HER REVENGE: Candles For The Dead

EAGLE ORGANIZATION

Pain.

That was the first thing I felt.

Not the sharp pain of grief.

A dull, throbbing ache in my head.

Like I'd been hit.

The second thing I felt was softness.

Not asphalt.

Not rain.

Sheets.

Clean ones.

I opened my eyes.

White ceiling.

White walls.

A window with iron bars.

My heart stopped.

Where was I?

I blinked several times, hoping the room would disappear.

It didn't.

I tried to sit up and hissed.

My ribs hurt.

I looked down.

My dress was gone.

I was wearing an oversized T-shirt that smelled like detergent.

I stared at it for a moment.

Someone had changed my clothes.

Who?

I slowly looked around the room.

There was a small table beside the bed.

A wooden chair.

A cupboard.

A single light hanging from the ceiling.

Nothing personal.

No pictures.

No decorations.

Nothing that made the room feel lived in.

I pulled the blanket closer to myself.

How did I get here?

I remembered the rain.

The cold.

The road.

Then...

I closed my eyes.

I didn't want to remember the rest.

But my mind didn't listen.

My father's face flashed before me.

My mother's voice.

The sound of screaming.

I opened my eyes again.

No.

I already knew.

They were gone.

I didn't need anyone to tell me.

I just wasn't ready to say it out loud.

The door opened.

I looked up.

A woman walked in.

She looked to be in her late thirties.

Short hair.

Eyes like steel.

She carried a tray with a glass of water and some bread.

She stopped when she saw me awake.

"You're awake," she said.

No smile.

"Good. Drink."

I stared at her.

My throat was dry, but I didn't reach for the water.

"Where am I?"

She placed the tray on the table.

"The Eagle Organization."

I frowned.

"The what?"

"The Eagle Organization."

She pulled the chair closer and sat down.

I studied her face.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Nia."

She said it simply.

No explanation.

No introduction beyond that.

I looked toward the window.

The iron bars caught my attention again.

"Why am I here?"

Nia was quiet for a moment.

"You were found outside."

"I remember."

My voice sounded strange.

Weak.

"You were unconscious."

I looked down at my hands.

There were small cuts on my fingers.

Dirt still seemed to be trapped beneath my nails.

I remembered the road.

The rain washing everything away.

Except the memories.

"How long have I been here?"

"Most of the night."

I looked at the window.

The sky outside was grey.

It was still raining.

For some reason, that made my chest ache.

I reached for the glass.

My hands were shaking.

I took a sip.

Then another.

Nia watched me quietly.

"Are you hungry?"

I shook my head.

She didn't push.

The silence between us felt strange.

Not uncomfortable.

Just unfamiliar.

I wasn't used to sitting in silence with a stranger.

Especially one who seemed to know more about me than I knew about her.

I looked at her again.

"You said this is an organization."

"Yes."

"What kind?"

Nia leaned back.

"You'll learn."

I frowned.

"Learn what?"

"About us."

I didn't like the answer.

I looked around the room again.

The bars.

The plain walls.

The locked door.

"Am I allowed to leave?"

Nia's expression didn't change.

"Not yet."

My fingers tightened around the glass.

"Why?"

"Because it's not safe."

"For me?"

She nodded.

"Why isn't it safe?"

Nia didn't answer.

I looked away.

There were too many unanswered questions.

But I didn't have the strength to ask all of them.

Not now.

My mind was already too full.

I took another sip of water.

Nia stood and walked toward the door.

Something about the way she moved made me look at her again.

Calm.

Careful.

Like she had done this many times before.

"Nia."

She stopped.

"How did you know my name?"

She turned around.

"We knew who you were."

My stomach tightened.

"Why?"

Her eyes stayed on mine.

"Because of your father."

Everything inside me went still.

"My father?"

Nia nodded.

"You knew him?"

"We all did."

I stared at her.

I didn't know what to say.

My father had never mentioned these people.

Not once.

As far as I knew, he had lived an ordinary life.

We had lived an ordinary life.

At least, I thought we had.

"What did my father have to do with this place?"

Nia looked toward the door.

Then back at me.

"He was one of us."

I shook my head slightly.

"No."

"He was."

"My father wasn't part of any organization."

Nia didn't argue.

She simply said,

"You knew the part of him he wanted you to know."

My heart sank.

What did that mean?

"What happened?"

Nia's expression softened.

"Your father left."

"Why?"

"That's not my story to tell."

She opened the door.

I wanted to stop her.

I had so many questions.

But one question kept returning.

"Why did you save me?"

Nia looked back at me.

For the first time, something almost like sadness appeared in her eyes.

"We don't leave Eagles behind."

I stared at her.

"Eagles?"

She nodded.

"The Eagle Organization."

Then she added quietly,

"We were your dad's family once."

I didn't move.

"Before he walked away."

The door clicked shut.

I sat there staring at it.

My father's family.

An organization.

A life I knew nothing about.

I looked at my hands.

For eighteen years, I had believed I knew my father.

Maybe I didn't.

Outside, the rain continued to fall.

I listened to it against the window.

For the first time, I wondered if that night had really been the end of my old life.

Or if it had only opened the door to a life my father had kept hidden from me.

I pulled the blanket closer.

I didn't know who the Eagles were.

I didn't know why my father had left them.

And I didn't know why they had saved me.

But I knew one thing.

I was no longer alone.

And somehow, that scared me almost as much as being alone.