For a moment, I was too flabbergasted to even speak. The looks on their faces were so dumb that I didn't believe a word of what Heath just said. And when it did register in my mind, I started to laugh.

Until I realized that Heath was completely serious.

Uncomfortable, I stared at them. Fixing my shirt over the veins, I fixated my attention to Heath. My tongue suddenly felt too heavy to be in my mouth. A bit afraid of the answer, I voiced my thoughts. "Is there even an antidote for this?"

They didn't answer.

For some reason, the implication that I might die within three days didn't quite have that panicking effect on me just yet. I looked at Cage, and then Heath. They didn't meet my gaze, but concentrated at the ground instead. "So that's a no?"

The only person I had to blame for this was myself. A bit of it fell on Cage as well, but it was mostly me. I should have ran that night when they took me into the forest. Just kicked Cage in the family jewels and ran. Or at least I should have made a better effort to escape before things went too deep. And they did. They did get too deep and now I couldn't dig myself out of the hole I created. Or perhaps I should just stay in this hole considering I might be getting buried soon.

I should have fought harder. Granted, I didn't know what I was getting myself into. But I did know that Cage Vickers was a bad person and that thought alone should have made me run. It should have. But it didn't, huh? I played with fate too long. I suppose the consequence was fitting. Too much power can crush even the biggest of empires. And the mentality of a teenage girl.

"It's a...maybe." Heath finally spoke.

"A maybe." I repeated.

"It's complicated." Cage growled. His eyes swept past my head and to the lobby doors that led outside. He wouldn't look me in the eye and it was making me anxious. Why did I feel like Cage was hiding something from me? "I need to go."

He started walking away.

"Cage." My voice cracked on his name. It was barely a whisper leaving my mouth, so it came as no surprise that Cage didn't hear me. Or maybe he did hear me and chose to ignore it. It didn't stop Cage from leaving. I watched, a crushing raw bitterness filling my stomach, as he disappeared around the corner. A moment later, we heard a door close faintly from somewhere.

So what? As soon as I became a burden, he decides to abandon me? I suppose it made sense. Cage Vickers had more important things to worry about than the unvaluable life of a teenage girl. But that didn't stop the bubbling rejection that ate my heart out. Even though I had no idea where Cage was going or what he was going to do, the fact that he walked out when I needed him here with me absolutely crushed every bit of dignity and self-respect that I had.

Surely, I couldn't have been the only one who caused this. I wasn't. Cage played a part in all of this, too. He was the reason for how I felt. That gnawing self hatred over one carefully composed man. If I meant nothing to Cage, why did he lead me on? Why did he kiss me? Why did he make me feel like the happiest girl in the world and then crush it without so much as giving it a second thought?

And why the hell did I not do the same thing to him? Because I was too nice? Too innocent? Screw that, my innocence was gone the moment Cage raised his gun and pulled the trigger on Micheal.

For a man who could kill his best friend, I suppose I should have known the answers to all those questions. That answer was that it was because he was Cage Vickers. The most fucked up crime boss that ever lived. Granted, that didn't forgive his actions. But it didn't forgive mine, either.

I should have known better. How many times could I tell myself that? Not enough, it seemed.

Heath watched me carefully, his eyes guarded. He wasn't going to say anything unless I asked him directly. So I did the next best thing. Once again, I had to rely on his friends to supply the answers. Funny how that worked, wasn't it? They told me more than Cage ever could. If I wasn't so in awe of Cage, I might have preferred his friends over him. "What's he going to do?"

Heath reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. "He's gonna get the antidote."

My heart picked up at his words. "So there is a cure to this?"

A green lighter appeared in Heath's hands. "I wouldn't exactly call it a cure. It's...experimental. But still worth a shot, I suppose. The crime family who created the sedative in the first place, the Rodriguez family, only just have bought out the reversal. We learned about it only just last week."

"But the Rodriguez family lives in Argentina, right?" I asked. "Do you mean to say Cage is going to Argentina and coming back within 3 days? Unless he can teleport to one country to another, I don't think he's going to make it back in time."

"Cage is not going to Argentina, sweetheart." Heath gave me a look, as if it were mere common sense. "He's going to Italy."

"Italy?" I repeated with frustration. Heath's mysterious replies were starting to get annoying. "Why the hell would he need to go to Italy?"

"I told you, November." He snapped. "To get the damn antidote."

I watched as Heath lit up his cigarette and took a long drag. "So it might not work?"

"I wouldn't know."

"What do you think Cage is going to do?"

"Find Vivian."

I frowned at his vague answers. "And who's Vivian?"

He fixed me with an amused look. "You really don't want to know, sweetheart."

"But I do."

"Fine. But don't come crying to me when you find out exactly how fucked up our world is." Heath walked over and sat down in one of the leather couches. After a moment of just standing there stupidly, I realized he was waiting for me to join him so I walked over and sat down on the seat opposite of where Heath was."

I glanced down at my shoulder. The tips of the blue veins reached up to my skin. Heath was leaning against the seat, lazily blowing smoke into the air. "What's going on?"

He exhaled loudly. "Vivian is Romeo's daughter."

I stiffened. "And Cage is going to find her in Italy? What for?"

"I already told you. Romeo has the antidote. It was the only one the Rodriguez family have created. They haven't even tested it out yet. Cage is going to find Vivian and convince her to give us the antidote. She's Romeo's daughter, which means she has access to his work. And she will give it to Cage, I can promise you that. As long as Cage agrees to her terms, he'll be back by tomorrow night with the antidote."

I was at a loss of what to say. Did I get Cage Vickers wrong? Could he still have a heart through all of this?

Heath straightened up. "Do you remember what you said to me in the car? When I asked you if you loved Cage, you said you couldn't. And since he obviously doesn't matter to you, would you care to know what Vivian's terms are? She wants something from Cage. And I have a feeling he's going to give her whatever she wants for that cure."

I was beginning to see the game that the Crows played. Toy with emotions, find what makes a person tick, and then use that to destroy them. God, they loved the power, didn't they? That high, that feeling of having absolute control over a human being when they were nothing more than a title and cold eyes. Cage was the best player. I leaned forward, my eyes just as carefully guarded as his were. "I would love to know, Heath."

Cage Vickers was nothing more than a man. Neither was Heath or Nick, and if Micheal or Jonah were here, neither were they. It wasn't that being human made them special. We all were human, in one way or the other. It was the title. The label set by media, by the newspapers, by the people. The rumours to their monstrous actions was what made the Crows so untouchable. Creating a reputation of fear and intimidation brought them to the top. And Cage Vickers was the leader behind their success, their impressive empire. It was a pretty amazing thing, if you think about it. And it also made me feel that much more invaluable to them.

His smirk was almost unbearable. "He's going to sleep with her."