Chapter 1: How It Ended

Lokelani Sales, 15, paced nervously barefoot in her swimsuit behind her backpack on the little dock at by the wooded lake. This is all my parents’ fault, she thought, my name sounds like it starts with Loki. How did they expect me to turn out? Maybe he won’t come, she thought, they can’t blame me if he doesn’t come. Only tonight is senior Prank night. Tomorrow is graduation. But what if he DOES come? Can I do this? To the person I love more than anyone else in the world? Am I really THIS evil? She wished she had a sliver of doubt. But she was in too deep. She didn’t have a single shred of decency left inside that she could use to stop herself. If her big brother Blake showed up, she WOULD do this. And, with a mischievous smile she thought, it WOULD be EPIC! “Whoah, you’re in your swimsuit already,” she heard her brother call out as he walked down the hilly trail passed her parked bicycle onto the little dock, “Where are your clothes?” Lokee answered, “They’re in my backpack.” A lie. “Smart,” Blake said, “I wish I had brought a backpack for MY clothes.” Lokee replied, “There’s room for them in mine.” The truth. “Come on,” she continued, “Get down to your swimsuit. I want to see that Japanese dive they taught you on Swim Team.” Blake chuckled and kicked off his shoes. Lokee crouched down, opened her backpacked and stuffed his shoes and socks inside. “Where did you park?” she asked innocently as she stuffed in his shirt. “Up the hill on the road,” he answered as he dropped his undershirt in front of his little sister and began unbuckling his belt, “Next to the trail entrance.” As her brother dropped his pants, Loke allowed herself a quick glance. The loose swim trunks, perfect. Although the tight speedo wouldn’t have stopped her.

“You remember the Japanese dive, right?” Loke said as she slowly tucked his jeans into the backpack. She needed to draw out this part until he turned around. “The one where you start bent over with your fingertips touching behind your back?” Lokee had to make sure Blake remembered the starting position. You never know with Blake. “It’s my absolute favorite,” Loke said looking up with her adoring eyes and sweet grin that she had used for as long as she could remember to get her way with her big brother. “Well, in that case, I HAVE to do it,” Blake said sweetly. As he turned around, Loke opened an outside pocket on her backpack and pulled out something silver. As Blake bent over, Loke stood up behind him. It was the moment of truth. Would she do it? Blake actually smiled as he pulled his arms behind him and touched his forefingers.

The sharp metallic snick of the ratchet is unmistakable, like a steel trap snapping shut on a bone. It starts with a quick, decisive click-click-click as the cuff bites down, each tooth locking into place with a cold unyielding finality. Then comes the heavier clack when the second cuff closes, the sound ringing out crisp and hollow, echoing softly off the trees surrounding the lake. A thumb flicks the double-lock pin on both cuffs (two tiny snicks that most people don’t even notice) so that the cuffs will not tighten or loosen. There’s no softness to it; it’s abrupt, mechanical, and absolute. And it was done in less than two seconds.

But that was just stage one. As Blake straightened up in surprise, Loke crouched down again, grabbed a handful of his swim trunks on both sides and shouted, “SENIOR PRANK!” She yanked his trunks down to his ankles. Blake shuffled around to face his sister as she pulled out a small black piece of electronics on nylon webbing with a Fastex buckle. “Whoah, little sister!” Blake said with surprise, “You’re first ever prank on me and it’s THIS!?” He looked down at his situation, “I’m shocked!” Lokee stood up and said, “You haven’t been shocked yet, Blake,” as she fastened the training collar around his neck with a plastic CLICK, “But, you will be if you don’t do everything you’re told.”