STEEL (The Aurum Trilogy Book 1)

Chapter 21

TWENTY ONE

Daniel

They had bowed down to her.

She was no officer.

She was a fugitive.

She was not in charge.

She had no authority.

She was a runaway.

She was not appointed to any seat of power.

She was an assassin.

And yet, they bowed down, bent on one knee and treated her as their HERO.

"Something bothering you?" Lauren's voice popped out of nowhere.

"No... Uhh... Nothing..." I sputtered, scratching my head. "I was just thinking about a while ago."

I grinned at her. "They considered you as a hero." The last word tasted like bitter acid on my tongue. It felt as if it wasn't the right word to say. It would have been better if the last word would be fugitive, criminal, murderer, or traitor. "They bowed down to you."

She chuckled, shaking her head so that her loose dark hair sashayed on her shoulders and her back. She stared out into open space and her smile disappeared. "I was too late."

"But you still saved them." I told her, just to make her feel better. If there was anything really brave and remarkable she did today, it would be when she chose to save both warring sides and destroy the ships of The Alliance.

"Not all." she sighed.

"You can't expect to save everybody all the time." I said. "But at least you still got to spare some lives." I tried cheering her up but it didn't budge. After the world bowed down in front of her, she was overwhelmed but she felt morose and remorseful that she didn't get to stop The Alliance a little bit earlier. "You did great out there." I added, giving her a smile.

She smiled back and I was surprised she did. Lauren rarely smiled. "Thanks."

"Feel better." I said awkwardly. I wasn't used to this, socializing and all but I had to. It was part of my mission. But was this still a mission to me or was it something else?

"I don't feel like I should be a hero." She uttered softly, her voice barely audible in the air.

"Why not?"

"It's not just..." Her brow furrowed and she wrinkled her nose. She looked cute. She raised her hands up in the air and quickly dropped it back, hitting both her laps. She sighed, exasperated. "It just doesn't feel like me."

I shrugged my shoulders, unresponsive as ever. A huge wave of silence washed over us and Lauren and I just stared into the empty spaces in front of us.

"I'm going to crash." Lauren muttered, standing up and walking towards the door. A kind citizen from Division 33 offered us a place to stay for the night. He welcomed us even if he knew Lauren was one of The Control's most wanted and we were on the run. He told us that it was the least he could do for a hero.

"Good night." she whispered.

"Yeah, good night," I looked up and saw her twist the knob of the door. Before she could even step out of the room, I called her attention and said, "Hero." But this time the words didn't taste like acid. Instead, the words tasted sweet, saccharine and definitely intoxicating.

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Securitatem. Profectus. Continere.

The Control's motto repeated over and over again in my head, reminding me of the mission I have, of the true purpose why I was here. And that was to CAPTURE LAUREN STEEL.