Okay so I lied. This is the last chapter but... it's not.

THERE WILL BE AN EPILOGUE! :) So technically, there's still one last chapter.

Anyway, hope you enjoy! And thank you to those still reading up to this point <3

It's a shorter fall than I originally thought. Perhaps only a metre. Nevertheless, I fall with a thud. A few seconds before I land I have some sense to hold out my hands and I successfully avoided face planting, though my muscles now ache and groan with the impact. I lie there for a moment, more in shock than anything else, then slowly, I crawl to my feet.

It's dark. Too dark, and a chill is already making it's way up my spine. I wave my hand in front of my face but see nothing. Trying to keep calm, I feel my way along what feels like a rough wall. I must have been on some sort of circular platform because I soon realised that I had felt my way around right back where I had started. Thankfully, a beam of light flashes down on me, and I hurriedly call up.

"You mind giving me a torch?" I yell.

"What do you see?" my mother's voice echoes down.

"I don't know, that's why a torch might come in handy!" I shout back.

The flashlight disappears and I'm left wrapped in darkness once more. A loud clack sounds right next to my foot and I jump back in fright. Realising it must have been the torch, I shake my head in annoyance.

What is their problem? I asked for a torch, they didn't have to aim for my head!

I pick up the small, black flashlight and turn it on, half surprised to find it still working after the drop. I wave the flashlight around. As I had suspected, I'm on a circular, shiny grey metal platform. On a second glimpse, however, I realise that it's not actually circular, but an octagonal shape made to fit perfectly beneath the octagonal shaped fountain. Pointing the torch at the walls, I realise that they were carved from the ground. The dirt walls are rough but well smoothed over. It may be dark, but I'm grateful that I didn't grow up having a fear of compacted spaces, or this probably would have been too much for me. This place already makes me feel as if I'm buried alive. I finally stop the beam of light on a small lever close to one edge of the platform. I hear distant shouting and I point my flashlight towards the starry night sky.

"What's going on?" I shout up, but no one replies.

Suddenly, a huge body comes hurtling towards me. I scurry out of the way just in time as Thorn lands perfectly on his feet, exactly where I had been mere seconds before. His boots make a loud thump on the metal floor as he lands, and I shiver, not wanting to think about what would've happened if I hadn't reacted so quickly. Kol jumps down next, landing in a crouch, followed by Spike who lands on his feet just a little shakily.

"Hate heights..." I thought I hear him murmur.

Finally, my mother's slim figure comes plummeting down and she manages to effortlessly land on her feet as light as a cat, her backpack strapped to her shoulders. I gaze at her in dismay, wondering how much more I don't know about her.

"What did you find?" Thorn asks me gruffly, switching on his torch. My mother and Spike follow suit.

Wordlessly, I point my flashlight at the device I had found. My mum briskly walks over and pulls the lever. Almost immediately, the platform begins to slowly descend, away from the commotion up ahead. I watch as the fountain above begins to move back into place, cutting us off from the world above.

Several awkward minutes pass before we finally reach the bottom.

We wave our torches around the empty place, but the light only shows us so far. Having taken his torch, Kol stuffs his hands in his pockets, a look of boredom on his face once again. From what I can tell it looks like a huge underground cave, probably used for hiding all sorts of things like weapons back in the middle ages. As we begin to step out onto the ground and off the platform, Thorn spots a button on the wall. He presses it, and lights begin to flicker, then suddenly the room seems to come alive with light. I look around in surprise, not expecting such an old place to have electricity, but maybe lights had been installed later on.

Or maybe my dad did, I think to myself.

I break away from my thoughts, observing the room before me, and stifle a gasp. There must be at least a dozen crates, all filled to the brim with glistening gold. The underground cavern was concaved and large. A few columns stand erect, supporting the weight of the earth above, but other than the crates, it seems quite empty. Although most of the room is now lit up, there are some corners of the area that are shrouded in darkness, and I noticed two passageways leading in opposite directions. I instantly become curious, wondering where the two pathways lead to, what they were used for, and a part of me, despite my fear of darkness, is eager to explore the underground ruins of Monterano. But now isn't the time.

"Gold bars..." I whisper breathlessly, returning my attention back to the crates.

"Having second thoughts about joining now, sweetie?" my mother leers.

I shake my head unbelievably. "All this for gold? Seems kind of stupid if you ask me."

I had meant to insult her, but instead, she bursts into laughter. Not needing my torch anymore, I turn it off and glare at my mother in irritation.

How could I have missed my own mum's cruelness all this time? How could she have fooled me for so many years?

"You think this is gold?" she laughs again, flicking her torch light off.

At the mention of this news, I look at my mother with a new found curiosity. A small part of me has suspected for a while now that something isn't right about this 'gold' we were looking for. Eager to know more, I step towards the nearest crate. A firm hand is placed on my shoulder and Thorn narrows his eyes at me.

"Not another step little lady," he whispers harshly into my ear.

My mother rushes towards the crates gleefully and chuckles, seeming like a little kid on Christmas. A demented kid, I think bitterly.

"Finally, after so long! Boys, this will be our biggest sell of the year!" my mother exclaims, picking up a long gold bar.

"I don't get it," I shake my head at her. "you're selling the gold?"

She gives me a condescending smile. "You stupid, stupid child," she lifts the bar up to me. "Does it look real?"

I squint. I've never seen a gold bar before in my life, but it sure looks real enough. "It's not?" I question, wondering what she's getting at.

"It's made of a certain mineral called pyrite," Kol explains, not quite meeting my eyes.

Of course, he knows. He's known all along, I think sourly, but I let him go on.

"It's not real, it just looks it. Basically, it's fool's gold."

"Yes, but these have been perfected to the core," my mother presents proudly. "Only true experts might be able to tell the difference," my mother smiles smugly.

I perceive the bar of gold in my mum's hand sceptically. She places the gold - or fake gold - on the ground and takes off her backpack, rummaging through it. To my shock, she pulls out a hammer, holding it up high above the gold bar.

"Are you paying attention?" she smirks at me.

I raise an eyebrow in reply, not sure what exactly I'm about to see. She brings down the hammer, shattering the bar into pieces. I gape as I realise the gold must have a hollow centre, for something else is lying in the shattered remains. I squint at the mess on the floor.

"Are they..." I start.

"Drugs?" my mother smiles. "Surprise!"

"You're a drug dealer?" I shout at her incredulously. You've got to be kidding me.

"Well, I'm a bit of this, a bit of that. Though drug dealing really is a great business. Really gets the economy spinning, know what I mean?" she beams, putting the hammer back into the bag.

"You're..." I sputter.

"A genius?" she cocks her head at me. "Oh, Audrey you have much to learn about the adult life. This will be the biggest deal of the century! After this score, we'll make millions!" she walks around a few crates, looking down on each with content.

"People from all over the world will want to make deals with us!"

"How did you...?" I start, but Mum finishes my sentence before I had the chance.

"Make all these? Sweetie, did you think I just hired assassins?" she giggles madly. "I hire all sorts of people! Unfortunately, when the gold went missing... well, I went in a sort of rage and... killed the workers who made this gold," she pouts, and I stare at her in utter horror. She continues, ignoring my mortified expression. "So that was why it was so important I find these!" she motions towards the many crates. "These are the very last ones left, that is until I can find someone else just as good to make more of these. It would've been a shame to let this last supply rot. So much money can be made thanks to these little bars," she runs a finger along a few of the gold bars in a crate. "And I'll just keep selling until I get bored. Then I'll find something else to do. I could be an assassin again... they do get paid dearly..." she adds, pondering on the thought.

Before I can respond, there's a sudden rumble and I turn around to find the metal platform slowly ascending, meaning only one thing. Either the assassins had won, and were pushing at the fountain to enter the cave at this moment, or Erik and the other have defeated them. I stare nervously at the platform as it disappears from view. A look passes between my mother and Thorn and he gives a slight nod, leaving me to go and stand at attention next to where the platform was moments ago, his hand at the ready on the knife's handle.

If it is Erik, Mark and Justine, then... I glance at Thorn, a menacing look in his eyes. He'll kill them as soon as they try to hop off.

Lost in my worries, I don't notice my mother heading towards me until she grabs my shirt roughly.

"Hey!" I struggle against her to no avail, and she easily pulls me to one side of the caved wall.

"Hold her!" she growls at Spike, who rushes over, pinning me against the hard, dirt wall as my mother rummages through her bag again. I try to squirm away but that only causes Spike to turn me around, one of my cheeks now squished against the wall.

"What are you doing?" I grit my teeth.

I hear my mother grumbling something incoherently.

"Kol, be a dear and attach the rest of the explosives around this place. We're taking these crates, and then we're getting out of here." My mother's sweet voice echoes. "Make sure to press the button when we're out and make extra certain that Erik and those other two brats are stuck in here. If they've even gotten past my men that is," she gives a small chuckle.

"No, you can't do that!" I frantically try to twist away from the hefty man, but Spike holds me in my place.

I stand there for a few minutes, listening to the creaks and groans of the constantly descending platform as it draws closer and closer. Surprisingly, Spike releases me, and I instantly spin around, ready to attack, when my heart skips a beat. Spike has a gun pointed towards my face, the corners of his mouth tilting upwards into a mocking smile.

"Try anything and I'll shoot," Spike sneers, clicking the safety trigger off.

I couldn't try anything even if I wanted too, I realised with dismay. Where would I run? The platform is making its way up, so I can't make my escape that way, and I have no idea where the two pathways lead to. That is if I could even get that far without one of them shooting me down first. Plus, if it is Mark, Justine and Erik on the platform, I can't just abandon them. I'm a cornered rat, with no way of escape.

I slowly shift my head to face Kol, who finishes strapping the last C4 explosive to the wall. My heart sinks as I see other three explosives placed on opposite walls. Holding the detonator Kol walks up next to me.

"Please don't do this," I beg to my mum, but she doesn't reply.

I face Kol again. "You're just going to let them do this? You said you cared for me, but my mum is going to kill me Kol."

Kol shakes his head and mumbles something inaudible.

"Do you really not believe-" I'm interrupted by a loud clank sounds from deep in the walls.

Suddenly, the machinery stops whirring and I notice three figures, worn and tired, stumble out of the platform. My heart leaps as I see Erik, Mark and Justine, bruised but alive. That moment of relief only lasts a second, though, as Thorn rushes forward with his knife.

"Erik!" I scream a warning, which earns me a blow to the head from the back of Spike's gun.

"Shut it!" he snarls, and I clutch my head in pain. Still, I keep my gaze on my three friends. As weary as Erik looks, he's prepared, and he dodges Thorn's attack with ease. I meet Mark's gaze but before either one of us can speak, chaos erupts.

I notice him and Erik each holding what I assumed were the same guns Kol had given them back at Mount Tambourine, seeing as they never had any reason to use up the bullets -until now.

Thorn lunges at Erik, who shoots in return but misses as Thorn dives to the ground. Mark fires at Spike who, caught by surprise, ducks and shoots back. I dive to the floor as the bullets fly everywhere. I notice out of the corners of my eyes Justine pointing a gun at Kol that I could only assume she had picked up from one of the assassins they had fought above. Her clothes are dirty and torn, and anger fills her eyes. Kol wastes no time however, he whips out his gun and shoots. I feel something cold and hard pressed against my back and I freeze.

"If I hear one more shot, she dies!" my mother shrieks.

The firing stops almost instantaneously, but no one lowers their guns. My mother steps in front of me, gun still pointed. "Get up," she commands.

I do as she says, raising myself from the ground slowly. I grip the torch that's still in my hand, waiting for the right moment to strike.

I watch Erik look at my mother blankly.

Who knows what's going through his head right now... I think miserably, watching the man as he stands rigidly, a brief look of disappointment crossing his face before becoming expressionless once more.

"Don't do this Lola," he says quietly. "She's your daughter."

"She's no daughter of mine if she thinks the way you do," she snorts.

"Mum, please," I plead, trying to buy us all time. "You can't be serious. This isn't you. What happened to the woman who worked so hard at her job? All those papers at home, all those architectural designs..."

"You really are stupid, aren't you? You obviously didn't get your brains from me," my mother sneers. "Those papers were all blueprints to find the gold that your dratted father hid from me!" she exclaimed, her voice shrill.

"No," I say firmly, holding back my temptation to look at Erik and the others, to see if they had come up with some sort of plan. "I don't believe that this was all just for this gold. What about Erik? You can't say you don't feel anything towards him. What about the dinner?"

She shakes her head at me, laughing cruelly. "Oh, Audrey. So pathetic. Don't think I don't know what you're trying to do. You can't stall for time, sweetie. Now," she looks between Mark, Justine and Erik, her gun still pointing straight towards me. "Put down your weapons!"

I watch as Justine, Mark and Erik reluctantly drop their guns.

"Now kick them far away," she growls and they obey.

"Good." Then without any warning, she cocks the gun further down towards my arm and shoots. I scream out in agony as the bullet pierces me. The pain only seems to increase as I look down at my bloody arm. I struggle to hold back tears, biting my lip in sheer agony. I watch as Erik, Mark and Justine attempt to step forward, but my mother shoots them each a cold icy stare. Kol stares at my mother, wide-eyed, obviously not expecting this recent turn of events. I watch him drop his aim for a second before hastily bringing the gun back up to Justine.

"You said you weren't going to shoot her," Kol says quietly from his spot. "You said you wouldn't actually kill her."

My mother looks at me, a hint of a craze in her eyes, then she faces Kol, never lowering her gun. "Oops. I lied."

"You said if she joined..." Kol mutters.

"If she joined Kol, darling. If," she tuts. "But she chose not to."

"I can change her mind..." he tries.

"Oh Kol enough!" my mother spits. "She was a failure anyway. She would've been of no use. We've found what we needed, she's not useful to us anymore. Now," she turns towards Thorn. "I want these crates out, I don't care if it takes all night. You three!" she waves towards Mark, Justine and Erik. "Stand over at that far side of the wall. Don't let me ask you twice, otherwise next time, I'll aim a little closer to her heart," she tilts the gun towards my chest and for a split second, I think she's going to pull the trigger. She motions to Spike. "Hurry up! Help him!"

Thorn and Spike hurry over to the nearest crates pushing them towards the platform. As Justine, Mark and Erik pass the scattered pills, they each exchange a sudden look of understanding, before shuffling against the opposite wall to me.

"Kol, make sure they don't try anything," my mother orders, and Kol gives a quick nod.

As he passes by, though, he suddenly lurches towards my mother, managing to lower her aim so that when she instinctively pulls the trigger, the bullet shot harmlessly into the ground. He attempts to wrench the gun out of her hands, but she holds a firm grip on it. Instead, Kol holds out his gun as the two of the struggle. He shoots and hits her leg. She cries out in pain, crumbling to the floor, but not before pulling him down with her.

Seeing the commotion, Thorn and Spike stop dragging the crates and begin to draw their guns back out, but Erik wastes no time, rushing over to his fallen gun and shooting at Thorn before he has a chance to turn around. Unfortunately, Erik's aim was too much to the left of the bulky man, and he misses by about an inch. Mark scrambles for his gun, but isn't as quick as the older man, and Spike swiftly pulls out his gun, noticing Mark's dash for the weapon and shoots at him. Mark grabs the gun, rolling out of the way in the nick of time. He hops back to his feet, points and shoots, hitting the man square in the shoulder with an amazingly accurate aim. Spike falls to his knees but not before firing again. I note Justine hurrying over to me.

"Audrey," she winces, staring at my arm. Remembering the pain once again, I suddenly feel the continuous throbbing. Instead, I focus my attention back to the matter at hand. I notice Justine's hair – usually perfect – is sticking at odd angles, a patch of dried blood is on her scalp and quite noticeable. Blood drips from her forehead and she looked pretty beaten up. An instant pang of guilt hits me before I shake it away. Now's not the time. We need to get out of here, I think, eyeing the C4 on the walls.

I glance back towards my mum, who's trying to crawl to her feet, but Kol roughly grabs both her legs, sending her sprawling flat on her face. She shoots backwards and hits Kol in his hand, the one holding the detonator. He shouts out in pain and drops it. My eyes widen in the apprehension and I dive for the remote before remembering the bullet in my arm. As I reach out, I feel the pain in my arm triple, and a yelp of pain escapes my lips. I clutch the remote determinedly, and I look up in time to find my mum lunging towards me and the remote. I hurry to get up, but she grabs my wounded arm and I drop the remote, yelling out in sheer pain and wrenching my arm away from my mother. Justine runs for the remote, but it's too late. My mother clicks the button and for a second I just sit there, expecting a boom. Even Justine seems momentarily confused. A look passes between the two of us as we both realise that the bomb must be timed.

Mum wouldn't kill herself too. We still have a chance of escape!

Sure enough, placed between the arrays of wires on the C4s, I notice little digital screens, counting down the time: ten minutes. My mother grabs my leg and I clutch the torch that, up until now, I forgot I had been grasping.

"This one's for dad," I hiss and smash the flashlight over my mother's head. She falls back down to the ground, unconscious.

The leader of the assassins gets knocked out by a torch. I glare at my mother. Now who's pathetic?

I instantly regret the thought, though, afraid that I'm starting to sound like my own mother.

I will never be like you.

I gaze at my mother's resting face, her body limp, eyes closed. She's breathing steadily, and I know that if the situation were reversed, and I was the one unconscious, my mum would not hesitate to kill me.

But I'm not like you. And I won't do it. Because we're still family, and it's not right. I continue to stare at my sleeping mother in pity. If that's what makes me pathetic, then fine. But I'd rather be that than a psychopath.

I stand up next to Justine, my arm creaking and groaning, I glimpse at it again and immediately wish I hadn't. Blood is continuously dripping down my arm, and it doesn't look like it's going to stop anytime soon.

I suddenly notice that the gunshots had lessened and soon realise why. Mark is now standing over Spike who's lying on the ground. Mark kicks Spike's gun away and I notice two bloodstains now on Spike's shirt, the first in his shoulder, the second in his chest.

He stares at Mark as if in shock, his mouth slightly agape, and I know he's only a few seconds from dying. I know Mark had to shoot the man, and I understand, but it still sickenes me to watch someone die like that, so I turn my attention to the other two men. Thorn and Erik, equally matched skill-wise, continue to shoot at each other, ducking and firing and lunging, the loud bangs of the guns ringing throughout the cave. Thorn shoots wildly at Erik, a murderous look in his eyes.

"It's about bloody time you learned not to interfere!" he barks.

I look back at the many digital screens flashing 7 minutes.

"We need to get out of here," I look at Justine, who nods.

"Kol..." I begin, uncertain of what to say to him, but before I can make a decision, I look down at where he's crouched and a gasp escapes me. A bloodstain is growing at a rapid pace near his stomach.

"No, no, no..." I crouch down beside him as he lays down on his back, groaning. Not again. It's happening all over again. My throat tightens.

"I'm sorry," he coughs.

I want to reply back to him, but my vision goes blurry with tears and I can't find the words to speak. How many deaths does a seventeen-year-old have to see? I find myself thinking.

"You'll be okay," I murmur. "C-can you get up?" Why am I having this strong sense of Déjà vu?

He gives me that half smirk that seemed to have regained some of its humour again. "I actually thought that lying down here is kind of relaxing," he replies sarcastically, managing a wink.

I know nothing about gunshots, and I'm not sure if where the bullet hit him is a vital place or not, so I look up at Justine for help. She looks down at me with concern but shrugs, knowing what I'm going to ask.

"I don't know if he's going to die, but moving him won't be a very good idea," she replies as three more gunshots ring out, but I barely hear them.

"We have to try..." I struggle to lift him up as another bolt of pain shoots up my arm.

"Justine, help me!" I say, blinking away an oncoming stream of tears.

Reluctantly, she walks over to help. We begin to drag him to his feet, but Kol groans in pain and he crumples to the ground again. At some point, Mark had joined us. Without a word, he began to help Kol up, but when he sees the look of pain on Kol's face he gently lays him back down once more.

"You guys need to go," Kol says, his voice low and quiet. I shake my head at him, but a part of me knows he's right.

Thorn cries out in pain and we all turn in time to see Erik throw a punch at Thorn's temple. The hefty man falls to the ground with a thud.

"We need to go," Justine places a hand on my good shoulder.

Kol looks between the three of us and nods at Justine. "Go. I won't make it."

Mark looks as if he's about to protest but Kol shakes his head slightly, the effort causing him to cough. "Look after her," he says, glimpsing at me. "Not that she really needs all that much protection," he tries to wink at me again, but both of his eyes close, and he lies like that for a few seconds, as I stare at him in shock. I don't bother to wipe the tears anymore. I crouch back down next to him again, shaking his shoulders urgently, a wave of déjà overcoming me as I think of how it was only a few weeks ago that I was in this same situation at school, and Anita was bleeding out on the library steps.

No. You can't be dead. Please don't be dead!

I let out a gasp of relief as Kol's eyes flutter back open, a smirk on his face.

"Aw, you so still care," he says weakly. Mustering up all his strength, he lifts himself up onto one elbow. He inches closer towards me, his lips just inches from mine and I take a sharp intake of breath. A part of me says to lean down towards him, to kiss him, but my body doesn't seem to cooperate. His body is now shaking violently, and he manages to keep himself upon one elbow long enough to gently kiss me on the cheek, staring at me with those dark mischievous eyes, before falling down onto his back, he gives me a final crooked smile and I squeeze his hand.

"Kol..." I start, but I'm not sure how to finish. I stifle a sob as I stand back up, hating myself for what I'm about to do.

"See you around, Audrey," he smiles. Not a smirk. A genuine smile, and that only seems to leave a wider hole in my heart.

"You three need to move!" Erik yells suddenly, kicking at Thorn as he tries to get up.

The clock is ticking. Four minutes to go. With one last glance at the curious boy, whom, all in about a week, I had liked, hated, and at times, pitied, I hurry off with Justine and Mark. We hop onto the metal platform and I look at my mother's body, peacefully lying on the ground in a heap.

"Wait," I hesitate. As much as I hate my mum, it's not right to just leave her there... Before I have the chance to hop back off the platform, however, Thorn grabs at Erik, making him fall. They roll on the ground, each trying to gain the advantage.

"Pull the lever!" Erik yells.

Justine pulls it and the machinery begins to whirl to life, slowly lifting the metallic platform.

"Erik, jump on!" Mark shouts urgently.

Erik stands, only to get dragged back down. I watch in panic as Erik struggles against the massive man.

Come on Erik, you can do it! I think desperately, but Thorn refused to let go of him.

"If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me!" Thorn spits, lashing out at him.

I can't lose anyone else, I think frantically.

Without pausing to consider what I'm doing, I swiftly grab Mark's gun, aim and shoot. It's my first time shooting a gun, but my aim isn't as terrible as I would have imagined, considering the fact that I'm not even on still ground and I'm using my wounded arm. It hits Thorn in the foot and, by natural reflex, he releases Erik with a yelp, grabbing his foot in anguish.

By now the platform has lifted at least a half a metre. Justine and Mark are both crouched on the edge of the platform, as it continues to rise closer and closer to the dark, enclosed tunnel above.

Soon, we will be between the dirt walls, high out of reach and out of sight. Erik might is tall, but if he doesn't hurry up, he won't make it, I reason.

The three of us shout at Erik frantically, urging him to hurry. He runs towards us and we shuffle back to make room for him. He leaps, half making it onto the platform, his legs flailing in the air as he tried to push himself up. I notice with horror that we are only a few seconds away from entering the confined tunnel.

If Erik doesn't get on now, he'll be crushed!

"Quick!" I yell, and the three of us scramble to help him, pulling him to the safety of the platform just in time, as the dirt walls surround us, and we are enveloped in darkness once more. I breathe out a quick sigh of relief.

Mark, Justine and Erik are safe. I'm safe. Everything's alright, I tell myself. But it doesn't feel alright. I glance down at the gun in my hand, thinking of Kol and my mum, left down there to die.

"Audrey..." Erik starts, but there's not much to say in this sort of situation.

I think of feinting a smile, but I don't believe I even have the energy left to do so. My arm is numbing. My whole body feels traumatised, and the rest of the ride up is silent. Justine scuffles over, giving me a hug, but I continue to stare at the gun in my hand. The platform reaches the top and just as we've just climbed out, we hear a distant boom from beneath, the sound I had been dreading. The four of us exchange a weary look, and I realise how much these past events have changed us. I look at my best friend, who opens her arms to me again and this time, I embrace her. I notice the three hefty men lying on the ground in a heap - unconscious or dead - I don't know, nor do I really care anymore. Another three men, the ones who had helped open the fountain but had stayed above, also lying in a heap nearby. I don't bother to stop the flow of tears this time. Dad, dead. Anita, dead. Kol, dead. Mum, liar, insane and also dead. The words repeat in my head, over and over again. How could I have lost so many people close to me? Mark moves towards me, rubbing my back comfortingly. Erik also takes a step towards me, but his gaze is on the now closed fountain, a distant look in his eyes.

I'm not the only one whose lost someone I care about. And that thought alone stops me from crying, though I remain immobile. I squeeze my eyes shut, and I don't know how long we all stand there, nor what time it is. When I open my eyes again, I turn to face Mark, who smiles at me, his gentle brown eyes seeming to almost hypnotising me to remain calm. He continues to gaze at me with a tranquil expression, and, feeling a little more composed, I step back, facing the ruins of the castle. I listen to the quiet air around me, no animal making a sound, and not a leaf rustling. It's over, I realise. We finished what my father couldn't. We completed the mission he had started years ago, and we stopped the biggest drug deal of the century. I smile slightly, knowing that my father could rest in peace now.

"It's going to be okay," Mark nods and I find myself nodding with him.

"It's not right now..." I murmur. Because it wasn't alright, and I'm no longer going to lie to myself. 

No more lies, I decide. No more denial. The truth is, for a long while, things won't be alright. There were too many sacrifices tonight.

"But it will be." I say finally. I know that eventually, I would be alright, because, like all deaths, the more time passes, the less it hurts to think about them. And I know that as much as I'm hurting now, it would pass, whether I want it to or not.

I glance at Mark, Justine and Erik, who attempt to look at each other with reassuring smiles.

"So what now?" I ask quietly, staring at the lonely fountain, its secret of the happenings of tonight safely buried beneath the ground, oblivious to any tourist that may pass by here.

Erik finally takes his gaze away from the fountain and looks at me. "Now... nothing," he responds solemnly, and I quietly sympathised with him. Tonight's success was hardly triumphant.

The defeat of the assassins, discovering the truth, finding the gold... it's nothing like we expected. Sometimes, knowing the truth just messes things up even more... for everyone.

"We did it. We can go home," Erik shakes his head, giving me a small smile that barely reached his eyes, and places a hand on my shoulder. "We finally did it."

Probably not the ending everyone was expecting, but I promise the epilogue will probably lift your spirits a bit.

Thank you all so much again! And I'll see you all next week for the last part of Deception!

Don't forget to vote! And tell me your thoughts on this chapter! Maybe about a certain mysterious, cocky boy? ;)