a crazy plan

It was easy to guess what she was about to do. Lucy was too emotional; she had a habit of letting her feelings take over.

Even though I was someone who always kept my emotions to myself, very few people could truly deduce my real motivations. Still, I couldn't condone her behavior—it could prove useful depending on the situation. If the absence of emotions allowed you to be as cold and sharp as a sword meant solely to cut through your objectives, then emotions could also be a fuel to achieve the impossible. The ideal balance would be to adapt according to the circumstances.

Unfortunately, charging in without a plan against a clearly stronger opponent was a sure way to get killed.

Luckily, no one seemed to have noticed her intentions except me, which gave me enough time to intercept her before the worst could happen.

I caught up with Lucy just before she could act. Grabbing her hand, she tried to resist, but I tightened my grip and pulled her into a narrow alley between two buildings before letting go. I looked her straight in the eyes and spoke, keeping my concern hidden:

"Have you thought about the consequences of your actions?"

Before she could answer, I pressed on:

"If you get caught, you won't just put yourself in danger—you'll drag Iris and me down with you. You know we swore to have each other's backs. But I'm not risking all our lives on a reckless whim without a solid reason."

She sniffed coldly. "Brenda is my friend. That's reason enough."

"Not for me," I replied firmly.

"What if it were me in her place?"

"Don't twist my words. You know I care about you like my own sister."

She opened her mouth, but only a whisper escaped.

We stared at each other for a moment, saying nothing, until Iris suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"Hey, lovebirds, aren't you tired of flirting already? Sirius, be a man and face your feelings, and Lucy, men are like bulls—you have to take them by the horns, or they'll never get it," she said.

Needless to say, Lucy and I instantly shifted our attention to Iris. If looks could kill, she wouldn't be standing here right now.

Before we could unleash our fury, she added, "Sirius, come up with a plan to save her and stop whining." After a brief pause, she glanced toward the main square and said, "I don't think the story is as simple as it seems."

"What makes you say that?" I asked, skeptical.

"My woman's intuition," she declared with a big grin, her striking violet eyes shining with pride as she placed her hand on her nonexistent chest in a smug pose.

I rubbed my temples, trying to massage some life into my poor, overworked brain cells.

Sigh. I don't think I'll ever understand what goes on in my sister's head. But I had never known her intuition to be completely wrong, which meant there was something to investigate.

Was Brenda simply trying to escape the city? Was it an order from Victor? Knowing that greedy, manipulative old man who only cared about making a fortune, she could have been tasked with gathering classified information. Unless there was another variable I hadn't accounted for.

Either way, there was no time to think. She was set to be executed in less than a minute if we didn't act immediately.

So that left us with a plan: to save Brenda, unnoticed, under the noses of more than a thousand people, right in front of a squad of Executors—of which even one could eliminate us if we engaged in combat—all within the span of a single minute.

Would I have believed that when I woke up this morning, I'd be attempting such madness?

I hate this. But I'll have to act first and think later. Well, there's a first time for everything.

I turned to the two girls and announced, "Sis, your job is to create the biggest distraction possible. Lucy, you'll take advantage of the chaos to rescue Brenda. As for me," I paused dramatically—might as well make the most of it—"I'll take care of the Executors."

"As soon as it's done, we erase all traces and disappear. If even one of us is suspected, we're as good as dead."

"You see? When you try, you can actually think," Iris smirked.

"Got it, boss," Lucy added.

It was easy to tell which response belonged to whom.

Just before we split up, Lucy turned to Iris and landed a hard hit on her head. She had it coming.

Lucy glanced at me, her look saying let's forget everything, and I nodded in agreement.

Strange. Why is she making that face again?