Rogues: Refuge

Chapter 10

Robin heaved her backpack farther onto her shoulder as she walked down the sidewalk. The sky was starting to turn a vibrant rose color as the sun dipped below the horizon.

Glancing down at her phone, Robin squinted at the screen as she looked at the address Mike had sent her. She glanced back up and saw a mailbox with the same numbers on it as there were in the text. Robin shrugged and walked up the driveway, placing her phone back in her pocket.

Raising her hand, she knocked on the door, worried that something would fly out at her for some reason. She turned around and waited for the door to open. A few birds were landing on a wire nearby, catching Robin's attention for a few moments. All of a sudden, the door to Mike's house flew open. Robin whipped her head around, making eye contact with Mike.

"Ack!" Robin jumped.

"You made it!" Mike smiled.

"Uh, yeah?" Robin laughed, "And good God, you scared me."

"Sorry," Mike gestured for Robin to come in.

Robin stepped into Mike's house. It was a large house with well-lit walls and a staircase that led up to the second floor. Mike hopped up the steps and Robin followed close behind. He led Robin to a room at the end of the hallway, its door was open and there was a ray of light streaming out of it.

Pushing the door farther open, Mike walked into the room. Robin followed suit, acting casually. Allie and Amelia were already there, eating out of a large bag of chips. Allie smiled at Robin while Amelia rolled her eyes.

"I didn't think you'd come," Amelia said flatly.

"And why's that?" Robin smirked.

Amelia just scoffed and turned away. Robin grinned slightly, feeling a sense of satisfaction as she sat down next to Allie.

"What exactly are we supposed to do?" Robin whispered to Allie.

"Nothing, really," Allie shrugged, "Just talk, I guess?"

"That's a good idea!" Amelia piped up, "Robin! Why don't you tell us about how you came to Elkfield? Since you're new."

Robin's blood froze as Amelia narrowed her ice-blue eyes at her. Shrugging, Robin took a deep breath.

"All right," Robin sighed, "I'm from Albany-"

"We know that!" Amelia sneered.

"And my parents got a divorce when I was 6," Robin glared at Amelia, "I stayed with my mom until about 2 months ago."

"But didn't your mom come with you?" Mike asked, "Or is it like a foster adopting thing?"

"No," Robin sighed, "I came home one night, and found a note on the counter that had the number of a meth dealer on it. I asked her about it, and she got mad, and slapped me across the face."

Robin placed her hand over her scar, feeling a stinging sensation in her heart.

"She looked like she was going to do something worse to me so I ran to my room and jumped out the window," Robin wrapped her arms around her knees, "I broke my leg but I managed to get to another town. My leg healed up and I ran again. I was in an alleyway when someone found me there and took me to her house. So if you really want to know, I've been my happiest here. I wish it wasn't true but it is."

Robin felt tears form in her eyes and tilted her head up to stop them from coming. The entire room was quiet for a few heartbeats.

"I wish I could explain it better but-" Robin was silenced by Allie.

"You don't need to," Allie put her hand on Robin's arm, "I had no idea."

"Me neither," Mike spoke up, "And I'm sorry."

"You guys didn't do anything," Robin sniffed, "If anything, you helped me."

Robin caught a glance of Amelia staying silent. Was there a look of regret in her eyes? Amelia's icy eyes were a sad, dull blue now. In a way, Robin felt bad for her. She hadn't known. With a warmer feeling in her heart, Robin sighed and started to listen to Mike and Allie talk about some things from their lives.