“Will they at least let me tell my side of the story?” I ask.

His face seems to lose color for a minute.

“I’m not talking about mentioning Shadowface,” I say. “Just that I really want my weapons back.”

“I don’t know if they will let you talk. You’ve already incriminated yourself. You did break into Headquarters and steal the gun. Regardless of your reasons, you are guilty in their eyes.”

Gabe was right. They were going to throw me to the dogs and there was nothing I could do about it. He stands in the doorway for a few more moments. I want to tell him to go away, that our friendship isn’t so deep that he should feel as guilty as he does. I’ll find my way. I’ll take whatever Paxton and his elders give me. Finally, Gabe says that he will keep me updated, and turns to leave.

“I’m sorry about Skip,” I say. It sounds half-hearted but I mean it. No one deserves to end like that.

Gabe stalls for a moment as if he wants to say more, then he closes the door behind him, locking it securely.

The room is silent but for my steady breathing. I’m not scared. There is no reason to be now. Being locked away in a room keeps me safe from the greyskins. I’m safer in here than on the outside - at least, for now I am.

It’s just like me to do something stupid like this. It’s just like me to feel the need to take a stolen gun and then use it. It’s been three months since I killed a greyskin. Seeing them surrounding us like they did…I just couldn’t handle it. When I ran out of ammo, I had no other choice but to pull out the gun. In fact, wasn’t it smart that I brought the gun? Didn’t I save my life? Our lives? 

Throughout the next few hours I try to focus my hearing in every direction possible. I close my eyes in deep concentration, doing my best to locate the second floor of the headquarters building. I’ve found that the longer I’ve stayed at a place, the better I am at locating sounds. If I’m unfamiliar, I can’t determine the direction of the noise nearly as well. The only problem is that now I hear nothing. Paxton’s meeting with the elders hasn’t started, or it’s taking place somewhere else.

I let my senses dull and stare down at the cold, blank floor in front of me, unsure of how I came to this. Immediately, I know… I stole from Paxton, but in a way, I also stole from Crestwood. How had I gone from a fun-loving, college party girl to a rifle-wielding, greyskin-stabbing, cold girl? But I know I’m not unique. There are a million like me. Unless they’re dead.