Chapter 4
1014 Words
Both vans were parked in front of a bus stop. We were surrounded by recently grazed open land, with a withered brown vast area of weeds. The bus stop was an isolated one. Not one vehicle was in sight. I felt at ease knowing there was no way we'd be found. We all stood outside our vans and Levi spoke on the phone. "Where the hell are you?"
"Right here, bro." We all whirled around to the voice of the person speaking. There he stood, Odell Caden, wearing a guarded look on his face. He was tall. Slightly taller than Levi, and had quite a slim build. Wispy black hair was mussed in place, with a stubble of beard that trailed from his cheek, all the way to his chin. His orange eyes were dark, and he looked between our faces, and finally landed his gaze on Levi.
Levi stared at him for a while, then retorted. "So where's the place? I'm sure it isn't here."
Odell quipped. "Good to see you too, bro." The teasing tone in his voice seemed to make Levi stiffen.
"I'm not in the mood for any jokes."
After a long silence, Odell sighed. "Fine. The road isn't accessible to those who don't know it, so I'd have to take you there."
He then looked between the faces of people he knew, then tried to give a convincing smile. "Hey, guys."
Laurena grunted. It didn't look like she was in the mood to play nice. "Get in the van. We don't have all day."
.....
******
We stopped in front of what looked like an abandoned warehouse and began to unload our luggage.
Odell said to us. "Wait here. Let me get Kiitan."
Red c****d his head. "Who's that?"
"Our interim leader."
"Leader?"
"Yeah. Of the Runaway Radiants."
Mubarak blinked. "The what?"
Odell smirked. "What? You thought the Strikers were the only secret Radiant underground group. It's a place to house Radiants who can't afford the expenses of our lifestyle. It's for both old and young. It isn't as fancy and luxurious as the Clandestine, but it's our home away from home."
Levi frowned. Impatience dripped in his voice. "Too bad it doesn't exist anymore."
"I'm sorry you had to go through that. I heard on the news and I know how—"
Levi stiffened once again. "Trust me, you of all people have no idea."
Another sigh spilled out of Odell's mouth. I had no idea what type of siblings they were to each other, but I couldn't help feeling bad for both brothers. Whatever they both had to go through changed something in what they were. "I'll be back in a second."
Once he was out of earshot, Laurena grunted. "I still can't believe we're doing this."
Red gave her a look. "We're desperate now. It's the least we can do."
Laurena glared. "But can we trust him?"
"I know you're mad that he left Evelyn all alone to raise Trinity, but Evelyn forgave him. You should too." I watched them interact and I instantly remembered the name "Evelyn". That was her former best friend that left for the main council.
Laurena shrugged. It didn't seem like she had anything else to say.
A signature frown seemed to stick to Levi's lips today. "Let's just get this over with. Be friendly. Interact with them. We need them to save our people. We need their trust."
Lyra looked at him. "What's your game plan?"
"You'll find out soon enough." Were simply the words he said' I narrowed my eyes. Levi was acting really distant and it bothered the hell out of me.
Deafening silence echoed through them for a long stretch of seconds. Mubarak muttered when he caught a familiar face heading to our vans. "Odell's here."
Odell had three Radiant men by his side and. I could already make out who Kiitan was, from their midst. There was something about him, that made me know he was the leader. I had to say, he was handsome, and he clearly knew that, seeing the way he was smiling cockily at us. Glossy tanned skin helped to add to his good looks, alongside his short dark hair, strong jawline, and unique sandstone eyes. that made him look facially flawless. I immediately found myself getting annoyed by his presence. I wasn't a fan of arrogant people, and Kiitan seemed to top the chart.
Odell spoke up. "This is Kiitan. Our leader."
Kiitan smirked. "I'm only an interim until my uncle is hale and hearty enough to take over again. I never imagined having any more Caden here, especially one that came in with his bandwagon."
My lips thinned. "We're not anyone's bandwagon."
Levi shot me a look, and Kiitan laughed. "You're a feisty one, aren't you? What's your name?"
I wanted to tell him to kiss my ass, but Levi clearly had an idea of my intention and sent me another annoyed look. I got the message. I had to be friendly. We needed them. "Tamar."
He c****d his head. "Rare name. What tribe are you from?"
"Yoruba, but my name's Hebrew."
He only nodded and faced his direction to the others. "Nonbandwagon, welcome. Follow us in. My vices would help you with your stuff, until then, can I have a word with you, Levi?"
Levi nodded, and Kiitan gave another smirk. It almost looked like he did more smirking than talking. It was nauseating to me. "Good. Let's go to my office. Though it looks more like a storage closet now."
Odell hollered. "I'll take the rest of you in." Then he lowered his voice to talk to Laurena when we entered inside. "I need to tell you something."
Laurena rolled her eyes. "What could you possibly tell me that could catch my interest?"
"It's about—"
"Evelyn?" Eyes widened, Laurena stopped in her tracks, when she spotted someone walking afar.
I was surprised just as well. I didn't know Evelyn, but I knew of her. Everyone did. Former African Representative and Laurena's best friend, and now as I just found out, Odell's baby mama. It was common knowledge that Evelyn was transferred to the main council, so why the hell was she here?
The fury in Laurena's eyes told me what I needed to know. Things weren't going end well one bit.
- Writer
