Sebastian and Oliver were deforming their faces between the bars watching me cry over Zarina's body.

      He was a liar, a liar... And now I couldn't do anything to save Oxygen. Our powers were useless trapped in there, even Oliver's... Wait, Oliver?!

      "Oliver!" I screamed.

      "¡hm?"

      "Why didn't you free yourself back at the stairs? I knew you could punch Vince right there — Why didn't you?"

      "I can't believe you are blaming me! I am human, okay? Try to punch your missing brother after 4 years of his death!"

      "Shut up!" Sebastian rolled his eyes.

      "Your disrespect can come back to you, Castle, just warning."

      "Wow, your threats are super scary. I'm peeing in my pants."

      I moaned sadly and turned my attention back to Zarina while they argued.

      "Angelina..." Sebastian sighed.  "If there's something I could do to leave this place..."

      "For God's sake, I can't stand being with you any longer, Castle." Oliver distanced from the grid and pulled out a phone from his jacket. We widened our eyes. "Aleksei? I need you, bud."

•••

     We heard someone knocking on the door. "HEY THERE! KEEP YOURSELVES FAR FROM HERE!"

And it exploded, sending a bad vibration through my chest. The guy I'd never seen before at the morgue — recognized by his pink ears and poker face — was standing proudly by the entrance. His fists were releasing smoke, and there were a lot of people with him. About a dozen.

      "Good job. Now here." Oliver said.

      Aleksei massaged his hands before exploding the boys' cage. Boom! Sebastian ran to a statued Angelina approaching me as his hands found my waist with no difficulty. My breathing stopped—

      "You should save this moment for later." Oliver said, his voice as cold as winter. I slipped away from the embrace, looking down at my shoes. Oliver turned his attention back to Aleksei, who handed him a knife and a gun which seemed to be made of plastic. It was bright green. "Listen carefully. It is not only Dr Gene that is in trouble today. If he dies, we will all suffer the consequences: once he dies, our enemies will come after us and you can say bye bye to the good life you're living", he glanced briefly over Sebastian. "Terrence, call the president; Bolland, we will need your sleeping bullets; Farshaw, take all kids out of here. The rest of you come with me."

      Have I mentioned that Oliver's leardership was outstanding?

     "Hey, Snow." A man who looked more like a mountain called from the front line. Oliver turned around and they talked while we were walking. It seemed to be important because his face was expressionless and serious.

    "Castle? Can you come here for a moment?"

     I frowned. What do they want with Sebastian?

    They talked. And talked. And talked. We arrived at the Common Room. I thought we would face a little crowd, standing around two dark spots representing Vince and Gene, their faces spilling blood and all that movie drama. But there was only the Common Room, with its trees and fountains. And between the trees I saw Vince. He was with Sebastian's gun, walking small steps at a time, sometimes turning around and starting the way back again. His eyes wandered the place meticulously.

      There was a commotion by my side. My group was hiding behind the trees, some in smaller groups of 3, some alone. Sebastian grabbed my arm and pulled me to behind a red maple tree, the Canada one, so its leaves matched perfectly with his hair. I wanted time to stop; ask questions, talk to him, but he put a finger against his lips and indicated the oak Oliver was hidind at.

     "Lets split this in two parts. You, six," he pointed at a few people. "will search for Gene. Bring him preferably alive. I will stay here with the other six calming Vince down." Oliver brushed a hand through his hair, which now I noticed was darker than the usual, imitating the black-brown of coffee.

    "Angelina" Sebastian called. "I know this is something I would never say, and I hate saying it, but... no matter what, promise you will listen to Oliver, okay? Be by his side. I want you safe."

     I wanted to squeeze his hands and never let go. "Why? Is this related to what you were talking about earlier?"

     "Nah, nothing to do with that. Just promise." He smiled and touched my cheeks. We could have stayed there forever...

    "Vince!" Oliver shouted from behind the oak.

    His brother raised the head. "Oh, you escaped already? I should have known earlier and killed you too."

    Oliver made mention to say something but Vince cut him off: "Stand out of my way and only one more person will leave injured today. And you won't understand, even if I wanted or had the time to explain."

"Please try, I want to know what is going on." Oliver showed himself. He had no gun, no nothing, only him. I knew what he was up to. He was smart. Perhaps more than everyone in there. "I missed you", he put forth, and it went so sad all hearts got broken.

     Vince's face was out of reach for me, but what came after already said the necessary. "Tss! You? sentimental? And then I am the fraud..."

     F*** you — I cursed in thought. He deserved a big slap on the face. How dare him? It was time for Oliver to glance sideways toward his tree. The mountain-guy turned his thump down. Negative, no sight of Gene. Vince continued.

     "You have always been very cold, little brother. Never cared about anyone. You have too much selfishness in this little heart of yours. Excess of egoism." 

     Oliver's hands transformed into fists for the second time that day, and I was afraid he could do more than stay waiting. "You know, Vince? Sometimes the excess of something is the lack of another."

      At this exact moment the doors behind us flung opened and Damon Collins walked in straightening his jacket. "WHY DIDN'T ANYONE INVITED ME TO THE FAMILY PARTY? You know I hate staying at home drinking tea." He raised a gun out of nowhere and shot the ceiling, making plaster fall off, and my heart skip a bump. He walked heavily towards the center. Peter Filthy stood guarding the exit with something big that looked like a steel bar, his mouth merely a rock.

       Damon stopped in front of Vince.

       Gulp.

       They faced each other for what felt a thousand years. The most insane thousand years I had seen. There were two men who hated each other — and at the same time they knew one wouldn't kill the other. It was like a difficult husband-and-wife relationship.

"Where is the kid?"

"There's no kid for you. He's mine." Vince let out a snort of air and something said he was as astonished as us.

My eyes moved to the oak. Oliver had gone back into hiding and was shaking hands with no one but Gene!

        "Look who's there!" Damon's strong voice echoed in our direction. "Little Gene came join us! What a happy sight! What do you say, Vince? I immobilize the slugs and you get the pupil?" As soon he finished talking something loud and big shattered the glass in the windows. Oliver pressed Gene's body against the tree. Sebastian pulled me against him and we crouched to the ground. Everything seemed to be happening very slowly and at the same time too fast. I could hear the thousands of pieces of glass falling above us while Arians entered flying at the common room.

"Rebels, bring their leader to me!" Damon shouted to the crowd, then turned to Vince. "And you, I still have a chain to steal from you."