Chapter 14: THE HUNT

Lion's Square was a crossroad in the 1700s. When the city was barely a small town, Lion's Square was the place where the two main roads that crossed the village. Now, it has lost some of its quality as a square. It's more of a passing place, with an entrance to the subway, and the heavy string of traffic congesting the atmosphere. There's a mall, the expensive and—slightly less luxurious—cheaper clothing boutiques crowd the place. Some technological shops are found sporadically, in between the lawyer firms and architecture studios.

There's a fast food restaurant with a strategic vantage point where the group places their stakeout. They take a table on the second floor, near a window, and Eve takes out a pair of binoculars.

Noah looks at her above his fry. "That's not stealthy."

A family of four is looking at them, the parents are whispering, and their children point at them laughing.

Eve snaps her head from the window. "What are you looking at, eh? Do you want to spy with us?"

The mother gapes at her. The father seems amused, he looks like he'd be up for some fun. Duncan casts a side glance at the family, seeing without really watching. He's been quiet since they left the tabloid.

Rune, as well as Noah, is eating his kids menu. Noah wouldn't have guessed his order. He's as silent as always, only the crunch of the fries betrays his presence. That, and the power he exudes with his presence, a cloud of black ever-present in the back of Noah's mind, and in his peripheral vision. Noah doesn't know if they've done stakeouts before, if Riley had gone with them, or if Rune has another tasks besides look menacing.

Duncan distractedly feeds Eve some onion rings.

"Anything interesting?" asks Noah.

"A couple is breaking up. Two friends have reunited after a long time. Oh, there, " Noah looks up, "I bet she's fed up with the one way conversation."

Noah turns to look at his food, disappointed. His mouth pouts involuntarily.

"How do you know they're friends, and not something else?" he asks, out of curiosity.

"It's all about the vibes, man."

He narrows his eyes. That's uncertain. She steals a quick glance at him, and grimaces. he frowns in response, confused at her gesture.

"Sometimes it's the people involved that don't really see it. From the outside, though, it's clear."

"I see," his peaked interest has desisted, and he's now focused on picking which cheese bite he'll eat next.

Maybe Noah's body won't appear. It's possible the sighting was a coincidence— All the cheese bites look the same, why is it taking so long to decide?— However, if that's the case, Noah won't have any clues to find himself. He can't win either way.

Rune stabs a ball of cheese with a plastic fork, and shoves it in Noah's mouth, tearing him from his thoughts. He looks confused, half the bite hanging out of his body. He covers his mouth with his hand as he chews, his brows knitting together. Rune is back to eating his food.

Eve snorts. "It's his way of telling you to stop making that constipated face."

"Okay," he mutters.

After eating dessert, they run out of excuses to keep the seats occupied, so they walk around the square, looking through the windows at the shops while they pretend to buy something. Eve takes home with her a floral dress, and a headband.

A flash of blond hair draws his attention, and for a moment he swears he sees himself, as if he's watching from the other side of a mirror. But the figure vanishes in the blink of an eye. And Noah chuckles. He's seeing things now.

The fear is still fresh in his stomach.

The rest of the afternoon they spend walking around, until their feet hurt and they feel more than ready to go home. Duncan is silent, but Noah can feel the frustration seeping through him and sticking to Noah.

His relief is  short lived, as his anxiety creeps up, clawing at his throat and crushing his lungs. Noah brings his hands to his heart, and he feels the rapid fluttering thrumming against his skin. He wills for his breathing to be constant, inhaling through the pain.

He's fine.

He'll be fine.

"We've been here all day. I don't think he'll appear," Noah manages to produce strangled words. "I'm tired," he adds with a tremor.

When he looks up, Rune is looking at him. His eyes dart around his face, they pierce, trying to see. Noah avoids his gaze, turning to help Eve carry the bag full of clothes. He doesn't look back.

His phone buzzes.

Eve gifts Noah a sweater, to provide for the one he lost to blood when Silas stabbed him. He gladly accepts it, thanking Eve with a quick hug. She shots her eyebrows up, accepting the embrace with a closed lip smile.

"Tonight's race day. I'd appreciate if you did not injure yourself."

He laughs. It's somewhat fake, but there's some real feeling in there. He knows his smile doesn't really reach his eyes, that someone paying attention might be able to dismantle his fragile mask. "I'll try."

The underground parking lot compares to a big dark mouth swallowing them as they descend the stairs. The clear afternoon sky slowly shrinks, until it feels like an illusion. Both cars are parked there, their shine reflecting the artificial lightning of the place.

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Noah gets on the car and silently waits for Rune.

His phone vibrates. It's a call.

The first thing he hears when she answers is Rose's hysterical voice. "Riley, I'm scared."

"Rose? What happened?"

A few unintelligible words, and then, "They're outside."

"I'm coming."

As if on cue, Rune starts the car and accelerates to the exit, not bothering to check whether the couple are following. He shoots past them.

"Rose, stay with me on the phone. Talk to me."

"They're pounding on the door... Oh, my god. I'm scared, Riley, hurry up." She's crying, her voice pitching high and trembling with fear. "Hurry, please."

Noah's stomach clenches at the sound of Rose's sobs. "I'm coming."

The ride— it seemed so short this morning— now feels eternal. The minutes stretch, and Noah hopelessly looks at the road, hoping that they won't get stuck in traffic. Rune cuts through traffic with his usual efficiency, avoiding the congestions as if he has driven this path a thousand times before.

"Rose?"

A little wail, followed by a weak "I'm here."

"Okay, good. You're doing okay." He says, relief filling his voice. "You're fine," he later adds with demanding voice, as if willing the attackers to go fuck themselves and leave Rose alone. He has a slight idea of who it might be.

The line goes silent.

Noah calls her back, but she doesn't pick up.

Blood rushes to his ears as they turn the corner. He barely waits until Rune's stopped the car before jumping out, his keys are useless, as the door to the apartment building is open. As an ominous warning.

He wastes no time.

The goddamn elevator is still broken. He curses out loud.

Noah flies up the stairs. He trips multiple times, recovering balance thanks to his grip on the railing. He shouts Rose's name when he gets to the landing on the 8th floor. The door to apartment 805 is closed, a muffled sob is coming from inside. He shuffles through the key chain, his numb fingers miss twice, dropping them to the floor. He lets out a frustrated grunt.

The apartment is untouched. Rose is sitting in the sofa, her face buried in her hands. her shoulders are trembling. Noah runs to her and kneels.

"Rose?"

"Noah?" she asks with a weak whisper, and she lifts her face.

The dark waves frame her face full of tears. He takes hold of her shoulders, "You're okay now. They're gone."

"They were looking for you... I thought they were gonna kill you... But I was so scared. I'm sorry." She hugs him, burying her face on the crook of the neck. He returns her embrace, holding her close. Firmly.

"I'm sorry." Noah apologizes, his eyes are humid. "I brought this to you."

He ignores the pain in his side, where some blood is seeping through the bandage. He deserves that pain.

Rune is outside the apartment, looking at the door. He reaches up, pulling a piece of paper that was taped on the door. In his desperation, Noah didn't notice it. His dark eyes scan the paper. His jaw twitches, so imperceptible, but it's there. And Noah doesn't need to read the note to know.

Even so, Rune approaches. He shows Noah the note, not a word out of his mouth. Rose can't read it, her back is turned to Rune, but Noah can see it perfectly.

THE HUNT BEGINS. SURRENDER YOURSELF NOW, OR SUFFER LATER.

Today, both parts of himself have become prey.

But Noah will be damned if he doesn't go down with a fight.

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