Leah was crouched down in the shadows behind a longue chair, silence ringing in her ears. She'd been here for nearly two hours now, her legs slowly cramping and her initial panic at Zarah's warning ebbing to a deep unease.

It hadn't taken long after Zarah's appearance for the house to erupt into chaos. Andrew had barked orders as the S.I.S barrelled around the rooms, cutting the electricity and boarding up windows. They all knew it was too risky to run, and with only fourteen men, they'd likely be outnumbered unless Leah ignored Maud's advice and called on the ghosts.

So, within five minutes everyone was crouched in the shadows, guns aimed at every entrance and breath held.

But that'd been hours ago now, and Leah was beginning to feel the tension ease and the guards around her start to entertain the idea that their plan had worked; that the rebels had seen the apparently abandoned house and presumed their intel was wrong. But Leah couldn't shake the dread that'd settled into her gut.

Because none of this added up.

None of it.

"Leah."

The hiss came off to her right and Leah turned to find Riley's eyes glinting at her through the darkness. She gestured for Leah to follow and began crawling away.

Leah glanced at Weston and Marco, two of the guards that'd joined them when they returned to Australia, and they gave her brief nods, guns still aimed on the window they'd all been designated to.

She didn't want to leave them alone, particularly Weston. He had kind eyes, a wide smile, and had left a very pregnant wife and toddler at home to be here. Anxiety tugged at her gut at the thought of anything happening to him.

"Leah!" Riley hissed impatiently.

Leah spun around and finally followed Riley into the window-less corridor, running through the centre of the house. Andrew and Tai were standing in the shadows, their forms barely discernible in the darkness.

"Has something changed?" Leah asked, rising from her crouch, squinting at Andrew. "Have you heard anything?"

"Sophie just called me," Andrew said, his voice low. "IT has eyes on the house and surrounding streets. They've hacked all surveillance cameras, speed cameras and satellite footage within a 5km radius. There's no sign of any known rebel supporters or armed persons."

Andrew's words made Leah's blood run cold and she had no idea why.

"How can that be?" she asked. "Jared said –"

"Who cares what Caldwell said?" Tai whispered. "We need to go now. Something held the rebels up and we need to take advantage of that."

"What could've held them up for three hours?" Leah argued.

Tai gave a small shrug, but Riley's gaze had sharpened. Leah could see that suspicion that appeared whenever Jared was mentioned leaking around the edges of her eyes.

"Whatever it is, doesn't matter," Andrew said. "We're sitting ducks here, and right now we can be reasonably confident that the rebels won't catch us if we go."

Leah opened her mouth to argue, but Andrew interrupted her before she could get a word out.

"This isn't a negotiation, Leah. We're leaving."

Andrew's words were firm and Riley's mouth was beginning to tighten into a thin line that worried Leah enough to halt any further argument. She didn't know what would happen if Riley told Andrew and Tai about what'd happened between her and Jared, but she didn't want to find out.

"Okay, fine," Leah said unsteadily. "What's the plan?"

There was a creak behind her and Leah turned to find Weston hovering in the doorway, his eyes flickering between the four of them, expression unreadable.

"Are we leaving?" he asked.

"Yes," Andrew said. "You and your men will accompany us back to the airport and then we'll take it from there. Sophie's already figuring out an alternative safe house for us."

Weston nodded and stepped away. "I'll let everyone know."

"Good," Andrew said. "Everyone go pack your things. We leave in five."

Leah glanced at Tai and found him watching her, his brow furrowed, but before he could speak, she turned and made her way down the dim corridor, hurrying around the corner towards her room.

Her stomach was churning uncontrollably, an intangible unease shifting like clouds and eddies through her system. She didn't trust Jared, she'd be insane to, but why warn her about an attack that wasn't happening? What did the rebels gain from that if they weren't lying in wait for her when she ran?

There was a creak behind her and Leah turned to peer into the darkness, thinking Tai had decided to come check on her.

But it wasn't Tai, and it took only a second to register everything she needed to know.

It was Weston.

They were alone.

And his machine gun was pointed at her head.

For a moment, she was still, her mind completely unable to comprehend what she was seeing.

"I'm sorry," he said.

And then he pressed down on the trigger.

Leah jerked to the side with a second to spare, crashing through the door to Riley's room as the world exploded around her.

Bullets ripped through the walls, splinters flying into the air, windows smashing and glass raining. The scream of the machine gun was deafening as she upended a desk and rolled behind it, horror flooding her as she finally processed what was happening.

Broken glass crunched as Weston stepped into the room and Leah jerked upwards, bringing her gun around to fire at him. But he'd known where she was, and she'd been aiming blindly, and he shot the gun out of her hand before she could bring it round.

The force sent her wrist cracking backwards and Leah screamed, clutching at her hand and scrambling backwards as he lined the barrel up with her forehead once more.

For a moment, their eyes locked and Leah knew this was it. Her ghosts were withering against her skin, begging to be free, but she couldn't do it. Not to only save herself. Not when the side effects could be so catastrophic.

She saw Weston swallow, his eyes flashed with determination, and then there was a bang and he collapsed, crying out. For a moment, Leah sat there, blinking in shock, and then Riley and Andrew rushed through the door.

Andrew's gun was zeroed on Weston's back as Riley kicked his gun away and planted her foot on his collarbone, pressing down savagely.

"You traitor," she hissed. "You cowardly fucking traitor!"

She spun him onto his stomach, twisting his arm into an unnatural angle. Weston cried out, his back arching and blood spreading from the bullet wound in his thigh.

"The rebels were never coming, were they?" Riley yelled. "They sent you instead."

Weston was sobbing now, his body shaking.

"I'm sorry," he cried. "I didn't have a choice. They didn't give me a choice."

"Leah, are you injured?" Andrew asked, his eyes never leaving Weston.

Leah slumped back against the wall, numb with shock. "No. No, I'm fine."

Weston had become hysterical, convulsing on the floor, sobs leaving his lips as more people swarmed inside. Tai and Marco darted towards her, muttering reassurances as they checked her over, but Leah brushed them off, rising to her feet and moving, as if in a trance, to stand over Weston, his choked cries finally materialising into words.

"They're dead," he was sobbing. "They're dead. My fault. They're dead."

Riley and Andrew glanced at one another, and Leah could see their initial rage shallowing to uncertainty.

"Who's dead?" Riley snapped.

"My family!" Weston cried. "They have my family! They'll kill them for this. They're dead. My fault. All my fault."

His words became jumbled, his throat closing up with tears and Leah felt her heart break.

Andrew swore under his breath and his gun lowered. Leah could see the exhaustion in his face, the completely bone-dead tiredness that came from a lifetime of fighting against people who did to families what a sawblade does to skin. Who rip and tear and hurt.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Andrew asked.

"They're dead," Weston sobbed. "My fault. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Leah wasn't sure whether Weston was apologising to them or his family, the words bubbing out of his mouth like a prayer.

"Shit," Riley muttered.

She dropped Weston's arm, glancing helplessly at Andrew.

"Who has your family, Weston?" he asked.

"Parker," Weston choked. "James Parker. He recognised me in their raid on the hotel. He took them. They're going to die. They're dead. My fault. All my fault."

"They're not going to die," Andrew growled, his voice like steel as he knelt down next to Weston and grabbed his face, forcing him to look up at him. "They're not. Okay? We'll find them. But to do that, I need you to calm down and tell us everything you know right now."

Weston's eyes were swollen, almost unrecognisable.

"I don't know anything. Just that he wanted Leah dead. That's all he said."

He broke off into silent sobs once more and Leah shifted uncomfortably, unsure if she should feel as much sympathy as she was for someone who'd tried to kill her five minutes ago.

"If you were meant to kill Leah, why did Jared want us to think people were coming?" Riley asked.

"That was just a trap," Weston mumbled, voice thick. "A test."

"Well, it was a shit trap," Riley said, her hands still hanging conspicuously close to her weapons belt. "We're all armed thanks to your trap."

"No," Weston said, whipping snot from under his nose. "Not for the S.I.S. For him."

For a moment, Leah's mind was sluggish, Weston's words sinking in slow. It wasn't until Riley's head jerked towards her, her eyes wide with shock, that Leah knew. It was like a drop of a match, the unease that'd sat like tinder around her bursting into flames of panic.

"What?" she breathed. "What trap?"

Weston looked up at her and almost recoiled from the intensity in her gaze.

"I... I don't..."

He cut off with a yell when Leah suddenly launched forward, grabbing him by the collar and knocking Andrew aside.

"What trap?" she shrieked.

There was a deep, otherworldly terror rising inside Leah; flickering and flaring in bolts that shocked her whole body.

"Parker said something about Mosmon," Weston gasped. "They're waiting to see if he goes there. But I don't know why."

"There's an old S.I.S safe house in Mosman," Andrew said softly. "But it's been abandoned for years. He couldn't think we're there, could he?"

Leah's blood froze, her breath collapsing in on itself. That was what Jared had been trying to warn her about. That's where they'd told him she was.

She glanced up at Riley and saw her blanch.

"Leah," Riley said, her tone panicked. "Don't –"

But Leah didn't hear the rest, she'd already dropped Weston and sprinted out the door, her entire being filled with a terror that completely annihilated any common sense.

Because for the first time, things were starting to make sense.

And she was terrified she wasn't the only one the rebels were trying to kill tonight.

...

Hey everybody!

What did we all think of the chapter?

The next chapters going to be a big one AND because I'm so excited about it, and I hope you all are too, I'm going to be posting it in a week!! Weeooowww!!

Get ready for a massive Jared/Leah reunion hehehe.

This chapter is dedicated to @PrettyGhellRed! Thank you for all your votes :)

On another note:

Black Stars has been nominated in The Fiction Awards 2018!! They're such amazing awards and the 3 stories with the most votes in each category get an award! At the moment, Black Stars is coming 5th in Sci-Fi!! If any of you have some spare time I would be eternally grateful if you headed over and gave Black Stars a few votes :)

The Fiction Awards link: https://www.wattpad.com/story/132077463-the-fiction-awards-2018 

Anyway, hope you all have a lovely week. I'll be posting again soon ;)

- Skylar xx