3 two

My breath caught in my throat as my phone vibrated again.

Unknown number:

Quickly now, there's no time to lose. She is going to Mia's old home.

I hitched on my gear, plucking in a gun, and slinked out of the room, my steps light as a feather. Lynn lopped with easy feline grace, and a wave of dread washed over me, my suspicions proven true: She is no ordinary girl.

She fished out a knife from her pocket, cutting the lock of a window. She pushed it open, pocketing back her blade.

Before I could work out what she was planning, she perched on the windowsill, and with a graceful swoop, she plunged out of the window.

Stifling a gasp, I followed, looking out of the window, wind gusting at my face, to see her dainty figure already sprinting to the right.

No time to lose indeed.

Jumping off a five storey building and surviving, let alone landing on one feet, I know how agile Lynn can be. She won't have the chance to do it later, though. You can't just jump off buildings and expect yourself to walk properly afterwards. She must have to wait for an entire week before doing so again.

I followed suit, surveying the height and distance from this storey to the ground. One thing Lynn didn't think of: climbing down the wall would do the trick, instead of jumping off impulsively, hurting herself. My mind raced, as a thought hit me. She didn't seem to be one without a plan. I looked down again, scrunching up my face, seeing a small dome shaped tent I can bounce off of when plunging down. This way, I wouldn't hurt myself with the help of the tent. I silently chided myself for not being observant enough. Without looking back, I jumped.

———

I reached the ground, blowing out a breath I didn't realise I was holding.

Her redhead bobbed in a small dot not so far away. Where is she going, and who on earth tipped me off?

She took a sharp turn to the right, sneaking into an alley. The musky smell of sewage hit me, mingling with the foul odour of waste. She halted abruptly in front of a door. It was dark, a dim light illuminating the outline of the buildings and Lynn.

The door creaked open at her light push, and before I could react, she suddenly veered around, looking up as I scampered up the wall.

I waited with bated breath, waiting for her to call out my name.

A moment passed. My body tensed up when a clicking sound echoes from somewhere far away, and the cat sitting on the trash can makes a run for it. It could be a cigarette lighter, a gun trigger, the speakers, or a guttering lamp; it could be anything. I scan the roofs. Nothing.

But the hairs on the back of my neck rise. I know Lynn is here. I know she is watching me.

"Come out," I said, pushing the urgent note out my tone, making it cool, calm. Collected. Silence. Not even the kiosk's layers of paper bulletins moved. There's no wind.

My other hand doesn't leave the handle of my gun.

Still nothing. This time, however, I hear what sounds like the faintest sigh. A breath. My eyes darted to the roofs.

"I know you're here," I repeated, my voice now with the slightest cutting edge.

A pause.

(She must be at a close place, around a feet's distance, and at an adjacent block with a good vantage point.)

"Your badge. Don't know what it is, but it isn't around this area."

That caught me off guard by surprise. Impressive. Apparently she had some detailed information about societies. Where is she from? Her identity? How did she know Mia's old home? Her relation with Mia? Questions seared at my skull.

"Good to find someone with knowledge of societies," I said silkily at last, "What are you doing here Lynn?"

"I know what you want. I can give it to you, if you tell me your identity."

"And what is it that you have?" I questioned.

"Clues." She said simply, now walking towards me.

I put on a fighting stance, gripping my gun.

She laughed airily:

"Not bad, it's like what, eight years of practise?"

I stopped in midtracks, "Who are you?"

"None of your concern." She flipped me off.

"Oh, then I'm afraid we are going to play the hard way." I deadpanned.

"We can play later." She said, running a hand through her hair distractedly.

"Scared so quickly?" I said, wanting to trigger her into a fight.

"You know Mia Linetti?" Lynn asked suddenly.

My heart quivered like a struck violin string.

Showing no sign of my emotions, I said, "I've heard. Tragic, isn't it."

She nodded, her hands falling at her sides limply.

"I know what you're here for. Mission from thorn society, right? I'm from Gray Society. And I myself want Erin-"

She put a finger on her throat and made a slitting gesture:

"We can make a good pair, don't you think?"

Gray society. The alliance society of Thorn Society.

"And what can you offer?" I demanded.

She chuckled without mirth. "You don't know a lot around here, do you."

"And you can be my guide," I said slowly. "Why on earth should I trust you?"

"It's the only help that you can ask for, mine is a generous offer, really." She said, a smile tugging at her face, "And this."

She fished out a necklace, studded with a glinting ruby. She studied it for a few, before looking back up at me, deciphering my expression.

"Her necklace," I whispered. Mia had told me about her family heirloom before.

"Correct. And you know who has the same necklace?"

The truth about the twin necklaces.

"Do you?" I asked carelessly.

She shrugged, "I will,"

"What do you want in return?"

"Ooh, so you do know how our little game works." She said, the ghost of a grin on her face, making her look almost maniac.

"In return for my guide and the truth about the matching necklaces, you have to jump off the cliff once your mission is complete."

"Deal."

Anything for Mia.

I leafed through 57 convenient ways to kill a man , but my mind was reeling, you could almost hear the gears in it turning. I palmed out my notebook, and soon my pen was sprinting across the paper.

Who is the unknown person who texted me? What are Lynn's true intentions?

With a string of questions and not a single reasonable answer, I heaved a sigh.

This school has an obvious caste system. Lower level, the dirt that people scorn upon; Middle level, the tall grass, the people in the background, not of attention. And at last, the Upper Level. The predators that everyone looks up to. And fear, too. And now, Levi. Let's be the slithering snake in the tall grass, laying low, ready to strike.

Bravo, what an analogy was the last thought that floated in my mind before I drifted to a slumber, my hand tucked under the pillow, stroking idly at the smooth edge of my hidden gun.

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