The Radiants Chronicons : Vol. I & II Of The Radiants Duology Series

Defiant (Vol. II) - chapter seven

Chapter seven

"That dude's an asshole. He's using us." I glared, when Kiitan had left us, with such a crappy job to do.

Levi shrugged. "Just the same way we're using them. This is the only way they'd let us stay. He's taking advantage of our skills. He's smart. I've got to hand it to him."

Kemi grumbled. "For the first time I appreciate having the Cadens' money that took care of us."

I rolled my eyes at her, then asked Levi. "So you're comfortable with us stealing? Who are we stealing from? This is messed up. We're already fugitives, you included. If we get caught, then we're screwed."

Amber-orange eyes blazed with determination. "Then we'd have to be careful. It's what we have to do."

Juan shook his head. "The council's not gonna like this."

Levi's jaw hardened. "I have a plan. I just need you all to do what we have to do. Can you trust me on that?"

Ada answered. "So you won't tell us the full plan."

"Not till I'm sure about some certain things. Do I have your trust, or do I need to earn them all over again?"

Laurena gave a sigh. "Do what you need to do. We trust you."

....

Two long days of planning and training had rolled by, and we seemed ready for the job ahead of us. Levi had a plan. He always did. We were broken into four small groups. We had four places, which were completely faraway from each other, just the way Levi wanted it, to rob. Those four places made up the important parts that we needed. My group (Group 2) had to steal a compressor. It seemed pretty easy. I was stuck with T.J and  a guy called Etim (the dude who apparently couldn't stop talking about Eloise, when we were on our way back from the God awful meeting). From what I heard, he's the head of the cleaning/home management domain, and he was pretty useful when we needed him.

The other groups consisted of: Biodun (the head of the fight club), Red and Ada, which made up the group 1, Levi, Juan and Lyra were in group 3, and lastly Laurena, Kemi and Mubarak completed it to become group 4. Levi made sure there was at least one fighter/member of the fight club in each group, just in case. The last two people, Tayo and Olu, who deliberately weren't in any groups, had very important jobs to do. Firstly, Tayo, the head of the ICT and our computer expert, helped us with the hacking into the buildings security, while Olu, the head of the mechanics domain, was hell bent on being the only one that wanted to reorganize and make the turbo engine. Everyone knew that he liked to work alone, and also how he hated making friends, but Levi wasn't going to allow it. So, Juan and I hung around, in case he needed help, since we were the only two who were in the mechanics domain, and possibly have an inkling to what Olu was doing.

We unfortunately had stolen some all-black outfits for all of us, some face masks, and two extra vans. Levi promised to make sure that he'd pay for everything stolen, when we got our friends back, so that put me a lot at ease. Levi also made sure no one would link this to us, so we also had to steal twenty pairs of contact lenses, to avoid being spotted. We kept the extra pairs, in case of any emergency.

As I wore my brown contact lens, I couldn't help the feeling of nostalgia it brought upon me. Not too long ago, wearing one was all I always did. I always hid from who I was. I hated that I was ashamed of being Radiant, but now, wearing one again, made me feel uncomfortable. It felt like I was hiding my identity all over again. While this was for a good reason, I couldn't help the niggling feeling in my head.

Levi looked at me. "Are you sure you're okay?"

I nibbled on my lower lip. Why was it so hard, to talk to him like he was anyone else? I knew he was just asking, like he did with everyone, but I couldn't help the feelings I felt, just by looking at him. "I'm good."

"You look completely different with brown eyes."

"I've been told. But honestly, so do you."

He smiled softly, and then there was an awkward silence between us. Levi frowned slightly. "I know it's harder for you to wear this, because of your past, and how you hid yourself from it."

I raised my eyes to meet his. He remembered. Of course, he remembered. I told him. All about how I wore contact lenses, just like this, to hide my true nature. But now, he knew how much I hated doing it at this moment. I was no longer the person I was four months ago.

I tried my best to sound as neutral as possible. "It's fine. No big deal."

Levi sent me a deadpanned look. "I'm glad we're on good terms. I wouldn't want to make it any more awkward than it is already. We're going to see each other everyday, so we might as well be friends."

"Yeah. Friends." I gave my tightest smile. Being friends with an ex I still had feelings for, would not be easy at all.

T.j called me out. "Come on, let's go."

I sighed in relief. I needed to get away from any form of tension I felt around Levi. "I have to go now. Good luck."

Levi nodded. "You too. Keep an eye on those two, will you? They're not too good on the field."

"I'll try my best."

His gaze softened. "Be careful."

I felt a lump in my throat, as I tried to blink back tears. There was no use feeling sad. "You too."

I walked as fast as I could to where our van was, and went over to T.J. "Sorry if I kept you waiting."

He gave an understanding nod. "Etim's driving us there. Everything we need is inside. We just need to make sure we're all ready."

I tried to put my confidence to the max. "I know I am. Are you?"

T.J smirked. "Never a doubt. Let's get ourselves that damn compressor, and get this over with."