Niko Page 7

  Chapter 4

  Niko followed Ari as she led them through the passages and up a flight of stairs. She tried to keep tabs on their progress but she thought that if she had to find her way back on her own, she would be hopelessly lost.

  Ari pushed open two heavy doors and they revealed a large circular room painted in shades of cream and gold. There were cushy, red seats, potted plants that did not bear fruit and a fountain where gallons of water plinked merrily. Niko’s attention was drawn to the ceiling and the images painted there. It reminded her of the photos from old magazines that she had torn out and pasted on the walls of their home, but her hodge-podge of bright colors could never equal what she now saw above her.

  Ari grabbed her arm, startling her. “Come on, drool later, we’re going to be late.”

  She ran off, dragging Niko behind her. Niko had to struggle not to fall and break an ankle on the stupid shoes she’d been forced to wear.

  Ari paused before another door, quickly adjusting her dress and smoothing down her hair. She flashed Niko a nervous smile before straightening her shoulders and pushing it open.

  The sight and smell of so much food assaulted her senses and her mouth watered instantly. There was a long table scarcely filled by the four people around it, three guys who had stood when she and Ari entered and one woman who’d remained seated.

  “You’re late, Ms. Banerjee.” The woman said.

  Ari presented an unshakable wall of confidence. “Fashionably, I hope.”

  The woman did not appear amused. “Dinner was to begin a half hour ago. I hope before you succeed me as Director you learn how to prioritize your time so this doesn’t happen again.”

  Ari lifted her chin. “I was getting our guest ready to be presented.”

  A small smile fluttered across the Director’s mouth and she waved for all of them to sit.

  Of the three boys at the table, none of them were Jared. She recognized Ben though he no longer wore the shiny bruises around his eyes. A red stud twinkled in his left earlobe. Thankfully, she was not sitting by him, though he seemed awfully pleased to be placed across from her.

  Niko hungrily eyed the food set out before her and had picked up a small knife, ready to dig in, when she realized the Director was speaking to her.

  “Why don't you introduce yourself? I'm sure we're all curious about our newest guest.”

  Niko found ten pair of eyes suddenly riveted on her. She slowly lowered her knife and placed her hands in her lap. “My name is Niko. Harmony Niko.”

  “That’s a beautiful name,” said the boy sitting next to her. He looked about her age with dark brown skin and hair twisted into short locks. Burgundy glasses framed his face. He introduced himself as Malik Ramsey.

  As the rest of them introduced themselves, Niko carefully slid the knife into the tiny space between her stomach and the corset Ari had wrapped around her. She already had been introduced to Ari and Ben; all that was left was Duc Thiang who pronounced his name his name like Duke Yang. She didn’t see any visible shades of red on him, only a pierced brow raised over smooth-lidded eyes as he caught her staring.

  The Director spread her arms out and blanketed the table with a benevolent smile. “Welcome to the Rose Circle, Ms. Niko.”

  She could feel the knife pressing against her stomach and she wondered if it was sharp enough to break skin. “Why am I here?” She asked flatly, staring into the Director’s grey eyes.

  The woman’s smile never wavered. “You’re here because you’re special.”

  “We all are.” Ben supplied. “We kill Slithers.”

  She didn’t bother trying to stop herself. She laughed. “Slithers are easy to kill.”

  “What Mr. King means to say,” The Director gently interjected. “Is that while most people are forced to hide in their homes with no other recourse but to pray that their neighbors lives get taken and their own be spared, we’re the select few that are strong enough and fast enough to take down such monsters. Thus we are special.”

  “It’s a trait, like eye color.” Duc supplied pointing at his own brown irises.

  It might explain why the Richardsons were so reluctant to help. Why she rarely heard of anyone killing Slithers outside of the city – plenty of gruesome Slither attacks, but hardly a word of anyone successfully beating a horde of flesh eating monsters.

  Still Niko shook her head. “I don’t believe you.”

  A blonde eyebrow popped up and the Director’s smile quickly faded before disappearing altogether. “Is that so? I must admit that’s a bit disheartening to hear, Ms. Niko, since we are the only thing that has kept our current civilization intact. Nothing else works, we do.”

  Niko looked at the group of five sitting around her. They didn’t even fill up half of the available seats the table offered. “You’re small.”

  “We used to be larger,” the Director said. “This hotel can hold hundreds of fighters like you.”

  “I’ve never heard of you before.” She challenged.

  Ben smiled and his earring twinkled like a fresh drop of blood. “You’re not supposed to. Unfortunately.” He finished in a low voice and the Director shot him a disapproving look.

  Niko’s eyes narrowed. “Where’s my brother?”

  Ari eyebrows pinched together in concerned U’s. “Harmony, we found a set of human bones in the ashes. We don’t have your brother.”

  “I have two brothers,” she said. “And it’s Niko.”

  Everyone looked surprised. Malik reached over and placed his hand over hers, loosening her strangulation hold on the fork. “Then maybe he’s still alive,” he said gently. “If he is, then we’ll find him. We’ll make sure of it.”

  She gazed at his face, the face she saw on the other side of the glass when she was trapped in the blue. For the first time Niko decided to trust someone other than herself.