Chapter 2 Lavender

I mean, of course I feel bad. I am not a heartless monster. But I need to protect Core. I need to protect myself. I am sure she would understand. She must have some sort of family. She can't just be alone. Is she?

A sudden knock at the door interrupted my thoughts.

"Open" As if at will, the door opened with a loud thump.

I stood back. I had to keep my distance. If only she didn't give me her name. I hate names. They remind me of who I am. 

With as much courage as I could muster I said, "Who the fuck are you and why did you call me?"

"Did you do as asked?"

"Yes bu-"

"Tie the girl up". He threw a bag of supplies at my feet. Who the fuck did he think he was, and why the fuck did he think that he could just waltz inside my house. Regardless of my mind I took the rope and duct tape out of the bag. I tied up her feet, and then duct taped her hands. Making sure to be careful, I also taped her mouth shut. Everything was so sudden that I almost didn't acknowledge that Core was standing there. Crying her guts out.

"HATTIE! W-what a-are you doing!" Through gulps of air I was able to hear what she was trying to say.

"I'm doing this for us Core. You will have a better life. WE will have a better life."

"B-but I was g-going t-to have a new f-friend!"

I sighed. What was I supposed to say to that? Core had always melted my heart. She is what got me into this business.

The man was in the kitchen eating. I wanted answers. It was only about 2 hours from when he called me. It was a risky choice, I know, but it was a risk I was willing to take. 

I don't know when, but somewhere in the time that the man entered my home, a car pulled up. It was a bright yellow buggy. It seemed that they were going for a "Too obvious" kind of look, because, wow, way to stand out.

One of the many clocks in my house chimed at the hour. Was it already 9 p.m? It seemed earlier than that. It is hard to believe that I had only met olive about an hour ago, and here I was already taping her off, ready to sell. It was kind of funny. I was such a bad person. Core didnt know. She was abandoned on the side of the street by my bitchy sister, and now I have to care for the little brat. I am no mom. I am only 23. I have never experienced love before. My own parents hated me. How was I supposed to love a 10 year old?

I took Olive's phone and tried to power it on, but it was completely dead. Who doesn't charge their phone before walking in the dark alone? Idiotic people. She needs to use more common sense, like don't let a complete stranger pull you into their apartment. Luckily I had a charger. I always like to help the people out somehow, and it wouldn't be until morning that they leave with her. 

There is one thing I forgot to mention. Our world is different. You see, Olive and I live on two very different planes. One, a normal, protective, untrustworthy world, while the other, magic. It is as simple as I could put it. Olive is suspected to be part of the most dangerous clan we have ever seen, but also she might be the most powerful out of her family line. Which is why we are here. Tying her up. Losing the trust from an idiotic girl. Trust no one. I was taught that at a very young age.

I think I might have hit her in the head a little too hard, because for some reason she hadn't woken up in 3 hours. It gave her phone a while to charge. I checked it. Over 30 messages from a number labeled as 'Donnie'. 

"I'm waiting outside your apartment"

"Where are you"

"It's been 20 minutes, you ok?"

"Hey, the thing starts in 30 minutes, hurry up"

"Girlie! I'm going to leave if you don't get out here soon"

I thought to myself for a moment. 

"Fuck" I looked into the kitchen. I needed to talk to the strange man. "Core, go get ready for bed, I will be there in 15 minutes, be in bed by then."

"OK! Love you Hattie!" She looked at me and smiled. She cautiously walked near the kitchen, and then disappeared into the darkness of the hallway. Looks like I wasn't the only one who was cautious of the man.

"Hey, you. What's your name?" I spoke as fearcefully as I could.

"Call me Stane"

"Ok...Stane, it looks like we have a problem. It seems that she was going out tonight". He walked over quickly. He grabbed the phone from my hand. He had a tall and muscular build. Definitely not my type. Plus, I mean, my type isn't even guys. He grabbed a pack of cigarettes and lit one up. With one hand he broke the phone in half. 

"What was the kids name, I'm assuming that you read the messages". He looked at me, took down his mask, and there I saw a very smooth fave with bright blue eyes popping out. 

"Donnie. I think." He looked up at the ceiling. 

"You know I will have to kill the kid now right? You should have followed the fucking instructions"

"Who are you to say, you didn't even give me a fucking warning. You told me to drug her after she left work. How was I supposed to know that she would make plans. Shut the fuck up. Get out, find a hotel. I can handle her. Get the fuck out of my home."

"If it weren't for us you would be on the streets. Get your priorities straight you little bitch"

"Get. Out." He took a deep breath.

"I'll be back at 4. Be awake. I can't deal with your bull shit right now. Plus, I got better things to do." He threw a bottle at me. "If she wakes up, use this." Chloroform. Of course he had that on him. Probably has a bunch more in his car too. 

"Are you leaving now? I am kind of getting tired of your face."

"Huh, funny, I'm getting tired of yours too. See you later bitch." And with that, he was out the door.

I looked out the window just to make sure that he was leaving. Sure enough, his yellow buggy left my driveway and down the road. He was gone.

"You can stop with the act, Olive" I knew that she was faking the entire time, but I couldn't let him catch on. He would surely take her now if he knew. "He's gone. Stop pretending. And just to let you know, your phone is gone. Donnie might die, and you are being taken in the morning, so I suggest that you make the most out of your time." She opened her eyes slowly. They were a chestnut brown, glowing almost. Her lashes were long. I could tell she was sweating from fear. Since her mouth was taped up, she could barely breathe. She started yelling and throwing her body back and forth. I looked at the bottle Shane gave me. I went to my kitchen, found a rag, soaked it, and watched her eyes slowly close once again. I wondered what she was thinking at that moment. She most likely was scared. She deserved it.