Jasmine POV
Nicole found another lawn chair and sat across from me. I was livid, for so many reasons. Most of all, because Sol had been held at gunpoint. How had that happened? He'd been with Viktor. It looked like Viktor had been struck on the head with something, so he could've been caught off guard, but what about everyone else? A group of twenty people, and only two of us managed to stay free. Ridiculous.
I had assumed that Nicole and her team would be competent allies, given their military background and their mission to capture me. But to be captured by a group of ordinary thugs? It was insulting.
"So this was a shit show?" I said, surveying the bodies scattered across the floor.
"Yes," Nicole replied, her voice calm despite the chaos. "I don't know how Liam and the others got captured. Something must have happened. I'll talk to them about it."
"Yes, when everyone comes back, we'll get an explanation of what happened. But that's not what I want to talk about." I leaned forward in my chair, eyes narrowing.
"What did you want to talk about?" she asked, sitting up straight, ready to listen.
"We need to establish a hierarchy within the group. There are three different groups joined together by necessity. I don't need to worry about Mitch, Jesse, Kyle, and Amber—they're mine. I know them, and I've mentored them. I've worked with Viktor for a couple of years, and I know his skills. But you and your team? You're an anomaly. I can't help but blame your team for this. Viktor was captured too, but he was protecting Sol. I need to know if I can depend on your team. Right now, it's not looking good." I paused, searching for any reaction from her. I could tell she was upset by what I said about her team, but I hoped she understood where I was coming from.
"Like I said, we don't know what happened," Nicole began, her tone serious. "Until we get the full story, I don't appreciate you insinuating my team is incompetent. I've worked with them for years. They have their flaws, but they know how to get the job done." She took a breath, steadying herself. "I agree, we do need a hierarchy because I only trust my team. Other than you and Sol, I don't know anyone else. And even you, I don't fully know. But every time I give directions, Viktor, Mitch, and Sol look to you for confirmation. It's undermining my authority."
"That's the thing," I replied, leaning back in the chair, my voice calm. "We haven't established any leadership. You followed me, and the others followed too. I honestly don't care who's in charge, as long as it doesn't threaten Sol. But if you want them to stop undermining you, you have to give them a reason to follow you, to trust you. The same goes for me and your team. I see how they look at me with suspicion. Our priority is survival. Stacy wasn't anyone's fault, but we need to be united if we want to make sure this doesn't happen again. At the very least, until we're out of the dungeon. If the trust still isn't there, then we can go our separate ways."
I glanced toward Josh, who was collecting himself after taking down one of the thugs. We didn't speak, and the only sound in the room was the faint whimpering and begging of the men we'd just defeated. Then, there was silence.
"Logically, you should lead," Nicole continued, her voice low but firm. "The majority of the group looks to you to lead, and you've shown us you can protect us. But you have to understand where I'm coming from. I've led my team through everything, and just this morning, we were assigned to arrest you. You're a criminal. The Medusa. How can we fully trust all your orders?"
I turned to face her. "You don't need to fully trust me. You don't have to follow me unconditionally. If my orders don't benefit you, I'd prefer you to be upfront with me. But you also need to understand that if you don't contribute, you won't get any benefits. I also want you to be my second. It will create a balance in the team dynamic."
"Why me and not Viktor?"
"Viktor is no leader. He's used to following orders or being a lone wolf. Like you said, you're a leader. You're used to the role. I highly doubt you or your team would follow Mitch, anyway." I shrugged, keeping my tone casual, but Nicole nodded in understanding.
"Alright," she said. "You'll lead us until we get out of the dungeon, and I'll be your second. I'll talk to my team, and they'll follow. So, what's the plan after this?"
"Once everyone reports back," I began, "we need to go to a pharmacy. I've noticed some people are injured. There's a mattress store nearby where we can rest for the night. Hopefully, no one's there. After that, we need to level up more. We should start searching for the women who went missing. Hopefully, these guys had a base we could loot. Do you have any other ideas?"
"No, I think that covers it. We'll have to be on our toes for any unexpected changes. What do we do if we meet other survivors or even Jasper and Nadia?"
"If we find other survivors, we'll be cautious. If they're willing to trade information or supplies, then great. But if they want to join, they need to pull their weight. Everyone must contribute. If they're enemies, we eliminate them. As for Jasper and Nadia—you don't have to help. I'll finish them myself. Do you have a problem with that?" I stared her down, trying to gauge her reaction.
"No problem," she replied calmly. "Looks like everyone's back. Are you ready?"
I studied her for any hint of what she was thinking, but her face was unreadable. I nodded, standing up.
"Ready as I'll ever be."