An Eye for an Eye

RAINEY

Aunt Valerie is hunched over Riley’s bed, her shoulders shaking with quiet sobs. Seeing my best friend’s bruised face, my heart sinks.

“Aunt Val?”

She looks up at the sound of my voice. Her eyes are red-rimmed and swollen, her lips trembling with sorrow.

“Rainey.” She gets up from her chair and comes over to me, her tears flowing freely as she pulls me into a hug. “Oh, sweetheart. What are we going to do?”

I close my eyes, rubbing her back in an attempt to soothe her. Riley’s dad is standing by the window, a look of shock on his face as he watches Bailey clutch his sister’s pale hand, tears streaming down his face.

Ansel and Alex both look upset as Valerie cries on my shoulder. I’m trying to stay strong, but her sobs are infectious.

Riley has a bandage wrapped around her head and dried blood under her nose. My eyes fill with fresh tears as I can’t shake off the feeling that this is all my fault.

A tear slips down my cheek as Valerie pulls away, and I quickly wipe it off. “She’ll be okay,” I assure her, but my voice cracks, betraying the confidence I’m trying to project.

She nods, wiping her nose. “I hope so.”

“Where did you find her?” I ask, blinking back tears.

“She tried to call me. She tried to call me after they—” She puts a hand to her forehead, taking a moment to collect herself.

I put a hand on her shoulder in a silent show of support.

“She called, and she was breathing so hard, trying to tell me where she was, but she passed out after getting the first word out.

“We tracked her phone and found her in the old warehouse on Vincent Street.”

“FUCK!” Alex suddenly shouts, drawing everyone’s attention. He storms out of the room, kicking the door on his way out.

Riley’s dad watches him leave, looking a bit taken aback by the sudden outburst.

Ansel forces a smile. “Sorry about the language. He’s just upset.”

The man nods in understanding, managing a weak smile. “It’s okay.”

Ansel presses his lips together and leaves the room to find his brother.

“I tried calling you, honey. But it went straight to voice mail,” Valerie continues as I turn back to her.

“I’m sorry. My mom took my phone. Riley and I were texting the night before everything happened, and everything was fine. But now—”

I can’t finish the sentence as the memory makes my heart ache. I cover my face with my hand. “She was probably trying to call me…”

Valerie puts a hand on my shoulder as she sniffles.

“It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault, sweetheart. I called your house last night, and I told your mom that Riley’s in the hospital. I asked her to pass on the message. I guess she didn’t.”

I look up at her, my face showing my surprise. “My mom knew?”

“Yes, I told her. But I know she doesn’t like Riley much anyway.”

I push my hair back, letting out a heavy sigh. “I—I can’t believe…”

I sigh again, burying my face in my hands.

~How could my mom not tell me? How could she be so heartless?~

“Don’t blame yourself, sweetheart. It’s not your fault.”

Is it really not? I know Kendra is behind this. This was her plan to get to me, I know it. Riley got hurt because of my past.

I shake my head. “No, it is my fault. It really is.”

Valerie pulls me into a tight hug, rubbing my back. “It’s okay. It’s okay. Let’s just pray for the best, okay? She’ll wake up.”

***

I rest my head against the window as we drive to the warehouse, hoping to find a CCTV. Alex’s face is set in a grim line as he reaches over his dashboard, pulling out a pack of cigarettes.

He lights one up, and as the smoke fills the car, Ansel turns to his brother with a frown.

“Alex, seriously. That’s your sixth cigarette today. Do you want to get lung cancer and die? Then you won’t be able to help Riley, so throw it out.”

Alex sighs but does as he’s told, rolling down his window to toss out the cigarette. “I’m gonna kill every last fucking one of ’em,” he mutters.

Ansel pats his brother’s shoulder, then glances in his side mirror. His brow furrows. “You know, I think that car is following us.”

I turn around to see a black car behind ours. The windows are tinted, so I can’t see who’s driving.

“Yeah, I think I saw that car at the hospital. Didn’t we?” Alex asks Ansel.

“Do you think they have something to do with Riley?” I ask.

“Maybe.” Ansel checks his mirror again before resting his elbow on the window frame. “They’re certainly making our job easier.”

“Well, we’ll let them take the bait,” Alex says, turning onto Vincent Street. The old warehouse comes into view, and Ansel leans forward to look out his window.

“There’s a drugstore nearby, and it has a CCTV. We could stop there and ask them to show us their recent footage. What do you guys think?”

“Yeah, the old warehouse wouldn’t have a CCTV anyway,” I add, pushing my hair back.

Alex pulls into a parking spot. We get out of the car and head to the drugstore, noticing the black car now parked a little way down the street.

The bell rings as we push open the glass door. A guy in a red hat and jersey is behind the counter, wiping it down.

“Can I help you?” he asks as we approach.

“Yeah, can we see your recent CCTV footage?” Alex asks, leaning on the counter. He immediately pulls his hand back, grimacing when he realizes his elbow is wet with disinfectant.

The guy halts his cleaning and gives us a skeptical look. He narrows his eyes. “Do I look like a fool? Why would I do that?”

~This is tougher than I expected.~

I glance at Ansel as Alex’s eyes harden. “Maybe because we’d rearrange your face if you—”

“Um, because it’s for a good cause, and we’re just trying to help our friend, who’s stuck in bed.” Ansel interrupts.

He’s aware of Alex’s quick temper, which doesn’t make him the best person for negotiations.

The guy looks bored. “You guys cops or something?”

“No,” I answer, and he frowns, shaking his head.

“So why would I show you something that private?” He raises an eyebrow. “I could lose my job over this. I’m not about to risk my livelihood for a bunch of strangers.”

Alex rolls his eyes and looks away, noticing two men in tuxedos passing by the glass wall, glancing in at us. Alex locks eyes with Ansel, who’s also spotted the two unfamiliar men.

“Look, I need this job for my afternoon classes, and my mom’s on maternity leave, which means this is all I got.

“So if you’re not buying drugs, then I can’t help you,” the guy explains, turning away from us.

Ansel lets out a sharp breath, running a hand through his curly hair. “Okay, okay. What if I give you a hundred?”

I look at him, and the shop attendant quickly spins around at the mention of money. His eyes are on Ansel’s hands as he pulls out his wallet.

“No. Don’t pay him, Ansel.” I frown.

“We need this, Rain,” he tells me, and I sigh as he slaps a hundred-dollar bill onto the counter.

The guy looks at it thoughtfully, then moves over, scratching his temple. “Mm. I don’t know. A hundred dollars just isn’t worth the unemployment.”

“Seriously?” I glance heavenward.

Alex rolls his eyes and reaches into his back pocket. He throws down another hundred, his eyes blazing with irritation. “Happy now, you swindler?”

“Mm…” The guy tilts his head. “Not quite.”

“You’re a scam artist,” I mutter as I grab my purse and toss in a hundred. It almost flies off the counter as he slaps his hand over it, making us smile with satisfaction.

“Not much, but we can work with it.”

We shake our heads as he flops down onto his stool, pulling the computer toward him. “Which date are you looking for?”

“Um, yesterday’s date,” I tell him, leaning forward to look at the monitor.

He taps some keys and clicks a few times before the footage pops up. Alex and Ansel move in closer to watch the video as the shop attendant starts to fast-forward through the tape.

I spot a black van pulling up to the scene, and I ask him to rewind the video a few seconds back. He complies, but I frown when I realize there’s no sound.

“Could you turn the volume up?”

“Um, volume would be fifty dollars more.” The guy grins slyly, extending his hand.

I close my eyes and resist the urge to swear as I grab my purse and slap a fifty in his hand.

“Wonderful.” He turns up the volume, and the sound of the black van can be heard as it pulls up to the warehouse.

My heart shatters all over again when I see two burly guys dressed in all black stepping out of the vehicle.

Alex clenches his teeth as he pales slightly. “Those sons of bitches.”

Fresh tears well in my eyes as the two men drag a weak Riley from the van.

She tries to resist, and one of the men retaliates by slapping her hard across the face, shouting that they will shoot her if she doesn’t keep quiet. I close my eyes as my heart aches at the scene.

“Damn. This is some mafia shit. I can’t believe this was happening right next to me,” the shop attendant gasps, his eyes widening in what seems to be amusement.

“That girl has to be dead though, right?”

“Shut the fuck up,” Alex warns. “She’s not dead. You’re the one who’s going to be dead if you don’t mind your damn business.”

The guy presses his lips together and says nothing else. Ansel sighs as the video continues to show them dragging Riley into the abandoned warehouse. “These men are damn heartless.”

We can’t see what’s happening inside, but after a while the two men step out of the building without Riley. They glance up and down the street, and their faces become visible.

I quickly point to the screen.

“Could you pause there and zoom in?”

The guy droops his eyelids, turning his face to me. “Zooming in would be another fifty—”

“Listen, zoom the damn clip and stop asking for money, or you won’t like what we do to you,” Ansel says, his eyes darkening with impatience and annoyance.

I glance at him in admiration as the guy snaps his mouth shut and shifts back to the screen, immediately replaying the last scene and zooming it in.

“Print that,” Alex requests, stroking his chin in concentration.

The shop guy rolls his eyes. “You people are asking for too much.”

“Print the image!”

“Okay, okay.”

He prints it, then hands it to us, frowning. “My boss usually checks the typing sheets, and he’ll know that I used the printing machine without adding in the revenue…”

Alex and Ansel glare at him, and he swallows nervously, clearing his throat. “…But that’s okay. I’ll just cover that five dollars from my paycheck. It’s no problem.”

Ansel grabs a packet with three thumb drives off a nearby shelf and throws it onto the counter. “Could we get three copies of that video?”

The guy looks annoyed but does as he’s told, since Ansel is staring at him expectantly. My eyes drift to Alex as he gazes at a teddy bear on a neighboring shelf, his fingers playing with the price tag.

Ansel quickly grabs the three flash drives, and I give the guy behind the counter a small smile. “Thanks for helping us out, even if it might cost you your job.”

He waves us off. “Are you guys done?”

“We’re taking this too,” Alex says, tucking the teddy bear he’d been eyeing under his arm. He raises an eyebrow at the stunned guy behind the counter.

“No, you have to pay for that.”

“Not when we’ve already given you three-fifty,” Alex shoots back, and Ansel smirks a little. “Thanks for your help. Keep our visit today a secret, for your own good,” he adds.

The guy just stares at us, dumbfounded, as we leave the store. As soon as we step outside, we spot two men in tuxedos leaning against Alex’s car.

“Okay, why are those two Men in Black wannabes messing with my car?” Alex mutters.

“They’re clearly looking for trouble, since they followed us from the hospital,” Ansel says, taking my hand as we walk.

I glance down at our hands, and even though it’s not the time for butterflies and blushing, my heart skips a beat when our skin touches.

“One thing I can’t stand is someone touching my damn car.”

The two burly men push off the car and start heading our way. We stop, and Ansel pulls me behind him, his hand gripping mine tightly.

A look of recognition crosses Alex’s face as he looks at us, confused. “Aren’t these the same guys from the security footage?”

I unfold the paper in my hand and study the slightly blurry image of the two culprits, realizing that Alex is right. Ansel looks at me, then at Alex, and nods.

“Yeah. They are.”

“Oh, they’re going to pay for what they did to her,” Alex mutters, handing me the stuffed bear he got from the store. One of the men, with a big scar across his jaw, looks at me, then at Ansel.

“Give us the girl. Our boss wants to see her.”

Alex chuckles darkly as he steps up to them, his hands in his pockets. “You guys have no idea what’s coming, do you?”

“Who’s your boss?” Ansel asks, his eyebrows furrowing.

The two men laugh at the question, exchanging amused looks. The one with the big scar shakes his head and starts moving toward me.

I instinctively step back, but Alex puts his hand on the man’s chest, stopping him.

“And where do you think you’re going?” He raises an eyebrow. “Did you think I’d just let you walk past me? Do I look stupid?”

The man quickly pulls a gun from his waist and points it at Alex, who doesn’t even flinch as the barrel touches his nose.

I swallow nervously, but Ansel seems calm. He’s probably sure that Alex can handle himself. Maybe this isn’t the first time he’s had a gun pointed at him.

Alex laughs like a madman, raising his hands. “Go ahead. Shoot.” He shrugs, fearless. “What are you waiting for?”

The man’s partner grunts impatiently. “Don’t waste time, Hitler.”

At his partner’s command, the man cocks the gun, but Alex doesn’t move, his devilish grin never fading.

A tense silence stretches for a few seconds, with Hitler aiming at Alex while they lock eyes.

Before I know what’s happening, Alex quickly knocks the gun out of the man’s hand, a gunshot ringing out as the weapon hits the hard asphalt.

Immediately, he punches Hitler in the face, and as he falls to the ground, his partner rushes over to help.

Ansel quickly moves forward and tackles him, slamming his back into the rear of the car.

I gasp as the man falls to the ground, with Ansel now on top of him, punching him repeatedly while Alex fights with Hitler, the two wrestling on the ground in a bloody brawl.

Ansel pushes the man’s face into the hot asphalt, punching him in the stomach over and over. The man’s face twists in pain as he tries to get free.

I start to relax until the man grabs Ansel’s hand and, using his larger size, manages to flip him over onto the ground, taking his place on top of him.

He swings at Ansel, who moves his head, and the man’s fist hits the asphalt instead.

He cries out in pain and instinctively grabs his hand, and Ansel takes the opportunity to punch him in the stomach.

Holding his stomach, the man reaches into his jacket with his other hand for a gun.

My eyes widen, and I run forward, reaching for his elbow to try to stop him. The man easily shakes me off, and I fall to the ground.

Ansel’s eyes go wide as I hit the ground hard. I wince in pain as I try to get up.

“D-did you just touch her?” Ansel’s voice is full of venom, and he quickly pulls a large pocketknife from inside his shoe and slashes the man’s stomach in one swift motion.

Blood splatters onto his white shirt and his face as the man screams, clutching his stomach in terror. I gasp, my jaw dropping as I struggle to my feet.

~Did Ansel just—?~

He grabs the man’s collar and headbutts him, throwing his limp body off him and onto the ground. He quickly gets up as the man curls into a ball, crying and writhing on the ground.

Ansel takes the gun from his weak hand and points it at him.

I watch as his finger hovers over the trigger, but a gunshot goes off, and we both look over at Alex, who has just shot Hitler in the knee.

“Who do you work for?!” Alex demands as the man screams, gritting his teeth in pain.

I look back at Ansel, still in shock that he cut a man’s stomach so ruthlessly.

~This side of him is new and terrifying, even more intimidating than when he confronted Jace. Who is Ansel, really?~

Ansel hauls the guy over next to a whimpering Hitler, and then he and Alex level their guns at them, demanding the truth. My back is screaming in pain as I hobble over to join them.

“I won’t ask again. Who’s your boss?” Alex’s voice is hard as stone. I glance at him, and his eyes are dark and empty, a look that’s just as terrifying as Ansel’s.

“We—we won’t tell,” Hitler stammers, clutching his bleeding knee, his hand slick with his own blood. “We won’t talk… So don’t waste your fucking time.”

Ansel rolls his eyes, and Alex nods, squatting down in front of the man.

“Alright, how about this then?” His gaze is pure venom as he narrows his eyes. “Which one of these dirty hands did you use to touch the girl you kidnapped yesterday?”

Hitler’s face goes pale as Alex yanks his hand from his wounded knee, pressing his knuckle into the dirt.

“Was it this one?” He fires a shot into the man’s palm, and I wince, turning my face away. My eyes squeeze shut as he screams in agony.

I force myself to look back at the scene as Ansel squats down too, reaching for Hitler’s other hand.

He slowly drives his pocketknife into his palm, and the blood spurting from the wound splashes onto Ansel’s knuckle. “Or was it this one?”

I stare at the scene, frozen in place. I’ve seen action and thriller movies, but witnessing this in real life is a whole different level of horrifying.

Ansel and Alex look like two demons, clearly getting a kick out of this. It’s even too much for me, and I’m the one who smashed a girl’s head into the classroom tiles.

“You know, I really like that girl,” Alex says, and I see the pain on his face as he drops his head.

“I like her, okay? And I’ve never liked a girl on this planet the way I like her. So how dare you touch her. How dare you beat her half to death. How could you—?”

He sighs, pressing a knuckle against his forehead, his eyes closed in pain.

Ansel lets out a heavy breath, pushing his hair back. The blood on his knuckles catches my eye, and I can’t help thinking about how terrifying he looks right now. How terrifying they both look.

“We’re asking one last time…who do you both work for?”

“We won’t tell you!” Hitler’s partner roars, blood pouring from his mouth as he clutches his stomach. “We won’t, so you might as well kill us!”

I glance from him to Ansel, and goosebumps prickle my skin when Ansel’s lips curl into a chilling smirk.

“Okay. Don’t think we won’t,” is his response.

The brothers stand up, and I watch in stunned silence as they aim at the men, their fingers hovering over the triggers.

~They’re going to kill these men. They’re really going to do it.~

Suddenly, the distant wail of sirens cuts through the tense silence. I realize I’ve been holding my breath as I spring forward.

“The cops. We have to go.” My voice sounds strange to my own ears as I tug on Ansel’s hand.

He snaps out of his daze and looks at Alex, who’s still lost in his own world.

“Come on, Al. The cops are coming.”

Alex doesn’t budge, so Ansel grabs his arm and drags him with us to the car.