Charlotte's life had set into a steady rhythm that hadn't been available to her since she had gained her powers. Wake up, eat breakfast in the hideout. Train outside with Michael and Alex. Do chores around the hideout, eat dinner. Go to bed. She had plenty of free time inbetween these things. But she wanted to get as strong as she could. She had a mission, defeat whatever subdoers she had to to get to her parents, so that they could flee to a different country. Because Charlie clearly wasn't safe here. She and Michael, as a joke. Started a challenge. They were going to make super moves, like they were anime characters. Michael had explained some crazy idea about momentum and stopped time to Charlie, it seemed to involve these rocks of some sort. She barely understood it. Charlie didn't have anything that she could think of, besides hitting someone harder. Alex trained Michael and her differently, he taught Charlie as much straight up combat as he could. Whilst he gave Michael exercises on improving his ability, and fighting based on attacking people's blind spots. Both of them had improved greatly. But their ultimate goal was to land a hit on Alex. The man was like a dancer. Flowing out of the way of attacks and moving water. It was perplexing. Charlie, Alex, and Michael had to go run a few errands, so they decided they would bring his sister along with. So that she could get out for once. According to Alex, Trish had to stay at the hideout most of the time because of her ability. It could cause problems if she wasn't careful. Charlie and Michael had no clue what her ability was. But they knew it was dangerous, even Nox admitted that she couldn't beat Trish. Which was saying something. Alex took them to some corny mall, in the middle of a beat up plaza. She was almost certain it was so out of the way to avoid any subdoers ruining everything. Alex parked his beat up truck, before ushering them all out. He drove off after telling them he would catch up. He had to hide the truck, to avoid any subdoers recognizing it. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPG81yFraKz
Trish came up behind Charlie.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNn32J8NOi3
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"So... Charlie. You're always wearing that hoodie. Why don't you and I get some new clothes together! Something... exciting!"79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ29NBkPzeEq
Trish spoke very fast, drawing out the L in always was the only pause she made. Charlie was almost certain that she didn't breath once during that sentence.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHH8ngAiWbS
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"Well, I already have clothes. Plus, I don't really like-" Charlie was interrupted by Trish's finger on her mouth, Trish making a tutting noise like some disappointed parent.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZI8JmUa7JL
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"That won't do Charlotte, you're gonna have to get something. Or I will tell Nox that you broke the TV remote, and that it really isn't lost at all."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdvGoYGmNeH
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Michael whistled.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2k32dgkFRj
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"That's low Trish, even for me."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcKwGNkP0Gh
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Charlie was scrambling for excuses, she hated to take off the hoodie. It made her ability incredibly obvious. She wasn't a body builder, but she definitely had muscles that belied her small frame. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHKUkyr9J4S
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"Maybe Michael wants to-"79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6n9diN3OWi
Cut off again, this time by Michael. Who was already walking off, waving behind him.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzowrHuLc8h
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"Nope. You girls have fun. I need to buy something anyways."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYohXqO6o3
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Charlie slowly turned to look at Trish's face, which was stretched by a smile ten miles wide.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9c97NeEfSj
Charlie sighed. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUK6t7Whhx
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"I'll go shopping with you..."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWlkSMEiSzf
Trish grabbed her arms and jumped up and down excitedly. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡed1tSO5844
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"Yay! This will be so much fun!"79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGJZuEIJ2Zp
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Trish forced Charlie into all sorts of crazy things, wedding dresses, a backless top that looked like it belonged in a movie party scene with those plastic red cups, several skirts, shirts, jeans, pants, and even a weird chicken hat. Charlie realized she'd been duped when she walked out with seven new outfits with Trish having nothing. She was about to complain that they were both supposed to try on clothes, and that Trish tricked her. When Trish pushed her behind a trash can.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLjVva0cexK
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"What the hell Trish? Why are we hiding"79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCwRSbjjPWw
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Trish looked worried. She just shook her head quickly and pointed towards Alex's truck, which had been parked under a copse of trees. Hidden from view of the mall unless you knew what you were looking for. There was glass everywhere from one of the windows being broken into. There was someone rummaging through it. Apparently trying to find something. Charlie's eyes widened. Several thoughts ran through her mind79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8e6gcnPupr
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Where was Alex? Who were they? Did they work with the subdoers? Can I beat them? Is Michael okay?79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoZ0qmtsr0q
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"Trish, go look for your brother. I'm gonna go deal with them. It's probably just a petty thief."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTPPC7g7ZZ
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Charlie had no idea where this sudden boost of confidence she had was, but she couldn't stand the idea of Alex being caught. So, she marched forward as Trish slinked off. Shooting her one last worried look before she did. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHMBUazGuC3
Charlie walked up close to the truck. Knocking on the hood violently and causing the entire truck to shake. The woman inside of it had long silver hair and equally silver eyes. She came out of the truck with a surprised look on her face.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbgPN9CvhFx
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"You must be Charlotte. How lucky of me to run into you here."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqsuQKB8NQ4
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Sweat ran down Charlie's face. Her? They were looking for her? The girl looked too young to be a subdoer. She wasn't in uniform either. So... what was going on here.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1s91r1FDzW
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"You're coming with me, as soon as you reveal the location of Josephine. Err, Nox."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGWEzjn1aGC
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Now Charlie was really confused, they wanted Nox too? Actually.. now that she mentioned her. This girl looked really similar to Nox. Almost like they were sisters.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBMCPV9QH7
Now Charlie's mind was really racing. She was just standing there as the girl crossed her arms and tapped her foot. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8wEFTaKy2N
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If this girl is Nox's sister, there's no way she's a subdoer. Right? I mean, superhumans are supposed to have superhuman family right? Is it hereditary? Neither of my parents are superhumans. So maybe not. But still, there's a chance, right? 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYUXsYmOT7c
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"Uhm... I can't take you to where Nox is, I don't even know who you are. I definitely can't go with you. Also, you can't just break into someone's-"79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvJ1fLoyo0e
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Charlie flipped through the air before she even had time to finish her sentence. She was flat on her back and the girl had a knife to her throat. Charlie panicked, forgetting that she was almost impossible to stab with a normal knife.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8RhjIwf2o
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"I wasn't asking."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIBIeZGFgbA
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Charlie sighed, clearly there was no way to avoid conflict. She rolled backwards. Barely avoiding a slash from that girl's blade. Charlie didn't know why, but even if she was completely confident in her ability to not get stabbed. She moved out of the way anyways. After all of that training, it was automatic. But after one flip of a second knife Charlie hadn't even seen, connecting with her chest as it broke into several pieces. She instantly knew that this girl was better. It was hidden in her demeanor when she was speaking, but as the girl instantly recovered. Switching tactics to try and stab Charlie in the eye. She could tell that this girl was a killer. Through and through. She moved her head out of the way of the knife, grabbing the girl's arm and spinning her around before throwing her as lightly as she could. She may be fighting for her life right now, but she refused to accidently kill someone. The girl was flung into a tree. Grunting in pain when she hit it. Charlie felt so bad that she walked up to her to try and see if she was okay. When, suddenly. The girl's silver eyes changed to a hazel. Just before she sent a blinding right hook into Charlie's face. Charlie reeled back in shock, her jaw hurt. It had been months since something really hurt her. Even the bullets and stun guns were more annoying than painful. But the sheer speed and force behind that punch left her winded. She was hit again. This time in the gut. She bent over, coughing and sucking in air. She braced herself for another strike, when she heard the sound of something hitting flesh, followed by the sound of her attacker falling down. Charlie sucked in a breath, looking around wildly. Michael was standing there, holding a bunch of rocks. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQpeyCjPgIi
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"'Ello there. You seem to be in a bind." 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgNQnq7jvFc
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Charlie staggered up, walking over to where Michael was. Massaging her jaw and shaking it off. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGzfOEHUIfZ
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"Michael, what did you do?"79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGjqxfJTS0
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He grinned, throwing a rock in one hand before catching it. Charlie noticed that his knuckles were bruised.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0zfIxqScG
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"I threw a rock, stopped time. Then I hit it a bunch of times. Sending the rock forward with all of that force at once. Hits harder than a bullet. Frankly, I wouldn't have sent it at her face if I didn't see her beating you to a pulp. Figured she must be as freaky durable as you."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CU0Ol64p8
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Charlie was confused, she was easily able to track her movements at the start. But when her eyes turned colors. She started moving really fast, and hitting even harder than Charlie. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIb4oJNPHe
Charlie just shook her head.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8v0OUCOgak
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"This girl did something to Alex, I think."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPXHjwOIF3o
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She raised her fists as the girl got up. Michael threw another rock into the air before catching it again. Malice filling her eyes. The girl withdrew more knives, easily matching Michael's evil expression.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOcZftkV2f
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Vanessa was jumping here, and there, hopping between trees and weaving around bushes. She was jumping around in a forest clearing dodging little patches of ice as they popped up on the ground. She could tell by how fast that they flash froze under her that she could not afford to get touched by them. She was focused utterly on the man behind all of this ice. But she couldn't get close to him. He just stood there with his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face as ice popped up every place her feet touched the ground. She leapt back several feet in a second. Trying to get a chance to catch her breath. She stood about 21 meters away from him. So, that must be his maximum range. He still didn't move, just standing there smiling. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEjfMAMUCFI
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"You know, you're pretty fast. Not too many people actually have time to dodge a patch of frost after feeling the cold on their feet. I barely had time to track you with my eyes as you moved."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfsWuhH0PyQ
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Vanessa ground her teeth. Barely or not, all it took was him knowing where she was and he could create ice beneath her. What an infuriating ability. She was about to charge at him again when she had a sudden idea. She rubbed her hands together incredibly fast. Her hands a blur as she warmed them up as fast as she could, before revealing her smoking hands a second later. That settled it, she was just fast enough to force frictional heating. She vibrates her body, every single part of her self moving really fast... in place. Before jetting forwards towards the smiling bastard at max speed. Her body feeling like she was in a furnace. She ran right through all of the frost he tried to make, none of it able to get past her increased heat fast enough to stop her. She got to him in a single second, her fist an inch from his face, when he suddenly moved at rapid speeds. No.. that wasn't it. The air next to him was cold. Beyond cold, far colder than she could resist with her heat. She found that the frost on her body made his head slip easier than if she hadn't attacked at all. She had been frozen almost to a standstill. She just barely restored her heat with a burst of speed in time to dodge a strike to her gut. She leapt back swiftly again, only to hit an ice wall behind her. Stopping her retreat as the man drove his fist into her face, knocking her to the ground. She felt his boot on her back before she could get back up.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZuzQSQMYSY
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"Looks like I win. That's just too bad." 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6NvhRaYVSM
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Before Vanessa could protest, her phone rang. Alex picked it up, flipping it open as he put the phone to his ear. He listened for a second, before taking the phone off of his ear, setting it to speaker. The smile never leaving his face.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiaKAA9FhCN
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Ashley spoke, her voice muffled by the roar of a truck engine.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBAnueBwzLa
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"Vanessa, Candy has eyes on you and is on her way. I have taken Charlotte and I killed one of her friends. Candy and you will keep the man who defeated you hostage until I get Charlotte contained, then you have to bring him to me. So we can decide on whether we want to silence him or take him in as well. Alex, if you so much as move a finger to hurt any of them. I'll take one of Charlotte's eyes."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFbD2X1193e
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Alex was still smiling, his face a mask of serenity even if his eyes were bulging. He closed the phone calmly. Going to sit down near a tree.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0dHjgyioYq
Vanessa was horrified, she didn't know they were killing people. Weren't they here to help superhumans? To free them from having to work for the subdoers? Why were they doing this? What had she signed up for.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1keo263KKr
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"So." 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrw8HNqbKOR
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Alex speaking jerked Vanessa out of her thoughts, scaring her,79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgdhGmxSPN1
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"The subdoers have superhumans working for them now? That's very interesting. Pray tell what deal they cut you."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Kcr8MziS9
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Vanessa frowned, she wasn't getting it. What was going on? Is this some kind of trick?79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeV7QEnFHDz
Vanessa moved over to him, a whoosh of air and she was in his face.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZu0a2aIRka
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"What did you just say. About the subdoers. You're lying, you guys are the ones working for the subdoers."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡraPHSpKlED
Vanessa's words had no conviction, they were more desperate than anything.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf7ca3JPdvs
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"Oh... so you don't know? That's hilarious. Basically, you've been duped. The girl on the phone is an assassin. I've worked against her a few times, deeply loyal to the subdoers. They're golden child. I never did find where they were based, never had the time to look for them. She's quite dangerous, I don't know what deal they've cut her but she's willing to do just about anything for those people."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo2Cn3YjxJe
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Vanessa was about to say more, but Candy came into the clearing. Her hands wrapped around a blocky gun.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYxhM2V1WVR
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"Stay right there Alex, don't move or I'll shoot you."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXqt8f2Lybi
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Alex just sighed, his eyes titled downwards, he didn't say anything. He just put up a thumbs up. There was the sound of Candy's and Vanessa's phones sizzling before blowing up as the two threw them away in confusion.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxgELMgu44W
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"Thanks Trish, welp. Time to fix this."79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNxaCLmWr8L
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A tall woman came out of nowhere, slamming her fist into Candy's face, with an explosion of yellow energy sending her several meters back as she slammed into a tree. Vanessa was... shocked. This woman had energy crackling all around her. It was like standing next to a power plant, her fist was especially volatile. Bands of yellow energy flowed off of it, exploding at random moments.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxmQZScRpbL
Alex tapped Vanessa on the back of the neck as he walked past, taking advantage of her distraction. She felt all of her limbs become ice cold from within, as her world went dark. She couldn't believe it; they lost in 2 seconds. As Alex and his sister walked away, Vanessa's vision was darkening rapidly. She couldn't breathe, she could barely think. She passed out with her eyes rolling in the back of her head. 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEblTxWJdUU
Her last thought was simple, if she was going to die, why couldn't she of at least put up a fight...79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOfHUllGLzO
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Charlie and Michael didn't stand a chance, she realized only too late what Ashley's ability was. She could steal the powers of others; it was only after she gained on emerald colored eye along with the hazel one. That Michael and I realized what she could do, she stole our powers. She stopped time and then bashed Michael to the ground after an exchange that Charlie couldn't witness. It seemed that he could move when she stopped time, but it also worked when he did. So, his power was rendered useless against her. Charlie and Michael were bashed, beaten, kicked, and then eventually stabbed. Ashley wielded Charlie's strength and Michael's timestop with ruthless proficiency. She rushed up to Charlie, only to stop time, Michael being flung suddenly into Alex's car with ruthless force, leaving a terrible Michael shaped dent in the side. The car shook violently when he was thrown into it, he screamed in pain, before slumping down and not moving any more. He must have broken several bones. Charlie barely got up from the ground. Charging at Ashley with reckless abandon. Fear in her eyes as she tried to hit Ashley over the head. Ashley lightly stepped out of the way, before delivering a devastating chop to Charlie's back, slamming her Ashley's upwards kick. Sending Charlie flying into a tree, snapping the tree in half as the large trunk fell on her back. The huge tree landed on her a second after she landed, Charlie felt a snap from her back when the huge trunk landed on her. It was painful for a second, but after a few more seconds she couldn't feel anything below her mid-back anyways. She tried to lift the tree trunk, something that should have been easy for her. But she couldn't move her legs. She could only watch as Ashley pulled out a gun. Shooting Michael right through the middle of his chest. A heart shot. Michael coughed out some blood, before slumping even further down. Smearing blood on the car as he slid down.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrb5krqgEnK
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"MICHAEL! NO!" 79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmOVFhixgVb
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Charlie struggled violently, she couldn't believe it. After everything they'd survived, Michael was dead. He was the competent one, the one who always had all the answers. The one who never lost just like Alex. How could he be dead. Charlie refused to believe it. Even as the tree was thrown off of her by Ashley, even as Ashley dragged her into the truck. Slinging her across the back seat. Charlie realized through her shock that she was paralyzed. She couldn't feel anything from the waist down. Charlie got over her shock about halfway through Ashley's conversation with Alex. But by that time it was too late. Michael was dead, and Alex would be taken hostage. Tears flowed from her eyes freely. Whoever these people were, they were awful. She hated them as much as she feared them. But now she was powerless to do anything about it. So it didn't matter. She just hoped that Trish was safe wherever she was.79Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5lFPWrc6TL
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