CHAPTER 18 (One-hundred and one days inside, I think.)
I wake to the sound of beeping machines. It takes me a second to remember where I am and all the memories come flooding back. I keep my eyes shut to try and assess the situation. I hear at least two people in the room. One is scribbling on a pad of paper in the corner while the other is typing something on some sort of device…I can’t tell. I listen for a few minutes concentrating on keeping my heart rate down. I know that if I panic, my heart rate will go up, and it could go from bad to worse really fast.
Someone taps a pencil against a piece of paper. “When is she going to wake up? She’s been out for over three hours.” I can tell that the voice belongs to Zack.
“The serum is different and is contingent upon the person. It could take another hour or so, or it could take a few more minutes. Try and exhibit some patience, would you?” I recognize that voice as that of Dr. Hastings.
A chair scrapes against the floor and I listen as feet begin pacing the room. “I’m going to try the smelling salts again.” Zack’s voice reverberates off the walls of the room.
“You must get your impatience from your mother’s side.” Dr. Hastings remarks.
Zack’s footsteps stop suddenly. I wonder to myself if that’s a sore subject…Zack’s mother. I hear him coming around to the side of my bed. I try not to breathe or move. I know what smelling salts can do, and I know for a fact it will give away the fact that I'm awake.
I feel something tickle under my nose. I try and hold my breath, but one of the machines starts beeping. My oxygen levels must be dropping. I can feel the machine clipped to my index finger. When I can hold my breath no longer I breathe in the smelling salts and immediately cough and sneeze at the same time. Realizing it’s over, I open my eyes.
“Well, well, look who’s up,” Zack says with that sinisterness back in his voice. The hairs on my arms stand on end as he leans over the bed assessing me. I open my mouth and he cuts me off. “If you scream, I’ll gag you,” Zack says simply.
I hear Dr. Hastings chair scoot back and see him come into my peripheral vision. I try and move my body but I'm held down by the straps. I even have one around my head and my middle making it impossible to move even an inch. A single tear slips down my face. "What do you want with me?"
"We want to know why you are possessing more than one power." Dr. Hastings says rather matter of factly. “Your blood work was inconclusive.”
"Why are you doing this?" I ask.
"Well to find out how to duplicate it of course. We are going to do several tests and some require you to be awake. Don't worry, they won't last too long but they may hurt. I will put you out as soon as we are done." Dr. Hastings says.
Put me out? Like a dog or like a light? My heart races and I hear the monitor tattle tell on me by beeping ferociously.
"Well sugar, you could always tell us how you came to possess these additional powers...That is if you know." Zack chimes in, smiling creepily down at me.
I try to shake my head, but it's no use. I don't know how and even if I knew some special secret I wouldn't share it with these guys. The type of power I've come across could be extremely dangerous in the hands of the wrong person. In my peripheral vision I see Dr. Hastings pick up some sort of scary looking metal instrument. My heart starts raging war again and the monitors go wild.
Zack seems pleased when he sees this. “What’s the matter sugar? Are you scared?” He makes a pouty face at me and then laughs. “This will only hurt a bit.” This last statement must seem even funnier to him because he laughs harder.
I close my eyes trying to regain my composure. I can’t seem weak in front of Zack. It’s like adding fuel to the fire. He likes it, and it makes my stomach recoil in disgust. I force my heart to move into a steady rhythm.
“Hold still,” Zack demands. “I need to remove your contacts. We need to run a few…tests.” He says the last word with more venom than I’d like to admit.
Zack pries my eyes open with his fingers and puts a few drops of liquid in my eyes. It burns like crazy for a few moments, and then the sensation subsides. He does the same action to my other eye, then removes the contacts with the tips of his fingers. I watch as the world comes back into focus. Zack’s eyes are wide with shock. “Dad, you might want to take a look at this…”
I listen as Dr. Hastings footsteps approach. His footsteps stop abruptly and my eyes meet his. We stare at each other for what seems like forever. I watch him appraise me; he approaches with what seems like caution. “Brilliant,” Dr. Hastings whispers. “Just…spectacular!” He seems at a loss for words.
I glance back over at Zack and he has the same wonderment in his eyes. Far too soon the both of them snap out of their appraising trance and look at each other. “You ready to start?” Zack asks his dad.
He nods and I hear them beginning to clank metal instruments around in a drawer. I clench my fists knowing I’m about to become a lab rat. There is no remorse in their beady stares. I know they will show no mercy or pull out any stops for me. I am just an object to them…an object on which to study. Well, at least I’ll go with my pride, I think to myself. I’m not going to cry, no matter how bad the torture. I. Will. Not. Cry.
I begin to hear the sharpening of metal objects to my right and I stare straight up at the ceiling. Even if I was able to get myself out of these straps I wouldn’t be able to get out of the room…or would I. A plan begins to form in my brain. And before I have a chance to think it through I begin to put it into action. It’s now or never in my mind. These two will show me no mercy and I have to act now…or I will surely die. I concentrate hard opening my mind up to channel Connor’s gift. Silently and swiftly I lift my arms up from the straps and set them back down on top of them. I do the same with my feet. I take a deep breath and allow the head restraint to fall below my head and the waist restraint to do the same. I listen intently and hear Dr. Hastings and Zack still perusing through the various drawers and cabinets. I take this time to go completely invisible. I wait a few seconds and then look down at my arm. I lift it but see nothing. I glance over at Zack and Dr. Hastings. I realize I only have seconds before they realize what I’ve done. I quickly and silently get up from the table. My head is still woozy and I try and make sure that I don’t fall. I’m not very graceful but I manage to get back on my own two feet. I inch away from the two of them when I hear the sound of numerous metal objects clatter to the ground.
“Zack,” Dr. Hastings says in a panic.
Zack looks over and seems surprised for a second to find me ‘not there.’ “Dad, I told you she can turn invisible. She’s still there.” He goes back to what he’s doing, but it doesn’t look like Dr. Hastings is buying it. I inch my way quietly through the room getting as far away from the two of them as possible.
“If she’s only invisible, then why are the restraints not holding their shape?” Leave it to Dr. Hastings to realize this.
Zack stops what he’s doing and lunges for the bed. He grabs for the strap and feels around it. In a fury of anger he slams the empty strap back down on the bed. His face turns red and he turns facing right at me. I have to keep whispering in my head that he can’t see me. “Where are you,” he yells. “I know you’re in here. There’s no where you can go.”
I inch closer to the door as he begins searching the room. He flails his arms out making sure he covers every inch of the room. Dr. Hastings joins him in the search. My heart pounds in my chest as more than one time I catch Zack’s eyes with mine. I’m sure he doesn’t know it, but it still puts me more on edge. I find the doorway. Dr. Hastings is only a few feet from me at this point. I’m scared to death because if this doesn’t work then I know I am done for.
I take a deep, silent breath and concentrate on becoming nothing. Concentrate on not only being invisible but also allowing my body the ability to pass through the door. I’ve never tried to use multiple abilities simultaneously before. It’s a feeling like no other when I finally manage to
slip past the solid oak. I watch the wood splintering past my eyes as my body melts through the door, first one leg, then the other. My body is almost through it when Dr. Hasting’s hand hits the remainder of my arm. He grabs on and holds it like a death grip. “Got her,” he says.
I don’t panic at all. I know that won’t help me here. I just allow my body to calm and focus. I know I can get away from his grip; I’m doing the same thing with the door. Slowly, ever so slowly I inch my arm from his grasp and through the door. “What the…” Is the last thing I hear as I slip into the hallway.
I take off in a sprint and make my way down the long, winding tunnels. I have no idea where I'm headed but I continue to run away from the sound of footsteps and shouting. By the sound of it I can assume that I'm not only being followed by the Hastings men but by at least two other people. I approach a fork in the tunnels and make a gut choice to take the path to my left. I pray that it's the right one as I hurry through it.
My heart starts pounding as I reach a dead end. What the heck? Why would any tunnel have a dead end, I mean why even build that portion of the tunnel?
"Ah, Sugar. I can see you again." Zack says from behind me.
I look down at my body. The panic must have been what made me lose my concentration. I slowly turn around. Zack is standing only a few feet away looking smugger than ever. "Why are you doing this to me?" I hate it when the victim says that in movies but I couldn't think of anything better to say. Plus, I need to stall until I can calm myself down enough to possibly move through this tunnel wall. My heart is beating way too fast to control any of my powers.
"It's nothing personal Sugar. You see, you have a few things I want." He looks me up and down.
I do my best not to show any emotion. Instead I just raise my eyebrow and ask, "Like what?" I take a few non-exaggerated breaths willing my heart to calm.
"When I found out about my dad's little experiment he had to do a lot to keep me quiet. The most important demand I made in order to promise my silence was that he give me the strongest power of them all. He obviously hasn't kept up his end of the bargain."
I try pushing my hand through the wall at my back but it doesn't go through. Crap, I have to keep him talking. "Why would your dad have to bribe you to keep you quiet? You're his son. Are you saying you would have thrown him under the bus?"
His hazel eyes turn dark and I worry that I just made him even angrier. "Let's just say that some of his experiments didn't turn out so well."
"Zack! Did you find anything?" Dr. Hastings voice echoes through the tunnels.
Zack walks a short distance to the mouth of the tunnel and yells, "Yep! I've got her!"
This is my only opportunity. I take a deep breath and focus my mind on being fluid. I push my hand into the tunnel wall and it passes through. Yes! I take a few more deep breaths and push my full arm and leg in.
"No!" Zack yells. "Stop!"
Yeah right, like I would really stop. Instead I focus on pushing the rest of my body into the cold rock. I close my eyes and literally walk through several layers of dark sediment until I see light behind my eyelids. I open them again and find myself standing in a hallway somewhere in the shelter. Feeling a bit disoriented, I lean up against the wall and take a moment to get my bearings straight. I have never passed through anything that thick and it really wore me down.
I focus my healing powers internally and soon I feel back to normal. I look around and notice that I'm in the school wing of the shelter. Thankfully nobody was around to see me materialize from the solid wall.
I run past a few classrooms and into the stairwell. I reach my room a few minutes later. I know it's not the safest place to be but I don't know where else to go. I shut the door behind me and lock it.
"Warning! We have a high risk red alert. Please proceed to lock down mode. I repeat high risk red alert." A female announces through the intercom system.
A second later a new voice takes over, this one I recognize. "Please proceed to follow lock down instructions. We are currently looking for a suspect, Willow Mosby. She is a five foot seven Caucasian teen with light brown curly hair. She was last seen wearing purple scrubs. This suspect should be considered dangerous. If you believe you have seen Willow Mosby please report her through the emergency app on your tablet. Please do not approach her as she may be dangerous." Dr. Hastings announces.
What? My heartbeat starts running frantically again. They are going to hunt me down! I feel the panic attack coming on strong so I sit down and place my head in between my knees while taking deep breaths.
The female voice comes onto the intercom again. "High risk red alert. Please proceed to follow lock down instructions. I repeat, High risk red alert."
What the heck are lock down instructions? I must have missed that part of orientation!
The lock on the door jiggles. No! I don't have time to react so I throw myself under the bed. As if that weren't an obvious place to look. I watch as a single set of shoes enter the room. The door closes behind them and I hear the lock click back into place. I will my heart to calm down so I can go invisible but it's beating way too frantically.
"Willow?" My dad whispers.
My breath whooshes out of me in a loud sigh of relief. My dad must have heard it because he kneels down beside me.
"Willow! Are you okay? What are they talking about?" My dad asks as he helps me out from under the bed and to my feet.
"Dad, it's Dr. Hastings and his son! They knocked me out and were trying to do tests on me to find out why I have these powers. They hurt my friends. We were in a cave and they blew up the entrance leaving my friends there. They are trying to find me! They are going to kill me!" I mumble so quickly that I don't have time to keep the tears from falling down.
"I knew that he was up to no good!" My dad says. He starts pacing the room. His face is red with anger and he keeps clenching his fists. He stops in front of me. "I won't let them hurt you. Do you understand?" My dad says as reassuringly as he can. He stares closely at my eyes and seems awed by them. I forgot he's only seen me with the contacts on.
"Dad, I love you but you are only one man. They have the entire shelter after us. They will hurt you. They threatened my friends with a gun. They shot Alec!" Suddenly worry for my dad consumes me. I can't let him get caught up in this!
"They shot him?" He seems amazed that this was even possible. We rarely hear about shootings now a days. Officials still carry weapons but rarely is it ever necessary to use them.
"Yes, but I healed him. Well he helped too with his own healing powers." I run my hands through my hair. My body is alert with nervous energy.
My dad looks awed again at my powers. "Honey, you are so strong, you know that right?"
I start to shake my head but my dad's gaze tells me that he believes in me so I nod.
"This is so hard for me to say, but you need to go. You need to leave this shelter. If anyone can make it out there you can. You can use your powers. I will try to get out as soon as I can but you need to get out of here now." He looks torn at sending his daughter out into the elements. "You can make it through the walls can’t you? Isn't that one of your gifts?"
I stifle a sob and nod. I can't imagine leaving here, leaving my dad. Leaving my friends trapped. Alec.
"Then you need to do it." My dad pulls me into his arms.
A series of thunderous knocks pound against the door.
My dad whispers in my ear, "I love you. Go now."
I look around frantically. I have to calm my heart rate first so I climb under the bed. My dad must realize that I need a moment because he pushes his blanket so it covers the area under the bed where I'm hiding.
The knocking persists. "Mosby family, open this door immediately or we will open it by force.
I hear the toilet flush and then my dad calls out as he opens the door, "Sorry, I was in the restroom."
I hear several footsteps enter the small room. "We are looking for your daughter Mr. Mosby. Sh
e is a dangerous suspect and we must see her immediately. If you are harboring her here you will be implicated as a party in her crimes as well." A man I don't recognize calls out.
"My daughter is not dangerous. What exactly is it that you think she did?" My dad asks.
The man clears his throat. "Murder."
"Murder?!" My dad yells. "Impossible. Who do you think she murdered."
"Three of her friends."
I nearly gasp out loud but catch myself. They are saying that I murdered my friends? What a convenient out to explain why they are missing! Rage fills me.
"She would never!" My dad demands. I can hear the outrage in his voice.
"I will not discuss anymore information with you sir. Do you wish to give up your daughter willingly or will we have to search the room?" This voice I recognize as the evil Dr. Hastings.
"She's not here." My father says confidently.
I look down at myself. I'm obviously still here. I work hard to focus on melting through the floor. My heart is still beating too fast.
"Well then, you don't mind if we search the room?" Dr. Hastings says.
"Be my guest." My dad says.
With that I change my tactics and focus on trying to turn invisible. I don't want my dad to suffer for this, so they can't catch me. I look down and feel my heart calming as my arms disappear before me.
"Thank you Mr. Mosby." Another man says.
"Candy, please proceed." Dr. Hastings orders.
Candy? Why is Candy here?
"Why do you need her to search? This room isn't that big. You can obviously see that she's not here." My dad says.
Dr. Hastings must hesitate a second but then deems it okay to spill the beans. "We know about your daughters abilities Mr. Mosby." He chuckles and says, "Don't pretend with me and act like you don't know." I guess my dad gives up his false look of question because Dr. Hastings says. "My daughter has an ability too. She can see through any type of facade that these abilities can create. That means she can see the invisible and a lot more than that."
Oh no! My heart starts racing now. Chill out Willow, chill out. I focus everything I have on moving through this floor. I feel myself slowly sinking. That's when the blanket pops up. I look down at my arms and see that I'm invisible. Then I look to the side at Candy's big blue eyes staring at me. My heart races again and just like that the floor becomes hard again beneath my body. No! Now not only am I in this mess but my dad is too!
Candy opens her mouth and I expect her to call out that I'm here but instead she mouths the word 'Go,' to me.
My mouth opens and I find myself in pure shock. She drops the blanket back over the bed and tells her dad. "I don't think she's here father."
"Are you sure?" Dr. Hastings asks.
"Yes father, of course I'm sure. I would have seen her if she were here and she's not." Candy plays the act of annoyed teenager well.
I can't take time to consider exactly why Candy is letting me go. I calm my heart and then find myself melting through the floor again. This time I focus on my feet going first. I can feel my feet dangling from the ceiling in whatever room is below me. I allow myself to slowly drop through. I nearly lose my focus when Dr. Hastings flips back the blanket again and looks right at me! His eyes dart back and forth because, to my relief, I'm still invisible.
"I told you father!" Candy whines.
Dr. Hastings reaches his arm under the bed and swipes it around. I push the rest of myself through to the room below just before his hand catches me.
I hit the ground feet first but fall to my knees from the drop. I knock a metal tray off of a table at the same time and I cringe as it clashes to the floor with me. Looking around I realize I'm in one of the patient rooms of the nurses station.
"What was that?" A nurse runs into the room and looks around. I'm still conveniently invisible.
Another nurse comes in. "Is everything okay?" She asks.
"Yeah, this just fell? That's strange. Do you think someone was in here?"
"No Silvia. Look around, where would they hide. You need to stop being so jumpy." The older nurse chides.
"Sorry, it's scary though. I don't know what that girl did but I don't want to run into her." The nurse leans down and starts picking up the items that fell to the ground.
I take that as my cue to exit. I walk as quietly as I can out of the nurse’s station.
The most obvious question I have to ask myself is how the heck do I plan on getting out of here? I don't know the answer yet but one thing is for certain. I have to go back to save my friends.
I stealthily make my way through the halls trying my best to remain undetected. Luckily the halls seem pretty much deserted. The same female voice comes on the loud speaker every five minutes reminding people that there is a high risk red alert. She also continues to remind everyone that I'm a dangerous fugitive. Hearing my name repeated over and over again doesn't help my nerves. I keep going though. I figure if I can make my way to the area above the cave, I could drop through a couple of floors and be there in no time. I can't chance taking our usual route through the tunnels since they are likely to be heavily guarded. The only problem is that if I'm right, the cave is two floors below the commons area. I just hope that the place that is usually bustling with people is as deserted as these hallways.
I look down and realize my hand is coming back into focus. I stop mid step and regain my composure. My hand becomes invisible again. I breathe a sigh of relief. I'm not sure how much longer I can keep this up. My body is trembling from using my powers this long. I find the will power to keep going. My friends need me.
A moment later I find myself turning the corner of a hallway that spills out into the commons area. I stop suddenly seeing all the people struggling to make their way into the auditorium. Seas of people take small steps towards the far entrance on the opposite end of the room. People are packed in tighter than a sardine can. Is this the protocol for a high risk, red alert? There is no way I can weave through all these people and still remain undetected.
Think, Willow think... I have to find somewhere to hide before I materialize out of thin air in front of all of these people. I suddenly remember the very first time my father and I made our way into the mountain. There was a hallway that has since been closed off. I move along the wall as stealthily as possible making sure I don't bump into anyone. My hand accidently hits a lady's bottom. She turns around and slaps the man behind her. I hold my breath as I watch the two of them yell back and forth at each other. A small hole opens up in front of me as people meander over to where the argument is taking place.
Soon I come to a spot in the wall that looks to have been recently sealed. There is a light grey substance, almost like grout, surrounding the outline of a door in the mountain wall. I look down making sure I am still invisible. I pray that I have enough strength to make it out alive. My knees are threatening to buckle from weakness of using my gift of invisibility. I place my hand up to the middle of the newly made wall. I slide it through and am pleased to find it is only as thick as the stone itself. I concentrate on pushing myself the rest of the way through. I feel someone ram into me from behind and I am thrown to the ground on the other side. The wind is knocked out of me and I just lay there for a few moments, in the dark corridor, catching my breath. I let my powers go allowing myself to get a break from using them.
I hone in on my healing gift for a few moments and feel the shakiness reside. I don't think I'll ever get used to the idea that I can regenerate myself. Soon I feel back to normal. I focus on going invisible first. It's too dark in this corridor to know if it worked so I'm just going to have to hope for the best.
I start allowing my body to melt through the floor. I move much faster than usual this time. I fall down into a small patch of leafy green stuff. Looking around I realize I landed in a row of spinach in the garden level of the shelter. Usually I hate spinach but I feel a little more affection for it now that it cushioned my landing. Th
e sprinklers come on and they start soaking my scrubs.
I move as fast as I can through the floor and only fall a few feet before I land with a thud on top of one of the storage containers. I throw my hands over my mouth worried that someone might have heard the fall.
I wait a few minutes and when nobody comes running my way, I jump down. One more floor to go! I focus again and this time I try to move much slower through the floor. My biggest fear is I’ll land in the cave and go falling four stories to the ground.
As I continue to move through the dense mountain matter, I get a panicked feeling inside. I try to focus on staying calm and eventually I feel my feet touch the ground. I have to drop to my knees because when I come out of the wall all together I'm in the small tunnel that we had to crawl to in order to get to the main cave.
I can't believe I did it! I crawl in the direction of the outer cave quietly. When I reach the entrance I peer around and find that the cave seems to be empty. It's extremely dark inside so it's hard to tell for sure. I remain invisible just in case and stealthily move towards the entrance to the second cave.
The rock debris left over from the explosion cover the mouth of the tunnel. My heartbeat starts picking up as I think of my friends on the other side. I have no idea how damaging the dynamite was. I don't know if they even survived and that thought sickens me. I clear my head and try not to focus on the worst possible outcome. Instead I imagine the most gorgeous pair of navy blue eyes waiting for me. I push my hand through the rock. I think of Alec the whole time I move through to the second cave. Our cave.
I let go of the invisibility and when I step out on the other side my heart soars. The cave isn't completely collapsed in. I look back at the tunnel and see that only a few rocks lie there. The explosion must not have gone as deep as they thought it would.
"Alec!" I call out excited to see him. The sun is still shining through the opening in the ceiling. Nobody answers me. I look around for my friends but I don't see them.
"Claire? Connor?" I call out unsure. My brain starts going through all of the possible scenarios. This cave is a good size but there isn't an area that they could hide in. I would be able to see them. Why aren't they here? I look back at the rubble. There's no way that all three of them were in the tunnel when it exploded. Right?
I walk around looking for any sign of them. I must look around for at least an hour because the sun shifts in the sky. I walk back and forth along the water’s edge trying to think of what to do next. Maybe Connor found a way to get them out using his gift. If I could use my gift on Alec what would keep Connor from using his gift on other people.
Something catches my eye. In the corner near the Western cave wall is a grouping of rocks. Why hadn't I noticed it before? I run over to them expecting to see some sort of message written out that tells me what happened to my friends. Instead I find a single arrow made out of small rocks. It points towards the wall. Why would it....They went outside! The epiphany strikes me and my heart soars. They are trying to let me know that they went outside! Excitement overwhelms me as I think of my friends making it out of here alive. I'm going to find them after all!
I have no idea what lies on the other side of this mountain, if it's scalding hot temperatures or unlivable conditions. Not knowing makes me leery but it's not enough to keep me from reaching my friends.
I put my hand up to the wall and slowly start moving through it. The wall feels warm as I make my way through the rock and sediment. Sweat begins to accumulate on my brow. I'm not sure if the temperature is increasing, or if it's my anxiety that causes this stifling condition. Eventually I feel the heat prickling at my fingertips and I let the rest of my body follow.