Manic [h.s]

26

getaway car.

Harry Styles '
Of all the things I've imagined when I would see Skylar again after all these years, I never could have imagined any of this.

My limbs feels as though they are on fire. I'm going to fucking kill someone. I am fuming, I swear there's smoke shooting out from my ears. I duck into the drivers seat of the car, Kenzie in the back with Skylar up front with me. I wonder how much she knows as I press the push to start with my foot on the brake. I whip us out of the parking garage and set up the car to call Zayn.

He's injured, but he'll know what to do. He'll be out of surgery, thinking clearly by now. I wait impatiently as the ringing sounds throughout the car, suddenly I get a groggy "Hello"

"Zayn how're you feeling?" I say enthusiastically. As if he wasn't shot yesterday.
"I'm alright, these fucking ice chips need some whiskey though"
"sounds like you're doing just fine... Okay so hypothetically if they are leaving a message for Skylar and uh, knocked out one of our guards, how are we cleaning that up?"
"this is hypothetical?"
"mhm yeah." I say, knowing who could be listening on the other side.
"Talk to Anton, he'll send the guys to take care of it."
"Anton doesn't like me though."
"You saved his ass last night he'll pull it fucking together, bratva navsegda"
"navsegda my ass I'll call you later." I say before hanging up.

"Was that fucking Russian?" Skylar asks. She's been quiet this whole time, I almost forgot she was here.
"Yup." I answer shortly, turning on the entrance ramp to the highway.
"How do you know Russian?" She asks.
"George is dead, your apartment got broken into, and you're worried about how I know Russian?" I laugh her off but she's consistent.
"Well, it seems like you know who these people are leaving these messages and breaking into my bank account, so how do you know them? Do they know Russian?"
"Skye, I'll talk about this with you another time." I will her to stop but she seemingly is on a roll.
"You can talk about it in front of Kenzie, I mean she's in this shit with us now."

I begin to get an incoming call from Anton, assuming Zayn already notified him, I pick up the phone quickly, hopefully she'll go quiet again once I'm on the phone. One of those polite things she always has the tendency to do. I click the button on the steering wheel to pick it up

"George right?" He says in a placid tone. There's absolutely no emotion behind it. Nothing about this seems out of the ordinary for him, truth be told, it's not.
"Yes." I say as I turn onto the main road.
"Skylar's?" He asks.
"How'd you know?"
"All the guards carry trackers, if they don't click a button every two minutes it alerts us." He tells me casually, as if it's something I'm supposed to already know. I never really know the inside details while living on the East coast. Being that most operations are based out to the West coast, the guys and I really dodged a bullet by insisting we stay close to New York.
"So our people will come?" I ask.
"They're almost there."
"Then have them check out her room, it's gotta be them, I know it."
"What, they broke in?"
"Another threat... I'll send the pictures now." I look down at my phone quickly, sending the photos with only a few taps.
"Both girls unharmed?" He asks.
"They're fine but it looks like they were only minutes behind."
"Bring them to Basic, they're safest here, but you have a few Manic things to do."
"Alright alright, I figured. I'll talk to you later, thanks."
He hangs up the phone from his end.

I look over to see Skye is staring out the window.

"What is it now?" I ask. She continues to ignore me, keeping a straight face as she stares out the window.

"Who are these people Harry?" She whispers, it seems like she's straining to use her voice.

Do I tell her? Should I wait? Will telling her or waiting put her in more danger? All I have done since I got here is put her in danger, the last thing I ever wanted. I always pictured her living her life here and being happy, all I know is I am ruining that by every minute I spend here, every moment that they are after her for some god forsaken reason.

"Is it a gang?" She asks.

"Something like that." I can't help myself in answering. It isn't like Kenzie is clueless to this, she had to hear things at the cabana, she has to know something.

"Harry?" She pauses, "does this have to do with how fast Manic got famous?"

"Yes." I try to focus on the road, she always has so many questions, but they were never the kind that could put her in danger like this.

"Did you make a deal with these people?" She asks another question, this time I nod quietly. As if I don't want to admit it out loud. She sits in silence for a moment, seemingly, that's enough of the questions for the next while.

I jump on the highway to bring the girls to Basic. Which is our terms for our headquarters.

Skylar seems to be in one of her silent spells, but I know as good as any she's just processing what question to ask next. Focusing on the road is hard with all of this going on. I look over at Skylar who looks as though she is paralyzed in place, eyes glossed over.

"Skylar?" It's as if I'm begging for some reassurance she understood the head nod or has anything to actually say to me. For the first time in a while, I feel a sense of anxiety rush over me. It's odd how seeing a bloody, throat-slitted George can't send me over the edge but Skylars indifference somehow does. She sustains her silence. "Skye..." I repeat myself but no avail, she continues not to answer.

I take the next exit, rushing down the ramp, I look over to her as she grabs the handle above the door. My eyes back on the road, the light is green, I push my foot harder on the gas.

"Take it easy, jeez." Kenzie says from the backseat. I once again forgot she was sitting just behind me. "Sorry," I take my foot off the gas and turn onto the block of the house. It's as if I am driving their getaway car. I wonder if there's more they're getting away from with that apartment. I wonder what Skylar knows, what shes afraid of and why shes suddenly so insufferably quiet. If I remember correctly, she's always gotten quiet when she's anxious. or atleast thats how I remember.