Opportunity

Her hand made to move to the site of the pain, but Storm stopped her. He let go of her waist and grabbed her hands, holding both of her wrists together behind her back.

Seconds later, the pain was replaced by a cold, soothing sensation, which made Ellie knit her brows in confusion. All the while, her widened eyes were locked with Storm's.

Still holding her gaze, Storm pulled his sharp, bloodstained thumbnail out of her neck, moved it into his mouth, and licked it clean. After that, he released her hands.

He moved several steps away from her to survey her outfit. Satisfied, he nodded.

"Perfect. You'll know the kind of job when we get there. Follow me."

He started toward the door and Ellie followed him. Her hand flew to the side of her neck where she had felt a piercing earlier, and it was as smooth as ever. No sign of any injury. So she pressed down on it, and that was when she felt slight pain.

What did he just do to her? Ellie couldn't wrap her head around it. She quietly followed him as they walked out of the room, along the corridor, into the elevator, and out of it.

Ellie eyed him with so many complicated expressions, noting how simply he was dressed in a grey hooded sweatshirt, the hood, down behind his back. He had on black joggers pants, which accentuated his long, muscular legs with each stride.

Soon, they exited the house, and right in front, Ellie saw a shiny, black car idling. There was someone in the driver's seat, and the shotgun seat door, together with the door directly behind, was open.

"Get in," Storm ordered, then climbed into the shotgun seat, and shut the door. 

Ellie took the one behind. There were so many questions revolving in her head, and she really wanted to ask. But from experience in this place, she knew she might not get an answer. So she kept calm. 

As soon as she shut the door, the car began to move. 

Ellie first moved her gaze to the driver and noticed he was the same bald man who walked into Storm's room with the two girls earlier. 

Next, she began to dart her eyes around, taking note of the places she had not had the opportunity to see. They soon arrived at the gate and when Ellie saw the number of guards stationed there, she gave up every idea of ever escaping the palace.

But then it occurred to her that they were leaving the palace. Could this be her opportunity to leave this godforsaken place? Perhaps.

Silence enveloped them throughout the journey. The farther they went from the palace, the more Ellie's hope of being free from the evil people and activities associated with the royal house increased.

So her head began to come up with plans on how to avoid getting caught like the last time. She definitely couldn't outrun them, so she needed another strategy.

In a little less than twenty minutes, the car pulled to a stop in front of a large thrift store. The front of the store was covered in glass, making it easy to see the things and people inside very clearly.

Without turning around, Storm extended a single pack of red contacts to her. 

"Put that on, go in there, and scare the shit out of everyone there. Then get me the brown pouch sitting on the top of the shelf in the Manager's office." Storm instructed, and Ellie collected the contacts from his hand.

Her first reaction would have been to complain that she wasn't a thief and couldn't do what he was asking. But this looked like the perfect opportunity to escape, and she wasn't letting it pass her by.

If there was one thing she knew was common with the stores in Alada was that they had a back door and a restroom. 

So without protest, Ellie inserted the contacts, then climbed out of the car.

"Storm," Seth called out, and got a hum as a response from the one he called. 

Ellie was already walking toward the store and Storm's attention was fixed on her, a smile on his face.

"What are you doing?" Seth questioned.

"Having fun," Storm responded nonchalantly, and Seth let out an inaudible sigh.

"I can get that pouch in less than five seconds and we can be out of here." Seth reminded, but Storm only chuckled.

"Where's the fun in that?"

"She's not Lydia, Storm," Seth spoke again after a moment of silence, and this time, he successfully got Storm's attention.

"How do you know that?"

Seth's face twisted into a look of confusion and disbelief. "You think she's Lydia?"

"I asked you a question."

"Lydia is dead. She died over eighty years ago. You think she came back to life?"

"Is that not possible?" Storm fired a question back.

"It's not impossible, but I don't think anything like that happened. They bear no resemblance save for the eyes."

A chuckle escaped Storm's lips. "You seem to have forgotten Lydia. And you seem to trust Elfin a lot."

"I don't trust him one bit. But I know that he isn't happy about what is happening with you." Seth responded, letting out another resigned sigh. 

Before this girl showed up, he and every other person thought Storm was finally over Lydia. But it seemed those feelings were just hibernating somewhere. 

Storm was gradually going insane again, and he feared where all this will end. Hopefully, he and Elfin will not end up burning the whole of Alada to the ground.

"He's not happy?" Storm scoffed. "Who cares? When has he ever cared about anyone's feelings apart from his?" Storm asked, then returned his attention to Ellie, who just stepped into the store.

This was going to be interesting.

Meanwhile, Ellie who just walked into the store, knew that this was her opportunity as she darted her eyes around.