It was a deal.

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'Shadow had thought me two things in the entirety of the time we've been together,' I sighed, staring at Vanessa's newly dyed blonde hair. 'One, that she will always trust me, and two, she would do anything for me, does it seem strange that I'm the new leader of the Nightshade?'

Ignoring Bruce's glare, I pulled out my ID from my pocket, the one that had Shadow. 'I didn't want it, but she forced me, okay? She said no one would ever hurt me if I had it, all I needed to do was—'

'-ring a bell.' Vanessa mumbled, her fingers wrapped tightly around the card. 'You have a higher clearance level than I do, even the guards wouldn't have been able to stop you.'

'I hate it, okay!' I rubbed forehead in frustration. 'I don't want to take her place. I didn't want any of this. . . But, if it helps keep her position, then fine.'

'Can't you put a random person in his place?' Barry stared at the former temporary leader of the Nightshade.

Vanessa shook her head. 'Could anyone just pass off as a person Shadow selected?'

Canary frowned. 'You're not telling us everything.'

'Robin. . .' she nervously looked at me. 'If Shadow chose you, then everything belongs to you. We can't change that. The money, the resources, the authority, everything is yours. Once you step out this door and announce your status, everyone in this building will serve you unconditionally because if we don't, we will die.'

I couldn't hide my shock. 'What?'

Vanessa seemed to get invigorated by my reply, her eyes filling up with light. 'When Shadow first joined the Nightshade we were all willing to serve her, and by we I mean the entire Nightshade. But she said no. She had started at the very bottom and worked her way to the top, gaining our unwavering support but then she pushed someone else to the throne and settled for second place,' there was a hint of fury in Vanessa's voice voice. 'But then, Shadow selected 30,000 shades and fitted them with their corresponding numbers branded unto their skin,'

Vanessa pulled up her sleeve, revealing the number etched into her forearm. 'I am the current seven, three other sevens before me have perished, two were defectors. No one knows of the purpose of these mark other than the top ten numbers. Only the true leader of this division can make them take effect but Shadow has never used it before.'

'So you're saying Robin can now control anyone with those numbers on them. . .' Bruce narrowed his eyes at the girl. 'When you brought the antidote, you looked so terrified. . . You knew.'

Vanessa lowered her head. 'If we are the cause of our master's death, even indirectly then. . .' She clenched her her fists. 'Everyone in this division knows this but seeing how a lot of them helped in this whole plan to get Shadow killed, then I guess they think thoughtless it was a joke.'

'If it's true, why aren't they dead?' Oliver asked suspiciously.

'Because Shadow was never prepared to lead spies and cowards, she used herself to draw them out,' It seemed as though Vanessa was cursing at the floor, wishing a to burn a whole through it. 'It can only be used by one person. . . And Robin already activated it.'

××
(Original Author's Note)

It's short, I'm sorry. Really really sorry. Even though no one really reads this story, I still try haha. Please spread some word about this book if you know some people who are interested, because I'm thinking about dropping it. (Any opinions?)

~ your author who still feels dizzy #hospitals and needles

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