The Storeroom

Delaina, Alex and I are shoved through the open door of the garrgantuan warehouse. I'm surprised to have my eyes met with a giant room. The warehouse isn't actually a warehouse, it's just a giant storeroom. It's entirely empty, save for a stack of folding chairs on the far corner, a few round tables scattered all over the place, and a figure, huddled under one of the tables with a bag over his head, with a guy sitting at the table in the chair with a small pocket knife pointed toward him.

Delaina grabs my hand. She leans toward me once she sees that her guard isn't looking. "Cameo, you have to stick with us. They separate us, you have to find a way to our side. Got it?"
"Actually, she'll have a better fate than us, Delaina." Alex whispers. "If anything, we'll meet her. She's got no idea how to get to us through gunfire."
"Yeah, you're right. Cameo, we'll find you, okay?" Delaina looks at me

I nod yes just as they pick me up and almost literally toss me to a waiting guard. God, I'm not that light, am I?

The guard plops me down in front of the blonde girl I'd seen in the car, and I'm sitting in front
of her. I can feel Delaina and Alex watching this exchange. I have a feeling that they're in very grave danger.

On a closer look, Yasmine doesn't look so bad. She's got blonde hair, and her eyes are an indeterminate color. She has a very disarming look about her, so I can tell where exactly the duping midreaders thing comes from. But I know what to do. I'm jsut not going to believe a word she says.

She waits until I lift my head.

"So...you're the new girl, huh?"

Crap. Alex was right. There is a mole who informed her about me.

"I don't know. I guess." Always better to play ignorant.

She smiles. Creepy. "Now, I think you should know what the fuck you're talking about. Remember, I'm the one with the armed gunman."

I hear a safety turn off. Crap. I turn around to see who the gun's pointed at.

Dammit. It's Delaina. I've only known her a couple of days, but she's traveled very quickly up my "Friends I can Trust List." I've got to get her out of this.

She doesn't look afraid. In fact, she seems quite calm. I turn around to focus on the issue at hand: getting this bitch to step off.

Yasmine stands up and tosses her blonde hair behind her.

"You may wonder why you're here, considering you're the newbie, right?"

I don't answer. Better to keep quiet.

She gets visibly angrier. "Are you going to answer me or not?"

I still don't answer.

At this point, she's really aggravated with me.

"I never expected any of Alex's..."

"It's Aleksandar to you." Alex says with more venom than I've ever heard.

"...Alex's apprentices to be such bitches."

That does it.

"Weren't you one of his apprentices?" I retort. In hindsight, a very bad move.

Yasmine makes the shotgun hand gesture at Delaina. Alex looks panicked, I probably look horrified, and even the guy who has his head covered looks scared.

The guy points his gun at Delaina.

And fires.

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*****
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I scream, Alex looks like he's going to cry, and the figure under the table jumps up.

But Delaina isn't dead. She looks as if she's concentrating very deeply on something, but she isn't dead. She's standing very still, staring at the gun.

Yasmine looks shocked.

"Are you kidding me? Fire the gun!"

The guy holding the gun takes it away from Delaina's head, and fiddles around with it.

"I dont know, Yasmine, it just doesn't..."

BLAM!

The would be killer drops dead.

We all jump up. Delaina smiles.

"You lose more stupid hench men that way...pissing off telekinetics. Now, Yasmine, whatever the fuck you are planning to do, stop. She" here Delaina nods towards me. "is well protected. Your ex...will see to that. You started this because you found out he brought someone new. If you weren't such a bitch, you'd still be with us. But now, you had to be the mole, and now you're gone. Your fault. All your fault."

By now, she's ushering me away from Yasmine, and she's circling her. Taunting her. Delaina rocks.

The gunmen are all slowly exiting the storeroom, leaving Alex and I to go see to the figure under the table. Alex pulls off the thing covering his head.

It's Vlad.

"Is she okay?" He asks panickedly.
"Ask her yourself." Alex says simply as he motions to me. He gets up to watch the rest of the drama with Delaina and Yasmine. Leaving me with his mindreading brother. Again. Why do I always feel so vulnerable around him?

"Because I'm the only one who can know you inside out." he says to me. God, that's sweet.

About five minutes later, we're all heading out home. It's only 5:30. I am so making curfew.