Chapter 71 The Second Initiation
The week passed in a haze of pain and minimal healing. Nora’s body slowly began to knit itself back together, though not enough, never enough. Her bones remained fractured, her bruises deep purple and yellow, her wounds barely scabbed over. But she was alive, and she could stand, and apparently that was all they required.
On the morning of the seventh day, guards came to their cell. They pulled Noah and Nora apart, dragging them to separate rooms where they were washed, their wounds cleaned perfunctorily, their bodies dressed in simple robes. Nora’s was white again, though this time without the elaborate embroidery. Noah’s was plain gray.
Then they were brought back to the basement.
The same basement where the first initiation had failed so catastrophically. The candles had been relit, the blood from last time scrubbed away, the assembled cartel members gathered once more. Approximately sixty people, all masked, all watching in silence as Nora and Noah were led to the center of the room.
Ben stood at the altar again, his shoulder bandaged where Nora’s knife had struck him but otherwise looking entirely in control. Sussie stood beside him, masked as before. Nora’s parents were there too, positioned near the front, their expressions hidden but their posture radiating satisfaction.
Nora swayed on her feet, barely able to stand. The week of healing had not been enough. Every breath hurt. Every movement sent pain lancing through her body. But she remained upright through sheer force of will, her hand clutched around the small key her grandmother had given her, hidden in the folds of her robe.
Noah stood beside her, his own injuries still visible on his face. He looked at her with something like resignation, like he had accepted what was coming and made his peace with it.
“We gather once more,” Ben’s voice rang out, formal and ceremonial. “For the initiation of Nora Carter into the Shadowveil. Her first attempt ended in betrayal and violence. This second attempt will conclude differently.”
He gestured, and a guard brought forward a knife. The same type as before, long and sharp and designed for killing.
“Nora Carter,” Ben continued, “you stand before us having failed your first trial. Having proven yourself willing to betray rather than commit. But the Shadowveil offers second chances to those of bloodline significance. You will have one more opportunity to prove your loyalty.”
He took the knife from the guard and held it out to Nora. “This time, the sacrifice is not a stranger. This time, you must kill Noah. His death will prove your commitment to the organization over all personal attachments.”
Nora took the knife in her hand. Her fingers closed around the handle, and she could feel the weight of it, the sharpness of the blade.
Noah looked at her, his eyes meeting hers fully. There was no fear in his gaze, only a kind of sad acceptance. He spoke, his voice clear enough for the assembled crowd to hear.
“You could kill me,” he said. “After all, I had lied to you about so many things.”
He took a step closer to her. “I deserve it, probably. I’ve hurt you as much as anyone else in this place. Maybe you should kill me. Maybe that would be mercy, compared to what else they’ll do to us.”
The room held its breath. Nora looked down at the knife, then back at Noah. Her face was still that same empty mask it had been for days, showing nothing.
She raised the knife, gesturing as if she wanted to stab him. The blade lifted high, poised above her head, aimed at Noah’s chest. Everyone watched, waiting for the inevitable downward strike.
Noah didn’t move, didn’t flinch, didn’t try to defend himself. He just stood there, looking at Nora, waiting.
Then, in a shocking turn, Nora’s hand changed direction. Instead of plunging the blade into Noah, she turned it toward herself and drove it into her own abdomen with brutal force.
The knife sank deep into her flesh, and Nora gasped, her eyes widening with pain and shock. Blood immediately bloomed across her white robe, spreading outward from where the blade had entered.
“No!” Noah screamed, lunging toward her.
The room erupted in chaos. Ben shouted something, guards moved forward, the assembled cartel members surged to their feet in confusion and alarm.
And then, immediately after she plunged the knife into her own body, the basement doors exploded inward.
A group of people burst into the room, dressed in black tactical gear that resembled rival mafia group uniforms. They wore masks, carried automatic weapons, and immediately began shouting and creating chaos.
“Everyone down!”
“FBI! Nobody move!”
“Hands where we can see them!”
But the commands were confusing, contradictory. Were they FBI? Rival mafia? The tactical gear said one thing, the shouts said another, and in the chaos of the moment, no one could tell for certain who these people were.
Gunfire erupted. The cartel members who were armed drew their weapons and returned fire. The basement descended into absolute pandemonium, bullets flying, people screaming, bodies dropping.
Noah immediately rushed to Nora, who had collapsed to the floor with the knife still protruding from her abdomen. Blood was pooling beneath her rapidly, her face already pale with shock and blood loss.
“Nora!” Noah grabbed her under the arms, trying to lift her. “Stay with me! Stay with me!”
“Go,” Nora gasped, her hand weakly pushing at him. “Leave me. Get out.”
“Not without you,” Noah said fiercely. He pulled the knife from her body, making her scream with pain, and pressed his hand over the wound to try to slow the bleeding. Then, with strength he didn’t know he still possessed, he dragged her toward the door.
The entire fight was erupting around them with gunfire and shouting. Bullets whizzed past Noah’s head. He saw Ben take cover behind the altar, saw Sussie running toward a side exit, saw cartel members falling as the armed intruders continued their assault.
Through the chaos, through the smoke and noise and violence, Noah dragged Nora’s bleeding body across the floor, making for the exit, praying they would make it out alive, knowing that even if they did, Nora might not survive the wound she had inflicted on herself.
But they had to try.