CHAPTER 24

Chapter 24

*Sara Fuller*

“Thank God you’re safe, Chris,” I murmur as I crush Chris in the tightest bear hug I’ve ever given anybody in my life.

“I might not be safe if it weren’t for Debbie,” he mutters in my ear, then pulls away.

“It wasn’t your fault, you know,” I console him, in an attempt to quell the storm of his guilt. However, my words have the exact opposite effect.

“It was my fault!” Chris explodes. His hands shaking, he balls his fingers into a fist and punches the wall next to him. His knuckles start bleeding, but he doesn’t stop. “You don’t understand. I could’ve stopped time; I could’ve saved her!”

“Chris--”

”But-- I-- DIDN’T!” he shouts, his voice cracking. “I didn’t save her, and now she’s gone. Gone.” His face is contorted with pain and sorrow.

“Chris, calm down, it’s okay,” I try.

“No, it’s not--”

I cut him off. “Come on, we should go check on Sophia and Leo.” Without waiting for a reply, I grab his arm and drag him with me.

The sight that greets us at Town Hall makes me want to curl up in a corner and cry for hours. Sophia looks slightly dazed; her eyes wander around the room listlessly, as if she’s not completely in the present. Gene is clutching her hand as if he’d never let go of it -- he must’ve heard how close Sophia came to dying. Suchet doesn’t look any worse for the wear, but Alex is slouched in his seat, dejected and sullen-looking, probably more upset over the partial failure of his plan than the sudden departure of our friend. Sophie’s arms are folded in a way that makes her look like she’s hugging herself -- a quick glance around the room alerts me to Dean’s absence, although I have yet to figure out why he’s not here. Courtney’s face is buried in her hands; her sobs are almost silent, but still audible, and I can’t help but wonder why she’s crying. Jack is whispering something to her as he pats her shoulder, but it doesn’t seem to be helping.

And Leo? He’s sitting alone, staring off into empty space, probably thinking about Debbie. I know they were a couple, and my gut twists with sympathy when I see the empty vacuum beside him, where Debbie used to sit. Although he’s not crying at the moment, his eyes are glazed with tears, but no one moves to comfort him.

Presently, as Chris and I sit down in our usual seats, Suchet clears his throat.

“As many of you have heard, Chris and Sophia were successful in their mission to steal the key to the Cosmo Prison.” With a self-satisfied smile, Suchet takes the key from his pocket and places it on the table.

“Now, retrieving this key was no easy task,” he continues. “Two of our own -- Dean Zhang and Debbie Dong -- sacrificed their lives to see the mission to its end.”

Dean? Dean is dead?

Shocked, I steal a glance at Sophie. Her face pales at the mention of his name, her eyes filling with tears.

Somehow, Suchet still manages to keep his tone light, as if he was discussing the weather. “We have the key, but for a price. Debbie and Dean were true heroes. Without their strength and bravery--”

A voice interrupts him in the middle of his cheesy, meaningless tirade.

“Bull,” Leo snaps, standing up so fast that his chair falls backwards with a jarring crash. He stalks right up to Suchet, glowering down at the shorter boy. “Complete bull.”

Suchet looks genuinely surprised. “You don’t agree with what I’m saying?”

“Your words can’t mean anything when you don’t believe in them yourself,” Leo retorts. “You don’t care about Debbie or Dean. All you care about is that your stupid plan succeeded in bringing back the key.” His voice rises in volume, making Suchet cower like a cornered mouse. “Well, guess what? It didn’t succeed! How can a plan succeed when two people -- one of them your right-hand man -- are dead?”

Suddenly, Suchet’s countenance changes. His eyes narrowing, he puffs up his chest and says, "But without the plan -- my plan -- we wouldn't have the key or any hope for survival!" He picks up the key and shakes it in Leo's face.

"You mean that you wouldn't have the key, that you would have no hope for survival," Leo snarls, "because you only care about yourself. You wouldn't risk your own neck. The rest of us could just die for all you care, as long as your sorry skin is safe!"

“That’s not true!” Suchet protests indignantly.

“Then why don’t you go on the next mission?” Leo challenges.

“Because I’m the leader, and people need me,” Suchet snaps back.

“Are you saying that you’re more valuable than Debbie and Dean? Are you saying that all of us are expendable?” Leo shouts, his fists clenched. “Because that’s exactly what it sounds like!”

At this point, Suchet is yelling as well. “No, I’m not! I didn’t ask to be the leader!”

“Oh, yeah?” Leo growls. “So who died and made you king?”

However, before Suchet can say something that would only exacerbate the situation, one of the gang kids bursts into Town Hall, interrupting the intense air initiated by the shouting match.

“What is it, Ramya?” Suchet asks, sounding exasperated by the intrusion.

“There’s someone outside,” Ramya says. “A little girl. She says she wants to talk to Debbie.”

Suchet sighs, picks up the key, and puts it back in his pocket. “Debbie’s dead. Bring the girl in here.”

Ramya’s eyes widen, but she leaves to fetch the girl without saying a word.

A minute later, the double doors of Town Hall swing open to reveal Ramya with a younger Asian girl in tow.

“Everyone, this is Alisha,” Ramya says, gesturing towards the new girl. “Alisha, this is Suchet, the gang leader.”

Alisha is the youngest survivor I’ve seen so far -- she looks to be ten or eleven years old. She has lightly tanned skin, delicate childlike features, shaggy hair of medium length, and bangs that hang over her wide, innocent eyes.

Suchet shakes her hand, then cuts right to the chase. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m Jayce’s half-sister,” she says. “He spied on you and sold your plans off to Christy to keep me safe, and I’m here to repair the damage.”

Before Suchet can respond, Leo jumps in. “What plans?”

“Jayce told Christy about your plan to steal the key,” Alisha replies.

Leo’s jaw goes slack. “So he was the traitor who caused Dean and Debbie to die,” he snarls.

Alisha drops her gaze to her sneakers. “Yeah,” she says quietly.

Leo just turns away, his balled fists trembling.

Ignoring the interruption, Suchet starts talking again. “So what makes you think you could help us, little girl?”

“The name’s Alisha, thank you very much,” Alisha snaps. “And I’m not just a little girl.”

“Tell me, then, how you might be useful to us,” Suchet responds in a condescending tone.

“Living on the streets has taught me a lot of useful things,” she says. “Things you wouldn’t have had to figure out because you have an advantage.”

Suchet snorts with derision. “You’re just a little girl. Get out.”

She folds her arms and stares him down, unmoving.

He storms up to her and jabs a finger in her face. “Get. OUT!”

Suddenly submissive, Alisha backs down. Cocking an eyebrow, she says, “Okay, if you insist. But first, you might need this.”

With that, she reaches into her pocket and takes something out. I only register a bronze glint before she throws it at Suchet. He fumbles for a moment before finally catching it, and we get a good look at it.

Then we all do a double take.

It’s the key.

“Wh--?” Suchet’s mouth is hanging open as he pats his pockets and turns them inside out, revealing that the key indeed was not there.

“See you around,” Alisha says with mock cheeriness. Then, she turns on her heel and stalks out, slamming the double doors behind her.