“If I squeeze any harder, then I’ll snap your boy’s neck. Stay back,” he demands, his eyes easily falling on me once Will freezes.
“Is this your boy’s attempt to defend you? Pathetic. I mean, not only does it take me attacking you twice for him to get the balls to come at me, but he’s so useless that I’m actually bored.”
“What?” Charlie huffs, his voice barely coming out.
My heart goes from beating furiously to almost stopping. I never told Charlie about Corby’s attack in the finals during the paintball mock mission. I didn’t want to upset him. Maybe I will have to suffer through a fight after this; well, if we get out of this alive.
“Let him go,” I beg, sounding weak to my own ears.
“You know, one day soon, your girlfriend here won’t be so important to this program, and when that day comes, I promise you I will be there to finish her off. Maybe I’ll have a little fun with her first; she is a pretty thing, isn’t—” Corby taunts Charlie, his voice low, but I’m close enough to hear every word of it. So is Will since both he and Charlie act at the same time. Charlie pounds on Corby’s side again as Will charges them and they fall into a table behind them, breaking it as they crash to the ground. Guards quickly surround us, but they hold back, just like the other soldiers do.
“Don’t just stand there! Break it up!” I demand of everyone, giving them a split second to step up and then growling when no one moves. I can’t see Ethan anywhere and knowing my luck, he’ll already be down in the gym training.
I stomp forward, dodging out the way of a kick that impacts Will over the back, causing him to grunt in pain.
“Stop it!” I yell at them, finding Charlie’s arm and reaching for it. Corby’s arm grabs me instead and I fall on top of the boys before, in the scuffle, they roll and I’m crushed underneath them.
I get an elbow to the stomach, a knock to the head and countless other pains shoot over my body before they finally move off me. Will quickly stands over me and grabs my arm, pulling me to my feet and then he throws me behind him, sending me flying into a chair.
I fall to my knees in shock. When I look behind me, I forget my pain. Corby is pounding Will’s head into the table he had been eating at, and Charlie appears to be passed out on the ground by his feet.
I step towards them, not sure what I plan to do before the guard’s walkie-talkies stop me in my tracks.
“They’re trying to escape, bring Parker, Nichols and Holloway to section five NOW!” Martha’s scream rings out over everything. Even Will, who is bleeding profusely from his head and in all counts should be at least knocked out by now, if not dead, glances at me. Our eyes meet and we both share that look of “we’re screwed” before he kicks out, managing to knock Corby off balance.
Corby falls, but if anything, he looks angrier than before. His face shows some signs that the boys managed to hurt him. He has blood pouring from his nose and his eye is half shut, but there doesn’t appear to be any injuries that’ll slow him down from killing us.
Arms wrap around me and I’m dragged backwards, the crowd surrounding us breaking up enough to let me be pulled through. I hold my breath, grateful when guards pull both Charlie and Will away from Corby’s path.
“What is going on?” Ethan runs up to me, his body already covered in sweat from his workout.
“Orders are to take her away from here, move Mac,” one of the guards grumbles at him.
“What? She can’t walk without your assistance?” Ethan steps closer to me.
“I’m warning you, Mac, let us get her out of here.” A different guard steps forward from behind me, but the arms around me remain solid.
“It doesn’t look like she’s causing any problems. Why not let her walk? I’ll come, too; three of us on her won’t be a problem. I’ve seen her fight,” Mac jokes, using his easy-going charm on the guard, who chuckles quietly at Ethan’s comment.
“Fine, but it’s on your head if anything goes wrong.” The guard turns back and nods his head, which immediately makes the arms around me loosen.
I turn back to look for Charlie and Will, but they’re no longer in the meals area. Neither is Corby.
“What happened?” Ethan hisses at me, walking beside me while grabbing my arm strongly when I hesitate.
“Corby,” I say back dejectedly.
How did Martha know about what we were doing? Where is Rose? Is she okay? What are they going to do with us? Will Martha make good on her promise? Will she separate Charlie and me? Will I ever see him again?
“Right,” he sighs, already guessing what went down after that. “Where are we going?” he asks the guards, which I notice are watching me carefully. As if I could ever take any of them on.
“Section five.”
Ethan frowns at the guard’s response, but he doesn’t ask anything further.
My mind stays on Charlie the entire walk. I keep my eyes peeled, hoping that whatever or wherever section five is, it’ll have us all there together.
We walk up the stairs, going further than I’ve ever been, stopping at a door that has nothing written on it. I think section five might just mean that we’re on the fifth floor.
The guard in front opens the door and Ethan’s grip on my arm tightens as we walk in. Standing inside the open area is a very pissed off Martha and Stan, yet I can’t see the others. There are several closed doors along the large open area, but no windows.
“Bring her here,” Martha demands. Mac lets my arm go as one of the guards pushes me forward.
I stumble, but my anger begins to build inside of me and I quickly catch my feet under me and stomp forward with no need for further encouragement from the guards.
“Where are the others?” I demand, surprising myself by how forceful and strong I sound.
Malice shoots from Martha’s eyes, clearly aimed at me as she steps forward, meeting me, her breath hitting my face.
“I warned you what would happen, and you went ahead and did it anyway,” she hisses at me.
“Get the hell out of my face!” I yell, pushing her shoulders in an act that has me feeling like I’m channeling Rose’s attitude rather than my own.
“How dare—”
“Martha,” Stan snaps her name, grabbing her arm before she can come at me. “Leave it alone. You may punish her later.” He sneers at me and I know I should fear his words, but I can only find enough fear inside me for what has happened to the others. “Take her in there, lock it behind you.” He nods at one of the doors along the room and this time a guard grabs my arm, obviously expecting me to put up a fight.
I don’t. I walk calmly towards the room and, when the guard opens the door, I walk in quickly, wanting to reopen the door that the guard closes quietly behind me just so I can slam it shut.
I hear the lock click and I stare at the door handle for a long time before I pull myself together and turn around to take in where I am.
There are no windows in here, but a light is on in the middle of the small, square room. With me is a small bed in the corner of the room and a dresser which I open, finding empty. There is a gap in the side wall that leads into another room, where I find a toilet and sink. Other than that, the room is bare.
My thoughts turn to the others. I wonder if they’re somewhere else in this area, perhaps in the other rooms. Rose can pick locks, so surely she’ll be able to get out of her room. Or are they already in the process of moving them? Am I the only one here?
My breathing comes out harshly and quickly as my panic and anger fight for first place inside me. In the end, my anger wins and I kick the dresser several times, making it fall on its side. I keep kicking it until the wood cracks and then breaks. My foot aches, but I don’t stop. I move over to the bed and I throw the thin covers off, then the mattress. I grab the bed frame and drag it away from the edge, not really sure what I expect to do with it, however doing something sounds better than doing nothing, so I flip it on its side, before letting it drop onto the ground with a loud thud.
Tears blur my vision and I stand before the locked door, kicking and slamming my shoulder into it. The room feels like it’s closing in on me and I can’t breathe.
The lights turn off and, at first, it makes me more angry, especially when I trip over the mattress and fall back onto it, but just like the light is sucked out of the room, so is my anger. It’s soon replaced by sadness and defeat.
There is no escaping this place and this situation we’re in.
***
Hours, days, weeks pass. I have no idea how long. The light has been turned off the entire time, and other than one trip to the toilet, I haven’t moved. I also haven’t eaten or seen anyone.
I feel weak and exhausted. I know this is most likely what they want. I’ve spent a lot of my time unconscious, but I don’t think I’ve slept. I definitely haven’t dreamed. My heart still aches and my eyes are no doubt permanently swollen.
I can’t help thinking about all the sadness that surrounds me, and I quickly fall deeply into it. Losing Dana right in front of me, losing my life and, most likely, never being able to go back to Boston ever again. Watching Joel murdered, being on edge and on the run for almost a year and now losing the others and Charlie. It’s too much. Any one of those things is enough to stop me from being able to function, but all of them? I’m not strong enough and I’m not able to do this anymore.
I keep my eyes closed, letting my tears seep out the edges and roll down the side of my face as I stay huddled on the mattress. My throat is dry, the same with my lips. I feel like I’m lying down on a boat that has hit choppy water. I know if I stand up I’ll be stumbling all over the place, or if I could see, my vision would be wavering and perhaps even blacking out. If I don’t get some water soon, I’ll die. I could easily stand up and drink from the tap in the sink, but would dying really be such a bad thing? There is a good chance Mom already thinks I’m dead. Sure the most likely reason I disappeared after Dana’s death was because I ran away, but to run away for a whole year? No. She must know something is wrong. Would it be so bad if I never came back? If I never left this room again?
I don't open my eyes when the lights are eventually turned on, and I don’t turn my head when the door opens. I already assume it’ll be Martha coming in to taunt me. How did they know what we were doing? What went wrong? Charlie had been right. Attacking Corby was a good cover. How did they realize so quickly it was a ruse?
“Zoe?” Frank gasps my name. If I had any saliva left in my throat I would have groaned. He’s just another depressing development to happen to my life, just another aspect that has been ripped to shreds.
“Zoe, sit up.” Frank’s hands lift me up and I want to move out of his arms, but I’m too tired. “Drink this, please.”
A cool liquid is poured lightly over my lips and I part them, wanting more. Frank feeds me more water and slowly I open my eyes, greedily taking the water in. At first the light burns my eyes, yet gradually my vision adjusts to the change and I focus on Frank and the water bottle still against my lips.
He feeds me the entire bottle, and even though the sudden bout of water makes me feel sick, I still crave more.
“There, that’s a bit better.”
“Charlie…?” I rasp out, my throat still feeling raw. I cough to loosen it, but it just makes it hurt more.
“The others are scattered about these rooms; they are all fine.”
“…ingto hap—?” I question, my voice missing at the beginning of my question.
“Hang on.” Frank leans me gently back over the mattress and stands up, leaving. He returns almost immediately, and in his hands is another bottle of water. He feeds me that one, too, so this time, when I speak, my words come out clearly.
“What is going to happen to us?”
“That’s what I came in here to talk to you about.”
I lean away from Frank, wanting to see his face as he speaks and needing the space between us. “Yes?” I question, not liking the fact that he looks like he’s waiting for something from me. Anger? Tears? A fight? I don’t know.
“You will all be released shortly, and permitting you are well enough, you will go back to your training.”
“That doesn’t sound so bad,” I say cautiously, still seeing the hesitance on Frank’s face.
“I have some good news, I think.”
“Good news?” Is there such a thing in this situation?
“Yes, if you are willing to look at it in the right way.”
His deflection angers me. “Just spit it out, Frank.”
“There have been several meetings while you’ve been held here and a decision has been made.”
“What decision?”
“Two of you will be released soon.”
“Released where?”
“Back home, where they can remain for the remainder of their days.”
“What does that even mean? What are you saying?”
“The decision has been made that you are all causing too many problems. After assessing the situation, they’ve come up with a solution they believe will be best for everyone involved.”
“Who is going home?”
“Montgomery and Nichols.”
“Rose and Charlie?” I gasp, tears immediately falling down my face again.
“Yes, the trade being that yourself, Parker and Dwells will remain here.”
“They have Blake?”
“Yes.”
“And Dean?” I ask, fearing he might have been killed.
“He is alive, and this solution means the cop and Montgomery can be together.”
“But Charlie and I can’t,” I state sadly, feeling my heart break all over again.
“I’m sorry. Rose is too much of a risk to be here, she’s too strong, and can cause too much damage with a computer to our systems. They have good hackers here, ones that want to be here. They ultimately decided that it wasn’t worth fighting her to have her here.”
“And Charlie?” I gasp, barely able to say his name out loud.
“His training hasn’t led anywhere, and honestly? I think they want to punish you both. They’re willing to let him go, knowing you’ll realize the stakes that are at risk; that his life will forever be in your hands. If you try to escape, if you go against them, they can hurt him. Your payoff is that, if you behave, then Nichols gets to have a normal and probably happy life.”
“He won’t leave us here, neither will Rose.”
“We know, and we also know this plan will have some collateral damage. It is being arranged as we speak, and it will be sorted. Montgomery and Nichols will not search for you. It will be over for them.”
I don’t see how that is possible, but I also see Frank isn’t willing to elaborate.
“When will it happen? How long do I have?”
“I’m unsure when this plan will go into motion. It will be soon.”
“I can’t trust them. How do I know they won’t just have Rose and Charlie somewhere else? Or that they haven’t just ki—” I can’t say the word, I can’t think that thought.
“Your dreams will know the truth.”
What about the fake dreams I’ve been having with Dana alive? Can I really ever trust my dreams again when I see that? But then, what about the wedding I know Rose is going to have? Charlie had been at that wedding, but I hadn’t seen anyone else I recognized. It must be because we’re not there. That day has to happen. And Charlie? I saw him die as an old man. If that’s true, then he not only makes it out of this alive, but he makes it to become an old man.
“I thought Martha wanted Charlie and me together? Back at The Windmill...” I sigh when my energy is zapped away from me and my voice trails off.
“She mentioned that.” Frank frowns and I see anger in his eyes. “She did argue that point
. They’re wondering what it will mean if the two of you have children. If your child would be special also.”
I blanch at the idea, disgusted by what Martha was hoping for. That is beyond sick.
“And now?”
“Now she…” Frank shifts uncomfortably, “she thinks that perhaps that option isn’t completely shut off. Between you and the other group, there are both men and women and the possibility isn’t out of the question.”
“That is so sick. How can you work for people like this?” I feel the water coming back up and I take deep breaths, trying to keep it down.
“I’m sorry, Zoe. I wish you didn’t have to go through all this.”
“Why me? Why all of us? What tests were done? Please tell me.”
He watches me carefully, his eyes boring a hole through me as he considers my question.
“It may sound wrong to you, but the idea was born of a want and need to protect America. In the late seventies and early eighties a big movement was beginning. Terrorist groups were beginning to emerge everywhere, bombings and attacks on us were happening constantly. Some were reported, most were not. We couldn’t cause a panic among the people, however plans were put in place to better our defenses and give us an advantage in the future over our enemies, and to ensure the safety of the three-hundred million people who call this beautiful country home.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“The tests that were done were commissioned almost thirty years ago. They were headed up by very eager doctors and scientists as well as by Stan and Martha. They were to begin testing in a third world country on pregnant women who volunteered to have these tests run on them. It was very top secret and the women were to be paid well.”
“So you were going to exploit a third world country, whose people were poor and starving, who would sell their soul to the devil and give up their babies to you?” I spit out in outrage.
“Yes.”
“So why am I here? I was born in America, as was Mom.”
Taken By Choice (Taken Trilogy Book 3) Page 20