Hope
It was their last day in Noor. Hope suspected that God was actually on her side, for once. Even with Yousef’s army on the prowl, they’d managed to avoid capture for ten whole days. That handily crushed her previous record of tailing a girl from school. She’d spent four nights chasing after the poor kid. The reason? She thought, “The stupid idiot was dating Sebastian.” Those were the days, she smiled to herself. Sebastian had never made a move on her. While she’d always greeted him with a fist bump and a slap across the back, a tiny part of her wished for something more. Something that never came to pass. She’d always wondered why.
Was she not good enough for him? What if she made the first move but he didn’t feel the same way? Could they still be friends after that?
She exhaled and made her way downstairs. Who cares anymore?
“Miss Hastings, over here, if you will!” Trent's commanding voice summoned her to the reception. He was locked in an argument with Mr. Harroun, who seemed more hooked by his newspaper.
“Come on down, dear.” The old man coughed. “Your leader has finally lost it.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
Trent put a cigarette to his lips and smiled. The former knight had grown out his beard but given how unkempt it looked, Hope knew it was a lack of care rather than a fashion choice. With his crimson tie gone, there was nothing to distract from his blood-red eyes, which looked more menacing than ever. The “pretty boy” who’d walked into her store that day was nowhere to be seen.
“Oh, never mind the barmy fool.” He shrugged. “I trust you have finished your packing? We depart at sun fall in a few hours.”
“All done. Did you need something?” she asked.
Trent leaned forward on the counter and smiled slyly. The old man gave him the finger and returned to his paper.
“Settle a debate for the both of us, will you? A truck is racing across town at top speed. Suddenly, the driver sees his best friend lying unconscious on the road ahead. He cries at the top of his lungs but the man doesn’t hear him. He tries stopping the truck, but the brakes have failed. So, he tries steering the truck elsewhere. The only trouble is, the other route is littered with pedestrians. Innocents he doesn’t know. So, what does he do? Kill someone he loves for a bunch of nobodies or slaughter innocents for the sake of his loved one?”
Mr. Harroun rolled his eyes. “As I said, he’s lost it. Obviously, you kill the friend. It’s one life weighed against dozens. The answer couldn’t be simpler.”
“Now, now, my good sir. Let’s see what Miss Hastings has to say about the dilemma.”
“Are you serious?” she asked. “What’s this all of a sudden? Some new trick to get me in even more trouble?”
“Yeah, like that’s even possible.” He laughed. “But no, nothing of the sort. Just humor me for a minute, will you? What would you do in that situation?”
Hope thought for a moment, then answered, “What if you turn the truck around? The brakes have failed but you can still steer it, right?”
Trent pondered her reply, then laughed as if he’d just heard a joke. When no one joined in his chorus, he coughed and spoke in a polite voice. “Perhaps, you underestimate the difficulty of steering a heavy-duty vehicle, Miss Hastings. Even assuming no one else is around, which is itself a foolish assumption, if the truck loses balance, you will get crushed under fifteen thousand kilograms of solid metal.”
“But that wasn’t the win condition, was it?”
“Beg pardon?” He raised an eyebrow.
“I had to choose between saving one person I know versus several people I’ll never know. And I saved both. So, you’re welcome.”
“Yes, that is true but… you died. How is that a victory?” he chuckled.
“Not everyone has to make it out alive for it to be a happy ending. If my sacrifice saved a bunch of people, who cares? I still died a hero.”
“That’s what you think, dear.” He shook his head and breathed another puff from his cigarette. The smell of herbs filled the lobby with anxious smoke. “All the people see is a car crash and a reckless driver. No one died but surely no one sees you as the hero. For them, you’re merely a part of the problem.”
“Part of the problem? For the love of God! But… but my brakes failed. It wasn’t my fault,” she protested.
“Do you honestly believe it matters to them? Your circumstances, your mental state when you were in deep shit? You can minimize the headcount all you like; folks will always remember the ones that didn’t make it. They look at you, all they see is a disaster that nearly killed them. Do you think it matters to them how hard you tried? There’s no A for effort in the real world. You should know that better than me. After all that you did for the city, they didn’t think twice to turn their backs on you.”
Hope searched her brain for a clever comeback but came up empty. There was something about Trent that made her skin crawl. She didn’t know if it was his know-it-all expression, his commanding voice, or his condescending posture. Maybe, it was all of it. Every word that left his mouth was loaded with barbed wires and poisoned tips that paralyzed her with fear. No one, not even Roland could shut her down like this.
She stepped back with a defeated sigh. “Fine. What would you have done?”.
“Me?” he asked, then chuckled with a sorrowful grin. “Well, it hardly matters. More importantly, there is something that requires your immediate attention. Miss Miller went to fetch something from the bazaar. It has been four hours and she is yet to return.”
“Again? God, can’t she stay put for just one fricking day?” Hope groaned.
“Look into it, will you? I am far too tired to be prancing around town chasing children.”
∆∆∆
Willingly or not, Hope had memorized the streets of Noor to the last detail. She knew the exact path to avoid army patrols, what backstreets provided the shortest route, and what shops she could use as hiding places in case of sudden inspections. Thanks to Alicia, she had also learned to associate each part of town with a specific smell. Jurah district, where they stayed, was mostly mud and salt. Kharoh, the adjacent business capital, was sweet and fruity. That was where she felt the most at home. Getting shoved aside every two seconds like a discount towel, folks constantly stepping on her feet and then having the audacity to yell at her, people crowding around shops she was half-certain read “buy one get one free”, all of it reminded her of Haven City.
It won’t be long before I’m back home.
Finding Alicia wasn’t too daunting a task. Every day for the last week, the brat had haunted Zakir’s Sweet Shop with the passion of a world-class athlete. Every day without fail, after the girls had spent hours searching for Zaheera, she’d be sitting at Zakir’s tables, munching away at another new delicacy. Today was, unsurprisingly, no different.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Alicia waved at her from across the street, her mouth half-full with an orange pastry. The sweets were good, yes, but her true love for Zakir’s came from the outdoor seating. You could see the entire district from the tables. “Hey, girl! Over here. You gotta try it out. This shit’s the bomb.”
“I’ll bet,” said Hope, sitting next to her. “You do realize we leave today, right?”
“Well, duh! I dunno if I’m ever coming back to this place. Lemme enjoy myself, for once.”
Hope noticed all the eyes that were on her. Even with her skin covered from head to toe, they had a way of telling her she didn’t belong. “Well, hurry up. I don’t think there are many Vega fans in this city.”
“On the contrary…” An unfamiliar voice tackled her from behind.
Hope looked back and Alicia followed suit. Their eyes widened in astonishment at the figure standing before them. It was a man from Lucidea. He was dressed in Wadinese robes, but his face, pale as a midday cloud, left no room for doubt. Once he was certain they’d gotten a good look, he pulled a veil over his face and greeted them with a friendly wave. Hope rubbed her eyeballs in disbelief. It was a man from her homeland, twenty thousand miles across the ocean. And that wasn’t even the strangest part. In a city, the size of a small country, the odds of them just bumping into him were astronomically low. No. He must have come looking for her.
“May I?” asked the man and took a seat in front of them. Whispers began the moment he settled down. “Long way from home, aren’t you, Miss Hastings?”
“And who the fuck are you supposed to be?” Alicia demanded, pointing her fork at his neck.
The man answered with a disarming laugh. “Oh, where are my manners? My name is Lawrence Blackwater and I am a friend.”
Seeing that Hope had never met this man before in her life, she was quite certain that he was not a friend. He had to be working for someone. He knew her secret, which already narrowed down the list to five of her archenemies. Does he work with Fritz? No, he’d never trust a lackey. Markus? He’s an idiot but even he wouldn’t dare. Maybe Hanz? What about Scarlet or Kisha? No. They’re all behind bars. So, who the hell is he?
Unable to guess his employer, Hope went with a safe question. “You’re from Lucidea. What are you doing here?”
Lawrence looked around nervously and pushed his spectacles up his nose. “May I try that?” he asked, pointing to Alicia’s pastry. The brat rolled her tongue and pulled it away from him.
“Rude.” He sighed. “Oh well, that is not why I’m here, anyway.”
“Then why are you here? What do you want from me?”
“Not a thing. I only come in my capacity as a friend. My only wish is to ensure your safety.”
“Pfft! Thanks for the concern, buddy, but we can take care of ourselves,” Alicia answered.
“Oh, I do not doubt that. Your boss is a cautious man. And cautious men don’t leave loose ends.” His eyes wandered to the pastry again. He licked his lips and begged, “Can I, please? Not even a bite?”
“No!” Both girls replied in unison.
“Well, drat. Speaking of cautious, Miss Hastings, do you believe in luck?”
“I believe in people that don’t jump around the point. Now, talk plainly or we stick a knife in you.”
“Caution to the wind, then.” He exhaled. “Do you remember the incident that landed you in this mess? The bombing at Wolcowzki District.”
“Clear as day,” Hope replied in a shaky voice. The memory was still burned into her mind. “What are you getting at?”
Lawrence leaned forward, and whispered into her ear, “Do you think it was mere coincidence? A runaway car just happens to cross you shortly after you watch a news report about said car? And not only that, the same car just happens to be carrying a terrorist, who just happens to explode mere moments after you enter the refugee camp, and then, disappears without a trace?”
“What the fuck are you implying, pal?” barked Alicia. “You saying this whole thing was a big set-up or something?”
“Oh, I am not implying anything. That is for Miss Hastings to decide.”
Hope fell into a ghastly silence as she contemplated his words. The car chase, the bombing, and then, the mission, all of it had happened so suddenly that she never had the chance to think. It was one disaster after another for her, but for Trent, things couldn’t have worked out any better. She was backed into a corner with no way out. She had reached for the first hand she could find- his hand. In one masterstroke, she had been handed to him on a silver plate. The theory made sense, but maybe that was the intention. It was convenient, too convenient for him. Hell, it could have been an attempt at breaking them apart. For the longest time, she said nothing.
“Trent Morningstar is not a man to be trusted,” said Lawrence, looking over his shoulder and wiping the sweat off his brow. “If worst comes to worst, he’ll wear your skin as shoes if that gets him one step closer to his goal.”
“Do you have any evidence, Mr. Blackwater?” Hope raised an eyebrow at him.
He shook his head. “Nothing that I can offer without alarming the man himself. You’ll just have to take my word for it.”
“You do realize that without hard evidence, all of this is just conjecture, right?”
“I most certainly do. But I’m confident you can find your own proof. Until then, I’d suggest you watch your backs around him. As I said, he is not the type to leave any loose ends. And I mean, any loose ends.”
The air was shaken by the sound of gunshots. Three bullets howled from Jurah District and sent a wave of panic crashing toward the sweet shop. Hope shut her eyes and fixated on the point of origin. Within seconds, she had a mental map of the entire city. She felt a sense of foreboding even as she did the math. There was only one place where the gunshot could’ve been fired. She wished it wasn’t. Alicia clutched her fingers and nodded in dreadful agreement.
“Harroun’s hotel,” The girls said in unison.
“I’d hurry if I were you,” Lawrence smiled and dug a fork into Alicia’s orange pastry. “The world doesn’t have nearly enough good people.”
∆∆∆
The crossing near Harroun’s hotel was quieter than a graveyard. The girls tiptoed their way to a hiding spot, every fiber of their being praying that no one had gotten hurt. Hope gulped as she peered around the corner. The main entrance had been kicked in by military boots. She noticed their scummy footprints all over the front yard. Tiny splotches of red littered the walls. Must be from the gunshots from earlier, she guessed. Her heart rate rose with every fresh drop of blood she discovered. Every time, she begged, please, let that be the last one.
The last time someone kicked down her front door, Sebastian came within inches of losing his life. If she’d been one second slower, if she hadn’t jumped at the first bullet fired in his direction… No, there was no time to think about it. But she’d be damned if she was letting that happen again.
“Stay behind me,” Hope whispered. “The army’s inside the building.”
“How the fuck did they find us?” cried Alicia.
“I don’t know! Did the others… do you think they got out?”
“I don’t see them inside the hotel. Maybe, they did. I… I can’t be sure. Okay, here’s what we’re gonna do. You stay put and keep an eye on the soldiers. I’ll try to find a way through the schmucks.”
“Are you crazy? They’re like walking tanks. And last I checked, you’re not bulletproof, missy!” Hope protested. “I’m not risking… Let’s wait and watch, for now.”
“That won’t be necessary, Miss Hastings.” The girls turned around to see Trent covered in blood with Ren and Sebastian cowering behind him. The boys looked as though they’d been through a nightmare.
Mr. Harroun, however, was nowhere to be seen.
Hope’s heart sank as her mind reached the obvious conclusion. Trent shut her down before she could say anything. “There will be time for catching up later. We need to get out of here. Now!”
Hope had no memory of how they escaped from Noor. Everything from the moment they’d run into Trent was a blur of red and brown. She recalled screams of terror ringing the blood-soaked air of Jurah District, the clashing of swords and spears which was immediately snubbed by the splattering of bullets, only to be followed by a chilling silence. She recalled Sebastian's cold, shivering fingers in her hand as they raced from hiding spot to hiding spot, avoiding conflict where they could. Where they couldn’t, Trent asked them to wait a while, and moments later, they’d cross a path littered with corpses.
The journey to their vehicle outside the walls was something she was more than willing to delete from her brain. Only, it wouldn’t allow her. Nothing in her life, not even the tragedy of Wolcowzki District, had shaken her this severely.
Trent gave them a moment of rest. The team was wrapped in morbid silence when it settled down on the scorching sands under the midday sun. The burning pain was almost soothing to them. Hope looked around at her friends, their heads bowed in shame. No one made a sound save for exhausted breathing. She felt a sudden throbbing in her chest that roused her from her feet and compelled her to say something.
“Mr. Harroun didn’t deserve to die.”
“No, he didn’t,” Trent replied softly.
“He died because of us. Because he sheltered us.”
The former Knight gripped his forehead. “Is this about guilt, Miss Hastings? You’ve been a vigilante long enough. You should know better than most that sometimes, it’s just not possible to save everyone. I promise you, there was nothing we could have done for him. I… I left a reasonable sum for his daughters. Rest assured; they won’t be begging anytime soon.”
“That’s good. That’s… good to know, at least.” She bit her lip.
Lawrence’s words echoed in her mind with a tone that sent her heart tumbling into the void.
“Ah, good a time as any to remind you, the mission is coming to an end. Soon, you’ll be going home with deep pockets and your head held high. Have you thought of what you’d do with the money?”
“No idea,” she said weakly.
“What about you, Miss Miller? You’re acquiring a considerable fortune yourself. Any plans on how you’ll spend it?”
“I… I don’t know, honestly. I mean, I had a plan but… it fell apart, and now, I got no idea.”
He clicked his tongue and chuckled. “Well, that’s something you can figure out in time. Most importantly, you’ll never have to look to someone else for help. You’ll be free to do as you please. Free to live your life. Spend time with your loved ones. Enjoy your remaining days to the fullest. Relish your time, for God’s sake. That’s all any of us can do.”
Hope and Alicia were frozen silent. One by one, they stepped into the jeep. No one spoke a single word for the rest of the trip. The sand dunes continued to shift under the desert sun.