirror. She tucked a curl of blond hair behind her ear. “Well, technically it depends on how your...” Justice let the sentence trail off and James turned to her.
“It depends on how my what?” The smirk on his face faded when he saw her face pale. He froze. “What is it?”
“Behind us, outside the van,” she murmured.
James' heart jumped in his throat and he slowly lowered his hand to his gun. As soon as he moved, crunching and snapping sounds met his ears and he spun to the door, pulling the weapon from his belt.
He looked straight into a barrel of a gun.
The man holding the gun wore dark greens, browns, and some blacks. James could tell he was Hispanic, like him. His dark skin and sharp features gave it away. “Suelte el arma y salir de la furgoneta," the man said quickly. James immediately understood the language as his native. Drop the weapon and get out of the van, he had said. He looked around James, and his eyes landed on Justice, a playful, seductive look plastering his face. He cracked a smile and winked at her. James growled in his throat.
“Touch her and I'll kill you,” James spat in the same language, but set down the gun.
The man tore his gaze from Justice and scowled at James. He threw open the door and jerked him from the vehicle.
“James!” Justice squeaked.
He forced himself not to look back at her as the door shut behind him. Another Hispanic guy appeared and shoved James against the van, pulling his arms behind his back. Through the window, he could see Justice being pulled from the van, by two other guys. She struggled against them, but didn't make a sound.
James sucked in a breath and threw himself off the van, kicking out a foot at one of the men. He hit him in the groin, causing him to fall. The other was quicker, though, and caught James by the throat, slamming him back against the vehicle. “Bad idea,” the guy muttered.
James coughed and tried to suck in air, but his windpipe was cut off. He didn't dare move, though. The man smiled before forcing him to turn around again and cold metal touched James' wrists followed by a snap. Handcuffs. The other guy finally picked himself up and grabbed James by the arm, leading him around the front of the vehicle. The other two holding Justice did the same and brought James and Justice to their knees. The man James had kicked in the groin spat at him and kicked him in the gut. Air left his lungs as he fell over on his side. He heard Justice scream, “Leave him alone!”
James gritted his teeth together and clenched his jaw, trying not to groan. Once he caught his breath, his anger turned from the men to himself. How could I not have seen them? There was no way they could've gotten around the van without us knowing.
“Should we bring them back with us?” one asked, still speaking Spanish.
The man that had disarmed James spoke, “Not the girl. It's a shame, though. She's a pretty one. We can make her death quick.” James took a mental note. That guy must be the leader of the group.
“What are they saying, James?” Justice whispered. “I don't understand.”
James just shook his head in reply. “Don’t give in, JJ. Be strong.”
The leader turned suddenly and knelt in front of Justice and grabbed her chin with his index finger and thumb. He turned her head to the side. He smirked at her and switched to a heavy accented English. “I have an offer for you, girl. Come home with me and I won't kill you. I'll make sure we have a fun time.”
Justice furrowed her brows together, then spat at him. He jerked back and wiped at his face. The other three guys ran to the leader and pulled him away. James felt a moment of pride and couldn’t help but smirk at them. The guards muttered a few things too softly for James to hear before one pulled away from them and grabbed Justice. She screamed and fought in his grip, flailing her legs and jerking her arms.
“Let her go!” James shouted. “Leave her alone!”
The guard pulled out a knife and held it at Justice's neck, stilling her movements. “Slit her throat,” the leader muttered and turned around.
“No!” James lunged at Justice, but two of the men caught him, pulling him back. He fought against their iron grips with everything he had before they slammed him into the grass, pushing his face into the dirt. James struggled against them, but it was no use. James squeezed his eyes shut, refusing to believe what he was about to witness.
For a moment, there was silence. James began to wonder if they'd already killed her when Justice screamed and a gun fired. James' stomach twisted up into knots and he felt like he was going to throw up. Justice dead... he couldn't convince himself to open his eyes to see a bullet in her head—
A thought struck him. The leader hadn't ordered to shoot her, but slit her throat.
More gun shots sounded. The hands holding James disappeared, leaving James face down on the ground. But who was firing the shots?
Aaron's voice cut through the air. “LET'S GET EM!”
Relief overwhelmed James. His co-workers finally arrived.
Shots fired and the sounds of fighting filled his ears. Frustrated, he tugged at the handcuffs, feeling the metal bite into his flesh and soon hot blood dripped from his wrists. Then James felt a pair of hands on his back and he tensed, ready to attack, when someone hissed in his ear. “It's me.” Xavier. He played with the cuffs for a moment and they fell free just a few seconds later. “Simple locksmith stuff.”
Xavier scrambled up and offered a hand to James, which he took, and stood. He pulled out his pocketknife from his back pocket. He glanced at the fight and saw Aaron flat on his back with a guard on top of him, holding a gun to his head just a few feet away. Shoving Xavier over to Austin, James shouted, “Go help Austin!”
James didn't hesitate. He dove at the guard and tackled him, grabbing the gun at an awkward angle just as it fired. Pain shot up his arm, but he ignored it and threw the guard off Aaron, jerking the gun out of his hand at the same time. The guard fell a few feet away groaning. James pointed the gun and fired, not even looking to see where he hit. It was a good shot anyway.
James turned and held out a hand to Aaron, who stared at him with bright emerald eyes before accepting. “Screaming 'let's get them' isn't always the best way to reveal yourself, Aaron.”
Aaron gave a sheepish grin to him in return.
Another harsh scream and James spun, seeing Justice kick her foot out at the leader. Rage boiled in his chest as he lifted the gun again and fired as he jerked back, stunned. The bullet met and the Hispanic leader twisted around and fell.
Austin and Xavier clapped each other on the back, the other two guards lying unconscious at their feet. James gave a pointed glare and turned back to the van. The others hurried to catch up to him.
“James, you alright?” Austin asked once at his side.
“Yeah. Thanks for helping us out back there.” He glared at Austin again.
“Thought you might need some help,” Austin said sarcastically. Austin's nose was bleeding, though it didn't look broken, but he couldn't be for sure. He'd probably feel the effects of it the next day.
“Is everyone alright?” James asked.
His friend shrugged. “Nothing much. Xavier got a good knock in the head, Aaron may have a broken hand, and I've got this nose problem, but I doubt it's broken. We'll live. You?”
“I'm fine.” James attempted to get ahead of Austin, but his friend grabbed his injured arm, causing him to hiss in pain.
“Yeah right, you're fine,” he muttered. Austin jerked James to a halt and examined his arm. Layers of bloody skin covered his arm in shredded patches. They both winced. “Bullet must've gotcha good, huh?”
“Barely felt it,” he growled between clenched teeth. He jerked his arm back and regretted it instantly. Pain flared up his arm and through his shoulder, causing his knees to buckle. Austin caught his shoulder and steadied him.
“Justice needs to look at that,” Austin murmured, and gave a quick jerk of his head in the direction of her. James looked over his shoulder and saw Aaron, Xavier, and her walking just a few feet away from them. She was too busy scanning the two boys to pay much attention to him and Austin.
“She's busy.”
“I'm serious, James—”
He jerked his arm from his friend's hand. "You are not my brother, Austin. So leave me the hell alone.”
Austin's shoulders fell automatically and any care or sympathy left his eyes along with whatever reply he had.
James gave a curt nod and hurried his steps, wanting to get to the van so they could leave. Austin adjusted his pace to match his and stayed right behind him.
Then more figures jumped out of the forest.
“DAMMIT!” James shouted. He spun toward Austin and saw the dagger hanging at his hip. He yanked it off his belt and threw it at a guard. The knife sank deep in the man's chest and he crumpled to the ground. The other guards stood stunned just long enough for James to fling the driver's side door open and jump in, turning the ignition. His co-workers got the hint quickly and threw themselves into the vehicle as well. The guards finally saw their mistake and raised their weapons, ready to fire.
Then James floored the gas. The van jerked forward and ran over three guards who were too close. The vehicle lurched forward as he hit them. Blood splattered, the windshield cracked and the men flew out of the way like helpless rag dolls. The van sped forward, sending the passengers back to their seats. Bullets pinged sharply off the van and James silently thanked their business for the bulletproof van. He jerked the steering wheel, sending the van on two wheels and his co-workers scrambling as it turned back around toward the direction they came. The guards still shot, but James didn't ease up on the gas.
Soon, he was close enough to see the question in their eyes before they finally jumped out of the way. James kept his foot to the floor until the rocky dirt road changed to the smooth pavement once again. They drove out onto the main road and he finally pulled themselves back down to the speed limit. He kept driving until he found a back road and turned in there and pulled over.
“Is everyone okay?” James panted. He looked back to see all of his co-workers nodding vigorously. Justice remained silent beside him. Their pale faces brought out the terror of his driving in their eyes. Sighing, he turned back and sank into his seat and stretched out his injured arm. A sharp pain ripped up his arm and through his shoulder. Hissing in pain, he pressed the wound to his bloodied T-shirt, stemming the flow of blood.
Justice immediately noticed the problem and pulled his arm to her. “Austin, get the first-aid kit," she ordered. The kit was passed up and Justice set to work applying medicine and gauze before bandaging it. "This will have to do until we get you home, then I'll have to really work on it."875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVScxDUGYkr
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James nodded solemnly and put his hands back on the steering wheel when Justice grabbed one of them. “Let me drive, please. You're hurt.”
“JJ, I'm fine—”
“No, you're not. By what I saw there, you'll need stitches. That's not okay. Now let me drive. Just this once.”
James sighed and gave in, nodding. “Fine. This once.” He heard her whisper a “thank you,” but didn't reply. They got out and met around the front of the van.
He touched her arm gently, as she refused to look up at him. “You okay, JJ? You didn’t say anything when I asked.”
She sighed. “I’m fine. Just stop trying to be a hero. Sometimes, they don’t win and I don’t want you to be one of them. Okay?” She brought her eyes up to him then, and he could see in her eyes and hear in her voice that she was leaving something out.
“And?” He prompted. Justice’s head lowered again, and her face turned bright red even her ears. “Please. It’s okay, it’s just me.”
She shifted her feet uncomfortably, hugging herself before responding. “The main guy… he… he touched me.”
He knew exactly what she meant when she said it. Rage began to burn in his stomach. But there was nothing he could do about it now. “Where?”
She took a shaky breath to reply, but no sounds came out of her mouth. Instead a few tears fell from her eyes.
“JJ, please don’t cry.” He took her in his arms, holding her tightly. “I’m sorry. I should’ve paid more attention. I should’ve done something—”
“I just want to go home.” She managed to say.
He pulled her back and looked at her, wiping the tears from her face. “Okay. We’ll do that. We’ll make sure you’re okay then.”
She nodded, and he kissed her on her forehead. As she went around to the driver’s seat, James clenched his fists together. That man touched his Justice. He was dead now, but James wished he had made it a lot longer now. Her face, tears streaming down it, seared in his mind. He made her cry. And it wasn’t okay.
Once they were all back in the van, they took off again going 70 mph. There was silence, but James could only focus on clenching and un clenching his hands. The rage wouldn’t leave. No matter what he tried to think of, it was still there.
He was brought out of his thoughts when Justice executed a quick, dangerous turn to the left, which had the van teetering on two wheels for a couple of seconds, and pulled onto the highway. She stomped the gas pedal, sending all of the van’s passengers back into their seats.
James continually glanced at the rear view mirror to ensure no one was after them while she drove. He didn’t want to take any chances. James gripped the arm rests with sheer force until his knuckles turned white. He was too stressed out for this mess.
Justice touched his hand. “Are you okay? Is your arm hurting?” she asked, concern lining her face.
“I'm fine," he murmured to her.
“Nothing at all?” Justice persisted.
“I said I'm fine, JJ, please,” James snapped and then focused on the road for a few moments in hopes that the anger would subside.
“So,” he asked after four minutes. “What happened out there?”
Silence.
“Well? We’re going to have to report on it anyway. Speak up.” James gritted his teeth together. He wasn’t mad at them. He couldn’t get mad at them; they didn’t hurt Justice.
From the corner of James' eye, he saw Aaron shift uncomfortably.
“Aaron, what happened?”
Aaron sighed, running his hands through his hair nervously. “I’m allergic to rabbit fur. One came by and I tried not to sneeze, but it wouldn’t leave and then I went into a coughing fit and one of the guards noticed me. I apologize. I didn’t realize rabbits were even around at this time of year.”
James sighed and leaned further back into his seat. “It’s fine. We may have just put our assignment in jeopardy—”875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEK5fwpEnoh
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"Look, I apologize!" Aaron blurted out. "This whole mess was my fault, I know, and I'll probably never hear the end of it, but please, can we just... drop it... for now?"875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqmkNbP09SH
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James sighed. "Alright."875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6laC3laF7c
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After that, James listened to the sound of the car speeding down the road, as everyone had gone silent, and continuously checked behind them. Somehow, he knew it was going to be a long drive home.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt9VUwjttFO
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Way past their scheduled returning time, the crew pulled into the driveway of the Matthews Manor. Sighing, Justice cut off the engine and they all climbed out, a little weary from their long day. Then James noticed the dried blood on the dash and seat. He cursed under his breath and slammed his injured arm into the window, causing another sharp pain up to his shoulder.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6H0nshLuL
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"My parents are really going to kill me now. I ruined the van," he gasped.875Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcOLIoDATYm
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Justice blinked bleary eyes and rubbed them furiously with her palms. She looked at James' home and sighed again in relief. He followed her gaze and understood why she sighed. The large, white house with dark brown window frames and doors seemed to be beckoning them to come inside and rest.
“They can't blame you for this,” Justice murmured eventually. "Come on, let's get inside, we're already late."
James furrowed his brows together and finally noticed the pitch black, empty sky. Instantly, he knew how much trouble they would all be once entering inside. He cursed in Spanish and threw open the car door.
Reluctantly, the team all trekked up to the house, knowing parents would be called, but also a meal would be prepared for them, no matter how much trouble they were in. They were only a few feet from the door when it swung open. They were immediately greeted by James' parents.
James’ father quickly took control of the situation and instructed them to rest on the couch. His mother turned to James and began asking several pointed questions, including his beat-up face and injured arm. He explained as best he could, but the lack of sleep and pain in his arm were beginning to take its toll. But, his mother made his co-workers call their parents to keep them from worrying and made them eat soon after. Once everything was completed, Roslyn placed her hands on her hips and surveyed the rag-tag group.
“We’ll discuss this more fully in the morning,” she said to the group, anger strong in her voice.
The four of them nodded and James’ mom quickly went to work creating temporary beds for them. She placed some sleeping bags on the floor for the boys and took Justice to the guest room.
None of them lasted long before they were sound asleep.
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