LIBERTY

Chapter XXII

Their driveway was packed with cars. People kept barging in and out of the house, carrying worn duffel bags to stuff them in their trunks. Libby observed the men – half of them familiar faces, the other half she couldn't even recall ever seeing them before. Orders and instructions were being thrown around; their movements practiced and precise. As if they knew the drill by now.

Libby jumped when Axel smacked the car window on her side. He gestured at her to hurry up with a roll of his eyes.

Libby hesitantly got out of the car before following Axel inside. Her brother greeted a few of the people with a nod, a slap on the back. She caught the occasional pair of eyes flicking her way. They would glance at her with a blank expression, a professional poker face, before their focus would snap back to business.

Libby came to the realization that those people weren't strangers in this scenario, she was.

She felt oddly uncomfortable in her own house seeing people occupy every room, walking up and down the stairs as if they owned the place. Libby startled when she heard someone clear their throat. She turned around to see a tall man with tattoos peeking out from his collar. He looked to be around the same age as Adam. He cocked a single, pierced eyebrow. Apparently she had been blocking the way.

Libby took a step to the side, watching as he resumed his walk. Something near his lower back glinted, catching the light. A gun. Now that Libby paid attention, they were all wearing or carrying some kind of weapon. She wondered if those duffel bags ... The blood drained from her face.

A strong hand circled her upper arm, causing her to jump once again. Axel shot her an annoyed look before dragging her further into the house. He only released her when they made it into the living room.

Adam and Paul simultaneously looked up at their entrance. They both gave her a quick once over. Libby tried to envision how she must be looking right now. She still couldn't stop her hands from shaking, the dizziness still pounded in her head, parts of her body felt strangely numb and an imaginary noose was knotted tightly around her throat making it hard to breathe. The way both her brother and Paul frowned worriedly at the same time – Libby would have laughed if it had been under different circumstances.

"What happened to her?" Adam had questioned first.

Paul instantly rounded on Axel. "The fuck did you do to her now?"

"She's fine," Axel grunted, plopping down on the couch. "She got sick on the way home."

"James! I thought I told you to sent Aaron," Paul sneered at the same man Libby had bumped into a minute ago.

James paused in his stride, standing between the doorframe. "If I recall correctly, your exact words were 'one of the twins'. You didn't specify, did you?"

Paul mumbled a colorful string of choice words at the man.

Adam watched his sister closely. He spoke around his cigarette clamped between his lips while he stuffed a suitcase with cash. "You should sit down, babe. You look like you're gonna pass out any second."

His words didn't register to Libby, she was too busy taking in the scene that happened around her. Who were all these people? What the hell was happening? Why were they all in such a rush? Where were they going in the middle of the night?

These people have been here before, she could tell by how they easily moved in and out of the house. Adam had had his friends over before but they would usually go straight up to his study without even glancing her way. Libby always found this awfully suspicious but her brother had made it clear that this was none of her business.