my vision is distorted once i awaken.
my hands are bound behind me. my legs are restrained, too.
i'm sitting in an uncomfortable chair in front of large, steel table.
there's one light shining at me.
i lick my lips & i can taste iron in my mouth.. blood. great. my body aches so badly, my chest especially. my eyes sting.
i look down to my chest. i'm only wearing my blank tank top. my upper chest is bandaged.
my heartbeat is loud in my ears.
"ah.. you're awake." a man says. he's wearing a hooded sweatshirt. that's all i can see with my vision and the light blinding me.
"where.. am i.." i manage to speak.
the man steps into view. he walks behind me. i still cannot see his face.
"what.. you can't recognize your own father?" he taunts. chills run down my spine.
"you are not my father." i growl.
he chuckles & pushes the light to move from shining in my face.
"tony, the lights." he orders.
when the lights flicker on in this shiny metallic room, i can see his face.
his face surprises me. he looks like me.
we have the same nose, eyebrows, lips & face structure. my heart rate is out of control.
"what the hell do you want with me!?" i yell.
my hands are still restrained, it's bothering me. i try to get free but i'm bound tightly.
then, one of the metal doors whips open.
in front of me stands a teenage boy with black hair and blue eyes. he is wearing a black t-shirt with a black leather jacket, black jeans, black boots & a black leather belt loaded with weapons.
i feel myself gulp. i'm slightly intimidated.
"my name is damien. we have a lot to discuss, vanessa." he smirks.---
[caleb's pov]
she hasn't answered any of my texts or calls for 3 days which makes me extremely worried.. so i decided to come to her apartment. i need to make sure she's okay.
i push in the button for the buzzer & wait for a response.
cody answers the door & i look at him up and down in confusion. why is he answering?
his eyes are bloodshot. his hair is an absolute mess. he's wearing black from head to toe.
"hey, cody. is vanessa okay?" i ask.
he bites his lip and looks to the floor, "i don't know, caleb. i really don't."
that's definitely not the answer i was hoping for.
i furrow my eyebrows, "what do you mean? how do you not know?"
"oh wait.. did she not tell you? she's in vancouver, caleb. she's been gone for 3 days already." he says. he then opens the door wider, "caleb, why don't you come inside?"
i nod and follow him to vanessa's apartment.
"so if she's not here, why are you?" i ask out of curiosity.
"i miss her. her bed still smells like her. everything is familiar in her room." he sniffles.
i sit down at the kitchen table, "aw, man. when has she contacted you last?"
"not since she messaged me at starbucks.." he says, trailing off.
"and when was that, exactly?" i ask.
"2 days ago." he croaks.
fuck.---
[vanessa's pov]
"so let's review. you know about my insanity lately & it's.. a good thing!? you want me to use it.. for what, exactly?" i ask.
"like we said.. you'll find out." damien grins.
"you're not going to find out shit if you don't untie my fucking hands, you dickwad." i spit.
he licks his lips, "damn, feisty one.."
he raises his eyebrow to my "father" which feels disgusting to say. he wasn't in my life, he doesn't deserve that title.
damien gently frees my hands and legs. his fingers are delicate against my skin.
"rule number one.. you speak about your work to absolutely no one. not caleb, not cody. nor your parents or your friends." damien orders.
i ignore the fact that he somehow knows about them & smile, "and what if i don't?"
damien gives me an intimidating glare.
okay! i definitely do not want to find out.
"rule number two.. this is a lot to handle. we know you're strong enough to do this, though. final rule.. don't die." he says, sliding a thick packet of paper onto the table.
he slides a pen next to the packet, "this is a contract that you're going to sign agreeing to those rules."
"fuck.. fine!" i groan and sign my name at the bottom of the paper.
then, a muscular blonde man walks in the room with a big black duffel bag.
he slams it on the table and unzips it, revealing weapons of all kinds from within.
my jaw drops. are you serious!?
i look at my father & at damien, "seriously!? what kind of fucked up shit are you asking me to do?"
"protect yourself & protect good people. kill off the bad. we will give you files of the person you need to hunt down. you will be stealthy, but you also need to blend in." damien instructs.
"can i still see them?" i mumble.
all of these changes... the fact that i haven't texted or called in.. i don't even know how long i've been here. fucking hell.
damien takes a sharp breathe, "vanessa.. love makes you weak. everyone at home is a distraction."
"bullshit. you don't get to show up all of a sudden and tell me how my life was or is. not to mention we had a great introduction," i point to the bandage around my chest, "like, thank you so much for the fucking bullet in my chest! i really appreciate it."
i sigh & pull my messy hair back, securing it with the hair tie around my wrist.
then, i notice. the emptiness. there's no weight on my finger. are you fucking kidding me.
"where the fuck is my ring? you assholes!" i slam my hands on the table. the action rattles the walls.
i see damien jump a little, "here, ugh."
he walks to the corner where a bag rests on the ground and pulls out a clear ziploc baggie.
he reaches his hand in and pulls it out, handing it back to me.
i rip it from his hand and slide it back on my finger, "if you ever do that again, i will not hesitate to chop your dick off. clear?"
he nods & i reach in the weapon bag, pulling out a knife and a gun. the gun is fairly heavy in my hands, but it's a perfect size.
damien goes back to the bag in the corner and pulls out a black belt with all kinds of holsters.
he takes the weapons from my hands and slides them into their correct spots.
"if police come up to you, you present them with this." my father hands me a gold badge.
it has odd writing on it, it's not even in english.
he almost reads my thoughts, "just trust me. they'll know what it means."
i glance in one of the windows where i can see my reflection. i have a cut on my cheek. my hair is a mess but it still looks pretty good. my makeup has smudged a little but it gives me more of an edgy look that i'm not used to.
i was already wearing black jeans and a black tank top underneath my sweater so i was already matching my new belt.
damien reaches into the bag again, "you're not fit for this job in converse.. so here's one of your welcome gifts."
he pulls out a pair of black combat boots. they're perfect.. i'm in awe.
i take them from him & try them on. they fit perfectly & i smile.
i laugh, "you guys stalked me enough to guess my shoe size, too?"
"yeah, yeah. here's your other gift, vanessa." damien pulls out a leather jacket, similar to the one he is wearing.
i take it from him and slide it over my tank top. i move slowly, careful to avoid hurting myself.
i glance at my reflection & my jaw drops.
i've never seen myself like this-- i not only feel like a badass.. i look like one, too.
these people accept my insanity so much that they embrace it.
damien smiles at me and reaches back into the bag, "last thing. here's your phone back. we've installed a new bluetooth program for this," he holds up a small black earpiece, "you can contact us with this. be safe out there, vanessa."
they're fully trusting me on this.. wow.
i slide the piece into my ear & slide my phone into another holster on my belt.
"we've selected an easy case for you to start with. we need you to get the idea of this before we train you." my father says, laying a file on the table.
i open it & see "julie sanchez" written inside.
she's 24 & has killed 6 people... what the hell?
i turn to my father, "wow.. are you sure about this? what do i have to do?"
"whatever you can. if you're in public, you'll have to be quiet about it. one stab of a knife, just to weaken them enough. if you're alone, give them a shot to the leg or arm, maybe. we also have given you handcuffs that you may use as well. once you have finished, just call one of us. we'll take care of the rest. everything is ready in your phone. are you?"
damien says, placing a hand on my shoulder.
i take a deep breathe and nod slowly.
time to go kick some ass.----
WOAHHH a little different, huh!?thank you so much for reading!! xo
- adrianna

YOU ARE READING
deranged [sequel to unlovable]
Teen Fictionvanessa's life was already chaotic... or so she thought. can she keep a grip on the sanity she has left? ---- sequel to unlovable // by adrianna hailey® *lowercase intended* [ WARNINGS : blood, suicidal/self-harm, violence, sexual themes & vulgar la...