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2024-10-29 19:42:56James
James watched as his cousin settled back in her seat without asking further questions about what she had just agreed to or what consequences were attached to them .
When she had even signed the papers , James had expected her to protest when she read the clause on bodily harm or loss of body parts but she had just read through and signed , she had asked James no questions when he had been prepared to practically dish out answers .He sighed , he was in no place to be showing empathy , especially after getting his poor cousin to sign it .
He had not approached his cousin out of the goodness of his heart .He knew why he had come for Clay .Clay was his only chance of getting Westbrook if he wanted to ever do .The car stopped moving and the partition came down .Saul's voice came through the small Telecom device ." This is the stop the child asks to be let down", he announced .
James watched as his cousin's eyes lazily opened , her eyes shocking him again .
It was like looking into a mirror ,an effeminate mirror but still one .It was a shabby and very cynical mirror but it still gave off a reflection ." Stay with your sister tonight but the game commences by exactly twelve midnight , I will be here before then to get you ", He planned with Clay .
James hoped vaguely that he would ask at least one question but She only nodded and opened the door , alighting Immediately .
James watched her button the weird suit before leaving .
The car moved immediately and Saul put on music , one of the classical pieces that James pretended to know about .He watched Saul's reflection from the rear - view mirror , his face had a silent reproach to it .
" What ? You disagree with me ? " , he bellowed .
James laughed bitterly , Of course he did .
Saul had been one of his Uncle's trusted helps in the family , his mum had hated how she had not been able to turn him over to her aid when her brother had left." You should not have brought David kids into this , it's not your place ", He insists.
James scoffed.
Kids ?He shouldn't have brought them into it ?Was everyone forgetting that he was a kid too ?That he was even younger than Clay ?Yet he had been brought into it ." Just drive ", he snapped .
He reclined back into his chair , feeling saul's pitiful eyes on him.
Whatever happened , he would take care of the sister's heart because regardless of how the game turned out , if Clay won or not , she would still die .No sub - player could ever leave the game alive.CLAYJade was silent as they took the stairs to their apartment , she had expected her to be full of questions .
Clay watched her walk ahead , she knew she was waiting for her to tell her what had gone on in the car that she had not been privy of .She pushed the key into the lock and used her weight to push the door open .
Clay quickened her steps and walked into their apartment , she closed the door after her self .Jafe was at the sink , drinking directly from the tap like she always did .
She had warned her severally and only stopped when she had also caught her severally .She jumped off the stool she had used to prop herself up and walked to their closet .She went to the sink too and drank to her fill , when she turned around Jade was seated on their bed staring at her
" I can't pretend anymore , what did you guys discuss without me ? It's obviously something underhanded and dubious ".
Clay propped herself and pulled herself to sit on the kitchens countertop .
" You weren't even doing a good job of pretending but you are right , it does sound dubious ".
Clay wondered how much information she could give her before she figured out just what she was going to do.
Well, she could tell her it was a kind of job ." What is it ? It's definitely not a job ".
Clay watched her job idea slide down the countertop and Into the sink before going down the drain .
" You're right , it's not a job . But, it does require me to be gone for sometime ".
She watched as her sister processed this tidbit of information .
She lifted her legs and placed them under her chin , wrapping her hands around her entire body ." How long will you be gone for ?"
" Seven days ".
Clay could not bring himself to tell her that the seven days would begin count in a few hours.
She nodded gently ." Seven days is enough time , a day for testing and cross checking any loop holes , another day for preparation . The third day would be for the actual transplant and then the remaining four days would be used to monitor how well the new organ adapts ".
Clay watched her sister ramble as she counted fingers .
" What are you talking about ? "
She lifted her head to face her sharply .
" Isn't that what he came to you for ? He needs something , an organ , bone marrow or even more and you agreed to get me a heart , didn't you ? "
Jade was screaming now .Clay jumped off the countertop and ran to the bed , she lifted Jade and threw her in the air , heights always made her let go of her anger momentarily .She yelped and put her hand over her eyes ." Put me down ".
She did as she said and put her down exactly where she had carried her from , she sat next to her .
" I know how you feel about becoming healthy only to find that I've become uhealthy , so I won't do anything that endangers me ".
She threw herself into her arms and Clay brought her arms around her after the ache from suddenly throwing her had subsided .
She was quiet about it ,but her shirt had grown wet .Clay patted her hair down remembering a week ago when she had put her hair up into an extravagant twist and asked that she do a video for her tiktok with her , she had of course refused and she had done it with Tommy , it was Tommy's phone after all." Everything will be okay , I'll be back in seven days time and we'll go straight to the hospital to put your name on the list . With money like that , we'll find a suitable replacement fast and in a months time , this will all be a bad dream ".
Jade lifted her tear stricken face from her chest , her heart broke more .
" W...what do you mean in seven days time ?" Jade asked .
Ahhh , she had messed up.
She mentally scrambled , looking for how to salvage that but she could not think of anything to say to her ." You're leaving tomorrow ? You're actually leaving tomorrow ? "
Clay remained quiet and Jade pushed herself off her , burrowing into the blankets , scoffing unbelievably at Clay .
Clay let her be , she knew when her sister wanted to be left alone .Now , how was she supposed to tell her that she was leaving tonight?Clay stood up and headed back to the kitchen where she gathered ingredients for a large serving of lasagna .She cooked and baked , turning every emotion she was feeling into an ingredient for all of the dishes she was making .
She had checked on Jade and found her asleep .Sometimes around nine , she was finally done with cooking and stared at all that she had made .
She had made a large serving of lasagna , enough for Tommy and Jay to reheat for two or three days .Enough chocolate chip cookies for Jade to eat when she read or studied her calculus.She had made a small bowl of salad too , Jay liked her vegetables fresh .And finally a medium sized apple pie.It was safe to say that Clay had utilized every single food ingredient in the house .She piled them together and sealed them , stacking them in a huge picnic basket .
She carried them over to the next apartment ,she knocked severally and got no reply .She finally let himself in.The place was .....clean for the first time in a really long time.Not your regular clean but clean by Tommy's standards .She threaded carefully and found him in him room , asleep on the floor .
"Tommy ? "
He rolled around to face her , he was sweating profusely .
Clay dropped to the floor and touched him ." What's wrong ? "
His eyes were glassy , he had been crying .
" I missed my baby's visitation ".
Tommy had a kid that he had lost custody to , he now stayed with his other dad.
Everytime something happened with the kid , Tommy drank more .The kid being away from him somehow made him worse." I need to get clean , I need to get clean to contest the sole custody . I want my baby with me too", Tommy wailed.
He sat up and wiped his face.
" What brings ya by boo ? " , he asked .
He looked from her to the large basket behind her , looking at them for a while .
" I got a job ", Clay offered to him .
He studied her face .
" You do not seem too happy 'about that ", he observed .
Clay chuckled.
" No shit "." You want me to watch Jade while you working ?" , he asked .
" Yes , I am going to be gone a while ", Clay stated .
She expected him to ask questions but he only smiled.
" More time with your brat of a sister but it is all good, no better way to get sober than a kid high on power screaming insults at ya ", he proclaimed , her eyes lighting up as she laughed fondly over the memory .
Clay laughed at this.
" She's asleep now but I will be gone when she wakes up".
Tommy nodded and took her hand in his .
" Be safe beautiful ".
Clay stood up and left the apartment .
She returned to their apartment and got a pen and paper.She wrote down everything she had figured out about the game and everything she wanted to tell her .Told her where she kept emergency cash Incase she needed it and folded the letter .She added her copy of the contract to the letter and placed the both under the picture of their parents .In a few days when she missed their parents , she would find it .
Clay watched her from the entrance of their apartment , she was scared that if she moved close enough, she would wake up and she would chicken out .But she honestly could not .
So , she stepped out and closed the door behind her .She covered her head with her hoodie and jogged down to where she was supposed to meet James .
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James's car was already packed around the block .Had he even left in the first place ?Clay stopped to look at the car for a few moments , deep down , she felt a reluctance to walk further to the car but Clay felt guilty for even feeling reluctance to a means that could save her sister .She sighed softly and brought her hands to run through her hair , she looked at the sky and inhaled before she began to walk , blanking her mind because thinking of anything would cause her to consider turning around and going back to her sister .She reached the car and wondered if James could see her but she had no time to consider that so she raised her hands to the window .Clay rapped gently on the window and heard the smooth click of locks opening before she opened the door .She entered to find that almost nothing had changed , she took another look at James though and realized that everything about him had changed .He was seated exactly where he had sat earlier but he had left alright .His
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" Come with me ".June turned around and began to walk off the streets , Saul followed her and Clay did too , after picking up her earlier discarded backpack .June stuck to the sidewalk , looking carefully at each house they passed .Eventually , she stopped in front of an average looking suburban house with an overgrown garden of poppies and hydrangeas .She turned around while pointing at the house ." Here , let's check out this place ",She suggested.Saul nodded and Clay remained unresponsive , their words about the game still grating heavily on her.They crossed the flower bed and headed for the door , there was no porch , gate , fence or security of any form .June turned the door knob and pushed the door but it wouldn't move .She took a step back and kicked the door but the door still did not budge ." Anyone have any sharp objects ? Pins ? Needles ? ",She asked as she looked around.She sounded frustrated as she asked and Clay noticed her hand itching towards the pistol that
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" Hey , Clay ? ", A voice called out .A tap on her shoulders ." Clay Honey ? ", The voice called out again , sounding impatient .Another tap , this one harder and leaving a sting ." Come on hun , do not dare die on me ! You need CPR? Mouth to mouth recuperation ? ", The voice yelled , sounding more and more familiar .This time she hit her so hard that Clay groaned aloud and pushed June off of her .She lost her footing and fell on her ass , groaning and turning to glare at Clay ." I am not dying , just sleepy .And it is called resuscitation not recuperation ", she corrected her ." Well , I am eighteen ", She argued .She said it like she ought to be pardoned because she was eighteen , if they were in another reality , Clay would be telling her that her sister had known words like that since she was four .Clay sat up , there was smoke from up ahead where the men had been camping out .Shit ! The journal .Clay scrambled to her feet and took off , she could hear June behind her
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She could hear it all .She had heard everything that had happened from all of them but for some reason , she just could not wake up ." How is she doing ? Is she any better ? ", Saul asked Jade .He had learnt the hard way that she hated to be spoken to like a child ." No , the doctor says she is perfectly fine , I am beginning to think she is using this as an excuse so that she does not have to face me and everything I have to say to her and trust me , I have a lot ", She said sneering ." Yes , I do trust you ", Saul told the child who turned to glare at him too .They had all thought that getting a heart transplant would slow her down or at least keep her quiet for a few days but that was not the case .She claimed to be waiting for her sister to wake up so she could give her a very hot piece but she was here every second , holding her hands when she thought that they could not notice , it was obvious that she missed her sister the most .She had been asleep now for two weeks and
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Clay was bereft with emotions as she looked at June's face .She was too young , too young to have ever been exposed to such a harsh life , too young to be here but most of all , she was too young to be getting cold in her hands .She was too young to be dead , a tear slipped out of Clay's face and on to hers .Strangely , when she thought of June , there were no sad moments , thinking of her only brought smiles to her face .CLAY !!!The automated voice thundered behind Clay once again and she came back to the situation on ground .She remembered Jared and the autobots and the people that were still taking cover behind the ledge .June had died to protect them , she could not let any harm come to them and foil June's sacrifice now .Clay carried her gently and put her in Saul's arms , patting Saul's shoulders as she stood on her feet and turned around to look at Jared .She almost grimaced as she watched Jared limp his way out of the autobot's face .The autobot had done quite a numb
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Saul was weeping softly as he caressed her face , not even noticing that Clay had joined them until Clay pulled her out of his arms to wrap her again in her own vest .She opened her eyes when she felt the jerk and saw that it was Clay , her eyes were glassy and unfocused like she was blindly doing whatever it was that she was doing.June held up her arms and Clay looked at her , realizing that she was conscious before grabbing her fingers ."Why ? why ? why would you come out , you knew it was dangerous ", she cried softly , unable to control herself .June smiled , sputtering softly ." Yes , I knew but he was going to blow all of us up and I could not allow that , I wanted so badly to be your deputy and a little sacrifice should not have been scary to me ", She told her , her voice lower than a breath ." I never made you my deputy , you are lying ", Clay cried out , short of words ." Does it hurt ? ", She added a second later , hoping that the adrenaline her body was providing wa
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AND THEN THERE IS VASQUEZ , I COULD NOT EVEN BRING MYSELF TO HATE HIM BECAUSE HE WAS JUST TOO GULLIBLE AND PITIFUL , TRICKED INTO A GAME , TRICKED INTO A LIFE , DISRESPECTED BY June AND Jared , OHH , THE LIST IS ENDLESS BUT I WILL END HERE FOR NOW !I HAD MIXED FEELINGS WHEN I FOUND OUT ABOUT JUAN'S BOMB BECAUSE I KNEW HE DID NOT INTEND TO OF COURSE KILL YOU ALL , I THOUGHT ABOUT TWEAKING THE BOMB TO KILL YOU GUYS BUT THEN I REALIZED THAT THE REST OF THE GAME WOULD BE TOO BORING SO I JUST ADJUSTED THE POSITION OF THE BOMB .HONESTLY , I COULD GO ON AND ON ABOUT ALL THE THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU DYSFUNCTIONAL LOT BUT I AM HERE TO KILL YOU ALL AFTER ALL .CLAY , I AM SURE YOU MUST HAVE NOTICED THE BOMB RESIDING IN THE CHEST OF THAT AUTOBOT YOU ARE CONTROLLING , I SHOULD THANK YOU FOR THAT , BUILDING THE BOMBS ARE USUALLY THE HARDEST PARTS OF MY JOB HERE BUT YOU MADE IT SO EASY WITH ALL OF NUGGETS OF INFORMATION YOU WERE WILLING TO DROP .THE BOMB IS SET TO GO OFF AS SOON AS THE GAMEMASTER
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They all watched as the Autobots began to fall to the ground.June had run out from behind their cover while Clay worked and had released the people that were being held and began to scream commands to everyone that was gathered there along with them , including the ones that were not their teammates."Go to the autobots and make sure that they stay down , we can not afford for the Gamemaster to gain control of them again!!!", She was yelling as she ran.The people seeing as Dean had taken the initiative and now June, also trying to make sure that they survived, ran out to help .The ones with guns shot at everywhere they knew to shoot at to prevent the autobots from returning to their feet while Saul shared grenades so that they could easily spread out and maim as many autobots as they could reach .This was going on smoothly when another whirring began.They all turned to where the whirring was coming from and watched as another autobot came from behind them .This one was different
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Clay turned around and beckoned for the others to come closer ." Okay everyone , we have no foreknowledge of what we are literally running into , but we need to stick together as much as possible ,like I said earlier there will be a bomb or most likely several that have been positioned in different places , they will all be self made bombs which means that they will not have much in terms of range but it also means that we might be unable to disarm them without Jared doing so himself . So, when we get there , depending on what the situation looks like , we will be splitting ourselves up to effectively locate the bombs . Lastly , we know nothing about Jared's plan so , when we can try to remain as alert as possible incase there are autobots lying in wait ", Clay said , wondering if she had gone through everything she needed to ." Ricky and Alberto lead the way , we are running down to the arena , all the way .Everyone , please stay safe ", Clay told them and stood back for Alberto an
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As soon as Clay made her point,the others froze and paused all the movements they were making like they were being held at gunpoint while their eyes followed all of Clay's movement .Clay had immediately gotten on her feet after she spoke and had proceeded to run to the middle of the church where she had left her bulletproof vest and the rest of her stuff earlier.She began to dress in a hurry , tucking her guns into her vest and swinging the satch that contained her arrows over her back in record speed,it almost seemed like she had been doing that all her life.The rest of the team watched her in perplexity while she dressed and when she was done , she turned to look at them, get eyes fleeting over each one of them that was staring at her ." Why aren't you guys preparing ? We need to be out of here as soon as possible or do we not? ", She asked as she looked at their faces .Juan finally stepped forward ," You said it was a trap and he is going to release the bomb in the arena , if
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Saul could hear voices .Of course, he was surrounded by people so hearing voices was not such a big deal but the voices he was hearing were too harsh for whatever he was hearing to be okay.Saul jumped on his feet and turned around." Do you hear that ? ", Saul asked the others to be sure he was not the only one hearing the voices as he turned around to the doors of the church ." Hear what ? " June asked as she looked around , looking for what was supposedly making noise and confirming that it was indeed just Saul that was hearing these voices.She could hear nothing but she also knew just how sensitive to sound Saul was so she followed him when he stood up and began to walk towards the doors after him.The others also turned to see what Saul and now June were up to .Saul threw his hands forward and opened one of the large doors of the church that led to the room that the others were in and the sound of Clay shouting immediately filled the air .Saul immediately rushed inside,follo
