Duke followed the same route he had taken earlier from Nadia's house, leading him back to her place. He had to admit, the hideout was brilliant. Who would suspect a normal person of bunking in such a desolate location? It was the perfect spot to lay low, that is, if Nadia would take him back.
As he approached her doorstep, Duke raised his hand to knock, but it hovered mid-air when Nadia suddenly opened the door. 'They have a good security system too,' he thought to himself, impressed. 'Great!'
"Yes?" Nadia asked coldly, her tone firm and uninviting, as she blocked the entrance with her body. But from where Duke stood, he could see Tyler and Ryker just a few feet away from Nadia, their presence a stark reminder of the tension he had left behind.
'This was going to be a long day,' Duke muttered to himself.
"I came to strike a deal," Duke began trying his best to maintain his bold expression.
But before he could continue, Nadia cut him off, her words dripping with venom. "I don't need your rude ass anymore. I'll find my sister on my own-"
"About that," he said, a sly grin spreading across his face. His gaze darted towards the bushes beside Nadia's house.
"Come on out!" he yelled
Nadia's confused expression morphed into shock as she set her eyes on Halia, who emerged from the bushes, her presence a surprise to everyone- but Duke.
"Mahalia?" She called out, her voice laced with doubt. But without waiting for Halia to respond, Nadia rushed towards her and swept her into a tight embrace.
"You're welcome," Duke let out as Nadia ran past him to hug Halia.
Duke waited patiently for Mahalia and Nadia to break their emotional embrace before he spoke again.
"That's my deal," he began, his voice measured. "I brought your sister back, and in exchange, I want..." He paused, realizing his poor choice of words, and rephrased his request. "I would appreciate it if you could let me stay here for a while, until I can get some people off my back. I don't mind using the couch."
Just as he finished speaking, Duke heard a snicker coming from behind him. He had no doubt that it was Ryker.
"Now you need our help?" Ryker asked , his tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Well, if you must know, we appreciate the help finding our girl, Mahalia. We'd be more than happy to help you find someone you lost, if the need arises. But since you're an orphan and have no one aside from your ego, let us know when you lose it."
Ryker paused, his eyes glinting with amusement, enjoying the jab he was giving Duke. He continued. "And it would please you to know, we don't care less about whatever situations you've got yourself locked into. Fucking deal with it yourself."
Duke's lips curled into a small smile as he listened to Ryker's jab. He was reiterating Duke's words from earlier.
Duke's mind began to wander on how to deal with the ongoing situation, and he thought to himself.
'Or I could just kill everyone here and occupy the space, starting with Ryker, of course.' He tried to imagine the scenario and he liked the outcome in his imagination when he thought about it.
'I'll leave the kids, though. One can cook for me, and the other can game with me...' But his thoughts were interrupted by Nadia's words.
"You can stay as long as you want," Nadia said, her words surprising Duke. Ryker raised an eyebrow, clearly taken aback, but he didn't object. It wasn't his place to, after all - Nadia owned the house, and she needed Duke's help.
"That's cool," Tyler exclaimed, breaking the silence. "More people to game with, but we don't have enough to take care of all of us."
Duke smiled, pulling out two crisp hundred-dollar bundles from his pocket. "I've got cash,"
——
They all settled back into the apartment, trying to process the events of the day. Nadia made sure Halia was taken care of, feeding her and getting her cleaned up before sitting her down to debrief Nadia on what had happened.
"We got raided at school," Halia began, her voice shaking slightly. "Most of the girls my age got kidnapped. I'm not sure where we were taken because we were blindfolded, but it was some kind of lab. Not like your workplace, Nadia - this place was scary. There were dead creatures everywhere, wired up and messy. They injected us with something, but while the others passed out immediately, I didn't. I pretended to be affected too, so they wouldn't suspect anything."
"The serum I gave you last time was to block any implant, I didn't think it would work," Nadia noted. Halia nodded, her eyes wide as she remembered.
"Soon after, we were being moved in a van. I don't know what happened, but something did - I heard people fighting."
"That was me," Duke cut in, but Halia shook her head, saying 'No, it wasn't'.
"Before that. A fight had erupted, the driver went out, and he didn't come back - at least, not that same driver. He came to check on what was being transported, and I had to feign being unconscious again."
Halia paused, trying to catch her breath. Nadia quickly offered her water. Halia took a sip before she continued.
"The fighting ceased, and we were suddenly moving again. The girls started to spit blood and vibrate. I got scared, really scared, especially when they suddenly stopped and looked lifeless. The driver must have been alerted by the commotion. I heard him make a phone call, telling someone, 'It was too late, all the girls were dead.' But I lay lifeless still, not knowing if he was trying to help or not."
Halia's voice dropped to a whisper. "Soon after, someone came knocking."
"That was me," Duke said, and this time Halia nodded, affirming his words.
"As Duke started fighting with the others, the driver kept watching him, engrossed in the fight. I used that opportunity to steal the keys and slowly opened the back of the van, sneaking out. And Duke helped me get here."
"Oh, Halia, I'm so sorry," Nadia said, her voice filled with compassion, as she shifted closer to Halia, attempting to envelop her in a warm hug. However, Halia pulled back, her eyes welling up with tears.
"That's not all," Halia spoke out, her voice trembling slightly.
Duke's forehead creased with worry lines as he wondered what else had happened.
"I don't feel normal anymore," Halia cried and her body shook from her tears. Nadia tried to touch her again, to calm her, but Halia shifted away once more.
"I got bit by a snake in the bush," Halia continued, her voice barely above a whisper. "And instead of me getting affected, the snake dried out immediately."
Everyone wore a shocked expression, including Duke, at this information. "Same way a stem of the leaf pricked me, and it dried out from the root."
Nadia felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Halia—"
Halia grabbed a pen and stabbed herself on the arm before the others could suspect what she was up to. But the pen bounced back and exploded, not affecting her skin at all.
"See?" Halia cried.
She reached for the knife on the table, and this time Duke rushed to stop her since he was closer. In the struggle, he unintentionally pinched Halia's skin. Suddenly, he started coughing aggressively, and soon blood poured out from his mouth, eyes and ears.
"See?!" Halia cried, staring at Duke in horror. "I'm a monster!"