Get Your Spy On

Get Your Spy On

Chapter 7

Wendy’s POV

“UGH!” I scream out loud as I throw a book at the wall across from me, resulting it to make a loud noise and then another noise as it hits the ground. I grab a vase and throw it toward the kitchen, making another grunt of anger.

A hand catches the vase as it tumbles to the ground. Dad appears, his face frowning. “Your grandmother will be here any second and you want to start throwing a tantrum? Do your mother a favor and be and look presentable.”

“It’s like you don’t even care that I’m last on the squad list! Doesn’t it make you mad that I’m not good enough to be considered to be one of the few they move up? I’ve worked so hard for this, and for what? That’s right, nothing.”

My Dad stared at me, his eyes flashing from anger to understanding. He walked closer to me, his hand still wrapped around the mouth of the vase. “I’ve worked you the hardest I could, and the rest was up to you to handle. The Alpha told me you’d be amazing if you just opened up with your teammates. You got in a fight with Sloane the first day you met her as a spy.”

He walks away, but stops to put the vase back in its regular place. He told me the story about his spy group and the trouble they had. It’s sad to know it took a near death for them to get along, and I don’t want that to happen to me and my team, but I think it’s too late. I’ve been nothing but mean to Sloane and the others, and after everything I’ve done to her, she stuck up for me against the Alpha.

She took a slap for me. How could I act like that? I would be revolted if I had to deal with someone like me. She’s a good spy, fighter, person, and she can be herself with our team. The exact opposite of me. I wanted to call her when I got home and apologize for my horrid actions over the past couple days, but I never got the nerve to.

I can’t call her while my grandmothers here either, that nosey old bat. I swear I don’t know how she’s married still, but she did remarry nearly four times. Each guy was younger and younger until she finally settled down with my grandfather, who is four years younger than her.

As I’m getting ready, the doorbell rings. I answer it, wearing a big smile on my face. Cheery perky Wendy, I thought to myself bitterly. Grandma walked into the room, more like flounced into the room, grandpa walking in after her, quiet as always.

Grandma smelled the air, her nose wrinkling unnecessary. “Let me guess, your mother is cooking this meal.”

I keep my smile on my face, but I wanted to put her in a headlock. “Now, grandma, be nice. We both know my mother tries hard to cook the best for you.”

I cock my head and stare at her innocently. She narrowed her eyes, making them look like hawk eyes. She took off her coat and hands it to me as if I’m a coat check woman. I hang it up in the closet, then I return to my grandparents, my sweet perky Wendy smile still on my face. I escort them to the dining room table even though they know fairly well where it’s at.

I sit in my usual spot, the corner of the table. Grandma settles herself at the head of the table, where she thinks she belongs at. I’d love for her to meet the Alpha, then she wouldn’t think she’s the boss around here. Mom and Dad appeared, both of them smiling. They’ve been happy for the past two days, I don’t know why, but I’m not going to question it.

“Mom,” Mom said to grandma, as she set the meat on the table. She grabbed the cesar salad next with salad tongs inside the bowl. She grabbed the vegetable bowl next, and set it down. She finally looked back up at her, confidence in her eyes. “I just wanted to let you know that I worked really hard on this dinner, and I’d like you to only give good feedback.”

Grandpa and I shared a look. Grandma won’t even listen to her doctor, so it’s highly likely she’ll brush off what Mom just said. I saw her cut her steak slowly, and take a bite of it as if she’s eating a bomb. She chewed, then grabbed her glass of water and chugged it down.

Dad shook his head, angry as can be. He turned a deep red of anger, and balled his napkin with his fist. I on the other hand watched Mom’s expression, waiting for it to crumple up. Once grandma stopped gagging and coughing, she muttered something in Japanese.

“Mother,” Mom said, her voice confident still, but starting to waver as she goes on. “What do you think of it?”

Grandma averted her eyes from the table to Mom. She doesn’t want to see my mother fail, so she doesn’t ever leave room for minor faults. If something isn’t one hundred percent perfect, she’ll stamp it as a failure.

“Well,” Grandma said, her voice cold and steady as always. “It’s edible.”

I looked away, biting my lip. If I blew my cover of innocent Wendy, my Dad will flip. If anybody can spread gossip like a wildfire, it’s grandma. Grandpa coughed loudly, and took a bite out of his meat. We all eat in silence, as usual. We usually ignore grandma’s answers, there’s no use in arguing with her. It’s her way or no way.

I glance up at my Mom and see her stabbing her food with her silver fork angrily. I think grandma has done this one too many times for her to handle.

“So, Wendy,” Grandma said, her eyes burning into mine. “I’ve noticed you’ve been acting quieter than usual. You usually flap that mouth of yours a mile a minute.”

I look back at her, suddenly flames flaring up in me. Grandma needs to learn she can’t walk on people, especially me. I look at her, my eyes staring into her dead on. “I just don’t appreciate it when people act rudely in my house.”

My eyes burn deeper into her, until she looks away and down at her plate. I turn my head from her and take a bite of my broccoli, a victorious smile spreading on my face. Dad looked at me, his eyes giving me a stern look, meaning I need to lay off before I blow our cover.

Mom coughed loudly, trying to get our attention. When she did, her eyes started watering. “I want to announce that I found out today that I am officially pregnant.”

I drop the fork I’m holding. I can’t believe it, a baby? That means it’ll have to go into hiding . . . with Mom. Sadness and dread washed through me, and before I knew it, my eyes are tearing up. I almost never cry, never. I can’t believe they decided to do this without my permission. They need my permission for this, especially if it means I may never see Mom again.

Mom and Dad stared at grandma and grandpa, their eyes not glancing over at me once. Grandma gasped, then started crying tears of joy. She jumped out of her seat and grabbed my mother’s hand. “This is exciting! Another baby! Oh my, oh my! We need to go baby shopping right now!”

Mom shrugged and they both went to the car, leaving us three alone. Grandpa didn’t even have a moment to react to the situation, nor congratulate them. I lean over the table and pat his arm gently. He’s old, really old. I don’t expect him to do much anymore, like go bowling or anything sports like, but I love to hear him sing.

I look at Dad, and I can tell there’s hurt in my eyes. He looked so guilty, but I don’t care because I feel betrayed. They already love that baby more than they’ll ever love me. They don’t want this lifestyle for it, even if that means me and Dad are out of the picture for awhile.

When grandpa got up to go to the bathroom, I spoke to my father. “So, when are you going to leave me? You do know once you escape to be with Mom, they’ll kill me, right? It’s not like you’d even try to take me, would you?”

He gave me a pained look. He doesn’t want to do this to me, he doesn’t want to put me through this pain, but he is. “Do you know you have an uncle? My parents were both spies, and they wanted me to be a spy, but not my little brother. They gave him to my grandparents, and they went on the run with him. My parents stayed with me until I was eighteen years-old, then they left me to collect my younger brother.”

“Where are they now?”

“My parents? Well, the last time I heard from them was five years ago. The call was from France. I’m guessing they’ve traveled a lot until their son turned eighteen, the oldest you could be to start being a spy. Once you turn eighteen and you’re not yet a spy, it’s too late. In the Alpha’s mind, if you aren’t taught the ropes of being a spy by the time you’re a legal adult, then you aren’t going to be able to learn how to be a spy. Did you know I never saw a picture of my brother, until I found his office building in Paris?”

“It must’ve been hard,” I say softly. “I’ll never get to see a picture of the baby. You’ll both leave me, and you can raise it knowing I’m probably dead.”

“My father had another child so he could leave the spies. I don’t want to leave them, but I will for your mother’s sake. I trust you to take my place when I leave and do better than I could ever be.”

“I will,” I say, my voice cold. “I won’t abandon my child for somebody else.”

I got up from my chair and went outside. I headed toward my car, my hands shaking. I slam the door in my car as I get in, then without really thinking, I drive to Kara’s house. I honk my horn once I get outside of her house, hoping she’s home. I see the light in her room go off, then she opens the front door, Bridget tumbling out next to her.

“What’s up?” Kara asks through the open window of my car. Bridget leans protectively next to her as if I’m going to kill Kara.

“My Mom is pregnant,” I say, tears running down my face as I say it. I’m supposed to always be perky and happy in front of them, but it’s impossible. I’ve only broken down once in front of Kara, and she changed drastically in that minute. She went from an airhead who doesn’t understand a thing to protective and caring, who actually was intelligent.

“Are you okay?” Kara asks, her eyebrows furrowed. “You look like you’ve been crying for a long time.”

Bridget, the bold and brave red head who doesn’t ever feel sorry for people, actually looks genuinely concerned. “Why are you upset? Don’t you want another brother or sister? They’re lot of fun once you get used to them pooping and crying.”

“It’s not that,” I say, trying to figure out a way to explain it to them. “I think my Mom and Dad want to move away from here. I don’t want to leave, but that might mean me living with my grandparents, and well, you’ve both met them a few times.”

Kara and Bridget exchanged a knowing look. They both have had bad experiences with my grandmother. Bridget smoothed her red hair with her hand, and looked at me. “You are brave, Wendy. You can get through something like this, you always do. Are you going to let a move destroy you?

I shook my head, but I still felt horrible. They both got in my car, and instructed me to go to the first mall in sight. They tried talking to me to get my mind off the baby, but I can’t. That baby is going to have a hard time like me with life. It’s always going to wonder why it doesn’t have baby pictures, or why they travel so much.

I sat down in one of the seats in front of the dressing room in my favorite department store, my mind somewhere else. Bridget and Kara grab clothes off the racks and scurry into the dressing rooms, giggling like teenagers. I rolled my eyes at the dressing room, but I secretly wish I could do that. I mean I could, but it wouldn’t be real. I doubt Kara and Bridget even care about me half as much as they pretend they do. I feel like I don’t belong in this life. I wish I could start over fresh, but still be a spy if possible. There’s an ache in my chest as I think about a thought that runs through my mind like a train on a track. I know my spy squad would understand what I’m going through, but I can’t suck up my pride and apologize to them, no matter how many times I consider doing it.

Kara’s dressing room door opens, her head poking out from the side. “Wendy stop looking so glum. If you didn’t want to come shopping you could’ve just told us. Do you want to go somewhere else?”

Bridget opened the dressing room door, her blue eyes staring at me. I can see a smirk playing on her face as she sees the look I have on my face. She enjoys seeing me fail, to have flaws, and most of all, seeing me break down like this. It’s a victory for anybody, and deep down, I would wish it too if I were her.

“I just think maybe I should go home and talk to my parents. I left abruptly before they could even explain anything to me about the baby. I don’t know, maybe I shouldn’t worry about it too much, it won’t change anything.”

“True,” Kara says, her face looking distant. She looks over my shoulder at a rack filled with purple clothes. Her eyes widen, then a small smile starts playing on her face. “Hey, there’s Kerrie.”

Bridget’s body tensed. “I hate her. I can’t believe she can actually defend herself about what you said about her dating my boyfriend. Such a sneaky little . . .”

“You know that’s a rumor, Bridget,” I said loudly, staring at her coldly. “Obviously if it were true, Kerrie would only have done it to piss you off because you bully her almost all the time. I doubt she’d be interested in dating someone you’re interested in.”

Bridget laughed at me; her laugh is as vicious as ever. “I guess everybody is jealous of me, aren’t they? I know you were jealous of me when I dated Alex. You were so angry that I could make him forget about you in a single second.”

Kara shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She doesn’t like confrontation, even if she’s the one who starts it. I stand up from the chair I was sitting on, and walk up toward her. “If you think for even a second I was jealous of you because of him, you must be blind. Oh and if you haven’t noticed, he has a new girlfriend, and I’m sure he likes her more than he ever liked you.”

Kara gasped. I turned and looked at her, knowing I blew my cover. Perky Wendy wouldn’t have spoken up to Bridget like that, not at all. She’d have brushed it off and continued on with her day as if Bridget never spoken to her.

“Wow,” Bridget said, her voice venomous. “I can’t believe you have that much hatred toward me, Wendy. I thought you were nice to everyone.”

I looked at her, then at Kara. The only way I can turn this around is if I apologize and blame it on my parents. It’s believable enough, especially Kara, but Bridget won’t forget this, unless . . .

“I’m sorry,” I say, sobbing. I hug Bridget tightly, fake-sobbing into her shoulder. “I’m sorry, Bridget, it’s just this whole baby drama has got my hormones out of whack.”

“It’s okay, Wendy!” Kara says, her voice filled with relief. She ran over to us and hugged me tightly. Kara’s done, now it’s on to Bridget.

We shopped for a little longer, then I dropped Kara off at home first, then offered to drop Bridget next. She reluctantly agreed, keeping her phone close to her. She knows that I didn’t mean anything that I said, and I admire that, but I wish she didn’t make it so difficult.

I stopped the car a few blocks away from her house and lock the doors. Bridget glanced over at me, her guard up. “What are you doing?”

I grab my black bag in the backseat, then pull out a small bottle with clear liquid. It’ll make her forget everything. Kara’s stupid enough to forget Bridget even went to the mall with us. Bridget raised her eyebrows up at me.

I uncap the top, then lean close to her. I push her down with all my weight, then pour a bit of it in her mouth. I remember Dad telling me I couldn’t use the whole thing. I returned into the driver’s seat as Bridget’s body starts to slunk.

I drive up her driveway, then pull her out of the car. Thankfully her parents are still at work, so I grab the house keys from her purse, and easily unlock the door. I put her on the couch, her bag next to her and leave, smiling victoriously.

If the Alpha could see me now, he’d be impressed, I know it. I drive back home, but before I turn on the road to my house, I feel the feeling in my stomach, telling me I need to go see Eric. I look up his uncle’s name on my phone, and within a few minutes, I find their home address. I drive down a quiet street, all of the people living on the street are rather on the old side.

I parked my car next to Eric’s uncle’s car, then walk up to the front door, my hands shaking. I have to talk to him, I have to be strong. I won’t wuss out and go home, I’ll talk to him and tell him everything. I ring the doorbell, and then hear a woman’s voice inside the house.

A woman with a light shade of red hair, but not exactly strawberry blonde, and it doesn’t look natural, answered the door. She smiled at me, paint splattered on her cheek. “Hello. How are you?”

“Hi . . . is Eric home?”

The woman leaned back so I could walk in. The house is small compared to my house, and the house had a paint smell to it. I saw paint splatters all around the house as if it’s supposed to be there. She pointed for me to go down the hall and make a right. I do what she says, and knock on the door tentatively. The door opens, and Eric appears, his eyebrows raised when he sees me.

“Hey,” I say awkwardly, looking at the ground, then back up at him.

He opened the door wide open, revealing Sloane, whose sitting on the floor, staring directly at me. Why is she here? Isn’t she dating Alex? Is she cheating on him?

“Why are you here?” Eric asks curiously, flopping on his bed.

I’m still standing outside of his door, my mouth threatening to open wide in shock. I take a step inside his room, as if sealing my fate of death. “I wanted to talk to you. Your aunt didn’t tell me you had company over.”

Sloane stood up from Eric’s floor, her eyes glancing from me to Eric. “I think I’m going to go-“

“Yeah, I think that’s a good idea,” Eric said quickly, getting off his bed. He hugged her good-bye, then she passed me, but not before she gave me a little touch on the shoulder. I’m guessing that’s her way of saying good-bye to me.

I close the door behind me, then sit on Eric’s bed. I noticed his wall was covered with names, including my name. I look closely at it, and see that Alex and Sloane’s name are next to mine. “What is all of this?”

Eric sits down next to me and stares at the wall as well. “It’s all of my friend’s names. I wrote your name down when I thought you and I were friends. There’s Sandy’s name, Sloane’s sister, and my best friend Bryan’s name over here.”

He pointed to a corner where the name Bryan is painted on with blue paint. I’ve never seen anything like this. There are tons of names on here, tons. It’s sweet and creepy at the same time that he took time out of his day to write down all of his friend’s names down. I wouldn’t have the patience to do it.

“I don’t want to be nosey,” I say quietly, still staring at the wall, mesmerized. “But why do you take all the time to do this? Half of these people aren’t your friends anymore, and you don’t have anybody from your school on here either.”

“It makes me remember who I am,” Eric says, his voice soft. “I want to remember my life, the past, and who I was before my parents died.”

So much for me feeling sorry for myself. How could I be selfish when his parents died? I know my parents love me, and I also know they’re just trying to get a life outside of being spies. Eric on the other hand, his parents died, taken out of his life without a months notice. It could happen to anybody.

“I know everyone tells you this, but I’m sorry about your parents. I’m sure they were great.”

Eric shrugs, then slides off his bed. “It happens to everyone eventually. So, what brings you here?”

Right, I said to myself, nervously. You’ve trained for this, and thought about this eighty percent of the day. You must apologize for lashing out at him, and hope for a new start. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry for being a jerk the past week.”

Eric nodded. “It’s okay. This is a lot of pressure on all of us, including me. I have to step up my game or the Alpha will have me executed.”

He’s right. He did really badly on the test. I did just as bad, but he’s the leader! I was surprised Alex did so well on the potion test. He was immune to everything he tried, so of course his father helped him cheat on the test, but all the other tests he did just as good.

“What was that anyways when Alex was immune to everything?” Eric carried on, his voice sounding angry all of a sudden. “Does he think he’s the leader now? I bet his father gave him something so he’d be immune to everything.”

I nodded my head, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. Eric’s face is turning to a shade of fire, and he’s getting angry, I can tell. He started pacing across the room. “And you’d think he’d have the decency to help us out when we were choking!”

I nodded again. If I disagree, I don’t know what Eric would do. He grabbed a yellow stress ball from his desk, and squeezed it. Those things don’t work. At least for me they don’t.

“Eric,” I say, looking at him carefully. “Maybe we should go work out, you know, help you get your frustration out?”

He put down the stress ball and looked over at me. He nodded his head, and we both got into my car. I played with the stereo, until it was on a song I liked. We exercised in silence, then I dropped him off back home.

When I get home, Mom and Dad are sitting on the couch, both of them staring at me, their eyes sad. I sit down in the seat across from them. “I know you guys are mad at me, but I’m mad at you guys too.”

“It would be nice if you had the decency to call us, letting you know where you are. You had us worried that secret agents took you!”

“Why would secret agents take me?”

Dad shifted uncomfortably on the couch. “Um, well you see, Wendy, when there’s a spy is about to be born, secret agents try to interfere by killing the . . . carrier of the baby. And to do that, they can strike at any moment, or take you and I, threatening to kill us if the carrier doesn’t hand over her and the babies’ life to us.”

So, basically what Mom and Dad are telling me is that this baby is going to be an even bigger burden in my life. How in the right mind could you think having a baby when you’re a spy is a good idea? It’s too risky, no less a disaster waiting to happen.

That night Dad and Mom hooked up booby traps in every room, every hallway, every window, and every door. I took four guns and hid them around my room, three knives; one in my closet, one inside my pillow next to my gun, and the other one inside a book. I slipped on my pajamas, and tied my hair into a ponytail. I turned off my light, then I plugged in my nightlight from when I was a baby.

I leaned into my bed, covering my face with the blanket. I felt the imprint of the knife and gun in my pillow, a reassuring pat on the head. I hear my father get up every hour, then I hear him vomit. He’s nervous, I can sense it from here. I start drifting off at around four o’clock, then I feel something wrap around my neck.

My eyes flew wide open, to be sprayed with pepper spray. I feel my arms being held down, but not my legs. I swing them up in the air, and kick the enemy in the head as hard as I can. He rolls off me, and I grab the gun and knife from my pillowcase, and start aiming both of them in numerous directions.

I heard the sounds of grunting and the sounds of things crashing. Just like before, I am upstairs, and Dad just jumped off the banister to Mom. I shot a bullet straight at a man, then I shot at a girl on the first level of the house. I took my last shot at a guy sneaking up behind my father before I threw my gun at a girl gaining up on my right side. Where are they all coming from?

The girl ducked, and did a back hand spring, then kicked me in the stomach. I flew a few feet, but landed on my feet. I leaned down into the ground, and then hurdled myself into her stomach. She spun me and her around the hallway, her arms tightening around my back, and my arms around her waist. I started spinning us toward the banister. She senses my movement and tries to prevent it, but I’m too strong. I shove us both into the wooden banister, then start falling toward the ground.

I let go of my grip on her and punch her in the stomach. Her grip loosens on my stomach, enough for me to extract myself from her. She lands on the ground on her back, while I land on my feet, my right hand supporting me as I lean into the ground when I land.

Dad and Mom are nowhere in sight. I spin around in a circle, my eyes scanning the rooms. It’s pitch black, I can’t see anything. My heart starts racing. I’m blindsided, they could hit me at any moment. I hear movement in the corner, and before I can even think, I feel myself running toward it, my heart pounding in my ears. I jump in the air, and felt myself knee someone in the face. I break his arm, then I kick him as hard as I can in the stomach. I hear my mother’s voice from a distance. I turn toward it, mesmerized. Is she calling my name?

I walk toward it slowly, my eyes detecting her in the guest bedroom. I pass the bathroom, then I hear a small creak behind me. I turn around and see nothing. I turn back around and see a shadow skitter into the guest bedroom. I run after it, and right when I walk in, I feel an arm wrap me around the throat. I jump in the air and kick the wall. I feel my legs start running across the wall, then with realization, I know there’s no way out of this.

A shadow appears next to the bed, a woman. The man holding me turns the light on, and I see my mother, her eyes wet. I turn my head to the left and see my father there, held against his will by two men. The man holding me around the neck laughs evilly, sealing my fate. I see a woman with long legs walk into the room, toward my mother. Her blonde hair is slicked back, and her eyes are fixated on my mother’s stomach.

I close my eyes shut tightly. I won’t watch, I refuse to. I hear my father struggling next to me, kicking his legs in protest. I feel my body start to tremble in fear, my bad girl attitude melting away. I hear my mother’s voice, calling out my father’s name. She wants him to save her, like every time he has in the past, but this time, it’s going to be different.

I hear the sound of a gun being loaded. Please let that not be to my mother, I thought to myself, my eyes still closed shut. When I was about to give up hope, I felt the arms wrapped around me release. I opened my eyes, and without another minute, I ran to my mother’s aid, breathing heavily. The woman pointed the gun at me, her eyes penetrating me.

“You can’t save your mother,” she said, her mouth turned into an evil grin.

I saw her finger rest on the trigger, her eyes going wild. Right when her finger hit the trigger, my father got away from the two secret agents and jumped at her. He slammed her into the ground, but she still aimed the gun at me. It went in my leg, surprising me. I screamed out loud, and fell to the ground. I’ve never felt pain like this before. The impact, the feeling, the blood everywhere. My mother leaned down and started crying. She grabbed the gun the woman shot me with, and shot the two men heading toward us.

I looked over at my father killing the woman with passion. He stabbed her cleanly, then discarded her. He looked over at my leg, then started mumbling words under his breath. He picked me up, and started running toward the kitchen table. He leaned down, rolling me on the table as softly as he could. He left, and then returned with tools, and what looks like stitches. I don’t know what you do when you get shot besides calling an ambulance, so whatever Dad’s doing, I sure hope he does it quickly.

I felt myself starting to fall asleep, but I don’t think I’m falling asleep now that I think about it. I hear my mother talking to my father about what to do about the dead bodies. He instructed her to call the cleanup crew number straight away. She nodded her head and rushed to the phone. I heard her talking enthusiastically to them on the phone, as if this was a rush for her.

I started becoming more conscious as Dad leaned back, rubbing his eyes tiredly. I leaned up in a sitting position, my leg still in pain. Don’t they give you painkillers or something when you get shot?

I hear the door open, and see the Alpha and four men walk in, more like strut in. The Alpha walked over to my Dad and me, his eyebrows wrinkled. “What was their goal by coming here?”

“Well I’m sure they’d like to kill one of the high rated spies, sir,” my father says. “And I’m sure they heard about Wendy and the others. Isn’t this house like a goldmine for secret agents?”

The Alpha shook his head. He pointed to the blonde woman as a man dragged her across the floor. “She’s one of the heads of the secret agents. She specializes in high rating missions.”

“I see,” Dad says, his face expressionless.

The Alpha takes a bottle of liquid out of his pocket and hands it to me. I eagerly drink it, feeling a protecting blanket wash over me as it goes through my body. This stuff is like crack, you can’t get enough of it. I hear the Alpha speak more to my father about the situation, but I feel my mind start drifting off. How long can my parents keep up this lie before someone in the spies find out she’s expecting? There’s got to be cameras in this house, the Alpha watching us closely.

He can hear and see everything. I’ve always been told that. So if that’s true, why hasn’t he noticed my mother’s pregnant, and my father is lying to him straight to the face? Unless the Alpha does know and he’s waiting for the right opportunity to screw us all over, once and for all. Is my father strong enough to outrun the Alpha and the spies? Is he strong enough to take on the Alpha to save his wife? Does he have enough will to even disagree with the Alpha?

My heart starts speeding up again as each thought leaves my mind, letting in more terrifying, frightening, unthinkable thoughts. What will happen to me when he finds out my father has betrayed him for a life without being a spy?

I watched as the Alpha left with his men, all of them but the Alpha holding body bags behind their back. It’s disgusting how I’m unnerved by the sight. My mother touched her stomach, and sighed out loud in relief once my father closed the front door. He looks at my mother, and shook his head, upset.

“This is going to be one of the hardest things we’ve ever been through,” My father says, looking at me and Mom.

I get off the table and stare at him, suddenly feeling bold. “There’s no we in this fight. I’m on the spies’ side now, not your side. You taught me to always stay with my family, and the spies are now my family.”

“What are you trying to say, Wendy?” My mother asks, her eyes staring at me quizzically.

I looked at both of them. Their selfish, selfish for choosing the selfish road to get away from this life. He committed himself to this life, and he can’t just walk away and let his daughter suffer for his decision. If I leave them now, it’ll hurt less when they actually leave.

“I mean,” I said, my voice icy. There’s no turning back now, that’s for sure. “I won’t die for that baby or you two anymore.”

Dad looked at me, his eyes narrowing. I saw his hand clench, and start shaking. He wants to kill me, that’s for sure. He’ll keep anyone quiet in order to have a happy life with his wife and newborn. He’ll kill me to get it if that’s what it takes. To have the guts to kill your own flesh and blood is ruthless if I had to summarize this in a single sentence. I could never see myself kill someone in my family, nor my child, but now, I don’t consider these people my family anymore.

Now I know why I’m fully jealous of Sloane, Alex, and Eric. They all have a family that loves them and cares for them twenty four seven. Sloane’s dad sacrificed his life for her even though it’s against spy rules. Alex has a brother and a dad who listen to him, something I never get. Eric, well Eric has an aunt and uncle who’d die for him in heartbeat like Sloane’s dad would, but it’s different, because they aren’t spies. They are normal, they have no special powers to help them fight against people, but they’ll still do it for him. They accept him for who he is too, whether he’s a spy, or a normal child. If I confessed to Kara and Bridget that I’m a spy, they probably wouldn’t look at me the same, nor talk to me for that matter.

“Do you realize what you are doing, Wendy?” My father says slowly, his fist still clenched to his sides.

“Yeah, I do,” I say, raising my eyebrows at him for a second. “It’s the best option I have.”

Mom burst into tears, crying for me not to do this, not to ruin this family. How am I ruining this family? We aren’t even a family anymore. If we were family they’d have asked me to run away with them, not suffer their consequences.

My father reassured my mother that he wouldn’t let anything happen. How many times has he told her this lie? He won’t be able to protect them from everybody, not in the slightest. He’s weak minded, easily breakable. If I had to, I could kill him. He may be one of the highest ranked spies out there, but there’s always going to be the guilt inside him for what he did years ago to get to that position.

I walked up to my room and locked the door. I need to get out of here, and quick. I grabbed the suitcase from my closet and started piling my clothes in it. I tiptoe out of my room and took three guns and five knives and ammo. I hid them securely in my clothes. I grab my glass piggy bank and stick my hand inside. I pull out four thousand dollars and stick it in my suitcase. I grab my cell phone and a charger as well.

After I pack ever thing up, I jump out my window and land noiselessly to the ground. I quietly open my car door and put my suitcase in the backseat. I close the door, then start it up. I lock the doors, then I hit the gas as hard as I can. I burst through the house, through the living room and kitchen. I put the car in reverse, and back out of the house, excitement rushing through me. I head down the road toward the airport. One thing is for sure, is that I can’t be alone.

I sadly leave my car in the airport parking lot, and make my way into the airport. I’ve never traveled alone before, but to fly to Europe alone, the age limit is sixteen. That’s all I need, that’s for sure. I’ll pay for the ticket in cash, and I’ll be good to go.

I got my ticket, and I waited for my flight. If I’m going to find Dad’s parents and brother, I’m going to need a plan. It’s early in the morning, and haven’t eaten. I grab a coffee and a cream cheese bagel, lost in thought. I’ll barely have enough money, I think.

When they announced my flight, I got on, my nerves at bay. This won’t be simple, but it’s not impossible, and in my case, it’s a plus.