Page 4 of One of Them

Law enforcement got generously paid to look the other way. Hell, for the right monthly contribution? They didn’t even bother to show up.

It was the right decision to never approach anyone for help. Who knows where I would have ended up.

It took me some time and a whiteboard to fully understand the hierarchy. I was no longer the girl who’d been dropped off at an unknown location downtown with nothing but a backpack full of questions.

I quickly realized what a sheltered life I’d lived. The simplest things like navigating public transport or going to the grocery store were things I’d only briefly understood.

I cursed everything that had led me to this point. It felt like learning to walk again, except I had no one to lean on.

I wasn’t talking about regular teenage troubles, like what clothes I fancy or which hairstyle suits me, but what to do with my life and how to move forward.

The only thing childhood prepared me for was the solitary lifestyle. With no hobbies and barely any skills, I spent months trying and learning everything until I found something I was good at.

Thirteen-year-old me would never have guessed I was an adrenaline junkie, or that I had a particular talent for sneaking into places where I had no business being.

At first, rage filled me, and unanswered questions plagued the day. All I could focus on was the panic that overtook me, the paralyzing fear I felt.

My brain wouldn’t stop spinning with thoughts when I just wanted to turn it off. For the stupid organ to shut the fuck up and leave me alone.

I was a hormonal teenager with no one to talk to and no way to vent. Emptiness had settled within me. I was chasing the same rush I’d experienced years ago, just to face it head-on this time. With basic needs covered, everything else became unimportant.

I lived for a sole purpose: to show the worldwho I could be. Who I will be.

A sweaty MMA gym was a place I visited daily, where we all gathered to deal with problems the only way we knew how: by throwing punches until exhaustion overtook us.

Fighting might have been a group activity, but I was utterly alone.

No matter how interested I might have been, approaching anyone was out of the question. Not that I was afraid. Week after week, I watched the men spar in the cage, proving what I’d long known: I had my work cut out for me.

All this time, I dodged questions, kept to myself, and avoided any attention. A big portion of my brain was still paranoid, playing Mother’s words on repeat.

“Do not let them find you.” If only I knew who she wasreferring to.

The more I learned about my past and the secrets well buried, the angrier they made me. This wasn’t a revenge path I was on, but one of self-discovery, with a future full of possibilities in mind. Distant future, I thought.

I finished my regular session at the gym, packed my bag, and was about to head home. The usually active place was quite deserted, probably something to do with the recent trail of deaths showing up all over the city.

The search engine I developed alerted me every time the number grew, popping notifications on the screen like it was the Fourth of July. Shit was going down, and I wasn’t anywhere close to being ready. The plan remained the same: continue watching from a safe distance.

The changing room’s door was left open, but I stopped at the threshold. The entire room spun as I found myself in a standoff. A tall man stood in the middle, surrounded by three mean-looking men I’d never seen here before. I recognized the tall man, but there was no sign of the crew he usually surrounded himself with.

His name began with I. Whenever his buds spoke it, I convinced myself it was “Lia.” But the name didn’t roll off my tongue the same way it did theirs.

Images of bodies lying on the ground flashed through my mind as I stared at the scene with a blank expression.

The logical step would be to use the advantage of my unannounced presence and backtrack to where I came from. Content with the decision, I was about to take the first step back when his eyes flicked to me. Given the lack of anything interesting around, the other pairs followed.

Confused about how he sensed my presence, certain I wasn’t even breathing, I eyed the tall man cautiously, but it was the stranger closest to me who approached first. My head snapped to the older man, assessing the level of danger, before his voice registered.

“Who do we have here?” He waved me over. “Come over here, doll.”

A shrug might have escaped me at the sleazy comment, but I was too busy calculating the possibilities. Any hesitation on my part could be my last move.

I remained still, fingernails digging into my palms as I controlled each breath, willing every twitch of my muscles into submission. My gaze locked on the sole man in the group I recognized, seeking the familiarity of his eyes, but whatever they tried to communicate got lost in translation.

The turmoil of thoughts was still stirring when a slow-motion nod kicked my ass into gear. Now I understood. Between the two of us, our chances of leaving unharmed increased.

I allowed myself a second of panic to filter out the adrenaline, then launched at the one closest to me. The others were too wrapped up in each other, just as I needed them to be.

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