by Elle, Leen
Sophie felt her rage die away. She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. "Okay." She replied, unclenching her fists. "Okay, I'll believe you." Luke was one of the few people she felt like she could take at his word. She believed in him just like she believed in Robert. It may have been foolish, but it was all she knew.
She walked towards him, and gently reached up to pull down his hood. She'd suspected from the beginning that he'd been hiding something, and her suspicions were confirmed.
Luke's face was marred by three long cuts. One stretched across his left cheek, while two more formed an X on his forehead. He'd tried to stitch the wound on his cheek, but the work was sloppily done. The other cuts were partially covered by bandages and she could barely make out the beginning of large bruises along his chin and neck.
"What happened to you?" Robert asked when he realized Sophie was too shocked to speak.
"Car accident." Luke answered. "Max's men are quick. They caught me off guard. I didn't know what was going on when they hit me. It was chaos for a few hours."
"Did you go to the hospital?"
"Yes, because that would've been a brilliant plan." Luke snapped. "Might as well just walk right into his hands."
"I'm sorry, stupid question." Sophie winced, not expecting Luke to be this defensive.
"No, don't be." He shook his head, obviously angry at himself. "It's been a long day."
"I know." She whispered, taking his hand in hers. She led him to the bed, and pulled him down beside her. "I know you've been through a lot today."
Luke's eyes locked with hers, and she saw a glimpse of the innocent young man she'd once known. He'd changed so much since they'd met, but a part of her wondered if this was really a change after all. It felt like he'd let out the darker side of himself, the side that he'd been hiding since day one.
She knew she couldn't do anything for him. She couldn't heal him, or say anything to make this better.
"I'm sorry." She began, not knowing what else to say. "I'm sorry I couldn't stop you from falling this far down."
Luke's gaze fell to the floor, focusing on the faded green carpet. "Is this rock bottom, Sophie?" His voice was barely audible. "I don't know what rock bottom is, but this sure as hell feels like it."
Sophie bit her lip, wanting to comfort him in some way. She didn't have the confidence that she could help him, but she knew she had to try. If she remained silent, she would simply be repeating the events from the night when he'd asked her to run away with him. Sophie had to do something, even if that something wasn't going to work.
"If this is rock bottom, then this is me picking you up." She placed both her hands over his. She glanced over at Robert who nodded once in support. "We're not going to let you stay like this, Luke."
"We?" Luke glanced over at Robert, his expression disbelieving.
"I'm not the only person who decided to come find you." Sophie smiled as best she could. "You've been by yourself all this time. Why don't you join our family?"
"Your what?"
"Family." She paused, letting the word sink in. "It's this thing where we lift each other up when we feel like we're drowning, and support each other when we're most alone." She watched him carefully, wondering if she was reaching him. "It sounds kind of cheesy, but it's been working for us so far. You think I've come this far on my own? This family is my reason to keep fighting."
Robert crossed his arms as he leaned against the wall. "She's not lying right now." He reminded Luke. "She honestly believes in this family stuff. I've tried talking her out of it."
"He believes in it too." Sophie flashed him a half-amused glare. "From experience, I know that there's exactly one good thing about hitting rock bottom." She motioned to the ceiling. "There's no other direction to go but up."
Luke's expression was impassive. "I've tried being optimistic before, Sophie. It doesn't work for me."
"Try being practical." Robert interjected. "Max and Cleo are already out for you, and there's a certain FBI agent who wouldn't mind catching you either. You're on the run, with no money to work with whatsoever. The only way the situation could get worse is if you were dead." He shrugged, his tone nonchalant. "Right now, we're offering you our support, so that's something to be happy about, right?"
"We may not be much, but we can be somewhat helpful." Sophie squeezed his hand again. "I know you want to escape, and right now that's all I want too. We stayed with Cleo as long as we could. Our lives working for her are over. There's simply no turning back."
"It's my fault you're being hunted down by them." His eyes narrowed in guilt.
"This would've happened someday. You honestly think I want to stay with Cleo forever?" Sophie turned her gaze down to her lap. "It's like every breath I'm breathing is filled with smoke. I don't want this lifestyle anymore. I don't want to be the kind of person who's always focused on pleasing them. I'm being suffocated by this life I chose for myself. It's time for me to escape too."
"This is a decision we've both decided on." Robert ran a hand through his hair. "We know that helping you is a risk, but right now we're all or nothing. Taking down Cleo and Max is priority number one, and that's right up your alley. Our methods may be a little less dramatic than arson, but we'll make sure they get what's come to them."
"I thought you were Cleo's loyal dog?" Luke obviously still did not trust Robert.
"Unfortunately, I tend not to like it when someone threatens the people close to me. Anyway, this whole rebellion plot seems fun, so I might as well help out."
Sophie hid a smile at his response.
"Luke, do you accept our offer?" She asked softly. "I know this is rough time for you, but let us share the burden."
"You're already sharing the burden. Shouldn't you be angry at me?"
"I'm focusing my anger at the source, and you're not it, Luke." Her eyes were pleading. "So, will you join us?"
Luke stared at her intently, his dark eyes searching.
For a long moment he hesitated, leaving Sophie wondering if he would decline.
He had no reason to turn them down, but knowing him, he would try to bare everything on his own.
When he finally whispered, "Okay," Sophie felt her anxiety vanish.
Finally, they'd taken the first step to their goal.
It may have been the easiest so far, but it was a step forward nonetheless.
* * *
With the time they had left with Luke, Robert discussed a portion of his plan with him. Sophie remained quiet as she listened to what Robert had to tell him, which frankly, was not much.
So far, all that had been decided was that they'd take down Max and Cleo. They'd roughly assembled a group of individuals who were willing to risk everything, but the plan itself was nonexistent.
The only thing they knew now was their targets. How they were going to take them down had yet to be addressed, and Luke was obviously unimpressed. He, however, hadn't come up with anything better than what they had.
Sophie slipped away during the conversation to call Diana to come pick them up. They'd been given strict instructions not to spend too much time alone with Luke. Having all the members of their team together was risky. Should they be caught, there would be no hope for the rest of them.
When she returned from the bathroom, the room was completely different from when she'd left. The tense atmosphere had returned, and no one was speaking.
Robert and Luke were glaring at each other, their hostility barely contained.
"Okay, team." Sophie said, emphasizing the word "team" to remind them they were on the same side. "Have we all agreed?"
"There's nothing to agree to." Luke replied coldly. "You guys have nothing to work with."
"We're going to come up with something. We always do."
"Well, when you do, get back to me." He sounded exasperated. "We have all the time in the world to come up with a plan, after all."
She winced. Luke had changed so much since she'd last seen him. He now wasn't afraid to throw a
round harsh truths like Robert.
"Luke, from here I'm going straight to Diana to have her tell me about my parents. That information can give us something."
"What if it doesn't?"
"Then I'll have wasted a few hours I could've used on sleeping, and we'll be no worse off than now." She glanced at Robert, and by his expression she knew he'd used the same argument as well. Luke wasn't buying it. Instead of growing defensive, Sophie remained confident. "I'll give you a plan, Luke. Even if we have to create something out of absolutely nothing, I'll make sure we do it."
"No one, not even the police have been able to catch them. I want to trust you, Sophie, but I can't argue with the facts. I agreed thinking you had more than this."
"We have more than you think." Sophie's phone vibrated in her hand. She glanced at the message on her screen. "Diana's men are here to pick us up. I know we haven't solved anything tonight, but be patient." She wanted to hug him goodbye, but Robert grabbed on to her hand before she could. He was eager to leave now before an argument started.
Sophie regretted leaving while Luke still looked so lost. As he watched them walk out of the room, his eyes were vacant. She flashed him a forced smile and a small wave as Robert led her out of the room.
Luke didn't say goodbye.
Robert didn't stop walking until they'd reached the car. He quickly opened the door, and they discreetly slipped inside. Two of Diana's men sat in the front seat of the car, leaving the backseat open for them. Diana was waiting for their arrival at a different location.
"Was that really necessary?" She hissed under her breath. "Did we have to rush out like that?"
"He doesn't trust us. He may have agreed to help, but he still thinks he's on his own. I honestly can't blame him, we have nothing to work with."
"We have plenty to work with." Sophie's voice rose. "In the past, the police were on their own, and their thieves were too terrified to do anything to stop them! With your brain, Diana's influence, and whatever the hell I can bring to the table, we have them!"
"You need to work on your argument, darling."
"Give me time and I'll give you hard facts. Shouldn't you believe in us too?"
"I wouldn't have proposed taking them down if I didn't believe in us. I'm just acknowledging the fact that we have nothing to work with right now. We can't just turn ourselves in and testify. The system isn't that easy. We have to find proof they are both thieves and murderers to have any shot at a case." His voice was calm and soothing. "We're honestly part of the reason there is so little evidence. When we did our job correctly, we wiped away anything leading back to them."
"So, it's going to be difficult. What's new about that?" Sophie leaned her head against his shoulder, and he wrapped his arm around her waist.
"Just go to sleep. It'll be a long ride back to our hotel."
"We're not going back to the hotel." The driver of the car mentioned, glancing back at them in the rearview mirror. "Diana has requested to meet you in a different location."
Robert stiffened, ready to protest, but Sophie nudged him to stay quiet. "It's fine. As long as she tells us what we need to know." She smiled up at him. "You should probably try to sleep too. We're both on edge."
"Fine." Robert muttered, scowling. "I'll try."
"Good." She whispered, closing her eyes and letting her worries drift away.
She only had a few moments to rest, but she would need them for what was to come.
* * *
The sun had just begun to peak over the horizon when Robert and Sophie arrived at Central Park. While the location was somewhat of a surprise, neither of them questioned when the driver told them to get out of the car. He'd given them brief instructions on where to find Diana, and they accepted them easily.
By this point, they'd gone too far to distrust her. If this was a trap, they'd just figure out how to escape when the time came.
"It should take you fifteen minutes if you follow the path I've given you. Diana is waiting." The driver rolled up his window and drove away without another word.
Sophie rubbed her eyes, trying to wake herself up. The ride had taken long enough for her to fall asleep, and waking up now was almost torture.
Robert smiled slyly down at her. "Want me to wake you up?"
She yawned, nodding her head once, too tired to reply.
He quickly wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her towards him. In one swift motion, he bent down to kiss her gently on the neck.
Sophie's senses jumped into overdrive as his kiss sent shivers down her body.
"Good morning." He whispered into her ear. "Are you awake, or should I continue?"
"Hmm..." She whispered, closing her eyes. "Continue."
He laughed, but instead of kissing her again, he wrapped his hand through hers.
"You're conscious enough to make good decisions. We can't keep Diana waiting." He winked as she scowled at him.
"Bully." She hissed, letting him lead her through the park.
Neither of them rushed the walk to Diana. Both took in the fresh morning air, and the serenity of the moment. Sophie knew this might be one of the last moments of peace before the chaos resumed, and she soaked up as much as she could. She knew too well how easy it was to take peace for granted.
She appreciated how she didn't have to speak to Robert for it to stay comfortable. It was the kind of bond she loved, where they could simply be together without having to force conversation. As they walked through the park, Sophie considered their entire relationship, and how far they'd come.
She pressed up close to his side, feeling like the closer she was to him, the farther away her fears were.
When they'd reached Diana, they found her sitting on a bench along they path they'd been told to follow. Her bright yellow dress stood out from the greenery, but her face was dark in comparison.
"Good morning." Robert greeted her, his smile fake. Sophie knew from his disappointed tone he wished the walk had been longer. "I've come to drop off my charge."
"Drop off?" Sophie turned toward him, her eyebrows raised. "You're not staying?"
"I won't be far." He motioned to the place beside Diana on the bench. "This is something you need to hear alone."
Before she could ask him to stay, he'd already begun walking again. She watched him until he'd disappeared behind a group of trees. Her disappointment must have been obvious.
"He's proving that he trusts you." Diana began, her eyes distant. "This is his way of saying he believes in you."
"Oh." Sophie sighed as she took a seat beside Diana. "I guess I should've known that."
"How was Luke?"
"Worse than I'd imagined." She closed her eyes. "Sometimes I wish this was all a bad dream."
Diana surprised her by laughing. It was a strange sound coming from such a serious woman, and Sophie's eyes shot open.
What started as a small chuckle grew into a fit of laughter. Diana clutched her sides as she laughed for a long while. Without knowing why, Sophie smiled at the sight. It was so out of character it was shocking.
Diana brushed away tears when her laughter subsided. "Sorry." Her expression slowly returned to seriousness. "You just sounded so much like your father just then."
"My father?" Sophie watched her carefully, not seeing the joke.
"What you said wasn't funny." Diana corrected herself. "It was the way you said it." She leaned back agains the bench, and mimicked Sophie closing her eyes. "Whenever your father was exasperated with something, he would close his eyes like this. Sometimes it would be over the smallest things. He was so dramatic." She laughed again, shaking her head. "It wasn't something I should laugh at, but it's been a long time since I've felt this close to your parents."
"You were close to them?"
"Your father was the first person to make me laugh like that." Diana smiled, but her expression was sad. "I met him first, you know. Right at this very spot."
Sophie stopped breathing as she took in her surroundings with a
new outlook. While she'd lived in the same house her parents had, she'd never felt wave of closeness to them. Something about the serenity of the park made her feel like she understood them a little more.
"I was delivering a program for Cleo, and it was his first time meeting a hacker. He wasn't smart at all." She rolled her eyes, a soft grin on her lips. "Then again, he could've had it all planned from the start." She turned to Sophie to explain. "His job was to pick up the program and leave, but he sat down and started a conversation. I didn't say one word to him, but he just kept talking. When I tried to leave, he'd find a reason for me to stay."