Page 27 of Infiltrated

“I grew up on the human side of the border. I didn’t know I was magick at all. I grew up with human parents who loved me at first, I guess, or at least they may have wanted me? But one day I got really sick, felt like I was on fire from the inside out, I must have been eight or nine. I didn’t realize until later, after moving to Darnika, that I had gone through the surge and apparently I went through it early.” I gave a sad smile. “I woke up with my parents, fretting over me and I kept hearing their thoughts and responding to them. They were confused as to how I knew what was on their mind. They freaked out, and they started to take me to church, thinking I was possessed.” I gave a sad laugh. “Soon it got worse, they started bringing home holy water and would make me chug it in the morning, then they figured they could beat the demons out of me. It was my daily routine. I started to get used to it.”

“I am so sorry, Pixie,” said Luca. Dante, Etienne, and Dimitri seemed to shift closer.

“I was thirteen when I met Ellie, we are the same age you know, nineteen. So that was about four or five years of holy water martinis and beatings.” I shifted uncomfortably and closed my eyes. Did you know that water is usually blessed by a priest dipping his hands in the water and that that water is touched by hundreds of people at the church? Between dirty hands and regular bacteria, holy water was poison. I started to get sick. Lost weight. My parents at that time became almost obsessed with the idea of finally winning against the Devil. I lost count how many times during the years that I would throw up, my throat was always raw, my teeth in the back of my mouth started to decay.” I sighed and got up not being able to bear touch anymore and stood against the wall. The concern coming from our emotional bond was overwhelming and I threw up my shields. “I started getting so ill that I was taken to the hospital and put in a medically induced coma due to swelling in my brain. I was ten at that time.Turns out drinking contaminated water for long periods of time and ignoring the symptoms can end up with liver failure, especially for someone with an already weak and broken body. Then when my parents were asked why I was so weak, they told the doctor I was bulimic.” I snorted a laugh. “Fucking bulimic. The stupid doctors released me back into their care with instructions to get me to a therapist for help. I started to believe I was cursed. Surely, I had to be right? Crazy ass parents, mind reading. I mean, fuck. Not even something that should be a gift, felt like it was one.”

I got off the wall and hugged myself. Dimitri stood up and ran his hands on my shoulders, offering comfort but let me finish, and I shot him a grateful smile.

“Do you know how hard it was to know when the beatings were coming? To hear the thoughts of hatred justified by some religion? I hated myself. I hated everything. Everyone. I needed to get out and do more, be more. I was so very tired of being weak. I started to sneak out when they were gone. I found a gym down the road and the owner saw the bruises and let me train for free. I just wanted to protect myself. They didn’t allow me to go to school, I had no friends, I didn’t know how to be social so I just didn’t speak.Ellie noticed me and I felt…seen. Understood. We would spar together when I was able to sneak away, it was my only moment of peace. One night after a particularly bad beating I could barely walk the next morning but I knew if I got up, I would see Ellie, and I didn’t want to miss a day with my only peace. That same day she offered to take me to a place that was for people like me, that she would stay with me, help me. I didn’t ask how she knew, I just knew it was my chance to leave. I knew that eventually they would kill me. We left that day and I never looked back.”

Dimitri grabbed me, hugged me, and kissed the top of my head. “You will never be weak again. I know you are strong already. Well trained. Powerful. Loved and able to love. You are incredible and we will be grateful, to our core, every second for the rest our lives, that you are with us. That we found you, that Ellie saved you. We all have a past, some of ours is darker than others,” he said gruffly. “But we have each other and we swear to you, people will fucking die before they hurt you or Ellie. I don’t give a fuck who gets in the way. Yes, we know you can handle yourself, but fuck it, you don’t have to do it alone.”

“How did they get a magick baby over the border,” Etienne mused softly. “The only ones allowed across the border are Shadows who have to hunt murderers who cross illegally, and even then that border is highly protected, yet Ellie crossed everyday—I’m assuming with her powers—but how did anyone else get out, let alone smuggle a baby born in Darnika?”

“Listen to what you just said, Etienne, the only ones allowed to cross are Shadows, the border is highly protected. I grew up on the human side, it's where Ellie found me. She used to cross over every day when she was younger to go to a bunch of different martial arts classes, yes, with her powers. Point is, someone was able to sneak me out. When we started researching more, we wondered if everything was connected. So we not only looked into her parents and the Council, we looked into money transactions, people who had babies and suddenly lost them. We looked into the Shadows. Ellie’s dad was insistent that they were under the Council’s thumb, she said he would consistently call them the Council’s little bitches. The Shadows on the border were getting paid a lot more than any of the ones on patrol, in fact those assigned to the border who didn’t have a raise increase, suddenly died on patrol. The Shadows are dirty, boys. You’re training a bunch of magick human traffickers and kidnappers for the Council.”

14

“A strong woman builds her own world. She is one who is wise enough to know that it will attract the man she will gladly share it with.”-Unknown

“You realize that magick did all the work right? Okay, just making sure we are all on the same page.”-Dimitri

Charlie

I feltan overwhelming sense of sadness, disgust and guilt coming from the men.

“You know it is interesting, I can pick up on lies, literally observe and pick up on peculiarities. We figured the Council was dirty. We have been in position for years to figure out why but we never looked further into the Shadows. This time we will have the opportunity to have the girls in place at the Academy. With all six of us we will be able to fix this shit,” said Etienne.

“Hey,” I said gently, “we aren’t blaming you. We are getting you on the same page so you understand everything we are up against, so stop the fucking guilt trip. I feel it coming from you all. The Council is dirty and they are corrupting the very people they have protecting us. I mean, fuck, they even sent you out here under false pretenses to kill Exousia, with a fake ass list of victims. All that just to stop someone from being helpful to people in the lower castes. Well, that particular plan is a bust so we need to move on,” I said.

“Fuck,” Dante started, but paused. A million thoughts and expressions flitted through his eyes. Anger, confusion, distrust, pain, wariness, and finally his face cleared. “I’m not saying all of this isn’t a lot but I believe in you. I feel the conviction coming from you. So... what is the plan?” finished Dante, his signature grin warming me. His belief in our mission driving me even more so.

“Our plan?We train, we infiltrate, we solve. Simple really, we have been training for years, you boys only got a taste of what we can do. You really need to get on our level. For more reasons than one. First, you’re all now bonded to two sexy as fuck women. Well, that’s actually one and two. So then three, we can literally wipe the floor with your asses. As trainers, you cannot let new recruits show you up.” I smiled, then laughed as Dante got up and sat on me.

“Show me up now, princess,” he said, then stuck his tongue out, teasing. I smacked him but wrapped my arms around his waist and mindlessly rubbed his abs and sighed in contentment. I could get used to this.

“We do not hold back for anyone period. That’s for pussies,” I said.

“We have five weeks,” I continue. “We need to practice and then make sure we can attempt to be in sync. Hmmm, maybe pick up the moves we have learned over the years.”

“You won't have the muscle memory to be perfect but we can start and then as much as it is going to suck after training all day during the Academy, we will have to practice after hours too,” Pixie said as she groaned and snuggled in closer to Dimitri, who looked scared for a bit before he wrapped her up like a lettuce leaf.

I cleared my throat. “Not the kind of practice I wanted, ugh.” I pouted, eyeing Dimitri’s body up and down, while Pixie stuck out her tongue at me and smirked.

“Right, and what kind of practice did you want?” Luca asked, his eyes flashing.

“Oh, you know the open leg kind.” I smiled at him, and he leaned over to give me a kiss. “Mmmm.” I savored his slow kiss.

“Hey, get your own bonded chair!” joked Dante, and Luca smacked him in the head after one last kiss and laughed as he danced away from Dante’s fist.

“Let’s head to bed, the boys and I will have to go get your names in and bring you the official slip. Ellie, what surname are you going by now? Pixie?” Luca asked.

“Charlie Laurel and Pixie Luci, keep in mind people may recognize us from the city once we get there but the names are clean,” I reply. “Dante, get off of me, you ass, you’re going to crush me until my curves flatten!”

He let out a shocked gasp as he stood up. “No, not the curves,” he yelled dramatically, and he bent down to pick me up and throw me over his shoulder. He smacked my ass and ran toward the room, and I couldn’t stop laughing.

Pixie

I laughedas Dante ran off with Ellie dramatically. Luca shook his head and asked me where we put the sheets for the bed and went off with Etienne to prepare the bed, ever the charming leaders. I cuddled a little closer to Dimitri.

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