“I always knew you liked Easton Black,” my mum chuckles as she eats her bacon sandwich. She pointedly looks over at East as he’s walking out, going back to the cabin to get my phone for me. I left it behind this morning after actually putting it on charge for once. I want it close in case any of the guys or one of my dads call to say they have Ryan and Kelly.

I can’t stop thinking about how Kelly could still be hurt, or wondering where the hell Ryan is, as I can’t believe he would let anyone hurt Kelly. I might have been mad about them being together at the start, but only because they kept it from me. I know they love each other more than anything. Either one of them would be destroyed if the other was hurt, so it doesn’t make a bit of sense that Ryan would let it happen.

“Really?” I ask, forcing a smile, and she laughs. She looks happy, despite the fact her eyes show me the world of worry she’s trying to hide from me. My mum usually looks so in control, so carefree, but hasn’t recently, not that I can blame her. I can’t say anything about my mum’s messy hair and crinkled clothes, when I know I haven’t looked in a mirror for too long.

“You used to look at him like he was everything, way before he realised what was in front of him. I watched for years, and I knew when you started here, that he would finally notice you,” she says, making me realise how smart my mum really is.

“I didn't look at him like that..." I trail off when she bursts into laughter and puts her hand on mine. I try not to blush, but knowing your mum knew about your childhood crush the whole time is a little embarrassing.

"Kennie, I just knew when your brother told us about you two getting together, that it was meant to be. Whatever happens, I know he will look after you. Much like that teacher, the twins, and even the one with the dark eyes, whose name I keep forgetting," she says.

"Enzo," I fill in the name for her and she nods, looking away from me, over the empty cafeteria to the windows. It’s pouring down rain outside, the dark clouds making it look worse out there than I thought it was. You can hear the lightning shooting across the sky every now and then, and I suddenly feel a little guilty for letting East go get my phone in this weather. He only went to make sure I wouldn’t go through the woods alone. I pick up my coke can, sipping from it as my mum continues talking.

"Enzo has the bad boy look going on, I half expected to see him driving a motorcycle through the academy, like Mike did when we were here," she says, making me nearly choke on my coke as I put it down next to my empty plate.

"Dad M did what?" I ask with wide eyes. I never heard about that story growing up.

"Mike was quite the bad boy back in those days, even worse than Alaric," she says, going quiet as she trails off with a sad look floating over her face. I can’t imagine what she is feeling, when the hate disappears, and the realisation she doesn’t have to mourn Alaric anymore. He betrayed her in the worst way, and if one my guys did that to me, I don’t know if I could be as strong as she is now. I don’t think I’ve ever looked up to my mum as much as I do right now. She is the strongest woman I know.

"How was he supposedly killed? You never told me and I didn’t want to hurt you by asking," I ask gently, "But things are different now, and part of me wants to know when it all went wrong.”

"Because he’s your biological father?" she asks sadly, admitting what I don’t want to hear, but I need to.

"It's clear he is, we look too much alike," I comment and she nods, holding my hand tighter, before letting go and looking down at the table.

"It was an accident; a student went out of control and I was told Alaric tried to stop him. Did I tell you that Alaric was a teacher here at the academy?" she says.

"No, I didn’t know that," I say.

"He travelled back to see us every weekend because I was pregnant with you, and didn’t want to give birth at the academy. I wasn't here when a very powerful teenager with eleven marks lost control near the cliffs and caused a hurricane. It killed the boy and Alaric," she sighs. "At least that’s what I thought happened,".

"It's more likely he took the powerful teenager to the rebels," I say, knowing that’s exactly something he would do. If he was a teacher here, then he knows all the secret artefacts, and what he needs to steal to act out his plan to use my twelfth mark.

"He wasn’t always so—I don’t know—crazy," she admits, looking up at me, “But he always had a dark side, a manipulative side. Don’t ever trust him, he gave up his entire family, and the woman he loved for the rebels. That man will do anything for them,” she warns me as the door opens and East walks in, sliding the phone with the cracked screen over to me as he sits down.

"It’s got to be months since you charged that poor thing," he says, shaking his head as I turn it on. There's lots of messages and missed calls, the screen saver picture of me and Kelly, makes me want to walk out of here and demand for someone to tell me where they think she is. We are both smiling in my bedroom before we left for the academy. The start of our new lives, and yet this new life couldn’t be more fucked up.

"Any news from the guys?" I ask East hopefully, who shakes his head.

"Nope, I’ve messaged Locke, and Enzo, but nothing. Don’t worry, they will call us soon and everything will be okay," he says, placing a hand on my knee under the table. A new message pops up on my phone from an unknown number. I unlock it, freezing at the words on the screen.

That’s all it says, no name or any idea who it’s from. But one thing I’ve learnt is to never ignore someone when they tell you to run, you just run.

"We need to leave," I say, standing up quickly and turning as I hear the door open once more. I don’t move as my father walks into the room, a long cloak sliding across the floor behind him, with silver marks engraved all over it. He stops, smiling widely, and looking at me like he has just won something. The smile soon disappears as my mother walks around the table, standing next to me as East gets out his chair, moving to my side.

"Alaric,” is all she says in an angry tone as they stare at each other, and he shakes his head as five rebel marked walk into the room, one carrying a destroyed looking Kelly. Her hair is matted, covered in blood, and she has cuts all over her face. Her clothes are torn, and there’s blood all over her. Is she even alive?

"You bastard," I shout, trying to step forward but East stops me. Kelly lifts her head, mouthing my name before her head drops again. Her hair covering her face once more, and I have to hold in the tears that want to fall. I won’t cry in front of my father, that’s not happening.

"She isn’t dead, you can thank me for that later, daughter," my father says, giving me a look that suggests I should say thank you.

"Thank you? I can show you where you can shove that thank you," I spit out and he shakes his head, looking back at my mum.

"Did you not teach our children any manners? Ryan is just as disappointing," he says, and the way he speaks makes me think Ryan is okay, but maybe he wouldn’t work for Alaric anymore.

"I think I taught them just the right words, and to know pure bullshit when they hear it," she says, and his face goes red, “Now where the hell is my son, you piece of shit?” she asks, fury dripping from her every word as she stands strong.

"Mary Crowe, what happened to the sweet woman I loved?" he asks, clearly shocked.

"She died after her husband pretended to be dead, then he kidnapped her children, and tried to brainwash them into crazy beliefs. Now I’m not asking again, where is my son!" she shouts the end part, and he flinches a little.

"They’re not crazy! You just never listened to me! We need to go back to Ariziadia, we are getting weaker all the time, and the planet will make us stronger. It will give us a chance to take back our place on earth, rather than hide on it like we aren’t the most powerful ones here!" he spits out and my mum laughs.

"It's all crazy, completely crazy. The marked on Ariziadia must have the twelfth mark as they are all powerful like you say… then why haven’t they opened the portal? They clearly don’t want to help you, and you will lose," she says. Alaric wipes his face with his hands before pulling out a dagger from inside his cloak. He walks over to Kelly, pulls her head up by her hair, and holds the knife to her throat.

"NO!" I scream, jumping forward from East.

"Your mum and East stay here, and you come with me. Otherwise I kill her, and then them both, just like I did all your other guys," he says coldly, and I don’t doubt him for a second. My mum really pissed him off, and then I pause when I process what he just said, his words making my skin freeze.

"What did you just say?" I ask, shaking my head, not believing him.

"That Daniels, those twins, and the eleven are all dead as they fell for my distraction," he laughs. “Did they really think it would be that easy? That twenty years of planning would just be over if they found us?”

"That’s not true," East says, stepping next to me, and Alaric holds the knife closer to Kelly’s neck, cutting her slightly, and I watch the blood drip down her front.

“It is, believe it or not. Either way we need the Academy, and Mackenzie,” he tells East as I stand in complete shock, sickness filling me at the thought of the guys being in trouble. I refuse to think they are dead, I know they aren’t. I would feel it, right? Like they say people do when you lose someone you love.

"Make your choice, we don’t have much time Mackenzie," my father warns me.

"Where is Ryan?" I ask quietly, hearing Kelly whimper a little as her eyes open. She just stares at me, an empty look in her eyes. Like she has given up.

"Enough, make your choice!" he demands and I step forward, away from East and my mum, who grabs East's arm when he tries to follow me.

"I don’t have a choice, just get out of here with Kelly, and mum, you heal her when you get a chance or she isn’t going to make it," I tell them.

"I love you, and just hold on, we will get out and I will heal her," my mum whispers as my eyes meet East's and he doesn’t have to say a word, he only nods in understanding as he looks close to breaking with fear. He doesn’t stop me, and that means everything to me. He knows I couldn’t live with myself if I let Kelly die and got caught anyway. I look at my father as I walk over and he lets go of Kelly, her body falling to the floor and I run to her, only to get grabbed by my arms by two of the rebels. They hold me tightly as the door opens once more and Stella walks in, a big smirk on her face as she looks around.

"They sent me to say the academy is fully under control, and the water will be ready in ten minutes," she says, “The dress is being taken out the box now.”

"Very good, daughter," one of the guards holding me says and I look up at the blonde woman, seeing the similarities straight away. They have the same bitch face, what a bad thing to inherit.

"You bitch, your parents were never undercover, where they? You betrayed us all the whole time," I shout and she chuckles as she walks over, kicking Kelly out the way, and I glare at her as she steps right up to my face.

"I can’t wait to see you in pain, the pain you deserve, and I hope my laugh is the last thing you hear, Mackenzie," she says, laughing still and then looks over at East and my mum, "I will keep East busy, don’t you worry.”

"I will kill you, I fucking swear to god I will," I shout at her and she slaps me hard across the face, making me stumble and taste blood in my mouth.

"Try it," she says before walking over to where East is, and my father steps in front of me so I can’t see her.

"This is for your own good," he says before placing his hands on my head and pain shoots through my body, making me scream until everything goes black.