Starting Line || Carter Grayson

(19) Kidnapped

"The anonymous tester... was it really you?" I whispered. I had heard the stories about the tester and what it did to them. I didn't know it was my best friend and my heart broke for her. I was crying before she even clarified for me.

Nova nodded, tears slipping down her cheeks, "Yeah, at this point, I don't know why I turned it down when Captain Mitchell finally offered it to me.. I deserved it. But somehow I convinced myself it wasn't worth it. It wasn't worth it because I wouldn't get to share it with you, or even Ryan."

"Did Ryan know?" I asked.

"He was starting to figure it out,"  Nova said, wiping the tears away with the back of her hand, "He was going to tell your dad, so he could take me away from him. Then he was gone-"

Tears ran down my face as she let out a loud sob, "Why didn't you tell me?"

We were eleven. How could someone put someone so young through something like that? How could someone hurt someone so innocent as her? She always had the purest soul and I didn't want to think about her practically being tortured.

Nova shrugged, trying to keep sobs from escaping as I scooted forward to pull her into a hug. I couldn't imagine her going through something like that. My best friend... my best friend who's father put her through so much unnecessary pain....

"I was just so scared of what he would do. And after he was dead everyone called him a hero. I couldn't take that away from him because in the end he was saving lives even in death. I just wanted it to be done with." Nova wept.

"Who knew?" I asked.

"Miss Fairweather found out after my mom left. She came in and made my dad stop. That's when he started on himself but he wasn't strong enough. The last test he did on me, it made my shirt catch on fire. Miss Fairweather had just joined, she was the one who put it out." she told me.

I continued to hold her as her tears soaked my destroyed dress, "It's over. He can't hurt you anymore."

We sat there. Just crying together until everything was dried up.

"I stayed at Lightspeed because of you guys." Nova told me. She became a part of our family the moment we became friends despite what happened to her.

I grabbed her hand again, "You're part of our family Nova."

It only made Nova cry harder. I held her until she couldn't cry anymore.

"There has to be some way out of here," I wondered out loud.

There had to be a way out of here. We had to figure something out. I followed Nova's glance up to the ceiling where we saw a small grate for ventilation covered with a thin sheet of wire.

"There." Nova stood up.

"Can you give me a boost?" I stood up with her, careful to not hurt my hand any further. My arm was still pooling blood - slowly leaking out of the garter trying to hold it all in.

Our dresses were the biggest problem as I had climbed onto Nova's shoulders. I had Nova set me back down so we could rip the bottom of my dress to get it out of the way.  It was ruined already anyways. I decided to use the extra piece of fabric to help me reach the grate and pull myself up with.

"Can you reach it?" Nova said, straining to hold me up.

I reached my arms up, "Almost..." I had to be able to reach it. If I could get it and get up there, then I could pull Nova up and we could find a way out of here.

I stretched as far as I could, using what little strength I had to pull me up.

"Got it!" I cheered.