Kendra
I should know how to pray but the words wouldn't come. Nuns like me are supposed to be vessels of devotion, but spending three years in this convent didn't change the fact that I did not belong here.
Kneeling on the cold floors, I stared at the huge Crucifix above the Altar. Candles flickered around me and I clenched the rosary dangling from my fingers tightly.
"I don't know if anyone's listening," I whispered, lowering my head as I tried to shake this intimate feeling of emptiness, "but I'm confused. I don't know who I am anymore…"
My voice trailed off, but I wasn't done yet. I was going to pour my heart out but I was rudely distracted by the sharp screech of car tires outside. I tried to focus but my eyes snapped open when screams reached my ears from outside. I hurriedly got on my feet, wondering what the commotion was about.
"What the fuck…"
The words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it but I was more concerned about the cause of the noise outside.
I got up without thinking, rushing out as I called out to the Mother Superior.
"Mother Agnes?"
A gunshot suddenly rang out and my eyes widened as I realized the sound didn't come from far. That was definitely a gunshot. Hastening my footsteps, I stumbled towards the door and immediately I got out, I first noticed the black SUV idling in the middle of the compound.
The other nuns stood huddled near a statue, trembling with their hands raised in surrender.
"We do not want any trouble," I heard Mother Agnes's voice and that's when I saw that someone was pointing a gun to her head.
"I don't want to cause any troubles either," the man holding the gun growled. His voice sounded familiar but I didn't think too much of it until he made his demand. "I'm here for someone named Kendra," he said and I froze. This person was here for me.
No one in this place knew me by that name and Mother Agnes's words confirmed that.
"There is no one here by that name."
"Look, I know Kendra's here and I'm not leaving without her." The man was desperate and I could hear it in his voice.
Staring at his back, his voice finally clicked and I realized who he was.
"Killian?" I called out and he whipped his head towards me.
"Kendra!" He exclaimed, lowering his gun. "Oh, thank God!"
"What the hell are you doing here?" I hissed, marching towards him with clenched fists.
The nuns breathed a sigh of relief as they watched us but Mother Agnes looked furious. "Sister Maria! Do you know this man?" She demanded.
I glanced between her and Killian, unsure what to say. How would I begin to explain that this man who looked like he was raving mad was actually my little brother?
"I'm waiting for someone to answer me," Mother Agnes snapped.
"We don't have time for this," Killian suddenly pulled my wrist. "We need to go."
I instantly shook him off, taking a step back as I stared into his eyes. He looked so… different. Three long years had passed since I last saw anyone from my past and seeing Killian now brought back old memories.
"Why are you here?" I asked him again.
"I'll explain in the car," he said, trying to reach for my hand a second time but I backed away.
"I'm not going anywhere with you," I told him point blankly. "This is my life now and I don't want to be pulled back into everything I've been running away from."
Killian groaned in frustration and before anyone could say anything else, he was already pointing a gun to the other nuns. The women shrieked in horror and Mother Agnes was screaming at me to make Killian drop his weapon.
"I do not have time to go back and forth with you, sister," he spat. "Come with me or you'll be counting bodies by the end of the minute."
The screams only grew louder and that only made the tension at the scene stronger.
"Stop this madness, Killian!" I tried to talk to him but he let out a dark chuckle.
"I'm losing my mind here, sissy. I really don't want to shoot anyone so don't force my hand!" He replied. "Get in the damn car and let's get the hell out of here."
I hesitated and two other men got out of the car right then, pointing their guns at the nuns too.
"Tick tock, Kendra," my brother warned and I could see it in his eyes that he was not messing around.
"Fine!" I said in a loud voice. "Let's go. I'll go with you. Just drop the gun."
"Get in," he motioned towards the car and I calmly obeyed even though my heart was hammering in my chest.
The two men got in, one taking his place in the driver's seat while my brother got in after warning the women not to involve the police.
"This is a family matter," he told them with his head sticking out the car as it sped off.
"You better have a good reason for this," I finally spoke when we were a good distance away from the convent.
"As if that's any way to say hello to the brother you abandoned," Killian murmured under his breath as he adjusted in his seat.
I just stared at him with my arms crossed. I was fuming on the inside, but that didn't negate the fact that I was overwhelmed with mixed feelings. I thought these past three years had flown by quickly, but now, it seemed like a long time had passed.
"Is that what you've been telling yourself?" I asked him. "That I abandoned you? Pa died…"
"And you ran away," he cut me off. "You left when I needed you most, Kendra. And for what? To live as a nun? Sister Maria?" He scoffed and then glared at my attire. "It doesn't even suit you."
"I'm sure you didn't abduct me to tell me that," I raised an eyebrow and he exhaled, leaning forward as his gaze turned serious.
"I'm in trouble, sis," he confessed. "I did something stupid and now someone wants me dead."
My heart skipped when I heard that but I managed not to react.
"Who have you crossed, Killian?"
"Il Diavolo," he answered, his voice trembling. "Alessandro De Santis wants me dead."