Chapter Nine

Vienna Barron.

7:00 came and went. Cameron is snoring on one side of my couch with a pillow propped beneath his head and a blanket covering only his left leg; I’m sitting off to the side, lazily scrolling through social media in an attempt to distract myself from the fact that Tony was supposed to meet me here fifteen minutes ago with my new bodyguard.  

I’m jittery and anxious, and I’m completely jealous of Cam’s ability to sleep right now. He obviously needs the rest though. When he showed up on my doorstep, he looked very different from the upbeat Cameron that I always knew. He appears to have lost ten to fifteen pounds, and he had already been thin; his eyes look a bit sunken, his blonde hair a disheveled mess. He had come to me crying, and he begged me to forgive him for abandoning me. He didn’t need to beg. I forgave him the moment he walked through my door.  

He told me about some horrifying events that unfolded the night he disappeared. We stayed up late talking and trying to figure out what has been going on and why people are trying to kill me.  

The night he disappeared, he had received a phone call from an unknown number, and he had picked it up. The caller gave Cameron instructions to meet him at a designated spot immediately, or some men lurking near his parent’s house would come in and put some .45s through their skulls. Cameron had followed the instructions and met them at a spot down under a bridge after abandoning his car at a nearby gas station parking lot. He was taken by three men in a black SUV at gunpoint, brought to a safehouse, and held captive for the next several hours. During that time, he was questioned about what he and I had been doing earlier that evening, how I learned my special talent, and if there was anybody else who knew about my mind reading ability.  

He was told that I had already been executed because I was a danger to society, and that if he kept his mouth shut, he and his parents would be allowed to live and they would be given five hundred grand as a reward. If he spoke of any of it, they would not only kill him and his immediate and extended family, but he would be the last to die after watching them all be slowly tortured and killed.  

Cam was released only hours later, told to act like nothing happened, and to resume life as usual. However, there was one problem with that – I was still alive after escaping the attempt on my life. He then had to avoid me at all costs; he couldn’t risk me reading his thoughts and figuring out what happened, because then I might blab and get everyone killed.   

So I had asked him why he is here now. When the risk is so high, why would he be coming to me after being away for this long, when the world is literally crashing down around us, and when his entire family is in danger of losing their lives? 

His family is safe. That’s all he told me. He couldn’t reveal any details of where they were or what they were doing, and there was no reason for me to try reading his thoughts to find out. That could only put them in danger.  

There was one other thing that Cameron mentioned briefly before falling asleep. He had been working on uncovering the truth about what’s going on. He has a notebook that he had been using to keep track of details, and it is well-hidden in case anyone comes snooping. And he needs my account of what happened as well as any other help I can offer.  

He wants to uncover a conspiracy, and so do I.  

It’s creeping up on 7:40 and I still have not had a knock on my door or a single text from Tony. The worry in the pit of my stomach is making me want to puke, and if my mom weren’t in the hospital I might even consider taking Cameron with me and going back to her place. But just as I’m considering waking him up and taking off anyway, the knock comes.  

I run to open the door, finding Tony looking flustered and stressed out – almost angry – alongside a man I have never seen before. He looks barely older than myself. He would be clean-shaven if not for the five o’clock shadow, with dark hair and intimidating green eyes, which are already taking in the scene in a calculated manner, probably taking note of where all potential exits are. His strong jawline makes him appear to be better suited as a male model than a bodyguard, except that I can tell his nose has been broken at least once. For a moment I wonder how this can be the bodyguard that was so recommended by Tony. He looks too… normal.  

“You must be Ryan,” I say as I continue to size him up, glancing at the single sidearm holstered on his hip, wondering how much good he can actually be.  

Tony glances towards him awkwardly, then back at me. “Actually, Vi, Ryan couldn’t make it. Can we come in please?” he says impatiently.  

“Sure….”  

The bodyguard’s hand immediately goes to his pistol upon seeing Cameron, but he quickly recovers his composure. He turns to me. “I wasn’t expecting anyone else.” The coldness in his voice sends shivers up my spine; if anything, he might manage to intimidate a couple bad guys.  

“He’s staying,” I say back, trying to speak firmly through the waves of panic I’m experiencing.  

The bodyguard’s eyes dart back over to me and appear to give me a once-over. At the same time, Cameron starts to stir, and upon hearing the tense conversation happening around him he quickly stands up, looking haggard and underfed.  

“Alright,” Tony says, obviously agitated, “Now that we’re all awake and here, let’s get these introductions over with. Vienna, this is David. He’ll be your bodyguard for the next few weeks, until I can find someone to replace him. David, this is Vienna Barron, the person you’ll gladly give your life to protect. And this is Cameron, her best friend, who you will also die to protect if need be. There. Introductions are over.” His dislike for David is apparent.  

“What happened with Ryan? I thought he was supposed to be my bodyguard.” 

“That’s why we’re late,” Tony replied. “He’s deceased. Sit down.” 

I do as I’m told, not wanting to anger him further. Before I can ask what happened, Tony starts to speak again.   

“Ryan did not meet us at the office this morning. When nobody could get a hold of him, me and a couple of the guys went to his place to check in on him and found him hanging in his closet. I was able to get away long enough to get a new bodyguard set up for you and bring him here, since this is so urgent. But I have to be leaving pretty quickly.”  

“He was murdered?!” Cameron asks a little too loudly.  

“We don’t know yet, but it didn’t look like it. There were no signs of a struggle. We’re waiting on toxicology reports and doing a thorough investigation. All of this is strictly confidential, so not a word of this to anyone. Nothing leaves this room. Do you understand?”  

“Yes,” Cameron and I both say in unison.   

“Good. Now, I’m going to be leaving, and you should probably give David a tour of the apartment and grounds. Go over your lifestyle, where you frequent, when you frequent them, where your family and friends live, the names of any people you speak to regularly and anyone you’ve been in touch with recently. Include your school, your job, and anything else that you think might be important, even a little bit. He’ll go over the rest with you. He’ll be your roommate on paper, and he’ll go everywhere you go. He’ll look like just another one of your buddies, so treat him that way when you’re in public spaces. Do everything he tells you to do. He’s a professional, even if he doesn’t look it.”  

Cameron and I both nod, wide-eyed and tired.   

“I’ll keep in contact, but infrequently. David will be your main contact point now, as well as mine. If anything comes up that I need to know about, he will be the one to tell me. Try to lay low. Don’t do any of your mind reading stuff until we know for sure if they’re able to track you that way. Your mother may be an alcoholic, but she’s not crazy. Bye for now, Vi.” He disappears through the front door without giving me a chance to say another word.   

David, Cameron and myself stand in the middle of my living room in an awkward silence. David doesn’t let it last long – he pulls out a phone and tosses it in my direction.   

“Burner phone,” he says. “I’d have one for your friend too, if I knew he’d be here. I’ll get another sent here. Only use it to contact me, and only if we are separated for any reason. You’re going to have to get rid of your other phone. You too,” he added, looking at Cameron.   

“What about if–” BOOM. The cracking sound of a gunshot pierces the air around us, and David quickly pulls out his handgun and points it toward the front door as Cameron and I both duck and cover our ears.   

Complete silence follows. Then a scream, coming from outside.   

“Stay here.” David rushes out of the apartment looking ready to shoot someone.  

A horrible sinking feeling in my gut causes me to ignore David’s first command to me, and I rush outside on his tail hoping that I’m not about to see what I fear I’m going to. As I reach the top of the outside staircase, David is already trying to usher me back inside, one hand outstretched towards me, the other hand pointing his pistol in the direction of the chaos outside. But it’s too late – I already see the scene in front of me, I know what happened, and it was exactly as I feared.  

Tony’s been shot. He’s lying on the ground in an expanding pool of blood, struggling to stay alive, trying in vain to keep the blood from spilling out of a hole in his neck. There’s nobody around him. The woman that I heard screaming must have run back inside, and there’s no gunman to be seen. Still, I can hear someone screaming. Only when David clamps his hand over my mouth and pulls me back inside do I realize it’s me.  

David shoves me inside the apartment a little too aggressively and I almost lose my footing, but Cameron is already by my side with his arms tightly around me, helping me to remain standing. “Keep her inside,” David barks at him. I try to break free – I need to get to Tony, I need to make sure he’s alive. But Cam is holding onto me as tight as he can, and somehow even his small and tired frame is stronger than me. 

I can hear more screams coming from outside – neighbors must be finally realizing that someone’s been shot. David is back outside. He had shut the door firmly behind him on his way out; that door is the only thing standing between me and the horrifying scene happening just yards away.  

“If I let go, are you going to run out there?” Cameron asks as though he just read my mind.  

“I have to see Tony…”  

“No, you don’t. There is nothing you can do. The ambulance is on their way and you’ll only be putting yourself in danger. Now, can I let go, or are you going to make me hold onto you forever?” 

I hesitate for a moment, but give in. “I won’t leave.” 

“Good.” He releases his arms from around me. I want to run – I want to know what’s going on outside and see if Tony is still alive. Instead, I walk to the bedroom, which faces the parking lot outside, and I peer out the window. Cameron stays back, I assume to guard the door and make sure I don’t try to make a break for it.  

I should have braced myself for what I would see. I choke back a sob and quickly close the blinds, turning away from the sight of the crowd gathering around Tony as a couple of people try in vain to perform CPR on his very still body. I can hear the sirens approaching – many of them. Part of me wants to get out of this place so I don’t have to answer any questions. But David hasn’t come back inside yet and I don’t want to abandon what might be my only shot at having some form of protection.  

I hear the front door open. I stand in the bedroom for a few moments, not quite ready to face David and Cameron yet. These might be the last moments I get to myself for quite some time. David will never let me be alone for as long as he is around to protect me. Part of me also just doesn’t want them to see the silent tears streaming down my face.  

A muffled grunt and the thud of something heavy hitting the floor pull me out of my thoughts. “Cameron?” No answer. “David?”  

I rush back out to where I last saw Cameron, and I see him. On the floor, face-down, with a pool of blood seeping out from underneath his belly. The front door is ajar, and David is nowhere to be seen.