Strange Disappearances

CHAPTER THREE

"Riley!" Nora gasps, leaning slightly on her knees. "Did you like the present?"

I kneel down, and take it out. It's still unopened. "I wanted to open it with you here."

Nora grins widely and watches me as I undo the ribbon. I open the box, which looks like an engagement ring box. There is a necklace with two halves of a heart. Connected it says 'N+R 4ever'. I smile. She's right, this is the most special present ever. I take the necklace with her initial and '4ev' on it and place it on my neck. I then place the other necklace on her. We are both smiling widely.

"Bye sweetheart." I tell her and lean down. I notice a dark purple bruise on the bottom of her jaw and clench mine. Suddenly, I know I can't leave her here for three months. I'm already forming a plan. I whisper in her ear, "When the gate opens, get your sisters and stuff and run. Follow the car to the airport. OK?"

She nods. I take a step back and we do our special handshake. Then the driver tells me I have to go. I nod and mouth, 'bye sweetheart'. I suddenly know her running away is not going to be enough, I shout. 'Shoot I've forgotten my gun!' and ran back to my dorm. I grab the socks after getting my ID and the folders in the corner of my room.

She once told me I remind her of Haymitch when he's not drunk. Her name is officially 'sweetheart' now because of it. She hates it. Better believe she regrets her words. Nora waves and I wave back when I get in the car. She runs back at lightning speed to the house. As I pass her dorm, she and her sisters are sneaking behind bushes with backpacks. When the gate opens, they avoid the cameras. I look slightly to my left and see them running in the trees.

I practically beam, before controlling it. They have a backpack ready at all times just in case an occasion like this happens. They also live on the last floor. As we pass them I pretend I have trash , which actually has my emergency stack of cash, and ask if I can chuck it out the window. It also has their birth certificates in it. I have all the kids' birth certificates and I was just waiting for a time like this. I'm just sad I didn't get more people out.

She stops and grabs it. $50,000 should be enough for her, right?

I sigh softly.

I guess I'll never know. Because ,hopefully, I'm never going to see her again. She and her sisters are going to be free. I cross my fingers and beg softly. Please please please please please please please please please please please please.

The airport was bustling with people and I kept bumping into people. Or they kept bumping into me. I was going to end up killing someone, I wasn't lying. I follow the driver and collect my ticket for first class. They were paying for my ticket? I could get used to this babe.

I dig my fingernails into my palms to stop myself from lashing out, and I start counting to a thousand. When the plane comes, I'm at 8,985. I board the plane and smirk. If this is the treatment I'm going to be getting these next few months, I might just stay. Maybe marry an American guy.

When I was six years old, I was playing on a swing set at the local park. Out of almost nowhere, a man appeared next to me asking if I needed help pushing myself high.

"No thank you sir. I'm a big girl." I'd answered, using my manners since I'd been taught them by my mummy. Mum wasn't the best, she was five weeks clean off of heroin and ecstasy but she had been six months clean and still relapsed, so I was cautious. She wasn't nice when she was high.

When I finally got off the swings, it was seven at night, and the man came up to me again. "Hi, I'm John Kingsley. I'm your mother , Anna Miller's friend. She's asked me to pick you."

Me being a six year old, stupidly believed him and followed him to his car. From there I was kidnapped and brought to The Institute.

They targeted young girls and kidnapped them to make money. They looked at us, and trained us until we were thirteen. When we were thirteen, we went through a series of tests. From there, we were chosen for what we were needed for ; hookers, prostitutes, hackers, street racers/fighters, assassins, slaves and drug dealers. I was originally chosen to be a street fighter, but when I was sixteen I asked to be what I am now. Now being a soldier, or a bodyguard is one of the things you can be chosen for when you're thirteen. We were really chosen to be whatever brought in the most money.

There were boys, but I've never seen one around campus as they were separated from us. And the rules were extremely severe, so the punishments were worse. I was touched, a lot, but because of the bronze colour of my skin I was decided 'not worthy' of their dicks. I've never been more relieved. I'm still relieved, but not feeling like I was lucky or fortunate. There are multiple times where I have literally fought a man off of me. Since I was hurting people they decided to 'stop doing that to a waste of space'. Again, never in my life have I been more relieved.

The plane ride is multiple hours long, so I settle in and read my book. It was called 'Still With Me'. One of my favourites, to be completely honest.

When I finish the book I just doze off, deciding sleep will be beneficial for me and this job. I've got an inkling these people are going to be troublemakers, and I'm going to have my hands full protecting them. I just hope I don't suddenly greet a blocked nose in my sleep, and snore loudly.