Chapter 13: The Sister’s Knife

The hideout shook violently—dust fell from the ceiling like snowflakes—swirling slowly—gray and thick—making Isabella's nose twitch—achoo! She clung tightly to Dante inside the cage—shiver, shiver—her bitten leg bleeding badly—drip, drip—hot and sticky blood running down her shin—gross!—soaking her dirty and muddy clothes.

Her burned hands hurt a lot—ow!—big, red blisters that throbbed with pain—ow, her ribs ached from being kicked—sharp pains—her empty tummy growled with hunger—grrr—making her feel sick and dizzy—her head spinning around—round and round—tears streamed down her muddy face. Her big, beautiful eyes looked scared and helpless—she was alone in the chaos.

Victor spun fast yelling loud—"Find them!"—his deep voice mean—echoing—his black eyes flashing wild—sharp like knives—men ran out—boots stomping—guns clicking—ready to shoot—bang! Shots echoed outside—pop, pop!—getting closer—bang! metal walls ringing loud—vibrating like a big bell. Trapped in the noisy mess! Isabella sobbed—"What's happening?"—her voice tiny and shaky—her burned hands shaking, smoke sneaking in—puff, puff—stinging her scratched cheeks—ow!

Then—bang!—the big doors flew open, squeaking loud—and Sofia stormed in—Dante's sister—tall and mad—her long dark hair tied back tight—swinging. Her gray eyes were cold—like Dante's but meaner—hard like rocks—her dark pants and jacket dusty—gray and rough—gun in her hand—shiny and black. "Victor!" she yelled—her voice loud and sharp—pointing at him—thump!—her boots stomping—clomp, clomp—echoing—echo, echo—dust puffing—puff, puff!

Dante gasped—"Sofia?"—his voice shaky—hope in his gray eyes—soft for a second—his bloody arm dripping—drip, drip—red on the bars—gross! Sofia glared hard—"Shut up!"—stepping close—thump, thump—her boots loud, her shadow big—dark and scary—covering them—"I'm taking over," she said—mean and sharp—aiming her gun at Dante—her gray eyes icy—cold and mad.

Isabella cried—"No!"—her voice weak and small—her burned hands shaking—wobble, wobble—tears falling—drip, drip—readers would feel her fear, Sofia hated her! Dante yelled—"What?"—his face red—mad and hurt—"You're my sister!"—banging the bars—clang, clang—his fists thumping—thump, thump—blood dripping—drip, drip—splashing—gross! Sofia laughed cold—ha, ha!—mean and loud—"Not anymore," she said—her voice cutting—"Victor's my boss"—her gun steady.

Victor smiled in a sneaky way—"Good girl,"—his voice was sly and mean—clapping slowly—echoing loudly—his neck scar looked creepy in the light.

Dante shouted angrily—"Traitor!"—banging on the cage harder—feeling mad and sad—tears in his gray eyes—shiny and wet.

Isabella cried loudly—"Why?"—her tummy flipping with fear—she was so scared—Sofia's mean face glaring at her—her burned hands hurting badly—ow!—tears falling down her face

Sofia pulled out a shiny knife—sharp and gleaming, stepping closer to the cage. Her boots loud on the floor—dust puffing up. "She's first," Sofia said—mean and cold—pointing the knife at Isabella—her gray eyes icy and hard. She was so mean!

Isabella screamed loudly—"No!"—scooting back quickly—her bitten leg dragging slowly—blood smearing everywhere—red and wet—pain burning badly—ow, tears streaming down her face.

Dante rushed forward—thud!—grabbing Sofia's arm—oof!—knife slashing through the air—his bloody hand slipping. "Don't touch her!"—he yelled loudly—his voice wild and echoing—fighting hard to protect Isabella.

Sofia kicked Dante hard—thud!—her boot hitting his chest—ow!—making him groan loudly—oof!—his breath whooshing out—puff! She slashed the knife quickly—slice!—cutting Dante's arm—blood falling fast—red and shiny.

Victor laughed loudly—"Kill them both,"—his voice deep and mean—waving his hand big—men aiming their guns—barrels shiny and black—cold and scary.

Isabella cried loudly—"Help!"—her voice raw and scratchy—crawling slowly—her burned hands scraping against the floor, tears falling down her face, her stomach kept growling with hunger—grrr—so hungry and shaky.

Then, suddenly—boom!—a loud crash echoed from outside, metal bending loudly and lights flickering wildly—bzzz—fading in and out—dark, light, dark.

Sofia spun around, her voice sharp. "What now?" she snapped, her gray eyes narrowing into slits. Her hand trembled, and the knife in her fist shook. Dust particles floated in the air.

Smoke crept in slowly, thick and gray, stinging Isabella's eyes. She cried out in pain, "Ow!" and began coughing loudly, "Hack, hack!" Her throat felt scratchy and sore.

Dante grabbed Sofia's wrist, twisting it hard. "Ow!" Sofia cried out as the knife fell from her hand, hitting the floor with a clang. Gunshots rang out, getting closer and closer – pop, pop, bang, bang! Men yelled, "They're inside!" Boots stomped and echoed, smoke swirled, and Victor cursed, "Shit! This is bad! Fuck!" He rushed to the doors, his coat flapping wildly, dust puffing out. Isabella curled herself up into a tight ball.

"Help!" she cried out, her bitten leg throbbing with pain, blood dripping, and smoke choking her. Tears streamed down her face. Danger was everywhere!