» healer // b. barnes

» three. her

1979. Hydra facility: Siberia, Soviet Union

        Within five minutes of entering the Hydra building, I was being poked and prodded. Three women were assigned to undress me, leaving me in only my bra and underwear. The women made me a little more comfortable; if it had been men then I would have struggled a whole lot more. They never talked, or looked me in the eye. Their hands were their way of communication, pointing and motioning was all it was.

       The women left the room silently. They used an old, worn out key pad to open the door and slip out.

      When I was undressed, I missed the feeling of the jacket and the rest of my clothing. From this whole place being made of stone and the snow outside, the floor was freezing and everything had a damp feel to it.

        I stood in the middle of the large room alone, and half undressed, for what felt like an eternity. There was no way to tell time in here, plus the women took my watch away. I did not dare move for the whole duration I had been left alone. Two of the walls were mirrors, giving me the impression that they were the type of mirrors in interrogation rooms. One side is a window, the other is a mirror.

         The mirrors were disgusting. One of them was scratched and covered in a thick layer of grime while the other had faint blood splatter on it. The blood on the walls made mine run cold. A shiver went up my spine, causing my whole body to shake.

        On the other side of the locked door, I heard faint voices and many pairs of feet walking. Then it all went quiet. There were several clicks and turns within the door when it unlocked. The heavy metal door was easily pushed open by the men who waltzed right in.

        First, many different guards walked in. They were not the same six who escorted me into the building, but they had the same uniform. In this lighting, their guns looked even more menacing. They each took place on the walls, lining them, guns in hand. Next, the metaled arm man came in. He walked stiffly and quickly, but still looking cool and collected. He walked over to me and stood behind me. Once again, he did not once look at me. I heard him stop about three feet behind me and turn on his feet. A gurney was pushed through the door and followed by two men who had white lab coats on. Each of them both had a brown clipboard, but only one of them had the same vanilla folder I had been read earlier.

        Two guards came up silently behind me and grabbed me. The sudden contact made me jump and scream. One of the men pulled my hair, forcing my head up, and spoke in english, "shut the hell up."

       I stopped moving all together, too scared to do anything else. The guard who hadn't talked grabbed my feet while the other grabbed under my shoulders. I was easily hoisted into the air and placed roughly on the gurney. The material covering the thin bedding was rough and pulled tight. Every time I was shifted, the wheels squeaked. While the two men still had ahold of my upper and lower body, the man with the metal arm came over to me and strapped me down. His metal arm-and flesh hand-would graze my skin ever so slightly, causing goosebumps to form everywhere.

       My body was secured in many places: ankles, upper thighs, waist, wrist and elbows. The only strap that was not around me was the one around my neck. When it came to that one, the man hovered over top of me for a second, slightly reaching for it before deciding against it and backing away.

       Just then, I realized how naked I was. Under the eyes of the guards, I was uncomfortable. Being next to the man with the metal arm made me extremely uncomfortable, like an I-wanted-to-craw-out-of-my-skin uncomfortable.