Page 60 of Pretty Little Fears

Truthfully,Idon’t really give a fuck.

Ido this to appease my father.Afew more months of this andIwill be able to leave the brotherhood and these idiotic assignments behind me.I’mnotTomCruiseand we are not starring inMissionImpossible.

I’mEmmettBlackwoodandIneed a fucking nap.

Walkingover to the warehouse door, the knob twists easily for me andIopen the door, strolling in.Theinside is empty besides a few crate containers scattered along the sides.Acouch that looks out of place sits in the center, a small table in front of it with beer bottles on top.

“Thereyou boys are!”Anolder man says, walking out from behind a crate with his arms spread wide, beer belly on display.HisItalianaccent is strong. “I’vebeen waiting for you.Let’sget this deal going, eh?”Heclaps and rubs his hands together before motioning towards the singular couch.

“Travis.”Elipurs, the smile that covers his face doesn't reach his eyes. “Thatcouch is only big enough for you, sir.We’reokay standing, aren't we boys?”Hegestures to us, waiting for our nods of agreement.

“Ofcourse, of course.Noworries.Let'sget started.”Hestarts, pulling papers out of a binder on the floor.Withhis head lowered and his guard off, it gives us the chance to attack.Grimmquickly rounds the couch, putting him in a headlock from behind asEliandJadengrab his flailing limbs.Igrab a cloth from my back pocket and shove it into his mouth, quickly taping his mouth to keep the fabric inside.

Hescreams behind the gag, finally realizing that this meeting was a setup.Hismuffled screams die out and his head hangs.Weall snap our eyes toGrimmwho looks back at us like we’re in the wrong.

“Whatthe fuck,Grimm?Weweren't supposed to kill him yet!”Iwhisper yell.

Grimmlets out an annoyed huff and places his fingers against his neck. “Whyare you whispering?We’rethe only ones here.Besides, he’s still alive, just passed out.Sorry,Igot a little excited.”Heshrugs and reaches under the man’s armpit, attempting to lift him, “Helpme get this fucker outside.”Hegrunts.

Eachof us grab some part ofTravisand carry him over to the nearby forest.Apremade grave is waiting for us, dug by another brotherhood member prior to our meeting.Elishoves his hand into one of the bags, searching around until he pulls out some rope.Leaningagainst a tree we watch as he hog tiesTravis, now we just have to wait for the fucker to wake up.

“Nicegoing, idiot,”Jadensays, smackingGrimmon the back of the head. “Whoknows how long it’s going to take for him to wake up?Idon’t want to be here all night.”

Grimmrolls his eyes and plops down on the floor, picking at the dead grass. “Youare all fucking party poopers.Noone knows how to have any fun.”

That'sthe part that sucks about these assignments.Althoughwe seemingly have nothing to go off of, they want us to confirm they were working alone.Thatthe brotherhood is safe.Fromwhat, we still don't know.

Whena low groan fills the air we all turn towards the source.Travisbegins to stir, groaning behind his gag.Pullingthe piece of tape off his mouth, he spits out the cloth thatIshoved inside.Withlabored breathing, he quickly becomes aware of his circumstances.

“Youstupid kids, you don't even know the man you're working for.I’mtired of keeping quiet.Youever wonder why all those students go missing at your school?”Simultaneouslywe all freeze.Howthe hell would the brotherhood have anything to do with the missing students?

Hiseyes land on mine and he smirks.

“You’rehis son.You’regoing to take his place and commit the same vile acts, eh?Imoved to drugs to atone for my part in his business.”Travisspits out.

Grimmstands and delivers a swift kick to his side, causing him to cough. “Idon't know what he told you to get you here, but he's been taking out anyone who gets close to the truth.”Travisattempts to get out between his coughing fits and the pain ofGrimm’sfoot connecting with his side.

Iput a hand onGrimm’schest stopping him from further injuringTravis.

“Tellus everything you know orIwill make sure he spends the rest of your waking minutes providing you with absolute torture.Don’tunderestimate him.”Isneer, getting nose-to-nose with the lame excuse of a businessman.

“Hesells them.Thosekids aren’t just going missing, they’re being sold.Investorswith a taste for innocence are buying these young men and women.Theyare written off as donations made to the school to continue providingacademic excellence.Thosekids are never coming home because they are in a new home and that’s only if they’re still alive.Thosebuyers aresick.Whoknows what they’re being used for.”Hegroans out.

Jadenlooks at me, eyebrows furrowed.Eli’sface is blank butGrimmshakes his head. “Jamesis an asshole butIdon’t think he’d ever do something like that.”Hereasons.

Jadenspeaks up hesitantly, “Idon’t knowEm,Ihave a weird feeling this dude isn’t lying.”Heturns back toTravisand asks, “Howwould we find more information on it?Whereare these dealings done?”

“Hisoffice.Hewould bring us to his office and offer us a catalog per say.Itwas their student files.”Heprovides.

I'veheard enough.Raisingmy hand,Iaim the gun straight at his forehead and shoot.Hisbrain matter and blood splatter everywhere.Grimmsucks his teeth, annoyed that one headshot is the only fun we had tonight and he wasn’t the one to administer it.JadenandGrimmpush his body into the pre-dug grave.Whenhe drops down with a thud, we pick up the shovels and start to cover his body up, giving the worms a fresh meal.

Makingour way back towards our bikes,Grimm,Eli, andJadenall continue to pound me with questions.QuestionsIdon't have answers to.

HaveIever overheardJamesand his dealings?Isthere a chance the student files were still in his office?Wouldhe really be capable of pulling this off?Igave the same answer to every question.Idon’t fucking know.

Wemake it home and everyone immediately retreats back to their bedrooms to sleep off the shitshow this night has been.Idon't even bother showering asIthrow myself fully clothed onto my bed.Staringat the ceiling my mind wanders back toTravisand all he had to say about my father’s dealings.

Itry closing my eyes and shutting off my thoughts.It’sbeen a long fucking night and the need for sleep pulls at every ounce of my being, yet it doesn’t come.Itoss and turn asTravis’swords continue to bounce around my mind.

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