16In the Cahill mansion, a celebration was going on. The hostages had been returned safe and sound from the Vesper stronghold in Argentina, and the Vesper Council of Six had crumbled due to betrayal and lies. The Cahills, Kabras, Holts, Starlings, and Wizards were partying the night away. Everyone was laughing, smiling, and having a good time with their family. They were just relieved that the Vesper hunt was over. For now.
Upstairs, however, was a different matter. Amy Cahill laid in a mass of crumpled sheets, silent, but alive. The only sound heard was her soft, shallow breathing. Her flaming-red hair was tangled, and her normally bright jade-green eyes were full of misery and slight regret.
Her phone buzzed, and she hesitantly reached out to see the Caller ID. It was, of course, Dan. She tapped on the Decline icon and instantly received a text.
R u all right?
She quickly typed out a reply: Fine, I don't think I'll come downstairs, though. I feel really sick.
Amy sent the message and watched the screen for awhile before turning her phone off and putting it back on her bedside table lamp. What she had sent Dan wasn't the entire truth. She wasn't physically ill, but mentally. Unbidden, the memory from a few hours ago came back to haunt her once again...
Amy looked through her binoculars and watched as Vesper agents fled from the stronghold, looks of pure terror and hatred on their faces. It was 8:42 P.M, and a team of Cahills had gone in to rescue the hostages. The attack team consisted of Dan, Hamilton, Ian, Jonah, and a few other Cahill agents.
Amy, Sinead, Arthur, and Ned were the survallience team. Amy and Arthur were watching the front of the stronghold, while Sinead and Ned were watching the back. Amy bit her lip, hoping that they would succeed in the rescue mission.
"I'm sure they'll be fine," Arthur reassured her, reading her thoughts. "We have a very strategical plan that only has a 10% chance of failure."
Amy and Arthur moved backwards into the trees as more Vesper agents came spilling out from the stronghold. Her gun bounced against her waist, and she flinched. She really didn't want to use her gun, and she hoped she wouldn't have to.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, she saw Hamilton with Nellie and Reagan. They all looked pretty stable to her.
"Jonah, Ian, and the other Tomas agents have just come out with Fiske, Phoenix, and Ted," Sinead said through the walkie-talkie. "Ian said that Dan, Natalie, and Alistair are heading towards the front of the stronghold already; they were a bit held up."
"All right," Amy replied. "Start heading back towards the helicopters."
"Roger that," Sinead said, and cut the connection.
Amy turned to her father. "You can go back. I'll stay here until Dan, Natalie, and Alistair come out."
"Are you sure?" Arthur asked, looking at his eldest child with concern.
"Positive," Amy answered. "Dan will probably blow a gasket when he sees you, and it would be better if he did in the helicopter, not while we're being shot at."
At her father's skeptical look, she added, "I'll be all right, Dad."
Sighing, he quickly hugged Amy before running off to the helicopters. Amy turned back to watch the front of the stronghold. She heard a snap of twigs close by, and before she could react, someone was pushing her to the ground.
Turning onto her side, she looked at her attacker; he was around his early thirties, and well-built. She cursed under her breath before shooting out one of her legs to kick at the attacker's knee. He howled and immediately bent down to grab his knee, while Amy took the opportunity to get onto her feet. He growled and lunged for her; Amy quickly stepped out of the way, but not before he grabbed one of her arms and tackled her to the ground. Amy looked up into the cold, black eyes of her attacker.
"Say goodbye to the world, Amy Cahill," he sneered, drawing a long knife.
Amy glared at him and spat, "Not before you do."
Amy moved her arm to grab her gun, and then she shot him. He didn't have time to move, since she had reacted in a split second. His eyes rolled back into his head, and Amy pushed him off of her. She stood up, and the guilt suddenly caught up with her.
I just killed a man.
With shaky hands, she bent down and grabbed her binoculars. She focused on the entrance, just in time to see Dan, Natalie, and Alistair run out of the stronghold. None of them look injured. Breathing a sigh of relief, Amy looked down at the man lying on the ground, now lifeless. She let out a small squeak, then turned and sprinted (well, more like stumbled) to the empty field.
She reached the helicopters in a minute, and boarded before any Vesper agents could catch up with them...
Once again, the guilt and regret crashed down on her in waves. She had killed someone. She shouldn't have killed him. She should have shot him in the leg so he would be injured and couldn't move, not right through his heart.
She looked at the window, and the moon was still rising. It shone brightly despite the tinted windows.
If I hadn't shot him, would I be gone?
A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. She turned the other way so she wouldn't be facing the door. She burrowed under the covers, cleared her throat, and called, "Come in!"
The door opened, and a voice said, "Since you're not feeling well, Ian and I brought you some medicine."
"Thanks, Dan." Amy still didn't look at either of them.
"Dan, come on down!" Hamilton called. "You are the next contestant on The Price is Right!"
Howls of laughter followed Hamilton's yell. Dan chuckled and exclaimed, "I'm coming, hold on!"
Amy clearly heard the skepticism in his voice when he said, "I'll be going... I guess I'll just leave you two alone then."
The door shut, and footsteps approached her bedside. "Here's your medicine."
Amy hesitantly turned to her other side and was met with a glass of water, but no medicine. She looked up at Ian and frowned. "Is this some sort of joke?"
"I can tell when someone is lying, even through a text," Ian explained. He sat down on the bed next to her and offered the glass of water. She took it from him, sipped a bit, and then put it on the bedside table next to her phone.
Ian watched her curiously and asked, "Now, what's really troubling you?"
Amy turned her eyes away from Ian. Ian took her hand and rubbed circles on her palm. Amy didn't pull away. She didn't like the gesture, but she didn't hate it, either.
"I killed someone," Amy stated, plain and simple.
"Okay... Anything else?" Ian asked, raising his eyebrows. Amy glared at him.
"What do you mean, 'Anything else'?" Amy exclaimed, imitating his British accent. "I killed someone! I've seen people die right in front of me, but I've never been the cause for the death!"
"Okay, slow down," Ian coaxed. "Tell me what happened."
After Amy told him what had happened, he looked at her with genuine sympathy. "I was like that when I first killed someone. But just remember this, Amy: It's either them, or you. Who are you going to pick?"
"Well, my life," Amy replied. "But the point is that I didn't have to kill him. I could have just shot his leg, and then kicked the knife out of his hand when I got up."
"But what about when you were trying to get up?" Ian asked. "He could have stabbed you while you were trying to get up."
Amy didn't say anything. He sighed and said, "You can't turn back the hands of time. Just let it go and you'll be fine."
Who said I would be fine, after I just killed a man? Amy thought. They were both silent for a few moments. Ian finally cleared his throat and asked, "So, um, how's Evan?"
Amy turned away from him; she didn't want him to see the tears forming in her eyes. She didn't want him to see the Madrigal leader broken and weak. "We broke up. I caught him cheating."
"Oh... Why that little son of a-"
"Don't, Ian; he's not worth being called even that," Amy chided. "I just knew that he would get tired of waiting for his girlfriend to return from Italy, or Berlin, or Samarkand, or wherever else we went."
"It's not your fault," Ian said gently, trying to comfort her.
Amy looked at him, her face full of mischievousness. "Ian Kabra comforting someone? I never thought I'd see the day."
Ian had been trained to never be sympathetic to anyone, but Amy had somehow broke through his walls. Ian had always been interested in her, but never showed it. It had hurt him when he realized that he had unknowingly pushed Amy to date Evan. But now Evan was out of the picture, so he possibly had a chance.
"Well, Amy Cahill, you're an exception," Ian replied, giving her a small smile.
Amy blushed, and there it was again: the butterflies in her stomach when he smiled at her. The familiar feeling of heat emitting from her cheeks. She hadn't felt this way since she was fourteen; she hadn't felt anything this strong with Evan, either.
Ian stood up and held out his hand. "Well, shall we go downstairs and celebrate?"
Amy grinned and stood up, then groaned. "My hair is a mess and my eyes probably look like I havent slept in days. Natalie. Will. Throw. A. Fit."
Ian pointed to the bathroom, so Amy went inside and shut the door. She quickly brushed her hair, washed her face, then applied a bit of makeup so her eyes didn't look so unappealing. During all this, many thoughts were running through her head.
Should I give Ian a chance? He's apologized for Korea, and the only reason he had left Sinead and... he shall not be named... that one time and went to Argentina was to prove that Isabel's organization was a hoax.
At this point, Amy felt like she could trust him with her life. But she didn't know if that was good or bad.
Ian knocked on the door. "Amy? I have to tell you something."
Amy opened the door, and there stood Ian Kabra, looking nervous. The high and mighty Ian Kabra nervous? This must be really important.
"It's about when I was going to visit you two years go, then abruptly cancelled."
So Amy stood there and listened, while Ian explained all from when he was talking to himself in the mirror, to when he called her and cancelled his visit. The whole time, everything from that certain day was making sense now.
When Ian finished his story, Amy nodded in understanding. "I get it now. But why didn't you just tell me?"
"I was ashamed of myself," Ian replied. "I felt like I had disappointed you for letting the woman who murdered your parents go free. Maybe if I had stopped her, none of this would have happened..."
Ian honestly didn't know what he was doing. He was pouring his emotions out, and he had never done that before in his life. Isabel and Vikram had described it as many things, but most importantly, weakness. But Ian didn't feel weakness; he felt relieved that he had finally gotten what he had wanted to tell Amy for two years off of his chest.
"Ian, how could I be disappointed for something I didn't even know about?" Amy questioned. "Don't blame yourself for what's happened. The past is the past."
They stood in silence for a moment, then Amy smirked slightly. "What's done is done and it's all right. You can't turn back the hands of time."
Ian chuckled, then took her hand. Amy decided to let him, and they left her room. While walking down the stairs, Amy's heart was beating fast.
How will everyone react to seeing us together?
When they entered the dining room which had been turned into a party/dining room, all became quiet. Finally, Dan yelled, "I knew it! I knew leaving you two alone would result in-" he gestured frantically to their hands "-that!"
Everyone burst into laughter, and everything was the same again. Mostly, they told Amy that they were happy she was feeling better, and the guys clapped Ian on the back for getting "the girl of his dreams".
A slow song came on, and Ian sauntered over to Amy.
"Would you like to dance?" he asked, bowing dramatically. Amy giggled and took his hand again.
They went to the middle of the dance floor, and started slow-dancing. Amy rested her head on Ian's shoulder, and sighed in relaxation. When the chorus of the song came on, it instantly caught Amy's attention and blew her breath away.
"You can't turn back the hands of time. Just let it go and you'll be fine. What's done is done and it's all right. You can't turn back the hands of time."
A/N: Hello, people, I'm I Will Not Follow, formerly Evanescence456 (AKA Eva, Nessi, Amy Lee, Rosie, Clover, Ichigo, Eve, Alice, Cornelia... You get the point xD). I'm making a comeback! *chorus to the song Here Comes a Comeback comes on* xD I'll only post one- shots and two-shots, unless I get areally good idea for a multi-chap. Well, let me explain why I left fanfiction.
*cues sad music* Fanfiction used to be fun, but, thanks to a few cyber-bullies, it made my life miserable. Nobody believed me when I told them that I wasn't reviewing my own stories, so I was constantly being sent taunting messages and being called names in reviews that I deleted so nobody would see them. I tried to go on for you guys; I updated my stories and tried, in vain, to ignore the cyber-bullies. But I'm a really sensitive person, so you can only image how much it broke me. I had a mental breakdown, deleted all my stories and information on profiles, changed my avatar, got a new pennane... I even switched fandoms.
I eventually realized why the 39 Clues fandom was torture for me. All of you are older than 13... I'm still 11. You give really hard-core criticism and point out the most littlest mistakes. On the House of Anubis fandom, my latest obsession, there's thousands of people of many ages. Not many people there send reviews longer than one paragraph. I guess the 39 Clues fandom was too hard for me, but I'm ready to face all of you guys again.
To the cyber-bullies: You know who you are. I never had the courage to stand up to you, even online, but now I do. You're just people who have nothing else to do with your worthless lives so you bully people. Stop insulting people you don't even know in real life. If I ever read a story and you people are bullying the author in the reviews, you're going to get a piece of me.
To Ekatia217: If you're reading this, just let me say I'm so sorry. I wanted to finish Cahill Tricks, I really did. I would continue it now, but I don't even have the documents, and I pretty much forgot how the story was going to end... I'm just really, very, truly sorry.
Listen up, readers: I don't want reviews about why I left fanfiction. I want reviews on my story (by the way, the third genre is Romance). If you want to talk to me about why I left fanfiction, then send me a PM.
(P.S: The song is Hands of Time by Rachel Diggs. If you're a Pretty Little Liars fan, you'll know this song. If you're not a fan, then you might. I knew it before Pretty Little Liars, and I'm quite proud of that. :P)