Chapter 64

SIXTY-FOUR

AMETHYST

Cold shock turns my veins to slush. I struggle within Cass’s iron grip, my heart pounding like it’s about to explode. Eerie shadows fall across his face, making him look even more monstrous. My instructors never told me what to do if the target seized my headband.

Cass carries me across the room and throws me onto the bed with a force that knocks the breath from my lungs. He grabs my arms and binds them with rope. I twist and pull, but the rough fibers dig into my skin.

Alarm bells ring in my ears.

I can’t fight–he’s too strong.

Everything I’ve learned is useless.

He glares down at me, his face twisting with rage. Foam gathers in the corners of his mouth and veins stand out on his temples like bolts of lightning. I freeze, staring up into his manic eyes, trying to think up a way out of this mess. Panic winds around my chest, pulling even tighter than the ropes.

“Give me a reason why I shouldn’t kill you,” he snarls.

My ears ring. Every instinct screams at me to make something up.

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I whisper, my voice trembling.

He leans in close, his face inches from mine, the alcohol on his breath stinging my nostrils. “Don’t play games with me, little girl. Tell me who sent you, or I’ll rip the truth out of you, piece by piece.”

My heart pounds, each beat echoing in my ears as I scramble for a convincing lie. “I didn’t know that was in my headband. I swear it.”

He snorts, his expression darkening with disbelief. When he pulls back, I fight against my bonds, but they’re too tight. He returns, waving the needle in my face, jabbing its point so close to my eyes that I squeeze them shut.

“This says otherwise.”

Shivers run down my spine, and my skin breaks out into a sweat. This is it. The moment I die. Mom will never know what happened to me, and I’ll never meet my baby brother. Cass might even tell his twin to kill Dolly.

I can’t get Dolly into trouble. I need to stay calm. I need to think. But his grip tightens around my throat like a vise. I try to breathe, but nothing comes. My lungs burn, and my vision starts to fade.

My thoughts scatter as my eyes roll back. I’m slipping away, thinking of a place where girls go to school, not to kung fu camps where they get hurt every day. The fear takes over, and everything goes dark.

A crash sounds on the other side of the room, making Cass release my neck. My eyes fly open, and I suck in a deep breath. Dolly rushes in through the door with a dart gun.

Before I can even scream at her to run, she pulls the trigger. The dart flies, embedding itself in Cass’s neck. He staggers back, pulling out the object, but it’s too late. The tranquilizer takes effect, and he collapses to the floor, unconscious.

“Where did you get that?” I whisper.

“Paul.” Dolly jogs to my side, looking paler than death. She unties the ropes around my wrists, her fingers trembling. “We need to get out of here.”

“Where is he?” I ask.

“Dead,” she replies, her voice a strained whisper.

My stomach lurches. They told us to drug the targets, not kill them. I rub my wrists where the ropes had cut into my skin. We head for the door, but footsteps echo down the hallway, making us freeze.

“What are we going to do?” I ask Dolly, my voice tight.

She glances around the room. “Grab his legs.”

We drag Cass’s heavy carcass to the corner, so he’s out of sight. My arms strain, and sweat breaks out across my brow. When he’s in place, I grab a rug and cover him up.

The footsteps disappear, and Dolly slips off her shoes. I do the same and place them in my pinafore’s pockets. She walks to the door, opens it a crack, and peers out into the hallway. I wring my hands, my insides twisting into painful knots. This is a disaster. What will the police say when they raid the mansion and discover Dolly killed her target?

“It’s clear,” she says.

We slip out of the room, clinging to the shadows as we creep along the dark corridor. Footsteps echo from below, but no one seems to notice we’re escaping.

At the end of the hallway, we push open a door leading into a stairwell and descend. Every time one of the steps creaks beneath our feet, I cringe. My breath shallows, even though my heart pounds loud enough to summon the butler.

At the bottom, there’s a door leading to a courtyard. Dolly pushes it open, and we slip outside. The night air cools my clammy skin, and I finally inhale a deep breath. Outside, the gardens are unlit, but we run hand in hand through the dark toward the distant trees. Behind them is an iron fence. We slip through the railings and sprint toward a parked car.

When we open the back door and scramble inside, I want to howl with relief. It’s over.

Kappa turns around from the steering wheel, her eyes wide with worry. “Did you do it?”

“Yes.” Dolly fastens her seat belt. “Let’s go.”

Kappa speeds away. I breathe hard, watching the mansion shrink in the wing mirror. The tires crunch against the gravel drive, putting more distance between us and the nightmare we escaped.

As the tension drains away, I collapse against the seat, my body trembling with exhaustion. I can’t believe I almost died. Dolly reaches across the back seat and takes my hand.

“We did it,” she murmurs, her voice a soothing balm. “We’re going home.”

“We’ll see Mom,” I whisper, already picturing her and the new baby growing in her belly.

I let my eyes flutter closed and melt into the back seat. The hum of the car’s engine lulls me into a state of calm. As I drift off, my chest relaxes. No more Three Fates. No more exercise drills. No more grabby instructors. No more fighting with Dolly.

We can go back home and be normal sisters for Mom and Dad.

Hours later, sunlight streams through the car window, pulling me out of sleep. I wake up in the back seat and spot the rusty old water tower. Heart sinking, I squeeze Dolly’s hand. This isn’t New Alderney. We’re minutes away from Three Fates.

My sister wakes up, blinking the sleep out of her eyes and leans forward in her seat. “I thought you were taking us home.”

“Not until you give Delta a debriefing,” Kappa says.

This time, when she takes the turning in the hedges, neither of us flinches. From what I heard from the other girls, Three Fates is an extension of a law enforcement agency. It recruits delinquents and turns them into contributing members of society.

Because of kids like us, criminal organizations around the country are falling. But our facility has to remain top secret to protect the world.

Kappa walks us back through the concrete building, where Mr. Delta waits in his office. There’s no sign of any of our instructors or Dad. The headmaster sits behind his desk, staring at his tablet while we wait for him to pay us attention.

Shuffling on my feet, I rub the back of my neck, which still aches from being choked.

Dolly clears her throat.

He flicks his eyes toward us like a whip. I flinch, but my sister holds still.

“Hand over the headbands,” he demands, his voice as cold as ice.

Dolly marches over to his desk and places her headband on its wooden surface. When it’s my turn to step forward, my heart sinks into a pit of dread. Cass ripped it off my head. I didn’t think to pick it up before we escaped.

Mr. Delta raises his brow. “Where is it?”

Tears well up in my eyes. I swallow over and over, struggling to stay composed. Three Fates girls don’t cry. We also don’t make excuses.

“I-I left it behind,” I stammer.

Mr. Delta’s gaze hardens, his eyes piercing through my chest. “Do you realize what this means?”

Nodding, I loosen two fat tears that spill down my cheeks.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper.

Beside me, Dolly stiffens. I can’t stop thinking of what Dad said about us being a package deal. We’ve both screwed up. Dolly killed her target, when she should have left him unconscious for the police. I left behind my headband.

Mr. Delta leans back in his seat, his cold eyes fixed on mine. “You failed on multiple counts. You didn’t strike fast enough. You froze in the face of challenge.” When he turns to my sister, only a fraction of the tension eases. “And Dolly, you failed too by saving Amy from the consequences of her stupidity.”

Dolly’s hands ball into fists. “But we completed the mission.”

“Barely,” Delta snaps, the word cutting like a blade. “I’ve already informed your father of the sub-par performance. You won’t leave Three Fates until every mission you complete is flawless.”

My stomach plummets at the implication of further ordeals. “But that’s not fair.”

Ignoring me, Delta turns to Dolly, his expression stern. “As a sole operative, your performance on its own was passable. You’ll need to be stronger to compensate for your sister’s weakness. Do you understand?”

She nods, her face set with determination. “Yes, sir.”

“Dismissed.”

Kappa steps forward, placing a comforting hand on Dolly’s shoulder. “You did well. I know you’ll do even better next time.”

I trail after them into the hallway, my feet dragging. Failure hangs over my head like a dark cloud. I can’t believe it’s me who’s screwed up. It’s all my fault.

We reach Dolly’s dorm, and Kappa opens the door, letting my sister in. “Good night, sweetheart.”

When the door closes, she stares down at me, her features hardening. “Delta doesn’t give second chances. Don’t waste it.”

I nod, my heart shattering. At this rate, we’ll never see Mom and Dad again. Never meet my new baby brother. Pulling up my shoulders, I steel myself for more training, more missions.

Next time, I won’t fail.