by Leesa Birch
“What will you be testing for, Ryan?” He looked irritated by my question.
“Cyanobacteria to start with.” He looked up from his microscope, saw my obvious blank expression and continued. “It’s the scientific name for blue-green algae. Cyanobacteria produce a group of toxins called microcystins - poisonous to animals and humans who come into contact with them.” I didn’t like the way he said ‘humans’; it was almost an accusation. Ryan returned to the tests in hand and ignored me. I guess I was just tired from the earlier flood barrier.
“Is there somewhere I could go out of your way, Ryan?” He never stopped what he was doing.
He just muttered, “Down the hall on the left. Stay to the left. Room marked 102.” I said thanks but he never heard me.
I wandered off down the corridor with my water, staying to the left. Room 102 was where he said it would be. There were a few bunks in there, all empty. I guessed the lab techs used it when they had a spare few minutes. An empty coffee pot on the side wasn’t reassuring. There was also a small sink in the corner, I wondered if I should call Sylvia. I didn’t want to push her. Maybe later, I had nothing but time.
I lay on the bed staring at the white ceiling when I thought I heard a noise. Listening carefully, I could hear a low hissing sound coming from one of the vents. Getting off the bed, I went to take a look. My head spun, or the room did - I wasn’t sure which. The hissing grew louder around me and I started to choke.
Gas? You’ve got to be kidding me, I thought. I tried to make for the door, missed the handle and slumped against the wall. Sliding down to the floor, the door opened and a man in breathing apparatus approached me. I passed out as he started to speak.
The light above me was a little too bright as I opened my eyes. I blinked away the pain in my retinas and sudden panic set in when I tried to move. I couldn’t. I lifted my head to see what was going on. My wrists and ankles were in restraints. I struggled to no avail. I lay my head back down on the table I was strapped to. Why did all these tables have to be so cold? Bad guys really had no manners anymore.
“How are feeling, Ivy?” I turned my head to the left. Ryan was sitting in the corner watching me.
“Ryan, would you untie me please? There’s been some sort of mistake.” He rose from his stool and walked over to me.
“Maybe when I’ve finished. I need to run some tests on you first, Ivy.” Tests? Crazy scientist, what was he expecting to find?
“Who are you working for, Ryan? Let me go - I mean it.” I tried to sound threatening.
Ryan held out a syringe. My eyes shifted but I didn’t know what to do. Pipes in the room started to rattle. Some test tubes over the far side exploded. The sound startled him. He pushed the needle forcefully into my arm. “We’ll have none of that now.”
After the sharp pain, I instantly felt drained. My eyes shifted back to their original green. I felt a little nauseous too. I tried to speak but I didn’t have the strength. “Blood tests first I think, then behavioural.” What was he talking about, behavioural? Still feeling the cold of the steel through my clothes, I lay there helplessly.
Ryan wheeled something on a trolley from where he had been sitting. It was an arch-shaped metal device covered in needles. He lifted my top a little and carefully moved the apparatus over my waist. He continued to screw it onto the table on either side of me. What the hell was it? The row of needles, less than an inch from my skin, hovered above my stomach. I tried to move again. “That wouldn’t be wise, Ivy. Try to be still, I need to be accurate here.”
Ryan pushed the first needle into my stomach. It felt like it went in pretty deep. I would have screamed had I been able. He screwed it into place, not once looking at me. He then continued to push the other needles in one by one, securing them as he went. Seven, in total.
Thinking back to previous torture I’d endured, this was bearable - so far. I think I would have been more scared had I not been so drugged.
Ryan inserted a long needle down the centre of the middle one. He drew out some fluid, looked satisfied then took it away. It hurt when I breathed out heavily so I tried to calm myself. This was going to be a long night. Then, hopefully, Gary would come back in the morning and beat the crap out of this guy.
Ryan ran several tests, inserting oversized needles into me. Clenching my jaw so I wouldn’t squirm, I felt every one of them. He took a lot of blood from my arms and scraped skin cells from various places, all the while ignoring the fact that there was a living person in front of him.
I was starting to get some movement back in my arms. While Ryan was out of the room, I looked around to see if there was anything that would help me get off this table. Ryan had left a trolley with utensils on it close to the table I was lying on. I guess he thought I’d be sedated longer, or he’d lost track of time. I wriggled my arm in the restraint so I could reach a little further. I caught the trolley with my little finger. I wasn’t close enough.
I pushed my arm hard in the restraint, hoping for a little more give. I jarred the needles embedded in my stomach. The pain and feeling that I was skewered made me want to throw up. I tried again, more carefully. I managed to get my little finger on the rim of the trolley. Trying to contain my excitement, I pulled it until it touched the table.
The only thing in reach was a thick needle about five inches long. I didn’t want to know what he was going to do with it. I hooked it under the strap and pulled it free. Getting the buckle undone was more difficult. Threading the instrument into one of the eyelets, I pulled the strap open enough for the spike to fall out. I pulled my hand free and undid the other one. I wasn’t looking forward to the next part.
One by one, I unscrewed the needles that he had impaled me with and slowly pulled them out. The muscles that they had penetrated weren’t so eager to let go. I held my breath as the pulling aggravated the wounds. I was trying not to scream. I dropped the last pin as it cleared my body. Leaning forward, I scrambled to release my feet. Once open, I wriggled out of the metal arch and made a run for it.
All the corridors looked the same. I couldn’t remember which way I’d come. As I turned the next corner I saw a blurred fist swinging at my face. I turned as I hit the floor, holding my cheekbone. “You better not have broken anything in the lab, Ivy.” Ryan leaned over me with a look of disdain and hit me again.
I woke in a grey room, tied down to another table. Originality wasn’t rife around here. The room was cold and the light above me flickered. A drip was attached to my arm. I felt sluggish and drained again. More of the stuff I’d been injected with earlier, I guessed.
I was waiting for Ryan to show his smug face, but no one came. How long had I been in here? Was he coming back?
I could hear Ryan’s voice in the corridor outside my room. He wasn’t alone. I could hear Gary too. I tried to call for help but I was too exhausted from the drugs. Ryan was telling Gary that I had left this morning as I had already been given the results. Gary was full of questions of how, when and why. He knew I wouldn’t just leave without contacting someone first. Unfortunately, Ryan had answers for everything. He said that I’d been given a ride from another member of staff, that I wanted to get back early for something or other. When the explanations were over, I could hear Gary start to walk away. I tried to make some sort of noise against the steel table, but my restraints wouldn’t allow for any movement. Gary left. Despair set in.
Ryan came in a while later. He injected something into the drip. “Let’s see how you do with this. I’ll be watching.” He pointed to the camera in the corner of the room. My eyes begin to feel odd as I saw him leave the room.
Where was I? I was lying on a hospital bed in a small white room. The air was so thick with humidity it dulled the strip light above me. I was hot, burning up. Sweat appeared then ran off me. No, it wasn’t sweat. There was too much of it. Water began to trickle out of me; it started to leak out of my every pore. I felt like I was melting. The water poured out of me from everywhere - gallons of it. Where was it c
oming from?
The room was flooding. The water had already reached my bed, covering my toes and making its way up my body. I shuddered as the water turned icy cold. There was a man with an evil grin standing in the water. He had a scar down his cheek. I knew him enough to be afraid. As he waded through the water towards me, recognition along with confusion filled my head. It was The Collector!
“No, you can’t be here. You’re dead. I killed you!” I splashed about in the rising water, trying to move away from him.
The water covered my face until I was completely submerged. The grey figure in the water reached out to me, holding me down. I could only lay there watching as the water rose towards the ceiling. As the water reached the striplight it flickered once then went out. All that was left was darkness and the weight of the water bearing down upon me.
My head was throbbing as I came to. I had forgotten where I was, just for a second. “That was truly interesting.” Ryan was back. He was holding readouts from something. “I have all I need for now, Ivy. So I guess you can go.” Was he really just going to let me walk out of here? How long had I been here?
It didn’t matter, the moment he removed those straps I was going to do my best to hurt him. “Just a couple of things before you leave. This is so you won’t try to drown me or anything. And this…well, let’s just say that you won’t know what hit you. You won’t remember a thing.” He stood over me trying to decide which needle to stick me with first.
“What do you mean, I won’t remember a thing? I’m going to tell everyone…” He cut me off mid-sentence.
“This will chemically wipe your brain. I know your friends can heal you but I doubt they’d find you in time.” I grimaced as both needles were pushed into my arm. “You bas…”
Darkness came about all too quickly.
5
And that’s when I woke up in the desert with no memory.
“Ivy?” Kane’s voice brought me round. “How are you feeling this afternoon?” He was wiping my face with a cold wet cloth. He smiled down at me. I reached for his face and he kissed the palm of my hand. A large bowl of water and a sponge were sitting on the bedside table. I thought about it for a moment. I guess bed baths weren’t that much fun when you really were sick.
“Did it work? Do you remember me, Ivy?” The question sounded silly. I remembered everything now; not finding the sirens, working for the council. I remembered the problems with the lake and I remembered Ryan. I sat up too quickly, the room spun. “Whoa there, missy. You’ve been in and out of a fever for the last few days. You’ve lost a lot of water.” He pushed me gently back onto the bed.
“I remember everything. I remember you. I also remember what I accused you of when you were trying to bring me in.” I put my hand on his thigh. “I’m so sorry, Kane. I didn’t realise. I know you would never hurt me.” Kane rinsed out the cloth and wiped my brow.
“I’m just glad you’re back, sweetheart; don’t think I could stomach losing you. Here, drink this for me.” He helped me sit up and handed me a glass of water. I was so tired. I felt like I hadn’t seen Kane for weeks.
“Sylvia came by earlier. She left you these.” Kane held out a plate of cookies. My stomach growled. I immediately checked it for holes. Nothing. They were gone now.
“Sylvia used the water to call me, didn’t she?” I thought back to the diner and the ghost in the mirror.
“Yes, she did. She was worried about you when you went missing.” he said. I was glad she was feeling better. After Luke, I wasn’t sure she’d recover - mentally anyway.
Sitting on the couch, I shared my cookies with Kane while I told him as much as I could remember. He changed the sweat-soaked sheets and ran a bath for me. I did offer to help, even though I was still a little shaky. After the third ‘I got this’ I quit asking.
Making my way into the bathroom, I looked in the mirror. I decided that the dark circles under my eyes were here to stay. The rest of the mess that stared back at me wasn’t. I didn’t hear Kane come in. He moved behind me and put his hands around my waist.
“Let me help you with this, Ivy,” he whispered. A shiver ran down my spine as I felt his breath on my neck. He started to undress me.
“You wouldn’t let me help you.” Not that I was protesting. He kissed the side of my neck.
“This is different.” I really was too tired to object.
Kane removed his jeans and shirt. He dimmed the lights and climbed into the bath.
“C’mon, this tub’s big enough for two.” He parted his legs making room for me. My eyes changed accidentally. Control yourself, Ivy, I thought. He’s just a guy in your bath tub - a really hot guy who I hadn’t seen for a while. Well, technically I had. My head hurt to think about it.
“Ivy.” He held out his hand. I took it and climbed as gracefully as I could into the hot water. I sat in-between his thighs, leaning back with my head against his chest.
This was worth any amount of trouble I ever managed to get myself into. He drizzled hot water down my body with the soapy sponge and began to massage my worries away.
It was late and Grogan was coming in the morning to see me. I’d have to go over the lab stuff again. I must remember to tell him that Detective Roberts was still harassing me too.
I was so relaxed after our bath that I drifted off to sleep almost straight away. Maybe I should have stayed there. The noise of pipes banging woke me in a panic. I could hear choking noises. I looked over at Kane, horrified at what I saw. He was convulsing on the bed. Water was coming out of his mouth. I screamed. My eyes shifted and I grabbed him, turning him on his side. I removed the water from his lungs and airway. He sat up, choking. What the hell did I do?
Kane tried to touch me. I backed away. I was mortified.
“No, don’t,” I stuttered. I climbed off the bed and went to sit on the couch.
“Ivy, it’s ok, I’m fine - see?” I shook my head. I wasn’t hearing this. This wasn’t happening.
“Fine? I just nearly…” I couldn’t say it out loud. I was hyperventilating. The pipes began to shake again.
“Ivy, you need to calm down. Now!” I looked at the pipes on the wall. They were moving. “IVY!” I covered my ears trying to block out the noise of the pipes. Breathe, Ivy, just breathe, I thought. The pipes slowed to a shudder, then quietened down.
Kane slid himself into some jeans as someone knocked on the door. “Just try and stay calm, Ivy. Grogan will fix this.” He didn’t look scared. Why wasn’t he afraid of me?
“Morning, you two,” said Grogan cheerfully as Kane let him in. He took one look at me and Kane and asked, “What happened?” I looked at the ground. I couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud.
“It was an accident. That’s all,” offered Kane.
I felt sick. My stomach turned uncontrollably. Grogan leaned sideways to peer around Kane into the bathroom.
“It looks fine to me,” he said.
“It wasn’t the bathroom,” Kane said quietly. Before Grogan could figure it out I ran into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind me. Then I was sick, shortly followed by some sobbing. I could just make out Kane explaining to Grogan what had happened, filling him in about the lab. He left a few minutes later.
“Ivy, you okay?” Kane spoke gently outside the bathroom door. This wasn’t the best start to the day. I sat, hugging my knees on the bathroom floor, trying not to think about what would have happened if I hadn’t woken up. I was dreaming that he was drowning again. What am I, that I could do that to him? I’d only just got him back.
The bathroom door opened a few inches. A large cup and saucer was slid into the room. “It’s ginger tea. It’ll help settle your stomach, Ivy.”
After rinsing out my mouth, I sat by the bathroom door and drank my tea. What was I supposed to do now? I had to make a decision - a tough one.
Kane was waiting patiently on the couch as I reappeared from the bathroom. I held up my hand when he went to speak.
“I need you to move out
. You can’t stay here anymore. It’s too dangerous. I’m too dangerous.” Kane stood and made his way across the room. I turned away from him and began rinsing out my cup.
“Now hold on just a minute, Ivy. I told you I’m not going anywhere.” He gently brushed my hair out of the way, turning me to face him. “Once you get your necklace back, you’ll be fine. Until then, Grogan will give you some tea that will keep your water weaving skill in check.” It wasn’t good enough. I couldn’t risk it.
I had tears in my eyes. “You’re not making this easy, you know. I’ll drink Grogan’s tea. But until I get my necklace back, you can’t stay here. I won’t risk it.” He seemed oddly at ease with my condition.
Maybe he thought I was joking. He kissed me on the forehead, long and slow. Then he moved down to my lips. Pressing me against the kitchen sink, his mouth covered mine, his lips hot and his tongue playful. The sink shifted behind me and I pushed him away.