Three years after Lucinda's confrontation with the mastermind behind the infection, she is forced to risk everything to save Lucella once and for all.
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Fifteen-year-old Lucinda Emerson was well aware of the fact that she didn't take TIO down...
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Rose's aim was flawless.
She hit every single target in front of her with almost exact precision. I would know. She was the main person who taught me how to shoot a gun. Even before that point, I watched her while she was still in her training. It was no wonder she became a police officer so quickly. Her skills and intelligence rivaled those of senior officers. Although she was never interested in engaging in combat, she completed dominated her opponent.
Despite all of that, she had her limits.
They were limits she set for herself.
And right now, she definitely wasn't showing them.
Her black and orange eye remained blank and wide as she bent down and placed her hands on the ground. Her dominant leg shifted a few spots upwards, and it reminded me of the position she would be in whenever she ran one of her cross-country races in high school. Originally, that's what I assumed she was doing until the vines tore away from the wall and moved to the ground, planting themselves to the ground in front of her. Something was telling me that she wasn't going to run.
My suspicions were soon confirmed when she launched herself towards us at incomprehensible speeds.
"GET DOWN!" I yelled at the Piggy family without turning to face them. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to duck in time and ended up with my sister's hands wrapped around my throat. I didn't hit anything as Rose flew with me in her grip, crashing me against the wall on the other end of the room. I was instantly brought back to the memory of the Safe Place as my legs dangled helplessly and my face turned blue. When I finally regained my wits, I noticed Rose looking down on me with anger in her eye.
"You ungrateful little brat," she seethed, her voice getting louder and angrier with every word. "I give up my life for you, and this is the thanks I get?! You defending my killer?!" I tried to respond to my sister, but her grip on my throat was tight, and it was getting tighter as the seconds went by. From behind her, I managed to see the Piggy family, all of them staring in horror and the scene that was unfolding in front of them. All but Penny. On her face, a look a guilt sat.
I had to get Rose away from me as soon as I could. I moved my hand as subtly as I could to the pistol clinging to my thigh, but I struggled to take it out of its holster. My vision began to grow fuzzy as I finally managed to get it into my hand. My finger moved shakily around the weapon, trying to feel for the trigger, and once it reached it, I moved quickly. I lifted my arm up until the gun was aiming directly at Rose's shocked face, and before she could stop me, I pulled the trigger.
Black came out of her instead of red.
The last thing I saw before her body began to collapse was a hole. A large hole planted right in the middle of where her face should be. I forced my body to move to the side so that Rose hit the wall instead of me. She sank to her knees once her body hit the wall, and I scrambled to scoot backwards as much as I could, keeping a hand on my throat and trying my best to regain my breath. Eventually, I managed to calm down and stand up properly.
