Hide and Seek

Chapter 14

Now seated on a plastic gurney of sorts, I'm forced to deal with the burns on my heels and lower back. The result of Beau dragging me the rest of the way. "You just had to drag me." I grumble to Beau as I rub at the angry red streaks, who, since arriving, has remained leaning beside the door.

"You're lucky it wasn't by your neck." He growls, his tone clipped.

I resist the urge to smirk smugly at him, his annoyance at my actions satisfying. Although my vision remains blocked by the dude who's currently giving me a 'mandatory check up', seemingly checking my vitals, so I don't manage to achieve this.

However, the fact that I blacked out seemed to have slipped his mind, my previous attempts at mentioning it becoming the least of his concerns. Why would it bother him anyway, if I was going be killed either way?

"Hey!" I cry as my jaw is suddenly gripped firmly and yanked to the side. I start to struggle before I spot Beau's pointed look towards the syringe laying threateningly on the bench. I think over what could be concealed through the plastic. Poison? Sedative?

I decide that struggling would be pointless anyway, and let the man continue his tests on my mouth, ears and eyes. If I was going to end up dead, then why all the tests?

By the time my jaw is released, its aching from the tension. I blink dots from my vision, the lasting effects of the torch that had just been inspecting them "I thought I had to be in wolf form?" I ask accusingly, my question directed at Beau.

The clinic doctor answers my question anyway "Usually you do. But if you're being particularly difficult then there's an exception."

I pout at him "Me? Difficult?" I ask sarcastically. "You don't think I'm difficult do you Beau?" I call to him. I know he won't answer, his stiffly conserved posture more than a hint.

Both men ignore me.

"Take her back to her cell. She seems fine" The doctor pauses "Actually we'll do the shots now to avoid her having to come back." He stops, corrects himself "To avoid you having to bring her back"

I snap my gaze to him, tensing before glancing to Beau, my eyes pleading, pathetic. My plea's obvious, I don't want needles, don't want to be forced into anything else. My eyes widen slightly in shock as Beau actually meets my eyes, his stare cold, hard.

"Do you want me to hold her down?" He asks, holding my gaze as he takes a step towards me.

Hurt flares briefly across my chest.

"Will that be necessary?"

This time the doctors question's directed towards me.

"No." I squeak, but I'm already moving backwards, uselessly cornering myself against the wall. "Don't hold me down" I beg Beau as he reaches for me, ignoring my answer.

But as I cringe from him, my body starts to shake, a sign that I'm about to shift. I try to calm down. To think rationally.

But my mind reels. I don't know what the hell they're going to inject me with. It could be poison for all I know. A way to get rid of me easily.

I throw my hands out in front of me, a pathetic attempt at defence. Then I notice my fingertips, or where they used to be. My breath chokes off and I draw them to my face. But they're immediately grasped in a firm grip and pulled away before I can process my thoughts.

I gasp in surprise as my arms are forcefully twisted across my body, pinned. Then I'm pulled into Beau's hard chest, restrained from moving as the doctor preps several needles. I grit my teeth and try desperately to escape, straining against my own arms.

Needles flick in and out of my arm rapidly as I struggle, the thin metal forcing itself through my muscles as I wriggle helplessly.

I blink back tears of anger and frustration as Beau finally lets go, his eyes cast elsewhere. I glare at him anyway.

"Please escort her back to her cell now. Watch that she eats the food she's given." The doctor directs.

Beau replaces his hands at the tops of my arms and presses them firmly to my sides. The leash forgotten on the bench as I'm pushed from the room.

Unable to help myself, I aim a kick at the doctor, sending my heel flying into his shin as we pass him on our path towards the door.

Unfortunately I miss his reaction, Beau yanking me from the room. But I hear his curse anyway, the sound quickly followed by the door slamming.

I snort. Beau shoves me forward, sending me flying to my knees before I'm pulled upright just as fast, two more burns from the tile added to my skin.

But suddenly my thoughts are averted as my nails scratch against my leg, returning to the absence of my fingertips. Except they're not absent, they're very much present. I blink.

What's going on? Am I going mad? I'm almost completely sure, no completely sure that they weren't there before. But now they are?

"Geez, keep moving" Beau snaps from behind me, causing my feet to stumble in sync with my spinning thoughts.

"Sorry" I mumble, my heart beating in relevance to the theories bombarding my mind. Could it have been something in those needles? No. I can't of been, they hadn't given them to me yet.

I trip unsteadily over the lip of concrete in the entrance of my cell, my arms released as I steady myself. I spin around as the door slams closed, Beau securing the lock as I watch. He disappears down the hall for a second before returning with a plate of food and sliding it under the door. I glance at it and then at him, watching as he takes a seat on the opposing bench, facing towards me.

"What are-"

He cuts me off "You heard the Doc, I have to make sure you eat that." He nods at the metal plate, the sandwich on it.

I ignore him and the plate, turning to the wall. Checking my hands one last time, I only prove myself wrong again.

I tuck my palms under my legs, out of sight, out of mind.

Except they weren't.

~~~~~
A/N:

Thoughts on this chapter? What's happening to Aria? Do you think it's something they gave her? Or maybe she's just going mad. Or maybe she's not...