Chapter Twenty Seven
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Day 136: Asteroid
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“Meteor, are you sure this is a good idea?” I ask.
He pulls me close in the cavernous elevator. “No. But it’s my only idea. Michael, are the police here?”
“Yes and no. There are people here, yes, but no, not the police.”
“If it’s not the cops then…”
“Oh, no. Michael! You didn’t.” I state.
“Sorry Asteroid. I did.”
“Did what?”
“Oh! I forgot. You don’t know. Michael works-“
“Worked.”
“Okay, worked for the Illuminati and I’m assuming that’s who he called. Please tell me you didn’t tell them who we really are.”
“They wouldn’t help otherwise.” Michael expresses.
“I will kill you.” Meteor says seriously.
“No you won’t,” Michael sing-songs.
“Now, praytell, why won’t I?” Meteor asks mockingly.
“Because the Illuminati are way more advanced than the cops and have a bigger vendetta against him. So, excuse me if I made the right call.” Meteor growls and I see him tense in the way I’ve seen him do in the high school halls on Scallanos when the Senior boys teased him about liking me. He always beat them up and they usually had to stay home from school for a while after one of his lickings and always came back with at least one arm in a sling.
“Meteor. Don’t.” He faces me and runs his hand through his dark hair in that way I’ve seen a million times and yet still makes my heart leap. “I know he deserves one of your beatings, but you would probably kill him now. After… after…” His shoulders sag and I take his hand. “Come on. Let’s go meet Michael’s friends.”
I lead him out of the elevator like a dog on a leash. He doesn’t scold when I accidentally step on his foot or when I rub his still-sore knuckles wrong. I start to think I said the wrong thing in the elevator.
As I push through the double glass doors, a sense of dread washes over me. There are forty men, all with masks covering their faces. Michael walks up to them and introduces us, just describing the men as “my friends”.
“Anonymity is our greatest asset,” says the biggest one. “But for shortness’ sake, call me Dave.”
“Okay. Did Michael tell you why you've been called into our confidence?”
“You guys are aliens, your dad tried to take over the world, you got shot, your friends destroyed his device, you just woke up, your dad now wants to assure your safety, your boyfriend made him wait and come here where there is no other safe way out other than that elevator which, as soon as your father gets up here, a colleague of mine is going to turn off. Did I miss anything?” Dave rattles off without a breath.
I glare at Michael. He grins devilishly and Meteor stiffens next to me. I lay a hand on his waist. “No, I think that's it.”
“Good. Spread out!” Dave commands sharply.
“Dave, go grab the rest of Meteor’s team out of the conference room.” Michael says. When all of the men disappear, it’s my turn to tense.
“Meteor’s team?” Meteor shoots a death look at Michael.
“Not my team, Sweetheart. Yours. I just temporarily took over while you were out. The instant you woke up, you resumed command. Some people just forgot,” Meteor clarifies. Michael feigns mock injury, pressing his hands to his heart.
“Harsh words for the man who saved your life. Multiple times!” He exclaims, throwing his hands in the air.
“Michael. Out.” I say darkly. For once Michael looks scared. And rightfully so, because if our lives weren’t resting on his trust in Dave and his masked men, I'd be fully capable of ripping multiple limbs off of his body. He slowly backs out of the room.
I turn to Meteor. He holds out his arms and all the hot words I was planning on saying disappear. I run to him and he wraps me in a tight embrace.
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Day 136: Meteor
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As I hold Asteroid in my arms, I feel her start shaking. I look down to see her crying.
“I just want this to be over. All of it. Everything but this,” she sobs;
“But what, Darling?” The word feels odd on my lips.
“But you. I just want to leave and go somewhere with-”
“Shhh. I hear the elevator. Galaxy’s coming! Go hide in the conference room.”
“What about you?” I pull her close.
“I’ll be fine,” I whisper into her hair. She looks up and kisses me. “What was that for?”
“For luck.”
“I love you. I promise, it's almost over. Then we can leave. Now, go!” She leaves and hides with the team in the conference room.
The elevator door slides open, revealing a haggard and distraught Galaxy.
“My daughter?” He asks in a raspy voice.
“Come out here.” I say authoritatively. He steps into the light, illuminating the dark circles under his eyes and the shaking hands that come with too much coffee and not enough sleep. I want him to hurt as much as I have when it comes to Asteroid. Those long months of sustaining her and keeping the bullet holes uninfected, not knowing if she’d ever wake up again, took their toll on my nerves and emotional stability. “She’s dead. The shots killed her.” He hits his knees and cries.
“No! it's not true. Tell me it's not true!” I walk over to him and grab his arms and pull him to his feet.
“Michael!” I yell, and he comes out with a pair of handcuffs, which he clips to Galaxy’s limp wrists. “Go get her.” Michael disappears and returns with Asteroid and at least twelve of Dave’s men, plus Dave.
“Galaxy.” Asteroid says in a deadpan. He picks his head up.
“You’re alive!”
“I am. We all are.” The team walks out of the next room. “You can cut us and shoot us and imprison us but you'll never be able to break us. Only greed and hate and bitterness can do that to a person. That’s why you're going to the highest level security prison the Illuminati has on call. You are a broken, greedy, hateful, bitter man. Goodbye Galaxy. And have a very merry Christmas.” Michael leads a stony-faced Galaxy out of the room, followed by Dave and his men.
Christmas?! My birthday was in November! That means… I'm eighteen and that means… oh no.
Once they're out of the room, Asteroid collapses on the floor. I rush over to her. Her face is pale as death.
“Are you okay?!” I cry.
“Home.”
“Okay. I'll get you home right now. Oh, please don’t die,” I clutch her to my chest. “I need to tell you something. I'll get you home. I'll get you home.” I press her bracelet and we materialize back in the Orion.
As I sit in the glass tube, dazed, she starts gasping for breath.
“Room.” Her room? The hospital room?
“My room?” She manages a feeble nod. I carefully get up and race through the halls, my feet not even making an indentation on the thick carpets. By the time I reach my room, her head has lolled onto my chest and her arms have become limp. I lay her on my bed and pull the thick comforter up to her chin.
I knew she was too weak to make the trip, but she had insisted. And now she’s lying here dying on my bed. Her speech siphoned what little strength she had regained in the past day. She must have hated condemning her father.
“I should have told you long ago. We never have to go back. The whole team is on board. We just have to tell the SSAUE the mission failed and leave the GPS they attached to the ship down in the Sound. They’ll never know. I didn’t want to, but now you say you want to, and I'll do anything as long as you don't die. Please don’t die.”
Her eyes open. “I’m not going to die, you idiot. I need you too much. Plus, I need to give you your birthday present.”
“HOW CAN YOU THINK ABOUT BIRTHDAY PRESENTS AT A TIME LIKE THIS?”
“I need to give it to you now. Before it happens.”
“You mean-”
“Yes. My mom told me what yours is. In my closet, there’s a shoebox on the top shelf. Can you grab it and bring it here? You’re gonna need it."88Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRUDGFh07C
