Taken By Choice (Taken Trilogy Book 3)

by Jessica Frances

  A part of the roof collapses in front of the door he is trying to get to just as he arrives and it crumbles down over his legs. The same arms grab hold of him again and they pull him out of the rubble. He looks to be in too much pain to fight back. He is screaming protests, but he continues being hauled to the only exit in the room and they barely make it out before the fire consumes that, too.

  He is dragged away quickly now and soon more people surround him to carry him out. He is thrashing in their arms, but they hold on tightly. The smoke gets so thick that I can barely see where they’re going. I find the smoke smothering me and I cough, trying to clear my airways. My eyes burn and the heat makes my clothes stick to my body uncomfortably. I keep my legs moving forward and soon the sun blinds me as Charlie is taken out into the fresh air. His body is covered in soot and I see blood pouring from his legs.

  Rose runs over to him, looking very much in the same mess as him. I notice a burn mark down her arm that’s deep red and blistered. Tears are pouring down her face, clearing away lines of soot, her whole body is shaking. They have a hurried conversation, but I feel like there is still smoke caught in my lungs and I can’t seem to catch a breath. I crouch down, coughing to clear it, but I can’t and I know I’m suffocating.

  Am I about to be killed by a dream?

  Chapter 15 – THE ANSWERS

  My eyes refuse to open and my hearing isn’t right. My head is heavy and every bone in my body aches. I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out. It takes long minutes for my ears to work properly and, when they do, I hear two familiar and angry voices arguing. Eventually, the voices form words my brain can understand and since I can’t seem to speak myself, I listen.

  “She won’t want you in here.”

  “You’ve known my daughter for five minutes, so excuse me if I don’t believe you know what she wants.”

  “I love Zoe, and she hasn’t been your daughter since you abandoned her when she was just a kid.”

  “You have no idea what you’re talking about and, if you aren’t careful, I will ban you from ever seeing her again.”

  “You don’t have the right to do that, and you’re kidding yourself if you think that is ever going to be something she would want.”

  “You may have stolen her heart, but I see you for the scared kid you are and one day so will Zoe.”

  “I will never stop loving her and I will never leave her.” Charlie speaks with conviction.

  “That doesn’t mean she’ll always feel that way about you.”

  “Is that what happened between you and her mom?”

  “You fucking ass—”

  “Charlie...” I gasp out, reaching my hand blindly for him, grateful that my throat has caught up and is now working. I only have to wait a second before both his hands circle mine.

  “You’re awake, are you okay? Do you need anything?” Charlie’s voice is panicked. I try to smile to relieve his worry. My eyes still won’t open and my head pounds.

  “Love you,” I croak out, wanting to agree with everything Charlie had said to Frank, but feeling my throat is too raw to speak.

  His hands tighten around mine. I hear the door open and Frank call out for a doctor. “I love you, too. Just hold on, a doctor is coming now.”

  “Don’t leave.” I fear being left alone with Frank and those doctors. Charlie kisses me on the forehead, promising he won’t ever leave me. I let myself fall back into unconsciousness, wishing my throat didn’t feel so painful and that my head would stop pounding.

  ***

  “Charlie?” My voice wakes me up, almost like I’m saying his name in my sleep. I open my eyes slowly. There is only a blue haze around me. From the rhythmic beeping, I know I must still be in medical.

  “You’re awake.” Charlie sounds relieved. His hand squeezes mine, making me realize he’s holding onto one.

  “What happened?”

  “You had a bad reaction to the drugs they gave you. You started seizing and your body went into shock. They almost lost you, twice.” Charlie’s voice hitches and he moves a hand away to ruffle his hair about.

  I try to reach my hand towards his, but my arm feels like it weighs a ton. My whole body is sore and stiff.

  “How long have I been in here?”

  “A week.” He leans in closer, his eyes eagerly taking me in. “You woke up a couple days ago, but you weren’t conscious for very long. I should get a doctor to look over you.”

  “No, don’t go,” I plead when he tries to move away. “I’m just a bit thirsty.” My throat is dry, yet my headache is mostly gone and my eyes don’t feel as heavy.

  “You scared the crap out of me, Zoe.” Charlie leans over, pours out a glass of water from a jug by the bed and helps me to sit up so I can drink it. “You got some burns on your arms, you suffered smoke inhalation and your body temperature got high enough that they had to throw you in an ice bath. Your nose was pouring out blood. I thought I was going to lose you.”

  “I’m sorry.” I look away from him and marvel that I’ve been unconscious for so long. Why did I react that way? What happened? Burns? I glance down at my arms and find them bandaged.

  “They’re saying it was a failure and your body had a bad reaction from the medication. I don’t think they’ll be doing that again. At least, I won’t ever let them do that.”

  “But I’m okay?”

  “The fact that you’re awake is a good sign. The doctor said she expected you to make a full recovery. I really should tell them you’re—”

  “No, not yet.” Fear races over my body at the thought of those doctors coming in here. From Charlie’s look I know he senses my panic.

  “Okay, we’ll wait awhile first. Are you sure you’re okay?” Charlie puts my almost empty glass of water on the table next to my bed and resumes leaning in close to me, examining my face while he rests his hand gently over the back of my own hand, rubbing small circles with his thumb.

  “Yes. I’m just not ready yet. They’re not watching us?” I nod my head to the camera on the side of the room.

  “No, they did the first couple of nights, but now they just come and check on you throughout the day.”

  “You’ve been staying here?” I glance at the blanket and pillow on the uncomfortable looking chair next to my bed. I also notice Charlie’s hair is disheveled and he has dark rings under his eyes.

  “Yeah, it took a bit of convincing to make happen, but they’ve stopped caring now. I still have to go to training, but afterwards I come back here.”

  I smile my gratitude for him not leaving me.

  “Thank you.”

  “If I could have gotten out of training, I wouldn’t have left you at all.”

  I manage the small feat of turning my hand under his and we link our fingers together.

  “You still look tired. Maybe you should try and rest some more.”

  “You’ve just told me I’ve been sleeping for a week,” I counter, but my body betrays me and I yawn straight after speaking.

  “I want you rested and healthy, Zoe. Sleep and in the morning you have to let the doctors look over you.”

  “Will you stay with me when they’re here?”

  “Of course,” he states without any hesitation then he leans back and settles into the chair next to me.

  “That doesn’t look very comfortable.”

  “It beats sleeping in a car, though,” he points out, perhaps remembering the uncomfortable sleeps in the car as we drove to Wisconsin after the D.C. debacle.

  “Can’t you stay with me?”

  “You need your rest.”

  “Then we’ll rest. I always sleep better in your arms.”

  “And I always sleep better when you’re in my arms.” Then he smiles one of his heart stopping smiles. I’m relieved when it doesn’t take any further persuading to convince him to hold me. He climbs in next to me and pulls me into his arms. A couple of times we almost lose some of the wires that are attached to me, but we eventually make it work.
<
br />   “I’ve missed you,” he whispers in my ear and for whatever reason, when I look up into his eyes, I see a scared Charlie surrounded by fire. “You okay? Am I hurting you?” His concerned face breaks through the image I see and I feel him moving away from me.

  “No.” I grab his arm weakly and take deep breaths. “I just remembered something.” I take a moment to gather my thoughts. “I think maybe I did have a dream from what they gave me.”

  “Like a future dream?”

  “I don’t know,” I say, but deep down, I do know. My instincts are screaming at me that what I saw was real, and right now, all I can remember is fire. Does that have something to do with the burns on my arms?

  “Just forget it; you’re okay and that is all that matters. Whatever you’re seeing is upsetting you. Let it go,” he begs me, but I can’t let it go.

  “Aren’t you curious what I saw?”

  “Not when thinking about it seems to cause you worry and pain. I just want you to get better, please?”

  I yawn again, and that apparently means that I agree. He scoots down the bed further and, as he settles in, I rest my head on top of his chest.

  “I love you, Zoe.” He tightens his hold around me, careful not to overdo it and hurt me.

  “I love you, too,” I state, listening to his breathing as it evens out until he is finally asleep.

  I have to fight several times to not fall asleep as well.

  No. I want to remember my dream. Eventually, I do.

  ***

  “Charlie.” I tap his shoulder, needing to hear his voice and see his face after the horror I’ve just remembered.

  He grumbles, but his eyes don’t open. I know he’s already drifting back to sleep.

  “Charlie, wake up!” I demand, letting the urgency seep into my voice.

  His arms tighten uncomfortably around me and the sharp pain helps ease my worry.

  “Zoe?” he finally whispers, his arms loosening around me as he tries to sit up.

  I wrap my arms around him, not caring that it takes all my energy to do so, or that the wires stretch awkwardly for me to lean this way.

  “What is it? What happened?” he asks, his arms carefully moving me back, the blue, dim light in the room giving him enough of a view of me that he can see I’m crying.

  “I remembered what I saw,” I gasp, still seeing Charlie collapsing as an old man. I should take comfort in that. I should be relieved that he lives through this. He lives to become an old man.

  “What did you see?”

  “You,” I whisper, my body shaking now.

  “What about me?”

  “I—I saw—I saw you die.”

  “What?” He shifts quickly in the bed, reacting to the shocking news I merely blurted out. He quickly falls down the side of the bed, landing on his side.

  “Charlie?” I lean over, taking in his shocked expression as he stays frozen on the ground.

  “When?”

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have just blurted that. You’re old, like eighties or nineties,” I quickly say, hoping to ease the panic I see over his face.

  “You saw that far into the future?” he gasps, finally moving off the tiled ground and standing up.

  “It was like a movie, but I was seeing it backward. I saw you as you died from a heart attack, I think.” I leave out the part where he was visiting my grave. How long before that did I die? Months? Years? Decades? “Then everything moved so fast—too fast for me to see—until I reached out and pulled a memory forward.”

  “What did you see?”

  “Fire.” I shiver, and even though I know Charlie must survive it, I also know that something really bad happens in that fire. Is that when I’ll die? Is the date of the fire the date of my death?

  “You see fire and me?” Charlie clarifies, pulling me away from the fear trying to grip hold over me.

  “Yes, you were in a fire and you wouldn’t leave.”

  “Why wouldn’t I leave?” Charlie asks. Before I can even think about responding he continues, “The only reason I would stay behind is if you or one of the others were trapped. Are you trapped in the fire?” Charlie now demands of me. I watch his features stiffen and tense.

  I know it’s me trapped. I can remember him calling my name, trying to reach a door that is already engulfed by flames. I must be behind there, but confirming that will only lead to Charlie being hurt.

  “No, you have it wrong about the dream. We’re all fine.”

  His eyes narrow on mine, but I look down before he can see the lie. I hope the lack of clear light covers me.

  “I think whatever drugs they gave me amplified my dreams. I saw a fire, so my body reacted like I was in a fire. I managed to dream at least sixty years into the future. I’ve never seen so far ahead.”

  “You nearly died, Zoe. That dream almost killed you.”

  I take a deep breath from his statement. Is this what my dreams will eventually become? Or is it just a side effect of the strong drugs, one that will never happen naturally?

  We stay like this for a long time; Charlie staring at me and me unable to look back at him.

  “Why are you still crying?” he questions me, his voice sounding desperate.

  I wipe away at the tears that have dropped onto the bed. I try to think of why I’m really upset because I don’t want to lie to him again. Am I upset because of the fire? Because I might have just seen how I will die, how I will leave Charlie?

  No. That isn’t why I feel so upset.

  “I watched you die.”

  “But you said I was old, like nineties.”

  “It was still you.” I look up at Charlie and his eyes soften immediately. He sits down on the edge of the bed and brings his leg up so that he can face me.

  “So, let me get this straight, you’re upset right now because in sixty or seventy years’ time, I’m going to die?”

  “It doesn’t matter how old you are, I still watched you collapse. I still watched you take your last breath.”

  He leans forward and wraps his arms around me, pulling me against him. He takes my hand and rests it against his chest, against his beating heart.

  “Feel it, I’m still alive and you just told me I’m going to make it through this. Think about this as a positive.”

  “I’ve never dreamt that far into the future. I think that’s ahead enough that it can change. This doesn’t mean you can take stupid risks with your life!” I lecture, already knowing where his thoughts are heading.

  “I never said I would, I just don’t want you upset over something that won’t happen for a really long time.”

  He leans us back, his legs moving under the covers. I move my ear to the spot my hand had just been resting over, now hearing his steady heartbeat.

  We stay silent for a while, my mind drifting away from the images of Charlie dying, and changing to my fears of what will happen if they keep forcing me to have these dreams.

  “Zoe, will you tell me something and be completely honest with me?” Charlie’s serious voice breaks my line of thought and puts me on alert.

  “Sure.”

  “This dream you had, the old guy—the old me, I should say—do you remember much about him?”

  “Like what?” I question nervously, wondering where he is going with this.

  “Well, I was just wondering if I looked good for an old man.” His smile breaks through his words and I roll my eyes at him.

  “Charlie...” I groan.

  “Come on, I just want to know what I looked like. Was I bald? Was I wearing plaid and Velcro shoes? Was I overweight? Tell me.”

  I laugh, picturing all those things Charlie says, but for some reason imagining him wearing it now.

  “I think you looked pretty hot for an old man.”

  “So, you won’t go ditching me now because in sixty years I might be wearing diapers?”

  “Depends, what if I’m wearing diapers in sixty years? Are you going to ditch me?” I play along, feeling a pang that
I’m already dead when Charlie passes away.

  “Hmm, that’s a tough one. Am I the one changing your diapers?” he jokes. “Because if that’s the case, then I might have to reconsider…” He pretends to move out of the bed and I take his bluff.

  “Okay, I guess I’ll just find someone else to take care of me.” I lean away from him, giving him room to get off the bed easily, but his arms quickly link around me and he pulls me against him, my back against his front.

  “No way,” he whispers against my ear, his warm breath heating my neck and sending shivers down my body. “I will be taking care of you from here on out, not anyone else. We are going to be together for life, diapers and all.”

  His words make my heart splutter and then suddenly speed up into overdrive.

  “Deal,” I whisper, turning around in his arms and losing some of the wires attached to me in the process. I kiss him with every last piece of energy I have.

  ***

  It is two long days until I’m let out of the hospital. Ethan and I are excused from the next mock mission while I’m only allowed half training days. I apparently missed out on the heavily focused weapons training. Rose informs me that we missed a chance to escape. She had a meeting with Martha while I was unconscious, and obviously I need to be awake and alert to make a run for it. So now we are waiting for another opening.

  Since the mock missions are coming up this weekend, I’m left alone to train with Ethan, who is quick to get me back to being tortured.

  “Here, take this.” He passes me a weight bar that feels like it weighs fifty pounds, but when I look properly at it, I see it only weighs fifteen.

  “Why does this feel so much worse than normal?” I complain.

  “Because you’ve been doing nothing for over a week. You’ve lost a lot of muscle mass you need to build up again.”

  “Why is it such a struggle to get muscle mass and so easy to lose it? That’s not fair,” I whine.