Titre : Run

Synopsis : Five years went by and the Four Horsemen live now normal lives. But when Daniel is arrested by the FBI, his old friends understand they are also hunted. It's time for them to get together again.

Disclaimer : Now You See Me doesn't belong to me. I write for fun and not for money.

Foreword

First of all, thank you for reading my story. I have to tell you that Run is the English traduction of another story of mine I have recently started to write in French (it's called Cavale if you're interested) because it's my mother tongue. Actually I realized there was only one other story in French about Now You See Me and I thought that it would be very interesting to try to write mine in English. This is the first time I'm doing this. I've been learning this language for ten years now and you may find mistakes in my writings. Please, don't hesitate to tell me when I'm wrong so that I can correct it right away.

Thank you all and enjoy your reading !

Chapter 1

Pacific Grove, on the Californian coast, in the middle of June. It was neither a hot day nor a cold one. To be honest, in this town where lived about sixteen thousands inhabitants, the temperature was rarely above 71,6°F. Although it wasn't very warm, Pacific Grove had so many other advantages. Henley loved this place : the Victorian houses, the sound of the waves hitting the rocks, the hundreds butterflies which came there to take shelter … It was a kind of heaven to her.

The first time she came, she was between eleven and twelve, her parents had taken her there for summer break but she didn't remind much of it. Yet she naturally recalled the town's name when she agreed to live with Daniel. Then, some months after that, they moved into a beautiful appartment near the ocean like a lovely young couple. The building's plum frontage was beautiful and pierced with large white windows. It had three floors so it overlooked all the other houses around. Henley and Daniel lived on the last one, in the attic. It wasn't too big but it was enough for them and also for the little girl they gave birth to, about two years before. Her name was Emmeline Ashley Mabelle Atlas, yet her parents were used to call her affectionately Emmie. She was a little brunette whose pretty face looked exactly the same as her mother's. And since she has arrived, Henley had thought that the Four Horsemen's great adventure was over for good.

However that day, though it was barely ten, something was about to prove her she was wrong. She had risen up early to take Emmie to her last required appointment with the pediatrician while Danny had decided to stay at the appartment to find work. Since they had gotten themselves talked about too much five years ago, the Horsemen had to be discreet. Officially, they weren't hunted. But unofficially, it was a bit different … Actually, Daniel thought he was good at only one thing : magic which he couldn't practice discreetly. His girlfriend had perfectly succeeded in transforming herself – she had become an employee at the closest realtor – but he managed to miss every opportunity and forget every job interviews he could. For a long time, his attitude had been a topic for their arguments but when Henley told him he was going to be a father, Danny started to realize he was acting like a child and it was time to grow up, especially because they were about to be three and a baby requested some money. Yet old habits die hard since nobody had wanted him in spite of all his motivation. He was always said to be too young, not qualified enough or too slow … But he was never discouraged. Henley liked that, she liked knowing he was making efforts for her or rather for the family they were forming. While she was leaving the clinic, she looked at the baby girl who were struggling in her arms laughing and she thought she had her father's keen and mysterious eyes. This discovery made her smile. She is indeed Danny's daughter, she thought kissing Emmie's pink cheek while the girl was too busy watching a cat climbing a tree to react. Henley put her down and, while holding her hand, she started to go back to their appartment. The toddler walked by her side and looked all around. She marvelled over everything she could see without noticing her mother was feeling enthusiastic to see her so happy. They went around the corner of the street together when a ringtone made them stop. Henley realized it was hers. She kneeled down near the little girl who were asking silently where this sudden noise was coming from. Once she had found the phone at the bottom of her bag, Henley took a look at the screen. The call was from Danny's phone. She picked it up.

« Danny ? »

She heard a sigh of relief on the other side of the line.

« Henley … are you still with the pediatrician ?

- No, we have just left.

- Okay. »

His voice seemed a little tensed. Something was wrong. She waved towards Emmie to stay quiet when the girl started to ask why they had stopped. As an answer, the little girl folded her arms and pretended to sulk. Nevertheless the young mother felt too worried by this strange call to notice it.

« Are you far from home ?

- We'll be there in two minutes.

- Alright, alright. »

Silence came back, it was more oppressive and scarier. Henley deeply felt something was wrong and Daniel wasn't his usual self. She couldn't say what was going on but she knew him enough to say he was acting strangely. Feeling uneasy, she took Emmie's little hand so that the girl stopped sulking right away. Her small bright eyes stared at her mother without knowing what was happening and asking herself thousands of questions she couldn't answer. She was far too young to guess. But Henley was starting to speculate quietly.

« Danny, is everything alright ?

- Yes of course. »

She was sure it was a lie. He could fool anyone with that kind of statement but not her. Yet she had the feeling insisting would have been a great mistake. Was he in danger ? Or more accurately, were they in danger ? She gulped nervously and thought it might have been time to hang up when she heard Daniel continuing :

« Hey … Henley ...

- Yes ?

- I love you. »

Her heart suddenly speeded up. He didn't have the habit to confess his feeling that way, without any reason and moreover, on the phone. She really started to feel frightened : she knows he was tensed and he was telling her he loved her … this situation looked a lot like the bad script of some Hollywood thriller movie. Henley looked at her daughter trying to get her little hand back. What was going on ? What should be done ? Daniel's voice brought her back to reality :

« Henley, don't come back ! Take Emmie with you and leave ! Leave quickly ! »

After that there was a kind of row and the phone was hung up right away. Henley didn't realize immediately what just happened. A few seconds went by and her face was showing nothing more than surprise. Then she threw the phone into her bag and lifted her daughter up since she believed she wouldn't be able to run when the time would come. Yet instead of running away as Daniel had ordered it, she hurried to the appartment knowing she could be caught too. The closer she was, the harder her heart beated. Her head started pounding pretty soon. She was sometimes hot, sometimes cold and then her muscles tensed up. She had just arrived at the corner of the street. Before the building, several black cars were parked and a number of men were waiting in front of the great door carrying guns and bulletproof vests with the acronym FBI on it. For a short time, Henley forgot to breath and held a daughter closer. All of a sudden there was a great noise inside and the door opened : other FBI agents came out taking Daniel Atlas with them. They were all walking with the head down when Daniel suddenly rose it up and looked briefly at his girlfriend. The latter believed for a second that he didn't notice her but then she thought about it and started to believe he had acted as if nothing had happened so that she wouldn't be caught. The young mother couldn't believe what was happening. Everything was fine until that day … The federal police wasn't after them anymore since a long time and yet, the agents were there, in front of her home, and they were taking away her lover, her other half. She slowly began to shake. Emmie noticed it, she slightly moved away from her mother and asked what was going on in a dubious English. However Henley didn't answer. She turned around and rushed in the other way, thinking about one thing : running away, running as far as she could go to escape the police and make herself sure she would never be separated from her child.

Daniel was handcuffed and sitting on the back seat of the car. He looked into the vehicle's rear-view mirror and saw her standing at the corner of the street holding Emmeline in her arms. How pretty was she … Why is she still there ? he asked himself before she ran away. Then he let out a sigh since nobody had noticed her and let himself down on the back seat thinking about what he had been arrested for.