"Zayn?"

"Hey, babe."
Zayn said, pulling the face mask down to reveal his full face. Bloom's eyes lingered on the small cut on his lower lip and bruises on his face.

He rushed to where she was and pulled her into his arms before she could start asking questions about his injuries. She sank into his arms with tears rolling down her cheeks, his scent assured her this wasn't abstract.

"I'm right here," he whispered stroking her hair.

"I'm so sorry you got arrested."
She muffled against his neck wrapping her arms around him.

"Okay love birds, we are running out of time. We have to leave before they figure out what's going on," Tyra said behind them.

"Please don't leave me here, they won't stop drugging me. It's draining the life out of me, please."
Bloom said desperately when he pulled away.

"We are not leaving without you, you're coming with us."
Zayn told her with a soft smile and caressed her cheeks with his thumbs.

"Let's go," Tyra groaned with an eye roll, moving the wheelchair closer to the bed.

They helped her up and she sat gently in the wheelchair.

"Act normal, look sick or something."
Tyra told her as she covered her legs with a blue blanket. She moved away and put on her face mask to hide her face.

Zayn stood behind Bloom, holding the wheelchair handles while Tyra pretended to carry her hospital file.

"Are they still alive?"
Bloom asked, looking at the two bodies on the floor.

"Unfortunately, yes," Zayn replied.

"Shhh," Tyra whispered as she opened the door.

Zayn wheeled her out of the room while Tyra trailed behind. The guards outside didn't pay much attention to them.

They had told them earlier they were coming to take her for a test and they bought it.

"Walk faster," Tyra whispered behind them.

They took a turn to a corner and headed north to the staircase leading to the underground parking lot.

"Sorry, Barbie, but you have to walk cause we are taking the staircase."
Tyra said when they stopped.

"Can you walk? It's not safe for us to take the elevator," Zayn asked, squatting next to her and looking at her with pure concern.

"I will try," she said with a small smile.

"Liz should be here by now, where the hell is she?" Tyra groaned looking down the hallway.

"Relax, she'll be here."
Zayn said to Tyra who was already cursing and saying it was a bad idea to come.

"Hey, sorry I'm late, someone called me to check on a patient," Liz said, running to where they were with a small bag in her hand.

She was wearing a purple scrub and a white slip-on shoe.

"Did you get everything?" Zayn asked collecting the bag and checking the content.

"Yes, I even got extra," Liz said with a grin.

"Let's go before someone notices something is wrong," Tyra said and opened the door leading to the back staircase.

"Hey, Bloom."
Liz placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a warm smile.

Zayn gathered her in his arms and carried her bridal style down the staircase.

"Let me know if you're hurting," he whispered looking down at her face.

"Not anymore," she mumbled and stared at the small bruises on his face. She wanted to ask what happened but decided it wasn't the right time.

It took them a while before they made it outside due to the long set of stairs from the third floor to the last step.

A red jeep was waiting close to the back exit, the door opened and Taylor gestured at them to hurry inside the car.

Zayn took her to the backseat and placed her gently on the seat, he sat next to her and Liz took the space beside him.

Tyra sat at the front seat with Taylor who pulled out of the parking lot as soon as the doors were shut.

"How long before they notice?"
Taylor asked Zayn who had his arm around Bloom like if he let her go she would disappear.

"Probably twenty minutes."

"You are sure you deactivated the cameras?" Taylor asked.

"Yes, relax bro."

"We'll be in deep shit if we get caught kidnapping the..."

"You're rescuing me not kidnapping me," Bloom cut in weakly.

She snuggled closer into Zayn's warm arms and listened to his heartbeat. She felt safe more than ever.

||
They arrived in a different city after a long drive. Zayn took her in arms ignoring her protest and carried her inside the motel. Liz knocked on the door with their signature knock, Nicole opened the door with a gun in her hand. Her shoulders relaxed when she saw it was them.

"Bloom! Thank God," Nicole pushed the cushions away and made space for her as Zayn brought her to the sofa.

"Hey, Nicole," Bloom said, adjusting on the old sofa to find a comfortable position.

The motel didn't look that bad except for the smell of wet clothing in the air. There were two beds in a room, a small tv, a microwave, an old wooden table, and the couch Bloom laid.

"How are you? Are you comfortable? Should I get you something to eat or a drink?"
Nicole asked sitting beside ask.

"I'm okay," Bloom gave her a lazy smile.

"Why are you guys staying in a motel?" Bloom asked looking around.

"Why else we will be hiding, Barbie? If not for betraying the organization."
Tyra grimaced.

"Tyra drop it," Zayn warned her.

"We have a feeling the Antisam might be after us. We need to lay low for a while."
Liz explained.

"I thought you were in jail?" Bloom said to Zayn.

"Yeah, he got released this morning."
Nicole said smiling.

"Apparently the bullet they found in your body didn't match the bullet in his gun."
Liz explained.

"But he is on probation for illegal possession of a weapon."
Tyra said like she's been dying to tell her.

"It's only for a few months, I will be fine."
Zayn told her when he saw the worry written on her face.

"Thanks for coming guys, I didn't know how long I was going to last there. My dad told the Doctors to sedate me like three times a day."

"And you still call him your dad?"
Liz asked sounding upset.

"Where is Mika?" Bloom asked them.

"You won't believe what I'm about to tell you," Nicole chimed.

"Tumika can talk like literally say words. She started talking as soon as Zayn entered the house this morning."

"I thought I was still drunk when I heard her scream his name."
Taylor said and Bloom laughed softly.

"But Zayn said she started talking the night you were shot," Liz said

"Really?" Bloom asked and Zayn nodded.

"She is sleeping right now, I'm sure she can't wait to see you."
Nicole said.

"So, for the sleeping arrangement. Everywhere is occupied."
Tyra announced.

"I'm sure she can share one bed with Zayn, right?"
Nicole asked.

"What about Taylor?" Tyra asked crossing her arms.

"I will crash in my car, trust me is more comfortable."
Taylor replied before any of them could make suggestions.

"Are you sure? We can get another room."
Bloom said.

"We can't afford such luxury Barbie, thanks to you."
Tyra snarled.

"Let's go and get some food for everyone to eat."
Taylor said grabbing Tyra's hand and dragging her to the door with him.

"Sorry, you have to go through all these because of me."
Bloom apologized.

"It was worth it," Zayn whispered softly to her with a smile.

||

It was past ten in the evening, everyone was preparing to go to sleep. Nicole, Liz, Tyra, and Tumika were staying in one room that had double beds while Zayn and Bloom stayed in another room with a single bed.

Bloom thanked Taylor again before he left to spend the night in his car.

Nicole gave Bloom some of her clothes to use for the time being. Bloom put on her blue pajamas shorts and a white lace bralette after taking a shower.

She sat on the bed watching Zayn as he got everything he needed to dress her wound. He brought her a bottle of water and the medication they stole from the hospital. He went on his knees between her opened legs so he could check her stitches.

"Thanks for coming, I'm really glad they let you out," she said to him as she collected the tiny white pills.

"I owe it to you after messing up, I'm sorry for the way I acted that night. This should have never..."

"Hey," she cut him off placing her hand on his cheeks.

"Let's put all that behind us, what matters now is us."
She told him with a soft smile.

"Damn, you have no idea how much I missed that smile."
He said and she giggled.

"Does it hurt?" He asked her as he traced the stitches with his fingertip.

"A little," she said looking down at the stitches.

"I should have received the bullet for you, I was fucking slow."
He said as he cleaned it gently.

"You already did enough, Zayn."
He didn't say anything. He took off the surgical gloves and put everything away.

"Lie down, you need to rest."
He said arranging the pillow for her.

"I have been on sedatives for three days, I'm fine."
She said but obeyed.

He took the space next to her on the bed.

"Are you comfortable?"
He asked her probing himself up on one elbow to look at her. She grabbed his arm and put it around her and snuggled closer.

"I am now," she said and closed her eyes.

He turned off the lamp and they laid in silence in the dark.

"I just remembered something from that night I was shot," she whispered in the dark.

"What?"

"You said you you loved me or was it in my head?"

"Yeah, I did and I meant it."
He said stroking her hair, she blushed in the dark.

"I love you too," she whispered and kissed the back of his palm that was close to her face. He pressed his lips to her temple and held her close to him.

"Your Dad will flip when he finds out we took you."

"I don't care, I will rather be anywhere but close to him."

"He won't have the chance to hurt you again, I promise."

She contemplated telling him about her memories.

"I remember what happened, I remember everything."
She felt him tense next to her.

"Bloom, I..."

"You were so cute and your curls were full and long. The first letter you gave me hit me in the head," she said and laughed. He laughed too and smiled at the memory.

"Do you know why I stopped writing?" She asked.

"We don't have to do this?"

"My Dad saw the last letter I wrote to you, it contained details of what happened to my mom. He didn't want anyone to know what really happened. He killed her, Zayn. I was there and I was so stupid to believe his lies."
She broke into tears.

"It's okay, you don't have to talk about it."

She wanted to let it all out.

"He convinced everyone she was assassinated but I knew the truth. He took all the letters away and got Martha fired. I don't know what happened after."
She sniffled.

"It's okay, he won't get away with it."
He pulled her closer.

"He took my mom away from me because of his greed for power. I couldn't even save her, she was right there in front of me calling for help but I just followed my Dad. I could have done something, I would have saved her, and she..."
She sobbed.

"Shh, it's okay. You were just a kid with a manipulative father," he whispered, stroking her hair.

It took a while before she calmed down and went to sleep. He stayed awake feeling too angry to get any sleep.

||

"So, I have been meaning to ask you, what happened to Rosa?"
She asked the next day while he was checking her stitches.

"She should be in Canada having the time of her life."

"Wait, you let her go?"

"Yeah, I figured I owe her for taking care of my sister and dealing with my bullshit."
He said and stood up.

He put everything away and came to sit next to her.

"How are you feeling?" He asked brushing her stray hair behind her ear.

"I'm much better now," she smiled at him.

He moved closer to kiss her but the knock on the door stopped him. Nicole opened the door before any of them could reply.

"Um...sorry did we interrupt something?"
Liz asked walking in.

"Yes, our privacy. What's up?"
Zayn asked facing Nicole and Liz.

Liz reached for the remote control and switched on the tv.

"You're all over the news, it says you were abducted at the hospital by who they believe to be members of the Antisam."
Liz narrated.

"And they are offering a reward for whoever gives useful information to help find you."
Nicole added.

"She will be safe here as long as she doesn't leave this building."
Zayn said.

"What about the lady downstairs? Maybe she saw the news," Bloom asked a little terrified.

"You mean Jessica? Puh..lease," Liz scoffed. "She didn't even bat an eye when we passed, she was probably busy on Tinder."

"Hey, you will be okay here until we find a way to get the Antisam to help us."
Nicole assured her.

"Taylor went to get breakfast, he should be here soon. We'll be waiting for you guys in the other room."
Liz told them and left with Nicole.

"I want to speak to Damian," she told Zayn as he put on a red hoodie.

"We can't trust him, Bloom."

"Damian is like a brother, he would never hurt me. I trust him, he won't do anything to hurt me."

"Are you sure about that?" He asked with a skeptical look.

"Yes," she said confidently.

"Fine, you can speak to him after breakfast. Let's go."
He took her hand and left the room with her.

||

Everyone was against the idea of Damian coming to the motel to see Bloom. She tried to convince them he was trustworthy but they provided different reasons why she shouldn't trust him.

In the end, after so much consideration they allowed her to see him but told her they won't be responsible for whatever happens.

"You sure this is a good idea?"
Zayn asked her as they waited for Damian to arrive.

"Please, just trust me. He is not a bad guy."

"I hope you're right," he mumbled.

Damian arrived a few minutes later. Zayn refused to leave the room, he sat on the single sofa in the room and kept himself occupied with his phone.

"I'm so glad you made it," Bloom whispered as she wrapped her arms around him.

"I came as fast as I could, I saw the news and I have been freaking out. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Zayn and his friends broke me out of the hospital. Dad told them to sedate me every day to shut me up."

"That son of a bitch," Damian growled.

"Hey, I'm safe here, you don't have to worry about me. How have you been? Dad told me you resigned."

"No, he fired me and won't let me see you or visit you in the hospital. I was so worried."

"I had a feeling he was lying," she said taking a seat on the bed.

"There is something I need to tell you."
He said with a different expression written on his face.

"I hope everything is okay?" she asked getting worried.

"Yes, I just need to get this off my chest."
He exhaled and sat next to her.

He took a glance at Zayn who wasn't paying attention to their conversation.

"Can you give us a minute? We have something private to discuss."
Damian asked him.

"Go ahead, I'm not listening."
Zayn said not looking away from his phone.

He looked at Bloom and begged her with his eyes to ask him to leave.

"Zayn, it's okay. You can wait outside the door, I will call you if I need you."

"No, just pretend I'm not here."

"Please," she begged sweetly.

"I will put a bullet in your brain if you try anything stupid."
He threatened before leaving the room.

Bloom smiled as she watched him walked out of the room. Damian gave her a smug look.

"So, what's up?" She asked resting one pillow on her thighs.

"I..."

"You lied," she cut in. He looked away not knowing what to say.

"You knew about the letters, you were always around when I wrote them. You also followed us to visit the neighborhood, why did you lie?"
She asked, fuming in anger.

"That's what I wanna talk to you about, I think you should know the truth."

She already felt betrayed, she didn't expect him to be part of any of it.

"I was outside your room the day Martha ran into your Dad with the letter in her hand, he took it from her and read it. He was so pissed after and fired her. He told me to search your room for any more letters and bring them to him. He read all the letters I found and told me to look for Zayn and get all the letters you sent to him."

She looked surprised at the new information.

"I threatened Zayn to give them to me but he refused. I returned home and told your Dad he threw the letters away and he believed me. He started acting strange and told me to keep an eye on you. He would leave the Valley House with you every day which was unusual. He never told me where he was taking you. He only ordered me to make sure you were ready and Aunt Matilda..."

"Aunt Matilda?" She cut in surprise to hear her Nanny was involved.

"We didn't know what your Dad was doing to you. We were only following orders. All we had to do was get you out of bed and made sure you eat enough and then he leaves the building with you."

"You didn't come along?"

"I did once, he took you to a hospital but he wouldn't tell me why. All I know was, whenever he brought you back you looked so pale and weak. We got worried when you started losing some weight but he kept telling us you were fine."

She held her tears back and listened to every word. She remembered everything, the torture she went through in the small room receiving brain shocks while her Dad watched from the other side of the room with a short man wearing round glasses.

"There was a day, he didn't bring you home and you were gone for almost two weeks. When you returned you couldn't remember certain things, like your room and some of the staff. He gave me the letters a few weeks ago to drop on your bed so he could see if you would remember anything."

"Why didn't you try to help," she sobbed.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know and there was really nothing I could do."

"He wanted me to forget what happened to my mom because I saw what he did to her."

"What are you talking about?"

"She wasn't assassinated, Damian, he pushed her."
She said and broke into tears.

He moved closer and put his arms around her.

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea" he whispered.

"One more thing, I was the one that gave the FBI the location to the Antisam hideout."
He confessed.

She pulled away from him as if he burnt her.

"What?"

"I followed you that night, I was really worried about you and I couldn't trust him."

"Please tell me you're lying," she said shaking her head in disbelief.

"I'm sorry," he apologized.

"Do you know how many teenagers got killed? I went through shit because of that and it was all you?"
She said with tears in her eyes.

"I just spent hours defending you and giving my friends reasons why you can be trusted but I was wrong about you, you're just like him!"

"Bloom..."

"The Antisams are not the bad guys, they are trying to show everyone the truth and I'm on their side."
She told him and stood up from the bed.

"You can leave now, I don't wanna see you ever again."

"Bloom please," he tried to touch her.

"Get out!" She yelled.

The door burst open and Zayn walked in pointing his gun at him.

"Did he hurt you?" He asked her.

"No, he was just leaving."
She said glaring at Damian.

"Leave," she said wiping her tears away.

"I'm really sorry, Dollface."
He told her and walked out of the room.

"What happened?" Zayn asked putting his gun away.

"He's just not a big fan of yours," she said faking a smile.

He pulled her into his arms and she welcomed his scent and warmth.

"You suck at lying," he said to her stroking her hair.

||
Bloom stayed with the girls the next day. It was hot outside and the AC in the room was not providing enough comfort.

Nicole was styling Liz's hair while Tyra laid on the bed frowning at her phone.

Bloom sat with Tumika on the carpeted floor as they tried to arrange a large puzzle.

The door opened, Zayn and Taylor walked in.

"This is what you asked for right?"
Taylor asked throwing a plastic bag on Nicole's lap.

She picked it up and brought put the sanitary pad inside.

"This is maxi, I asked for thin," she said with a groan.

"What's the difference?" Taylor asked with his forehead creased in confusion.

"Forget it," Nicole said with an eye roll.

"Hey," Zayn whispered behind Bloom and bent down to give her a kiss.

"Hey," she smiled against his lips.

"Look what I got you," he said to his sister and brought out a pack of a gummy bears.

"We are heading to the hideout, we have to find a way to speak to Mr. Grayson."
Taylor announced.

"Do you have a death wish? You guys will be dead before you get inside."
Nicole said.

"We'll be fine," Zayn said facing her.

"No, this is a bad idea."
Nicole disagreed.

"I'm with Nicole," Bloom said.

"Me too," Liz added.

"We can watch out for ourselves, you have nothing to worry about. Let's go."
Taylor said and headed for the door.

"You're both crazy, call us if you need back-up."
Nicole yelled after them.

"We'll be back with dinner," Zayn said before closing the door.

"I'm going to get some ice, wanna tag along, Barbie?"
Tyra asked standing up from the bed.

"You know she can't go out."
Liz told her.

"Is just across the street. Let's go out for a little vitamin D."

"Someone might recognize her, it's not safe."
Nicole said.

"Are you coming?"
Tyra ignored them and asked Bloom.

"You can wear a hat and sunshade, no one will recognize you."
Tyra added, sounding desperate.

Bloom knew Tyra wasn't her biggest fan. It was weird seeing her begging for her to accompany her to the store.

"Okay," Bloom agreed. She would love to feel the sun on her face, besides it was just across the street.

"Bloom you can't go out," Liz told her.

"I will be fine."
Bloom said and stood up. "Do you have a hat and a shade I can wear?"

Tyra smiled and walked to the wardrobe. She brought her black baseball hat and a sunshade.

"I will be back soon," Bloom told Liz and Nicole as they walked to the door.

"Be careful!" Nicole yelled.

Tyra didn't say a word to her during the walk to the store. She was focused on her phone.

"I never got to thank you for helping to break me out of the hospital," Bloom said.

"Don't thank me yet," she said putting her phone away.

Two black cars stopped next to them on the sidewalk. Bloom recognized one of the guards that stepped out of the car.

She turned to run away but Tyra held her back.

"What are you doing?" She asked her trying to pull away.

"Sorry Barbie, it's time to return to your dream house."
She said and pushed her to the bodyguards.

"B*tch!" Bloom screamed.

"I have been called worse," Tyra said smiling at her.

"You have her, time to fulfill your end of the deal," Tyra said to one of the bodyguards but received a bullet instead.

Bloom watched as Tyra clutched the left side of her stomach. She struggled in their arms but they dragged her into the car and drove off quickly.

She watched Tyra crumble to the ground from the window.