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“Hi,” I said.
“Hi,” she responded. Her voice definitely sounded a little pinched as though she were emotional about something.
“Everything ok?”
“Fine,” she replied curtly. “I just wanted to be alone. Apparently, that didn’t work out so well.”
I raised my eyebrows and nodded. “Fine… sorry to disturb you.”
I turned my back on her, but she called after me almost immediately. “No, wait, Zack,” she said. “I… you don’t have to go.”
I turned back to her slowly, and after a moment I went and sat down beside her.
“I guess I just felt a little frustrated all of a sudden,” Mila volunteered. “And it hit me out of the blue and… I guess I just needed some space.”
“What hit you out of the blue?” I asked.
She sighed. “What am I even doing here, Zack?” she asked, gesturing towards the clubhouse. “I’ve been here a couple of weeks, and I have no idea when I’ll get to leave.”
I didn’t like the thought of her leaving. I shouldn’t have felt that way, but there was no denying that I did.
“I quit my job because I was so scared to go to work one day and find Walter out front waiting for me,” Mila continued. “It wasn’t like it was a great job or anything, but it was something to do. At least I felt marginally useful. But here… I’m not doing anything—”
“You’re training,” I reminded her. “You’re learning how to defend yourself.”
Mila shrugged. “I know, and that’s the one thing that keeps me going. But the fact remains… Walter’s still out there, and I can’t move on with my life until he’s found. I can’t leave here till he’s found. I don’t know… sometimes I just feel like I’m going stir crazy, sitting here day in, day out waiting for news that never comes.”
“You have to be patient,” I said.
“I miss my old life,” Mila said fervently. “Actually, scratch that. My old life wasn’t that great. But I do miss my freedom. I miss being able to go out whenever I wanted. I miss being able to go for dinner or a movie or… even a walk around the block.”
Before now, it hadn’t even occurred to me how horrible it must be to be confined to one place, terrified to step out of it even for a moment. I put myself in Mila’s position, and I felt my whole body rebel at the idea of being contained the way she had to be.
“We’ll find Walter Black,” I said. “And then you’ll get your freedom back.”
Mila smiled sadly. “I hope so,” she nodded. “But there’s a possibility you might not find him at all.”
“That’s not—”
“There is a chance,” Mila interrupted me. “It may be a small chance, but it exists, and I have to be prepared for it.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying I may have to leave town,” Mila revealed. “And go somewhere new… somewhere nobody knows me. Somewhere I can start fresh.”
I felt a sinking feeling in my gut as I pictured Mila packing her bags and walking away. It shouldn’t have hurt me… but it did.
Chapter Fourteen
Mila
Red pinned me to the ground and laughed. He obviously thought he had won the fight, but he was cocky and careless, and I took advantage of that. With one move, I had escaped from his hold, kicked him to the floor, and suddenly I was the one on top.
The men standing around the ring hooted and cheered at the unexpected turn of events, and I could feel Red struggling to right himself.
“No chance, kid,” I laughed at him. “I’ve got you this time.”
I counted to three, and then Bones called it. I was the victor, and the men went wild with cheers and applause
