by Redding, Mae
“What?” He glared furiously through the thickening smoke as I coughed from the toxic air. My lungs burned as I tried to breathe.
“What about the kids?”
“Who cares about the kids?”
“I do!”
“The only one coming with me is you! We need to hurry. Morrison won’t let this place stand for long. It's going to come down!”
My heart raced and panic set in as my throat tightened further. Blinded by a bright flash of light, I grabbed the railing for support as the ground shook underneath me. Dust settled from the ceiling as the blast jarred the compound.
“Jade!”
A little voice echoed from down the hall as it called out my name. I barely saw Corby and Maya run towards me. Mt heart sank into the pit of my stomach. I turned from Damian and ran towards them with him cursing as he clamored after me. The deafening gunshots thundered loudly from every direction outside. I reached them, hugging them both in my arms.
“Where's Lainie?” I yelled above the confusion.
“I don't know!” Maya cried, wide eyed and panicked as she grabbed me. She gasped for air, choking on toxic fumes. Corby’s cries grew vocal in my ear as he clung to my neck.
Damian reached us and grabbed me as a guard grabbed the kids. They pulled us apart. Their arms stretched out, tears streaked down their smoke stained cheeks as they screamed, wild eyed and scared.
“Stop! We need to help them!”
“No we don’t! We aren’t! The women will. They don’t have to take them far, they’ll get out.”
The plump woman appeared, frantic behind him and took Maya from the guard. Their high-pitched screams sounded above the gunshots, taken back down the hallway, away from me, away from the stairs, away from the way out.
“I want to go with you!” Maya screeched at the top of her lungs. Tears flooded her eyes as she tried helplessly to get away. Corby watched with wounded eyes by my inability to help him. They couldn’t understand and they both looked hurt, like they were abandoned, betrayed by me. Damian practically carried me as I unwillingly stumbled down the flights of stairs with him. Panic set in. Afraid I would never see them again.
We passed by the door through the front entryway. I felt an overwhelming urge to open it. An orange glow flickered through the side window, evidence of the war on the other side. I’d never been this close to it, and I’d always wondered when I would get to walk through it. I tried to resist him as I reached out for the doorknob and grazed it with my fingers, twisting it slightly. His strength, too much for mine as he locked the deadbolt and ripped my hand from the knob.
My heart sank as it moved farther out of my reach. Men’s shouts just on the other side drew my attention. A sudden jolt and a loud thud crashed against the heavy wooden door. I looked back, the side window a fractured web of glass as they tried to break in.
Damian’s eyes darted towards the door then he covered my mouth and pressed his hand against my lips as I started to scream. He carried me through another door and down more stairs deep, down into the earth. I gasped for air when he finally removed his hand. Hopes of a rescue faded as he forced me down a hidden hallway.
Barely visible, the earthen walkway dimmed from poor lighting that hung from wires draped along the height of the wall. I ran my hand along the cool damp walls and disturbed cobwebs collected from the lack of use of the passageway. The stale dank air, heavy in my lungs added to my difficulty to breathe.
Suddenly, the ground shook violently as a muffled explosion rumbled above us. I grabbed the groaning walls for support as the lights flickered. Fragments of the dirt ceiling crumbled as dust filled the air and settled slowly around us. I stopped suddenly. Afraid of tons of dirt and cement, collapsing and crushing me underneath. I froze in place as he covered my head with his arms.
“Come on! We need to keep moving!” He gripped my arm tighter and pulled me along faster as he started to run. “There’s going to be two more, this could come down.”
Minutes seemed like hours as we made our way down the narrow earthen corridor. The second charge rumbled but weaker than before and a third immediately after as we came to the end of the hallway to a door. The ground shook again and small pieces of dirt crumbled from the ceiling as he opened the door with a burst of fresh air that pushed my disheveled hair off my face. I pushed a stray strand to the side and looked through the dark sky as he led me outside. Somewhere on the other side of the compound walls, we crossed a road and pushed through the trees along a river.
The compound, still magnificent in size, raged, totally engulfed in flames. The vicious orange glow of the inferno, sharply contrasted against the black night like a pumpkin at Halloween. If anyone were inside before the explosions, there would have been no way to make it out alive. The urge to vomit threatened, as I thought of the kids, desperate and scared I prayed they made it out.
Branches whipped at my arms and I shielded my face as we scrambled through the trees. Men’s voices resonated louder, closer, and I screamed with sheer desperation for someone to hear me. Furious with my outburst Damian grabbed me into the crook of his elbow and pulled me close with a hand over my mouth.
“I wouldn't do that again if I were you!”
“I'm sorry,” I cried, desperate to be free. Once satisfied I would behave, we continued to trudge up an embankment through the thick underbrush. He squeezed my wrist tighter to warn me.
I stumbled from the uneven ground. He lost his grasp as I fell and slid down the steep incline. Jagged rocks cut at my flesh as the unstoppable momentum carried me tumbling towards the river.
I grasped for anything I could reach but failed and screamed as launched off a ledge. Rock and gravel broke my fall as I landed at the bottom. My breath, forced from my lungs as if punched in the gut. I gasped, desperate to breathe. My eyes darted to the ledge above me as I watched for Damian. Maybe a ten-foot drop off and possibly the only barrier between him and me.
Pain shot through my body. I rolled to my side as I sucked in air, still unable to cry out as the distant sounds of men's shouts neared behind me. I staggered to my feet and ran blindly in the inky blackness, along the river’s edge towards them.
“Kane!” I cried, hoarse and raspy. I ran, stumbling over rocks and fallen logs.
“Jade!” Kane yelled from somewhere through the trees. Too far away.
Footsteps pounded the hard ground behind me.
“Kane!”
“Where do you think you’re going?” Damian snarled, and then grabbed me.
“Let go of me!” I yelled as he knocked me to the ground. He grabbed my wrists. I screamed jagged wild cries as I struggled to get free, desperate for Kane. I swung frantically and hit him. He grabbed me and pulled me closer to the swift raging river. It crashed against rocks and drowned out our voices. I let out a muffled sob as I realized the river could have aided my escape, if I only thought about it before. I would rather risk drowning over confinement.
“You’re not leaving, Jade!”
“No! I don’t want this! I will never accept you! I will never love you! Even if Gage is dead!”
I fought to get free as he squeezed my body close to his. His face inched closer to mine, his breaths heavy. Strangely, I saw hurt in his eyes as he hovered over me. Pain I caused as if I betrayed him. For a fleeting moment, his icy bitter eyes looked confused, and then turned angry as he flipped me onto my stomach. He pinned an arm behind my back and covered my mouth. Razor sharp shell rock cut into my cheek as he pressed my head into the ground at the river’s edge.
The only sounds heard were his jagged breaths and my muffled cries as the sounds of men neared. My heart pounded rapidly as I tried to catch my breath. Kane called my name. He tightened his grip on my mouth. My chest felt tight and I couldn’t breathe as I heard the click of a pistol next to my head.
“If Kane finds us, I will kill him!” He snarled. His jaw twitched as he clenched his teeth. He removed his hand from my mouth. I sobbed quietly and listened to the sounds of m
y brother, not far from where we were.
“Quiet!” He said in a forced whisper. The only thing that kept him from killing Kane right then was the dozen other men with him. He didn’t stand a chance against all of them. I also knew the first one he would aim for, would be him. As much as I wanted to cry out, I knew I couldn’t risk it.
Kane’s voice grew distant and my body collapsed as I gave up the fight. He forced me to stand and I walked, void of feeling. Numb to the shouts and gunshots in the distance behind me as we walked upriver and under a bridge where a truck waited. He shoved me inside. I made a failed attempt to shield my face. A jagged cry burst from my lungs as he struck me with a violent swing of his hand. Blood, thick and metallic tasting instantly dripped from my nose. My shirt stained with droplets of bright red.
I sank back against the seat, worn and tired as I resorted to knowing I’d lost, again.
“You shouldn’t have crossed me, Jade,” he said, as he pulled a rope from the back seat and tied my wrists together. He pulled out a syringe.
“You are going to wish you didn’t do that.”
“No! Please!” I begged as he injected me with the drug. My head grew heavy and it lolled to the side. He blurred before me just before everything went black.
***
Startled suddenly from sleep, three guards barged into the room and bagged my head. I felt a barrel pressed sharp against my temple. I jumped as I heard the click of the engaged hammer. I screamed and begged them not to shoot me as the trigger snapped. Nothing! They laughed and pulled the bag off my head. I lay there on the floor and cried. Damian walked in and stood over me.
“I warned you, Jade,” Damian sneered. Rubin stood next to him. “I don’t know if I can give you another chance now.”
“Another chance for what?”
“To accept me,” he said, the mattress gave way as he dropped to his knees onto it. I was stupid to think I could ever be strong enough to get away from him.
“I would rather die in here than spend another day out there with you.”
He leaned over me. My breaths staggered as the space between us decreased. “Morrison is determined to bring you back after you are through with your punishment but I can fix that. I won't have you making a fool out of me. Don’t think that I can’t live without you… Disappointed… Yes, devastated… No. If its death you want, then I can arrange it… After I get through with you,” he said, and then an evil smile surfaced. “I could always sell you.”
Reminded once again, he viewed me as property, expendable and easily replaced as if throwing away your favorite toy after it lost its luster. My heart sank as I heard the door shut behind him. My mind and body numbed as I stared blankly at the gray cement wall. He returned me to that room, that cold cement room.
***
I woke slowly to the eerie buzz of silence. My breaths echoed loudly, painfully in my head and I tried to slow them. My jaw trembled. I shivered uncontrollably while goose bumps crawled across my skin. My tremors grew stronger. I curled my knees up tighter to ward off the cold as it seeped into my skin. I opened my eyes. The blackness remained the same so I let them drift closed.
The pain in my head shot into my eyes like jagged, pulsating spears and grew with intensity. The remnant effects as the drug wore off became intolerable the longer time passed and I wondered why Damian hadn't shown up yet. I felt conflicted, as I wanted him to come to relieve the pain and dreaded what came after.
The injections became a part of the routine that I welcomed. Despite of the bugs that appeared and warped walls that spun, the drug took me to a place other than the cold cement tomb. The effects left me barely able to breathe and took away my desire to do so. I drifted in and out of consciousness. I longed for the time that I wouldn't wake up and I wondered why my heart continued to beat. He wouldn't let me die. Damian wanted me alive, barely alive, but alive just enough, that I wished for death.
My heart quickened with each panicked breath and I felt dizzy as the faint sounds of heavy steps echoed in the empty hallway. They grew increasingly louder then stopped in front of my door as the jingling of keys rattled on the other side.
I pressed my face into the stale, dank mattress as the door opened and he entered, but something wasn't the same. The usual thick tension along with Damian’s eerie, desperate breath patterns were absent. I turned to look as a man pulled at the string overhead. I put my head quickly against my knees to shield my eyes that burned from the bright light. I flinched when I felt a hand smooth over the back of my head and I waited for whatever was next. Then the mattress gave way as he sat next to me.
“Turn off the light.” A man I'd never heard before spoke to someone in the hall.
I managed to open my eyes as the room went dark again. The dim lights from the hallway bled through the open door and provided the only light, but enough that I saw, he wasn't Damian.
“Here, have a drink.”
I took the bottle hesitantly as he handed it to me. My hands shook and I needed both to clutch onto it. I drank slowly as the cool water tasted good on my dry tongue and I was glad for the drink.
“Thank you.”
“I’m Casey, and I won’t hurt you. Damian is gone, for now.”
My eyes adjusted slowly. I eyed him with caution. I hadn’t seen him before and he confused me. He didn’t barge in and grab me, but kept his distance as he sat on the mattress instead of the usual invasion of my space.
My eyes burned as I rubbed them and blinked a few times before my vision cleared. Solidly built and tall, he looked to be about Kane's age. The light from the hallway cut into the dark room and revealed his straw colored hair that hung in his eyes. His scent filtered through the room, with a pleasant, clean musky smell, a welcoming change that masked the damp stench of the cement room.
A young woman, not much older than me, walked into the room and held a tray of food. “This is Megan.”
“Hi,” she said quietly. Small, pinpoint dimples popped into her cheeks as she offered a timid smile. She bent to her knees in front of me and set the tray down then glanced at Casey as he nodded. She stood and quietly left. I glanced quickly at the tray to see a covered plate and a syringe with a needle.
“She brought food for you.”
“I don’t want anything to eat.”
“You need to eat to get your strength back,” he paused briefly, as his gentle eyes quickly scanned over me to assess my condition, “you’ll be dead soon if you don’t.”
“What do I want my strength for? So I can live through more of this?”
My anger sat just below the surface but I felt weak, barely able to argue as I rested my head against the cold cement wall. “I would rather be dead… I will never be strong enough to stop Damian from … what he does.”
My voice threatened to give out over the humiliation I felt, as if spoken aloud made it more real, more painful. For the first time in over a month since I returned to the jail, I wanted to cry. My eyes grew moist and my throat tightened as I forced it down with a hard swallow.
What I really wanted, I didn't dare ask for. I hated that I needed the drug, the only way to calm the tremors, dull the pain and to lose myself. Tears welled up in my eyes and one ran down the side of my face. He went to touch my hand, a kind gesture but I jerked away from him.
“Don’t touch me! Please…”
He didn’t seem too surprised at my reaction as his hand returned to his side. “I’ll give you something for the tremors.”
A sigh escaped me and he took that as my agreement. He pushed the tray closer.
“Eat first,” he paused, “you’ll be out as soon as I drug you.”
I hesitated for a moment, but decided to eat. He handed me a sandwich and I forced myself to take several bites then washed it down with a sip of milk as I swallowed hard to force the knot from my throat. It looked better than it tasted as the texture and taste of cardboard came to mind.
“Eat.”
He looked at me, and then the nearly half-e
aten sandwich.
“Thank you, but...” I clutched my stomach as a gnawing pain growled inside me and I doubled over in an attempt to relieve it. “I can’t eat anymore.”
His brows knit together with genuine concern, his forehead wrinkled from the tension and he pressed his lips into a thin line. “You hardly ate anything,” Casey said, as he covered the tray of food and pushed it aside. “I’ll bring you food and if you continue to eat, I’ll help you with the withdrawals,” he said, with a raise of his eyebrows. He held up the needle to tempt me.
“Okay.”
“This isn’t the same as what Damian gave you, but it’s similar. I will gradually give you less until you don’t need it anymore.”
“Where did Damian go?”
“Kane invaded Morrison’s hideout… Damian needed to help. I don’t think he’ll be back for a while.”
“Kane found Morrison?”
“Not exactly, just his hideout.”
“Where’s Morrison now?”
“I wasn’t privileged with that information,” he said, with an underlying bitterness in his tone. “He’s out there still.”
“What about the kids?” I asked. My breaths grew rapid as my weakened voice raised a notch to show my worry. My heavy eyes searched his for an answer. He met my diluted gaze as he revealed nothing.
“I don’t know.”
“Was there… anybody killed?”
“A few, on both sides.”
I offered my arm to him as it trembled and he looked at me with saddened eyes. Maybe second thoughts of giving me the injection crossed his mind. “I’m sorry, Jade, for what Damian has done to you. If he comes back, he can’t know I’m helping you.”
“Okay,” I answered, I shook uncontrollably as it grew difficult to talk. “Who… are you? And why… are you helping me?”
“I’m Casey Jackson… Damian’s brother.” I gasped, shocked by who he was. He quickly added. “But I am not like him… Or Morrison… Or my dad for that matter. And the way I see it, Quinn got what he deserved.”