Revolutionized

Chapter Four

"Indiana," Ryan groans when I ease my finger into his bullet hole, blood surrounding my finger. He screams in pain, viciously, as I curve my finger upward, searching for the bullet. James turns around and glares.

"Keep your boyfriend quiet, or we'll kill him on the spot."

"Ryan, sh," I say quietly into his ear, and his finger dig into his thighs, quieting his muffled groans of pain.

"Indiana," He croaks out, his voice hoarse.

"Yes?" I ask, trying to sound sweet for his sake and my own.

"It hurts, really bad," He groans in pain again, and I cover his mouth with my hand.

"Spare me a murder," I whisper quietly in his ear.

"What does that mean?" He mumbles against my hand.

"I don't want to see you murdered. I don't care if you die, but they will make me watch it, and I don't want to see that."

"Well, I feel loved," He grunts, and James pulls in front of the airport.

"Hickory is about twenty minutes on a plane from here. Fasten your seatbelts; you two are riding in the trunk."

*****

"Well, this sucks," Ryan says, swinging his bandaged shoulder a bit. It's been about a week since we first arrived, and we have been treated pretty well. Except for today. They threw the two of us into a jail cell, smirking as we took in the sight in front of us. We only have one bed, a toilet, and a sink.

"No kidding. It was never in my wildest dreams to be locked in a small space with you like this."

"You know you love it," He grins, leaning close. I lean in, too, and then he pulls back. We both look away, not able to look each other in the eyes.

"Escape plan?" I mouth, and he shrugs.

"Why not?" He mouths back. My head spins as I take in the scene behind him. Hupta men are half dragging half carrying a young man, with blonde hair and wild eyes.

"Chase!" I scream, lunging for the window of the cell.

"Indiana!" He screams back, struggling against the men's grip. I slam my fist against the window and scream his name again.

Ryan grabs me from the waist and hauls me away from the window as a man pulls out a gun to Chase's head. I hear a gunshot, and scream.

"Chase! Chase!" I scream a couple more times, and remove Ryan's iron grip from around my shoulders. I race to the window, and see his body slumped on the ground.

"Chase!" I scream, spraying saliva all over the window in front of me.

"Indiana, he's-"

"Don't say it," I whisper, cutting him off. A Hupta man throws Chase against the window, Chase's neck twisting at an odd angle, showing me that he is truly dead.

"Chase," I whisper, bending down and touching my finger to the blood stained glass. Tears stream down my face as I stare at my dead brother. My baby brother, whom which I would have done anything to protect.

"Indiana," Ryan says softly, pulling me up to my feet. A man enters the cell, wearing a Hupta armband.

"You, my friends, will be next. Ryan, we're going to beat you bloody tomorrow, you little traitor, in front of your girl."

"No," I whisper, not because I care about Ryan, but because I don't think I am mentally prepared for this.

"Yes," The man snarls, and reaches out to grab ahold of me. I sink into a corner, and Ryan grabs his shirt.

"Don't touch her, Jason," Ryan says venomously.

"Sorry, man. I forgot she's your woman."

"Jason, just please leave us alone," Ryan says quietly.

"Last kiss before you are both sent off to death?" Jason says, smiling a smile of rotten teeth.

"Jason, just leave us alone for twenty minutes. I'll pay you afterwards."

"There will be no afterwards," He snarls, but leaves, giving us our beloved privacy.

"Ryan, we're going to die," I whisper, proceeding to hide myself in the corner.

"Indiana, we aren't going to die. I have a plan," He whispers, coming to kneel in front of me. I scrub my hands over my eyes, trying to rid the tears.

"When Jason comes back in, he might have reinforcements. We need to have the plan set for if he does have reinforcements, and if he doesn't, then we can kill him."

"What's the plan, then?" I say quietly, reaching out and placing my hand on his face. His face softens, and he leans into my touch.

He begins to explain his plan, but I'm only halfway listening. My mind keeps going back to my dead brother, whom which I loved so much. I can't believe that I am already speaking of him in the past tense.

I hope that my mother, Cara, and Eve are okay. I can't help but wonder if they think I'm dead. The demons in our lives are peeking out from under their little rocks, and they need to go back down. I find myself fighting back tears as I think of how this war has broken my family into a billion pieces, and then smashed us under its boot.

I begin to wonder if everything will turn out the way it's supposed to, or if Ryan and I will get killed. Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, my father always said. But what if this does kill us? Will it still make us stronger?