breath. Lexa wanted to hang out. This was a good thing. She started walking again, a bit faster this time, telling herself she was simply late for a party. That was all. She wasn't in the least bit freaked by the--
Scuffle. Scuffle.
Arian's lungs tightened. She turned around again, this time walking even faster. She had taken two steps toward the outer circle of dorm buildings and the hill that towered beyond, when suddenly everything went dark.
Scuffle.
Ariana froze in her tracks. Every single light on campus had been extinguished. The street lamps, the office lights, the emergency lights over the doorways. She was surrounded by unrelenting darkness.
Blackout. It's just a blackout.
Another scuffle. Ariana took in a broken, terrified breath just as a coarse black bag was yanked over her face.
57
NEOPHYTES
"What's going on? Who are you? Where are you taking me?"
Ariana was terrified, but she was not going to let whoever these people were see that. She asked her questions calmly, rationally, even as her heart tried to jackhammer its way through her ribs. There were at least two assailants. They pinned her arms to her sides as they hurried her across campus. Completely blinded by the black bag over her head, Ariana tripped on one of the irregular cobblestones and flew forward. She heard someone, a male someone, curse under his breath as he righted her. Other than that, no one said a word.
They were headed north, in the opposite direction from Wolcott Hall. Ariana was almost sure of it. Were they going toward the chapel? Or the underclassman dorms? The parking lot?
She got her answer a second later when they stopped abruptly and a strong hand pushed down on the top of her head, forcing her to 58
bend. She was shoved awkwardly forward and her head banged into someone else's as her knees hit the back of a leather seat.
"Ow! Watch it!"
Kaitlynn. Ariana's whole body started to shake with fear. Kaitlynn was in the car. Was she a part of this? If she was, Ariana was going to kill her. Screw the consequences.
"What the hell is going on?" Ariana demanded.
Someone shoved her backward so she was sitting on the seat properly.
"A--Ana?" Kaitlynn's voice replied. It was muffled, much like her own. "Is that you?"
Ariana bit down on her tongue. She couldn't decide if Kaitlynn was playing her, or if she seriously couldn't see her.
"What the hell is going on, Lily?" Ariana asked pointedly.
The car door slammed.
"I don't know," Kaitlynn whispered, cuddling close to Ariana's side. "I was just heading upstairs from the gym when someone threw a bag over my head and dragged me here. Whoever it was, I scratched the crap out of his arm, but I couldn't take him blindfolded."
Ariana stopped breathing. Both she and Kaitlynn were being kidnapped by faceless sentries? There was only one explanation.
"Game over," she muttered.
"What? What do you mean?" Kaitlynn whispered.
"It's the FBI, obviously," Ariana replied. "They found out where we were somehow and they're taking us back."
59
There was a moment of silence as Kaitlynn took this in. Outside the car, a few male voices spoke in low tones.
"No. Not possible. Why would they do it like this? Why not just come in with handcuffs and guns and all that crap?" Kaitlynn asked.
"Oh, I don't know, probably because this school is full of well--connected international billionaires," Ariana replied. "They probably want to keep it quiet. Cover it up so that all the congressmen and senators and kings and queens won't have to deal with everyone knowing their kids' high-- security school was infiltrated by two escaped criminals," she said sarcastically.
One of the front doors opened and the car bounced as someone got in behind the wheel. Both Ariana and Kaitlynn fell silent, knowing better than to talk about anything until they knew exactly who they were dealing with. The car engine started, and they were off. Before long the car dipped off the paved road and
Scuffle. Scuffle.
Arian's lungs tightened. She turned around again, this time walking even faster. She had taken two steps toward the outer circle of dorm buildings and the hill that towered beyond, when suddenly everything went dark.
Scuffle.
Ariana froze in her tracks. Every single light on campus had been extinguished. The street lamps, the office lights, the emergency lights over the doorways. She was surrounded by unrelenting darkness.
Blackout. It's just a blackout.
Another scuffle. Ariana took in a broken, terrified breath just as a coarse black bag was yanked over her face.
57
NEOPHYTES
"What's going on? Who are you? Where are you taking me?"
Ariana was terrified, but she was not going to let whoever these people were see that. She asked her questions calmly, rationally, even as her heart tried to jackhammer its way through her ribs. There were at least two assailants. They pinned her arms to her sides as they hurried her across campus. Completely blinded by the black bag over her head, Ariana tripped on one of the irregular cobblestones and flew forward. She heard someone, a male someone, curse under his breath as he righted her. Other than that, no one said a word.
They were headed north, in the opposite direction from Wolcott Hall. Ariana was almost sure of it. Were they going toward the chapel? Or the underclassman dorms? The parking lot?
She got her answer a second later when they stopped abruptly and a strong hand pushed down on the top of her head, forcing her to 58
bend. She was shoved awkwardly forward and her head banged into someone else's as her knees hit the back of a leather seat.
"Ow! Watch it!"
Kaitlynn. Ariana's whole body started to shake with fear. Kaitlynn was in the car. Was she a part of this? If she was, Ariana was going to kill her. Screw the consequences.
"What the hell is going on?" Ariana demanded.
Someone shoved her backward so she was sitting on the seat properly.
"A--Ana?" Kaitlynn's voice replied. It was muffled, much like her own. "Is that you?"
Ariana bit down on her tongue. She couldn't decide if Kaitlynn was playing her, or if she seriously couldn't see her.
"What the hell is going on, Lily?" Ariana asked pointedly.
The car door slammed.
"I don't know," Kaitlynn whispered, cuddling close to Ariana's side. "I was just heading upstairs from the gym when someone threw a bag over my head and dragged me here. Whoever it was, I scratched the crap out of his arm, but I couldn't take him blindfolded."
Ariana stopped breathing. Both she and Kaitlynn were being kidnapped by faceless sentries? There was only one explanation.
"Game over," she muttered.
"What? What do you mean?" Kaitlynn whispered.
"It's the FBI, obviously," Ariana replied. "They found out where we were somehow and they're taking us back."
59
There was a moment of silence as Kaitlynn took this in. Outside the car, a few male voices spoke in low tones.
"No. Not possible. Why would they do it like this? Why not just come in with handcuffs and guns and all that crap?" Kaitlynn asked.
"Oh, I don't know, probably because this school is full of well--connected international billionaires," Ariana replied. "They probably want to keep it quiet. Cover it up so that all the congressmen and senators and kings and queens won't have to deal with everyone knowing their kids' high-- security school was infiltrated by two escaped criminals," she said sarcastically.
One of the front doors opened and the car bounced as someone got in behind the wheel. Both Ariana and Kaitlynn fell silent, knowing better than to talk about anything until they knew exactly who they were dealing with. The car engine started, and they were off. Before long the car dipped off the paved road and
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