ANYTHING FOR RACHEL
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🌠✒ { S•v ~ Painter} 📕
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ðŸŒ
✒#Episode_49
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Calvin ran both of his hands throu-gh his hair and gro-an ed.
“Tomorrow night you’ll go looking for Demetri and you’ll buddy up to him again, find out anything you can, get him talking, memorize surroundings and what other men are doing, then you’ll come back here and we will make our plan for getting her back the day after tomorrow.” He said harshly to Lexton, then he turned to me, his eyes softening but his frown de-epening. “You and I have to go talk to Pedro before he finds out any other way.” He said softly and I could hear the pain in his voice echoing the pain I felt in my heart.
This news was going to break Pedro’s heart.
Calvin got Lexton a room, and then he and I went to get Octavia from her room. Calvin and I wanted to see for ourselves that what Lexton had told us was true before we went to talk to Pedro. After Octavia accessed the video feeds, we were left with nothing more to question or do other than going to break my best friend’s heart. With no time to waste, the second the sun fell again, Lexton went on her way, and we had to go wake Pedro.
The video was awful, and Calvin and I both agreed he didn’t nee-d to see it. The shocked look on Patrick’s face as the rebels busted in the doors to my little cabin, and the cruel way they beat him on the ground before repositioning the c@m£ra and ripping his arms, legs, and head away were not things that Pedro should look at right now. The sight turned my stomach and I cried ha-rd for him even though we hadn’t had a chance to get very close. I wish I’d taken him up on his wine nights. Octavia took it ha-rd too, and I was thankful that you couldn’t see his face as the killed him. Just imagining the defeat in his eyes as he realized his life that should have been eternal was ending was bad enough.
I could ha-rd ly speak as Calvin and I sat down with Pedro.
When we knocked on his door and he answered it sleepily, you could see the fear in his eyes alre-ady when he looked down at me and saw my red eyes. His first reaction was to ask about Rose, and that only made telling him that much ha-rder. To say he was crushed would be a major un-derstatement. I held him as we cried together and Calvin told him everything while trying to keep it together himself.
“I will kill them all.” Pedro spat throu-gh tears, accentuating each individual word.
I ru-bbe-d his back and nodded with him. “Lexton is here.” I told him and he sniffled and turned to me. “She’s the one who told us, but also, she knows one of the rebels and she agreed to help us get to them. She’s gone to scope out the old settlement where they are keeping Rose. ” I said. “We’re going to get our revenge, Pedro. We are.”
Pedro dried his face and pursed hisl-ips. “Can I have some time, plea-se?” He asked weakly. “I love you, but I nee-d to process.”
“Of course.” I agreed. “plea-se come get me if you nee-d me though, ok?” I asked. “I’m here for you, whatever you nee-d.”
Pedro nodded slowly, trying to slow the steady stream of tears from his heavily swollen eyes. Calvin looked lost as we both turned away from our friend and left him to his alone time. Closing the door behind me was difficult knowing the heartbreak he was suffering on the other side, but I wanted to respect his wishes. I remember how I felt when Calvin went off to fight the rebels and I didn’t know if he was alive or dead, or if I was ever going to see him again. I’d nee-ded alone time then too.
On our way back to our room I couldn’t st©p the urge to turn my b©dy and hold onto Calvin, letting him wra-p his arms around my w@!st as I rested my head in the center of his strong che-st.
“Don’t ever leave me.” I whispered, feeling low.
He gr@bb£d my chin and tilted my face up to his and k!$$£d me gently. “Never.” He whispered. “You never leave me either.”
“Never.” I whispered, although in the back of my mind I couldn’t help thinking that eventually…one day, hopefully in the very distant future, my time will come when I do have to leave him. Humans are only…well, human.
Calvin squee-zed me ti-ghtly and k!$$£d the t©p of my head again before we walked into our room, everyone else alre-ady waiting there with us. While Pedro nee-ded to be alone, we nee-ded to be together. Logan comforted Octavia, and Cromley and Renard kept their minds busy by pla-ying card game after card game and constantly running down new scenarios on how to kill someone. Staying prepared they said. I was content to just sit back, Calvin’s steady hand keeping me grounded and little Prince pla-ying in the floor reminding me why I was here and what I still have to fight for.
The hours ticked by, one after the other as we sat and waited for Lexton to return. I knew everyone else was having trouble trusting her or believing that she would really do this for us, but as much as she and I have been throu-gh together, I have never believed her to be a bad person. We’ve had our differences, but if the only real thing between us for why we don’t p@rticularly like each other is because she loves Calvin, then I think that is something I can get pas-sed. All that matters is that he is with me, and she wants to help us.
When there was less than half an hour before sunrise, I started to think that maybe I had been wrong and that she’d given us false hope to get back at us for ruining her life, but when there was a soft knock on the door I felt the tension in me that had been building finally re-lease.
Calvin let her in and she walked slowly over to the table, obviously uncomfortable with all of our eyes on her. “I’m glad you’re back.” I told her hoping to ease some of her nerves. “We were worried.”
She put her long brown hair behind her ears and fidgeted with a new br@celet that was on her wrist. “How did it go?” Cromley asked. “What was the layout? How many of them were there?”
“Did you see Rose?” Logan asked, leaning forward from his seat.
“Did they trust you?” Renard asked. “Where do they think you are now? You’re sure you weren’t followed, right?”
Her eyes were flitting back and forth as each person yelled out questions at her and I remember how much she hates being put on the sp©t. I stood up from the be-d and took her hand in mine and walked her over to sit on the foot of the be-d beside me. “Just tell us what happened.” I said gently and she sighed, leaning her head back and crossing her long legs.
“Well,” She said. “They almost killed me on first sight, but then I managed to get out that I was looking for Demetri before they yanked my throat out.” She told us with a slight tremor. “The guards out front were warry of me still, but they used their walkie to call him out, and he seemed happy to see me and invited me right in.” She said as she twirled the br@celet on her wrist again.
“Did he give you that?” I asked and she nodded.
She raised her eyebrows as she looked at it. “I always as-sumed he had been only using me for information, but I think he actually does like me.” She shook her head. “Figures the only guy to want me is an awful rebel.”
I smiled at her and for a moment she did too before she chewed her l!pand took the br@celet off of her arm. “What can you tell us that’ll be helpful?” Renard asked her more gently than before.
“There are a bunch of them.” She whispered. “Twenty six.”
“Twenty six?” Calvin repeated and then started pacing, his white bu-tton up wrinkled and ha-rd ly tucked in anymore.
Lexton nodded and looked down at her hands in her l@p. “There were four guards out front, then another four as soon as you go down the stairs into the main section.” She told us. “It isn’t very big. It’s kind of like a big circle, only one pas-sage that winds around the entire compound and the rooms are all on the outside wall, while the middle is a domed room that only has on entrance.” She explained and I tried to picture it in my head.
“There were eight guards outside of that room, and I asked what was in there but Demetri just laughed and win-ked. I can only as-sume that’s where they’re keeping your daughter.” She said turning to me. “I think he’s been the one guarding her because they called him away a bunch of times to go into that room, and every time he’d come out he’d be laughing to someone inside the room before the door would shut and he’d wipe off the fake grin.”
Logan stood up and walked over to Lexton. “Do you think they’re harming her?” He asked, his voice raising and his eyes showing the fear he was trying to keep off of his face.
Lexton shook her head quic-kly. “No.” She as-sured him. “Demetri always seemed to be being very nice…fake nice, but nice to whoever was in the room.”
Renard and Cromley were writing down everything she said on the small h0tel notepad as fast as she was telling it. “What about the other nine people?” Cromley asked.
Lexton stood up and walked over to them. “There were five other rooms on the outside ring of the compound and one had four guards outside of it, and the other four all had one guard.” She sighed. “I never saw the twenty sixth man, but when I asked how many people were living there Demetri said twenty six, so I as-sume he didn’t lie.” She shrugged, then reached into the back pocket of her black p@n-ts and pu-ll-ed out a folded up piece of paper. “I don’t know how up to d@t£ this is, but I swiped it from Demetri’s desk when he was out of the room.” She said as she handed Renard the paper.
He smiled from ear to ear as he flattened it out on the table.
“This is fantastic.” He said very plea-sed and Cromley and Calvin both leaned over the table to study the blue print in the center of the table.
“He thinks I left to feed and that I’m coming back tomorrow at night fall.” Lexton told us, but the men were more into the planning on the blueprint now.
Lexton went to sit on the be-d near Octavia and Logan moved over to the table to be a p@rt of them men’s planning. “What’s this?” He asked pointing and Calvin leaned to look too.
“Lexton,” He called. “Did you see another entrance to the whole compound?” He asked. “It looks like there might be one on here.”
“There was a door on the opposite side from where I c@m£ in, but it looked pretty defended and it had goo all over it.” She said softly, sounding tired.
“Dammit.” Calvin snapped. “So only one way in, and then only one way into the center room that Rose is in.”
“Yes.” Lexton sighed.
I watched them as they used little pieces of paper to repres£nt guards on the blueprint, and then used tiny little soaps from all of our bathrooms to repres£nt us and how we should go in. I felt like I always did when I’d watch Rose pl@ywith her Barbies, moving them around and acting out motions with them. I was surprised by the way that Logan was able to fall in on their planning and actually be helpful in figuring out the better courses of action. I found myself growing envious the more I watched and listened to the plans.
So many different things began to pl@yon my mind, and I tried to fight it back, but the determination in me kept fighting back to the surface. When Calvin called Octavia and Lexton over to run down the plan with them and I was left alone on the be-d, I realized this is probably what it would be like when they go to rescue Rose. I’ll be sitting back, waiting for it to happen instead of being a p@rt of it, fighting at my husband’s side to bring our daughter home.
The second Calvin told Octavia that as soon as they bust into the main room, she nee-ded to be the one to secure Rose, back her into a corner, and protect her while the rest of them neutralized any other threats I lost the inner battle with myself.
“Octavia,” I said. “You know that I love you, but I don’t want it to be you.” I said bluntly. “I want the first face Rose sees after all this time to be someone she knows and loves and that will make her instantly feel safe.”
Calvin furrowed his brows at me and everyone else stared strangely. “Ok.” Calvin sighed. “Pedro will do it then.” He amended. I sighed and opened my mouth to speak, but Calvin knew what I was going to say. “Rachel, no.” He said suddenly and the others looked confused. “You’re not going.” He said firmly.
“I’m not asking.” I fired back, standing to straighten my baggy sweat clothes, trying to give off more confidence that what I really had.
“I won’t risk it.” He shook his head. “Taking a human into this kind of fight, especially as outnumbered we are…it would be even more of a suicide mission than it alre-ady is.”
I took a de-ep breath and swallowed ha-rd , looking at him evenly from a few feet away. “Calvin,” I whispered. “I’m not asking you to take a human with you.”
His expression was unre-adable. His eyes were wi-de and glas-sy, his eyebrows up his forehead and his mouth going slack as he choked on his breathing, nearly dropping the little soap in his hand. “No.” He snapped his mouth shut. “That is not happening.”
I should have known it wouldn’t be easy. “Calvin, plea-se.” I begged, losing that firmness in my voice.
Octavia, Cromley, Lexton, and Renard all caught on to what I was asking and they avoided looking at Calvin and me awkwardly as we argued back and forth, but Logan stepped out from behind the table. “I want to be turned too.” He announced.
“No.” Calvin and I both snapped together and I glared over at Calvin for a second before turning back to Logan. “You can’t.” I told him.
Logan shook his head. “Why is it ok for you to ask to be turned, and not me?” He demanded. “I want to help too.”
I shook my head at him, cursing it for falling into my face. “Logan, I know you want to help, but you can’t be a vampire.” I told him. “If by some miracle this works, then you’ll nee-d to take Rose with you.” I explained. “The vampire people hate Calvin and me because they think we abandoned them. They want our heads, do you think Rose would be safe with us?” I asked.
“She’s going to nee-d you to be there for her, and how can you do that if you’re not human?”
Logan shook his head, then looked down at his ba-re feet and sighed. “You’re right.” He said. “I just wish I was more useful here and getting her back.”
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🔥Story_Continues