ThE vOiCeS mAdE mE Do iT

Chapter Eight

  After the session was finished, I got up quickly and went to leave the room with the rest of the patients, stopping only when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to look at who was stopping me from leaving, to find the boy named Adam, which was strange because I didn’t even remember him being in the session. For a second I contemplated carrying on walking, but there was something in his expression that made me stop, and it was the same thing that I had seen yesterday when the little demon girl went to bite him. So I allowed him to pull me to the side of the room as everyone else filed out. 

“Before… when you fell asleep… You-” He began, but he stopped the same moment I felt protective fingers lace through my own. “We are going to dinner now, Kenzi.” Sam told me, his words laced with hidden meaning. I didn’t say anything; I just looked at Adam for a second longer, trying to figure him out. But I shook my head and turned away. Sam pulled me out of the room, not letting go of my hand as he did so, and I didn’t want him to.

“We need to talk.” He told me quietly as we dodged between patients. “Follow me and don’t look suspicious.” His words caught me off guard, but I nodded. He led me down the hall, away from the crowd of hungry teens heading down the stairs for dinner. We went towards the elevators and for a moment I thought that he was going to try and get us down them, but he turned off just before we got to them and opened a cupboard that I hadn’t noticed before. Quickly we went inside and he shut the door, leaving us in darkness. I instantly began to panic. Not because of Sam, but because of the dark. Especially after my recent episode, I wasn’t eager to be in a dark place. “Is there a light in here?” I asked, my voice sounding shriller than I had intended it to. Sam seamed to sense my panic and switched on the light at once. Now I could see that the walls were closer than I first thought they where. Facing each other with barely any space between us, I could feel his body warmth washing over to me. He stared me down with intense eyes and my mind went blank, I forgot why we where here, why he wanted to talk to me in the first place, there was only him. Then he said the one thing that I never expected anyone to say to me. “You are not crazy.” I couldn’t say anything for a while; my mind was not ready for that comment. “What… what are you talking about?” Sam put an arm on my shoulder, not breaking his eye contact with me. “This place is not what you think it is. It’s not what any of the patients think it is.” “Well, what is it then?” I demanded, my eyebrows pulling together. Sam sighed, leaning against the wall. “It’s difficult to explain. But I need you to know this.…”

“Sam, just tell me what is going on.” “This isn’t real, none of it is real.” He told me abruptly. “This entire place is a lie, just trying to get us to trust them. You’re not crazy at all, In fact you are-” he stopped suddenly, his eye line directed to the side of me. His face fell, and he appeared to be in deep concentration. “I’m what? I don’t know what you mean Sam?” “I’m sorry Kenzi I can’t say now. It’s not safe for you to know, and I have to keep you safe.” He stopped to take a deep breath. He didn’t look away from the spot beside me, I turned to see if there was anything there, but we where the only people in the cupboard. Somehow it felt strangely familiar. “I’m sorry Kenzi I can’t talk now. I…. I’ll explain later… I’m so sorry…” then with one last look behind him, he pushed past and out of the room. Leaving me alone and confused. After a long moment decided that he wasn’t going to come back and I might as well go find Chess. But I didn’t need to. When I opened the closet door; I saw her standing out in the hall, looking at me with a huge smirk on her face. I looked back to the closet and realized what the situation must have looked like. I quickly began shaking my head. “Nope, it’s not like that-” I started, but she held up her had and cut me off. “You don’t have to explain it to me, we've all been in a closet at some point in our lives, trying to have a little fun in the crazy bin.” She said, laughing uncontrollably. “No. He…” I looked around the hall to find it empty of people. “He told me that I wasn’t crazy. He said not to believe any of the doctors. Chess, I’m so confused. I feel like something is going on in that place that everyone knows about but me.” Chess stiffened for a moment. But before I could read her expression, she continued like nothing had fazed her. “Sorry Hun, but you are in an insane asylum. I know they like to put fancy words over it, but this is a nut house.” “I know, and I’m not trying to say that I’m not insane… because I don’t actually know that for sure myself. But I… I dunno when Sam talked to me just now it felt like I wasn’t insane, that I wasn't meant to be here.” I blabbed. Chess took an almost unnoticed deep breath. “What about Sam, do you think that he isn’t insane? Because I hate to break it to you, but everyone here is gonna be at least a little crazy.” “You don’t seem too bad.” I commented. But then I thought about what Sam had said to me, something about this place being a conspiracy, and well, it didn’t quite sound like the words of a sane man. And Chess joked plenty, but I saw her flinch sometimes as if someone had just whispered something threatening in her ear. “Trust me, I am, we all are. Anyway, I don’t know why you are so bothered about it, it’s not a competition.” She said as she walked away. “Hey.” I shouted after her. She stopped and turned back to me, putting her hands on her hips. “What?” “Tell me about Sam. Why did you tell me to stay away from him yesterday.” “You should stay away from everyone in this place we are all nut jobs.” “But its not just that, you don't like Sam. Why?” she stared me dead in the eyes, taking a step closer. “Do you really want to know why I don't like Sam?” “Yes” “Are you sure?” She said, lifting a delicately arched eyebrow with a grin. “Yes.” I repeated, irritated this time. “Sam is the only person in this entire institute that came here entirely on his free will.” “What'd you mean?” “Every patient was taken, brought here by a doctor or someone working with the government. Everyone but Sam. He came here a few months ago, waiting outside the gates until one of the guards escorted him in.” “I don't get it.” I replied, tilting my head to one side. “Why's that so bad?” “No one would come to this place if they had a choice. Would you?” “No.” I shook my head. There wasn't a choice for me, but I hadn't adjusted enough to think about the other patients and the circumstances that got them into this place. I shivered, looking at chess in a new light. She must have done something as bad as I had to be here, all of them must have. But what about Sam? “Sam has a history, and that’s not a good thing around here.” She paused, gulping a deep breath before she continued. “I know he's making you feel good, but he's dangerous. I know it.” “Aren’t we all dangerous?” I asked her slowly. She sighed, pointedly ignoring my question. “Look, if I don’t eat something highly questionable from the cafeteria right at this moment, I will definitely die of starvation, and shall be on your hands.” She responded laughing, turning towards the dinner hall. I followed her, my mind still rattling. Chess was avoiding my questions, but there was no doubt about that people here where dangerous. I could trust no one. * Adam was sat at the far side of the dinner hall, surrounded by his… well, he wouldn’t quite call them friends. Accomplices perhaps, but that didn't sound right. He guessed that he could call them his gang. Yes, they were his gang. The gang were something quite different to him than what a friend would mean to a normal person, but that was because none of them where quite normal. They where messed up, him especially, but they where close. In some ways they were like family, in others they were more dangerous than enemies. “What did you want to talk to that new girl about before?” Rachel asked her voices sharp as she leaned over to whisper it in his ear. Adam shrugged. There was no way that he wanted to tell her that the new girl had seen something that Adam was only just beginning to think may not have been a hallucination. Rachel already knew more dirt on Adam than he liked, damn, Rachel knew more than enough dirt on everybody. Rachel stared at him darkly, but he ignored her, knowing it would annoy her more than anything that he could think up to say to her. It was when he was looking away from her that he had the chance to see Chess, Sam and Kenzi enter the dining hall. Sam glanced over to Adam as he walked in, He knew where Adam would be sitting because Adam and his gang always sat in the same place every day. There was a hint of a smile on Sam’s face, Adam didn’t know what it meant, but it still made him feel angry. He tensed automatically, clenching his fists. “Ignore him.” Rachel sad, this time there was almost warmth in her voice. Adam glanced at her, maybe expecting to see that warmth on her face, but it was the same dead looking face he had become accustomed too. “What’s he smiling about?” George asked slowly to no one in the gang in particular. They all disliked Sam despite that he had only been part of the institute for a month or so, but no on hated Sam like Adam did. They had a long history that not even Rachel knew about… at least Adam hoped that she didn’t. Adam watched as Sam went over and sat next to his ginger haired friend. There was a time when the gang had contemplated inviting Jake to be one of their own, he could after all, get them things that they wanted. But they had ultimately ruled against it, deciding that he wasn’t strong enough willed to be a part of their group. It was Adam who largely suggested this, but now seeing the smile of companionship on to the two boys faces from across the room Adam wondered if he had made the wrong decision. “He’s friends with that new girl?” Rachel stated coldly. Adam glanced over to her; there was something so different about Rachel's dark, dead eyes to Kenzi’s bright violet ones. He had to talk to her; she knew about the demons, he was so sure about it. Maybe she even knew how to get rid of them. Adam looked down to his hands, feeling his gut clench. No. He hoped she didn't know how to fight the demons, he wished himself that he had never found out. “That new girl's weird, did you see how she spazed out in that session today? What was that about?” Hannah asked. “She probably can’t handle being here. they shouldn’t have brought her in.” “Ugh, I can’t stand more people in this place. Just as they get rid of some they decide to bring someone in. I can’t stand it.” Hannah said from across the table, groaning loudly. Most of the gang nodded in agreement. But Adam didn’t care; he was still thinking of Kenzi. “I know what you mean Hannah. And what do they think bringing in someone like her, she won’t last three days.” Tatum added, nudging the other girl. “I bet she won’t last on the Round One medication. She’ll be like one of those soulless kids in a matter of weeks.” Hannah laughed. “Yeah, she'll be one of the twenty people that dies from falling out of their bed every year.” Tatum giggled. Counting out imaginary numbers on her hands. “Oh, didn’t you hear?” Rachel said, loud enough that she knew Adam would be unable to ignore. “She’s not on Round One like the rest of us.” Adam looked over sharply. If he looked at someone else with such intensity, they would flinch away, but Rachel merely smiled. “What’s she on?” He demanded. Round One was the red tablet that they were all given morning and night. It was supposed to help them with the hallucinations, but Adam wasn't stupid, he knew what it really did. And that was make them worse. Rachel paused for a long moment before she answered, rubbing her teeth with her tongue. “She’s been put straight on to the MLP Program.” Round One had such a high list of dangerous side effects that it was rare for anyone to move on to the next level, which was the MLP Program. “What?” “No!” “As if, they wouldn't give that to her.” The gang chorused in. “There’s no way they would do that.” Kieran scoffed, sitting up from where he had been leaning into the shadows of his bigger companions. Unlike the others in the institute, Kieran didn’t fear the shadows. Although Adam was the gang’s unsaid leader, Kieran was feared by all. He was lean and a little smaller than Adam, but there was something in his expression that said psychopath. There where very little people that would mess with him, and two of those people where sat at the same table as him. “You doubt me?” Rachel demanded him, suddenly on the offensive. Rachel knew everything about everyone. Everyone on the table went quiet when Rachel spoke like that, but Kieran didn't appear fazed. “No, but why would they think that the pony drug would work on that thing.” “You’re just pissed that you haven’t been put on it yet.” Rachel countered. Kieran smiled and shook his dark hair out of his eyes. “She’s not going to last longer than a few days.” He predicted, nudging the huge boy next to him before he sat back in the shadows. Creep. Adam thought, looking away from Kieran back to Kenzi. Why would they put her straight on the MLP? She wasn’t going to last a week. * The interns got off the bus at the bottom of the driveway, walking in silence to the front of the large stone building that loomed over them. It was hard to not feel intimidated, and even harder to not feel excited. They had worked for this. This was one of the most elitist programmes to get on to and they had done everything they could do to be accepted over the other young, ingenious people their age. This was the beginning of the moment that would define their entire lives. It was not a moment that should be wasted. As they neared the small garden outside the building they saw a young girl playing by herself on a lonely looking swing set. She was dressed in pyjamas and huge bunny slippers. Her hair bounced as she swung back and forwards, bronze ringlets glinting in the sun. she halted the minute she noticed them, hopping off the swing set to approach. She didn't look bothered by the dark clouds overhead, only interested with the inters, who shivered but not because of the cold. The interns halted, a mix of curiosity and horror on their faces. They had all been informed on what these children could do. “Lilly, why are you not having dinner?” A woman asked, striding over from the direction of the building. She spoke casually, but just being near her you could feel her power and authority. “I wanted to play.” She replied lisping slightly, dragging herself over to the woman while the students watched in awe. “Playtime is not now.” The woman responded firmly. “Go back to the lunch room.” The little girl nodded, then ran off towards the building, before the woman turned to the students. “This is not the time to meet the patients, that will be later. Until then please refrain from approaching them, especially that little girl. She is a particularly nasty case. She stabbed her parents while they were sleeping, then went after her sister when she attempted to stop her. All the body parts where found stuffed down the well outside her house. ” While the student stared, mouths open, the woman smiled. “I am Dr Saunders, welcome to the Fallen Angel Institute.” * Chess swiftly walked through the halls, making me almost run to keep up with her. Her height meant that people parted ways quickly for her, that and the glare she gave anyone in her way. I didn’t have such luck and I was sure that if I didn’t keep close to her then I would be separated and maybe trodden on by the steady supply of kids leaving the dinner hall. Again I caught snippets of insane conversations as passed the less collected patients, but nothing that I could make sense of. “I am the faceless old woman that secretly lives in your home-” “WHERE HAVE MY SOCKS GONE, IF YOIU HAVE TAKEN THEM, I'LL KILL YOU-” “My mate Jim says that I’m a schizophrenic… which is weird because I don’t have a mate called Jim.” “I'M GETING OUT OF THIS PLACE, I'M GETTING OUT. TOM HIDDELSON AND I ARE GETTING MARRIED!” “-So I hid the body in the basement, I didn't think anyone would ever find it there, but then it started to smell-” Listening to the people I almost fell over when Chess dodged into the dinner hall. There weren’t many patients left in there, they where all running round the halls, but there was still several guards situated through out the room, all of them holding stun guns in their arms. I flinched, but followed Chess towards an empty table. It was cool in the hall, cold enough to make me shiver. Rain was starting to pelt down violently outside and through the barred widows I could see the sky going dark although it was only midday. Just as we sat down, a strange look came over her face; it almost looked like a smile. Chess stood up suddenly, looking over to across the room. “I’ll see you in a bit; I just need to go check up on something.” She said, the smile still formed on her face as she went towards a tall boy with spiky ginger hair. I was watching as she began speaking to him, his freckled face lighting up when he saw her approach. I couldn't help but smile at her expression. I saw Sam sitting next to them, watching me carefully. He looked apologetic, biting his lower lip slightly. I was about to walk over to him when I sensed someone standing next to me. The air around me suddenly smelt like cherries and there was a faint sound of rustling. “Want one?” a voice asked, belonging to Adam. I turned to look at him. He was standing tall next to me so that I had to crane my head to look up at him. His dark blonde hair framed his angular face, his features were sharper than Sam’s, and he looked just as strong, if not stronger. Adams eyes were dark, not dark like those of his friends, who had eyes that made me feel uncomfortable, but flecked with a lighter almost sliver looking colour. I think that maybe in the right light, his eyes would looked blue. “No thanks” I answered, shaking my head at the small bag of sweets that he held out to me. “You sure Baby Doll?” He asked, shaking the bag a little, his tone teasing. I looked inside the bag at the candy, seeing bright blue balls wrapped elegantly in clear cellophane. “Yeah, I’m sure.” Adam grinned, his pale lips curling up at one corner. He put the bag away in the pocket of his pants. “So, I think that we need to talk.” He stated coyly. I had forgotten that he was so desperate to speak to me before Sam had taken me away from him. “What about?” I asked hesitantly. “I think you know Baby Doll.” He said as he sat down next to me. When I remained silent, he continued. “Yesterday, when we met, you saw something. I want to know what you saw.” “Why?” “Because…” He paused and looked around to the other people in the canteen, looking defensive. He leaned in closer to me, putting his mouth close to my ear so that he wouldn’t be overheard. Once again I felt almost overwhelmed by the sent of cherries. “Because if you are seeing what I think that you are seeing, then… I see it too. And we are not the only ones here who see it.” I stiffened. Was he talking about the demons, he couldn’t be talking about the demons, could he? “I have to talk to you in private about it. If other people heard what I have to say, then it could mean a lot of trouble for the both of us.” He told me, reminding me of how close Sam was to us. I glanced around at the rest of the room, it was quite, but the conversations from the other groups where an inaudible murmur. No one was paying us any particular attention, apart from Sam who had kept his chocolate eyes glued to me since I had entered the room, and Rachel, who kept peeking away from her gang to Adam. They where watching us, but they wouldn’t be able to hear a word that we said to each other, same with the guards who looked half asleep. “No, I retorted. “Anything you want to say to me can be said here.” Adam raked his hand though his dark blond hair, his dark eyes darting back to where Sam and Jake where sitting. I followed his gaze and saw Sam watching us intently, his expression somewhat worried. “Just tell me what is going on in this place.” I demanded, feeling a little scared now. “You need to know-“ “Kenzi, time for your session with Dr. Saunders” A nurse said suddenly walking into the room. It was the same one who had taken the group therapy just before. What was her name, nurse June. She was watching me with a concerned smile. I looked from her to Adam and back to her, not sure what I should do.

“You okay honey? Do you want me to walk you to her office?”

“Yeah.” Adam told the nurse, regaining his composure quickly. “That would be really helpful; I don’t think she knows the way just yet.” The nurse smiled wide in response, she was probably intending to comfort me, but instead she just looked scary. She took hold of my hand and walked me out of the dinner hall. I could only wonder what it was that Adam was going to say to me as I glared back at him.

*

From across the hall, Sam had watched as Kenzi entered the room. He wanted to go over to her immediately, but he was sure she would question him on why he had been acting so strange to he only moments before, and he couldn’t tell her… not now at least. Sam watched as Adam had approached her instead, leaving Sam with a sense of regret and anger that clung to him when he saw the smile on her face when she spoke to him. That was when things had gotten out of hand, Sam knew what Adam was going to say to her and it wasn’t the time for her to know. She had only been at the place for a day, Sam wasn’t sure if she should know at all. But Adam had probably felt it in his gut, just like Sam had, that she needed to know the truth of the institute. Thankfully that nurse had interrupted just in time; otherwise Sam didn’t know what he would have done to shut Adam up. The moment that Kenzi left the hall, Sam strode over to Adam. “You, in the hall, now.” He told him quietly, his voice stern and commanding. The other boy shook his dirty blond hair from his eyes and laughed uncontrollably. “You think I’ll do what you say?” Sam glanced over to the table where the gang sat, most of them where watching them, waiting to see if there was going to be a fight. “You’ll follow me now, or else your ‘gang’ is gonna know just how much you don’t belong with them.” Sam replied. Adams face fell and he sighed. “Whatever.” He shot back as he got up to follow the boy that he hated out of the room. In the empty hallway, Adams eyes looked darker that usual. “What do you want Sam?” He spat. “We made a deal, and we have been through this before. You need to stick with the plan.” Sam shouted back, stepping closer so they were nose to nose. A younger boy scuttled past them in the hall, not wanting to become part of the confrontation that was going on between them. “Shut up.” Adam said, shoving Sam back. “Don’t be acting so stupid. Someone will overhear you.” Adam glared, his eyes burning into the other boys. “She sees things, Sam, she sees things like we do!” Sam took a deep breath; regaining control over him, when he spoke again, his volume was better adjusted. “I know. She’s different. She knows already about the dreams and demon and stuff, at least I think she does but she doesn’t want herself to fully believe it or something. I don’t know. But that’s all she needs to know for now.” “It’s not like that.” Adams face fell. “She’s been put on the MLP program.-” “What? You can’t be serious, that’s gonna kill her.” Sam exclaimed, his voice rising once again. He couldn’t believe that the scientist. Sam felt sick. “It’s true, they’ve already started. If we don’t get her out of here then she’s gonna be dead in a week.” “I don’t know if we have a week…” “Have you heard anything from Kayla?” “Nope, but it should be any day now. Any day and we can go home.” “Any day and we murder someone you mean?” Sam glares at Adam. “It’s more than that; it’s giving us freedom, all of us. We’ll get to go back to our homes.” “Some of us never got to have homes, remember.” Adam argued. “That’s not my fault, we’ve been over this-“ “Yet, I still blame you and I always will but if you let them do this to Kenzi then I’m going to kill you.” Adam threatened. “We need to tell her what’s going on. If she’s in on it then she will be able to help, whether that’s breaking out or….” Sigh. “The other option” “Deal, I’ll tell her tonight, when there is some time that she’s alone.” Adam hesitated.. “Fine, you tell her.” “Okay. Just remember to stick to the plan.” Adam glared at the other boy as he shoved him away. “Don’t think that this makes us friends. It didn’t before and wont now. And don’t talk to me about sticking to the plan, because if you had kept to the plan nine years ago, then you never would have gotten out of this hell hole.” Adam confessed before going back to sit with his gang.