by A. M. White
“Save it Timothy. She deserves to be knocked around for what we have been through.” He grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked me to my knees.
Cara pushed Jason out of the way to face Chris. “I can see you haven’t been doing so well out here. I can find you food. You don’t have to do this. We are more valuable to you alive than dead.”
Chris smirked; the scars exposed his evil soul. “But I would get so much more satisfaction.” He twisted my hair. I gritted my teeth to hold back a scream.
Timothy kicked at the guard. A muffled choke escaped from him as the guard tightened his hold.
“Elijah will be so pleased to have you as his guests. I must warn you, the moles weren’t as gentle with him as they were with us.” Chris flicked his hand at the guard.
The guard shoved Timothy away. Timothy hit the rock hard. It knocked the breath out of him. Jason pulled him to his feet and propped him up.
Chris released my hair. “Get up. We have a reunion to conduct.” He stepped back.
Cara grabbed my hand and I stood.
I stared into Chris’s eyes.
He raised his eyebrows. “Ladies first.” He bowed slightly. “Keep an eye on them.” He gestured to Timothy and Jason. The guard nodded.
Chris poked me in the back several times. He directed me that way. The knife tore my shirt and punctured my skin. Blood oozed from the tiny wounds.
“Let’s talk. I do enjoy talking.” Chris chuckled.
“You always do.” I ventured.
“Well, I am glad you remember.” His steps were gaited strangely. “That guard is a horrible travel companion. He’s always grunting. Nothing intelligent ever comes out of his mouth.”
“Did they do something to your legs?” I asked.
“Thank you for noticing.” He said sarcastically. “At least I can still walk.”
“Is the whole village gone?” Cara questioned.
“Every building was burned. Your people wanted to make an example of us. When I close my eyes, I can hear the screams of men, women, and children. They took most of them, after they were tortured, of course.” His voice was sweet, like he was reminiscing.
My hair stood on end. He was sick. He made me cringe.
“Before we get to Elijah, I must tell you that he doesn’t like it when people stare. I would hate to have to kill you quickly, so please be careful.”
Cara glanced at me. I shook my head. There was no way to escape without at least one of us being seriously hurt.
I saw a lean-to ahead of us. A small fire expelled smoke into the air. There was no one visible.
Chris led us to the tarp that hung horizontally from a tree. “Elijah! We brought you some visitors!”
A wet cough rattled from inside. “Who did you bring me, my dear boy?”
“Oh you are going to be very pleased with me. I brought some old friends of ours.” Chris peeled back a tattered cloth from the opening. He pushed me forward to the entrance. The smell of rotten flesh wafted from inside. I gagged.
Elijah lay on a blanket; well, what was left of him. His legs were severed at the knees. Blood seeped through his bandages. Flies buzzed around him, disturbed by our presence.
I tried to regain my composure. I shifted my eyes from his legs to his face. He appeared jaundiced and his skin shriveled against the bone.
We made eye contact. A shriek radiated from him. “Oh, my dear Alex, look at what they did to me. I am so very glad I have the pleasure of seeing you one more time before I die.”
I took a step back into Chris’s knife. The pain jarred me forward. I heard Timothy struggle against the guard.
Elijah tilted his head to the side. “And you brought Cara and Timothy! Chris, you really have out done yourself.”
Chris came beside me. “I knew this would make you happy.”
“My boy, I am delighted, although, Alex has been marked. Poor thing, you were so beautiful. Oh, well.” He clapped his hands. “What shall we do with our visitors?” Elijah began to hack. He spat into the corner of the makeshift tent.
Jason had enough of Elijah’s game. “Listen you sickos, I don’t know what you think this is, but I see a twig, a half dead man, and a lumbering idiot. I am not going to stand around and entertain you people.”
Chris wheeled on his heels and slashed a hole in the front of Jason’s shirt. “You will entertain us in any way I ask.”
Jason froze wide-eyed at the slice that had been made through his shirt and on his skin. Blood beaded from the scratch on his chest.
“Understood?” Chris sneered.
Jason frowned. “You have my attention.”
“Cara.” Elijah moaned. “Am I too far gone for your ointments to work?”
She covered her nose and mouth with the sleeve of her jacket. “Elijah, we can smell you from here. You are way too far gone.”
He thumped his head on the ground. “I knew it, but I had to ask.”
“She might be lying-.” Chris started forward.
Elijah interrupted him. “Chris, the girl speaks the truth. Look at me! I am rotting alive.”
It was obvious that Chris loved his master deeply. At that moment, it became clear that Elijah would die and it would be soon.
“Don’t say that!” Chris yanked Cara’s bag from her and dumped its contents on the ground. He grabbed Cara by the throat and threw her into the pile of bottles and cloth. “Get down there and find something that will save him.”
I kicked him in the knees with all my might. With a moan, he landed on his back.
In two strides, the guard had Timothy in one hand and my throat in the other. I thrashed around and tried to pry his fingers off me.
“Stop, both of you, stop!” Elijah winced and sat up. He sweated profusely from the effort.
“I don’t have anything that will fix this.” Cara stammered. “The best I can offer is to make you drift off; to make your suffering end.”
Elijah stroked his chin in thought. “Hmm, we may be able to strike a deal after all.”
Chris clambered to his master’s side. “Elijah, don’t do this. You are far too strong for this to be the end. I never would have brought them to you if I knew this would happen.”
“My dear boy, I have lived a long life. I would like to die with a little dignity.” He gently cupped Chris’s face in his hand. “You have served me well. I only ask this one last thing of you.”
A tear dripped from Chris’s jaw. From somewhere beneath the blankets, Elijah produced a knife and plunged it into Chris’s heart. Chris stiffened with his mouth agape.
“You have to die, so I can die peacefully.” Elijah let go of Chris and he fell sideways.
I yelped in surprise.
Jason reeled. “You are a sick-.”
Cara blurted into hysterical laughter. She clapped. Everyone was taken back by her response. Even Elijah was dumbfounded by her reaction. She clapped loudly. “You stay true to yourself, lying there decomposing from the inside out. Well done, old man.”
“Don’t you mock me, little girl!” Saliva sprang from Elijah’s mouth in anger.
She pulled the gun from her belt and pointed it at Elijah. “Without your slave boy, I am in charge.”
The guard tightened his grip on me.
Elijah managed a small grin. “Well played.”
“This is how it is going to work: First, your man is going to let Timothy fully disarm him. Then, we want to hear about how you found us. I don’t buy that it was an accident. If I am pleased, I will give you guard enough medicine to kill you. After you are dead, he can go to the crevice where we were found and retrieve a knife. That way he can survive out here.”
Elijah grimaced. “I had imagined dying in the arms of a beautiful woman.” He nodded at me. “I assume I have no choice now?”
She shook her head, the gun aimed straightforward. “If you try anything, I will make sure you die slowly and without dignity.”
Elijah sighed. “So be it.” He waved his hand for the guard to releas
e Timothy and me.
Timothy bent over and coughed. He rubbed his throat as he tried to catch his breath. Jason held out his hand for the guard’s gun. He handed it over. Jason walked behind the guard and aimed the gun at his head.
Once Timothy regained his composure, he patted the guard down. He found a knife in the back of his pants and a smaller one tied to his ankle.
I took the gun from Cara so that she could get up. I covered Elijah. “Get in front of us.” Cara instructed the guard.
“How did you find us?” She picked up the items strewn across the ground and placed them in her pack.
Elijah cackled. “We had to find you. The moles made us. They are on their way here, right now.” He opened the top button of his shirt. A thick chain blinked with a small yellow light. “They promised to take another limb from me each passing week, until we handed you over. It was to be our retribution. They told me they would save me if I did.”
“You idiot! There is nothing that can save you from this!” Timothy walked up and grabbed me around the waist. “We leave now!”
Cara tossed the guard a small bottle of liquid. “I keep my word, old man.”
The guard popped the cork and quickly drank all the contents.
“No! No!” Elijah bleated.
We turned and ran. I ran faster than I had ever run before. My legs pumped harder than I thought possible.
Suddenly, there was a great howl. A noise comes when a person is inflicted with unimaginable pain. It flooded the forest. It pierced my heart and squeezed the breath from my lungs. I envisioned the terrible things the moles did to Elijah. I shuddered and almost stumbled.
Timothy draped my arm over his shoulder and dragged me along. We couldn’t stop for anything. We ran to live.
Chapter Nineteen
We circled the rocky passage where we were captured. We didn’t leave the gun for the guard. He had no use for it now. I was shocked that he drank the euthanizer. I knew Elijah was the reason he had no tongue. It was his last act of defiance.
Jason and Cara sprinted in front of us. My legs felt wobbly, but I managed to keep them going. I allowed Timothy to burden some of my weight as we ran.
I tried to keep my eyes open. Every time I closed them, scenes of Elijah’s torture played in my mind. The shrill cries were inaudible now, but they haunted me.
I pushed further than my wounded leg wanted. The ground was uneven and made the trek difficult. At one point or another, each of us tripped. Thankfully, we had each other to help. An injury could mean the difference between life and death.
Every situation with the moles trumped the last. They were desperate and their attempts to stop us became more lethal. Fear pulsed inside my gut. If they caught us, we would be lucky if they killed us.
It terrified me to think that they might make an example out of us. A body on display, impaled and left to rot struck me. That was how they made an example in the camps. I heaved.
Timothy lifted me into his arms without hesitation. He knew I struggled.
“I’m sorry.” I whispered into his shoulder.
“Don’t.” He breathed.
Cara slid, feet first into a small crevice between the ground and a boulder. Jason followed her lead. Timothy shoved our packs inside. I dropped to the ground and wriggled backwards. He joined me as soon as he heard that I was settled.
“There is granite right below us. They won’t be able to see us on radar.” Cara said hastily. She guessed that I would wonder about our bodies on the ground. “We are squeezed in pretty tight. Hopefully the space doesn’t draw attention.” She cocked her gun, just in case.
“That doesn’t make me feel better.” Jason whined. “You guys have some explaining to do when we get out of here. I mean, what in the world was that?”
“We owe you that.” Timothy agreed. “For now, stay quiet.”
The earth was damp against our bodies. Our hiding spot was cramped and smelly, but it looked too small to hold all of us. I hoped that it would deceive the moles, if they came.
My senses were piqued. There was a fair amount of adrenaline that remained in my veins. I feared what might be down by our feet; like spiders or snakes. The hair on my arms rose.
Once I had my breath under control, the coolness of the earth, mixed with the warmth of Jason and Timothy pressed against my sides lulled me. My heart began to slow. The adrenaline waned in my system.
I fought sleep, because I was afraid I would have a nightmare about Elijah. That wasn’t the type of dream I wanted. Sleep finally won.
The dream picked up where it left off. I was back in the operating room.
Jameson walked toward my head. He put a finger to his lips. I noticed a syringe in his hand. He held it over my eyes deliberately. He paused for a moment and pointed at a cut under his wrist. It was fresh. He pushed it and blood oozed out. Then, a peculiar metal shard poked through. He pushed it back into place.
“Everything okay doctor?” One of the other people asked.
“Yes, just making sure I have the correct dosage.” He answered.
He pulled an IV tube over me and pushed the liquid through.
Jameson bowed close to my face. He only spoke one word. “Remember.”
I gasped for air. My eyes popped open. My hands clung onto Timothy’s chest. It was dark.
“Hush, we’re okay.” He calmed me.
I shifted my head, so I could see him. Only a sliver of moonlight reached his face. His black eyes twinkled in the stream of light. They looked like the night sky with stars sprinkled upon the dark canvas.
Jason and Cara made soft sleep noises behind me.
“I know what the doctor wanted me to remember.” A shiver ran up my spine. I had mixed emotions about the dream’s implications. I waited for his reaction.
A smile slowly spread across his face. “I knew you would, sooner or later.” He pulled me closer to him.
“He has something. He showed me a cut on his wrist. Something was implanted beneath the skin. Whatever it is, we need it.” I sighed.
“You have got to be kidding me.” Timothy snarled.
I shook my head. “He had it the whole time and never told us.”
Timothy’s face contorted. “He needed you for the maps, but he has the thing that will destroy the machines.” The puzzle pieces fit together in his mind. Timothy shook with anger.
I closed my eyes. “He must’ve known the danger we were in at the village. It would secure his safety, if they caught him. We have to go for him.”
“That selfish jerk! I should have known not to trust him.” Timothy punched the rock ceiling.
“Shh. Don’t wake the others.” I took his hand in mine. He had taken a few layers of skin off his knuckles. I looked deep into his eyes. He had to understand that there was no way around it. “If we are going to do this, we need him.”
Timothy fumed. tried to get ahold of his emotions. His clenched fists began to relax. “You gotta give it to the guy; he is smart.”
I nodded. “Our theory has been confirmed. He knew that a raid was coming. Now we must to move past that and work on a new plan.”
“They could have taken him anywhere.” Timothy whispered.
I shook my head. “I think they took him to the closest machine; the one in the maps. They might believe he knows how to get them started again. They know we spent time with him and that he has the data from the capsule.
I fear he has even more than he shared with us. The capsule may have revealed where his device needs to be placed. It would make sense.”
Timothy stared at me in disbelief. “I hadn’t even begun to think about that. You are probably right.”
There were still a lot of what ifs. That was Dr. Jameson’s plan all along; to keep us in the dark so that he would be needed. The new knowledge shifted our purpose from direct destruction of the machines, to a rescue mission. The thought overwhelmed me.
We were expected. The moles knew we headed to the machine. For all I knew, they may believe w
e have all the information to bring it down. I hoped for time to work out how to use that to our advantage.
Timothy was silent in thought, too. This was a heavy revelation. I could almost hear the gears in his head as they turned.
I put my head upon his chest and breathed his smell. It comforted me. “How late is it?”
“It should be near dawn.” He answered.
A twig cracked close by, then leaves rustled. I stiffened and patted Timothy to get his attention. He held a finger to his lips.
Cara turned her head toward us, her eyes wide. She put a hand over Jason’s mouth and gestured for him to be quiet. Her other hand clutched the gun.
Black boots emerged from the bushes. A few soldiers walked into the clearing. My heart leapt to my throat. A scope light paused on the ground inches from my face. The boots halted. It took all my strength to not recoil from the light.
A walkie-talkie beeped loudly. I almost jumped out of my skin. “Anything?” The walkie crackled.
“No.” A smooth voice responded.
“Head back. Dawn is coming.” The other end ordered.
The boots shifted. “You heard the order.” They marched back into the bushes. We waited until their noises completely faded and then waited some more.
Once there was no question of their departure, a collective exhale emitted from the crevice. Cara became too restless to stay in the tight space any longer. She crawled out first.
She waved us out. I shimmied free on my stomach. It was a relief to stand and stretch. I groaned when my knees popped straight. Timothy and Jason wiped the dirt from their pants the best they could. Cara crouched to fish our packs out of the rock.
“Anyone want to explain what happened last night?” Jason put his hands on his hips.
“Elijah used to be the leader in a village. Cara and I used to stop there when we traveled. He was always kind of sleazy, but the last time we were there he took it to a whole new level.” Timothy explained. He shook the dirt from his hair. “He took a liking to Alex. He basically set her up to be his prisoner. Elijah probably had much darker intentions than that.”
I chimed in to cut the story short. “Timothy was able to save me before it got that far.” I was still uncomfortable about the whole thing.