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❝ that sounds far too easy ❞
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𝘚𝘺𝘭𝘷𝘪𝘦'𝘴 𝘗𝘖𝘝

"Pope, are you sure you got the right address?" JJ questions as we trek towards Vaux Hall.

"I know you aren't talking to me about having the right address" Pope retorts in disbelief.

"That's exactly what I'm asking" JJ counters.

"Okay. Enough, boys" I warn them.

"Look, the place says Vaux Hall" Pope explains with a sigh as we reach a bus stop "Vaux Hall, it's on the map"

"We don't know if that's where we are" JJ argues with the boy.

"It's in the general vicinity" Pope replies matter of factly.

"Why don't we just ask someone?" Cleo speaks up, glancing at a man approaching us on his tractor "Hey!"

"Pardon I" The girl smiles at the man as he stalls his vehicle to listen to her "You know where we can find Vaux Hall?"

"You kidding me, right?" He asks rhetorically, looking around us "Everything you can see all around you is all Vaux Hall"

"Wait, what do you mean? Like..." JJ drawls off in confusion.

"All this, all this, all this" The man explains.

"Oh, everywhere" JJ nods in understanding.

"Okay, so who lives up there?" Pope points towards a large house in the distance.

"Carlos Singh" The man answers "Just on the other side of that wall. But take it from me,
he's no one you want to get to know"

The six of us all share looks of concern and my anxiety starts to eat away at my confidence, not being able to think of anything but whether Kiara is safe right now.

"Okay, thank you" Pope chirps as the man starts up his engine again.

"Thank you" Sarah repeats politely, waving at him.

JJ wraps his arm around me and we all start making our way towards the huge wall up ahead of us. I try to shake off bad thoughts, sinking into JJ's side and I think he can sense it because he holds me tighter, pressing a reassuring kiss to my temple.

We reach the stone wall and I take a few deep breaths as my friends question who will go over first to scope the other side out.

"I'll go" I declare, cutting their discussion short and turning to the wall.

"No, angel" JJ protests, tugging me back to him and I frown up at him "You're not thinking straight right now"

"How am I not?" I question in confusion.

"Because this is about Kie" He answers softly, tucking my hair behind my ear.

"JJ's right" John B nods in agreement and I look to the others who all share similar expressions.

"Vie, we're not trying to hurt your feelings" Pope assures me with a warm smile "It's just that you're kind of wild and you need someone to ground you"

"Kiara is that person for you" Sarah finishes for him "But she's not here right now"

"So, I'm unpredictable?" I guess and they all nod hesitantly "Okay"

There's a short silence in which my friends try to read my expressions to tell how I'm feeling but I keep a blank face, looking from my sister to my boyfriend.

"I'll do it" JJ assures me, pecking my forehead with a reassuring grin.

I return the smile as much as I can and I watch in worry as my boy starts to climb up the wall, John B coming up beside me and taking a hold of my hand. I look from the blonde to the brunette and I smile at him gratefully.

"Okay, come on" JJ encourages us.

Cleo is the first to throw herself up, John B and Pope helping Sarah and I up by letting us use their clasped hands to stand on.

"Thanks!" Sarah chirps.

"Oh shit! Wait!" JJ whisper yells "Sarah, Sylvie, get down! Quick!"

Sarah and I jump from the top of the wall to the grass and we drop to our stomachs next to Cleo and JJ, Pope and John B following close behind.

"You see him?" JJ points and I spot two men with large German shepherd dogs.

"Shh!" Cleo hisses.

"Oh man" Pope pants, out of breath "Okay. Portis wasn't kidding"

"No, that's a fortress" John B agrees "This is much bigger than Ward"

"We got two towers, patrollers, ATVs, possibly snipers" JJ informs us.

"Holy shit" I murmur in disbelief.

"There's no way we're getting past that" Sarah says defeatedly.

"We gotta help her. We can take them if we stay towards the tree line" Cleo counters confidently, pushing her self up and scurrying away before we can argue.

"No, Cleo! No, Cleo!" Sarah protests.

"Hey!" Pope snaps as JJ and I scramble up, following her.

"Cleo, wait!" I huff.

The sound of the dogs barking makes my anxiety spike and I grab JJ's hand, the boy pulling me down behind some tall grass where Cleo is.

"Shh!" She warns us as the other three join us.

JJ takes his hand from mine and shows us all his pointer finger, telling us to wait while he peaks up a little over the grass to look at the guards.

"Oh shit" JJ curses, crouching down.

"What do you see?" John B questions.

JJ starts trying to mime his answer as though we're playing a game of charades and I look up at him in complete disbelief.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I mutter.

"Hey, use your words. Words" John B demands in irritation.

"What?" Sarah squints her eyes in confusion.

"They're right there" JJ finally speaks.

"Then just say that" Pope retorts harshly.

"All right. What we should do is we should back up, all right?" JJ advises us, glancing back at the guards "Because there's no way"

"JJ, get down" John B orders, yanking the boy down.

"Hey. There's an opening down that way" Cleo points to our left "As soon as the guards turn around, we just sneak in through the back"

"That sounds far too easy" I furrow my brows at the girl and she gives me a pointed look.

"Come on. Go, it's this way" She leads the way and we follow.

"Wait, you know what we should be doing? Go down, take the sewers up-" JJ starts rambling from behind me.

"What sewers?!" Sarah spins around to look at my boyfriend in disbelief.

"The sewers!" JJ just repeats himself and I roll my eyes with a shake of my head.

"This is all grassland. There's no sewers" Pope says matter of factly.

Suddenly a loud click catches our attention and something starts beeping repeatedly, causing us all to freeze in our spots.

"What was that?" Sarah questions, but no one answers "What was that?!"

"I know that sound. Hold on" JJ speaks up, frantically searching for something "All right, all right"

"Wait, what is that?" He adds and we spot a metal post, holding what looks like a radio.

"It's a game cam" Pope tells us.

"A fucking what?" I retort in worry.

"Oh shit!" JJ breathes out, grabbing the thing and panicking "Yeah, that's-"

"Mash it up. Mash it up!" Cleo chimes in.

"What?!" JJ shrieks at her.

"Put it on the ground" Cleo demands and JJ drops it, allowing her to stomp on it.

"No! Stop it!" Pope argues, snatching it from the grass "Give me that. Pull the battery"

"Quick, before it transmits" John B pleads.

"Transmits?" Sarah repeats with wide eyes.

"Pope, come on! Hurry up" JJ rushes the boy as he tries to remove the battery from the device as fast as he can.

The beeping abruptly stops and we all stay silently still, looking at each other with concern.

"Do you think we got it before it transmitted?" Sarah is the first to say something.

The dogs start barking very loud and aggressively, making my heart drop and my palms sweat.

"No" Pope gasps in response.

"Dogs, dogs. We gotta go" John B rushes out, backing away.

"Go, go, go, go!" JJ yells and we start sprinting back the way we came "We gotta go, we gotta go"

"Run!" Pope shouts.

A whole swarm of guards start chasing us on varies different vehicles and on foot, holding leashes attached to large scary dogs.

"Oh my fucking God!" I screech loudly.

"Dogs, dogs! Go, go, go!" John B screams in fear.

"Don't let them make it to the wall!" I hear a guard holler "Send the dogs. Send the dogs!"

The sound of chains rattling is followed by barking and I make the mistake of turning my head, watching in horror as a group of dogs start chasing us down.

"Dogs! Dogs, dogs!" John B chants as we run and my sister screams when she glances back herself.

"Keep going!" I warn her.

"Come on, come on!" Pope yelps.

All six of us let out various sounds of distress, yelling and screaming as we sprint as fast as we can away from the hungry looking animals hunting us.

As we reach the wall, JJ immediately grabs me and practically throws me up the wall. I grab onto the top and heave myself over, dropping to the other side at the same time as Cleo.

"Sarah, come on!" JJ urges and then my sister joins us with Pope "John B, hurry, get up here!"

"No, stay down!" John B shouts at the dogs as him and JJ straddle the wall.

"John B! John!" Sarah shrieks.

"JJ, hurry up!" I plead and he jumps down, stumbling over to me.

John B drops down next to Sarah and we all pant heavily, gasping for breaths as we sit on the grass.

"Ah, cool" John B mumbles "Series of bad decisions"

"You can say that again" I scoff.

"What are we gonna do about Kiara?" Sarah finally asks the question that we're all thinking.

"We'll think of something, but we're not leaving her in there" JJ assures us, looking at me and pulling me against his side "Come on"