Subject #013 | ✓

Chapter 24

"Yay!" I say, reaching over and squeezing his arm. It's my unspoken thank you.

"If this is what it's like to be married, I need to rethink things a little." I hear Alix mutter under his breath, and a grin takes over my face. I tilt my head down towards my chest to hide it.

"Perfect." Liz says, clapping her hands together in front of her. "Follow me."

~

"No. Stop asking."

Liz turns around for the fifth time in that last five minutes.

"But we've been walking forever, and it's past my bed time." Alix whines, running a hand through his damp hair.

It's true. We've been walking for over an hour, and we could easily have already been in the city by now, had Liz decided not to take the tedious walkabout around the city rather than through it. I guess I should understand that, though. We could be seen if we had taken a so called "shortcut," and that would most likely result in imminent death.

It's dark, and the only light that can be seen from where we're hidden on the outskirts of town is streetlights, casting a ghostly glow onto the shiny pavement, wet from snow that has fallen and melted rather quickly. There is no one on the streets. From my calculations, it's around nine.

I'm starting to feel the effects of walking all day. My eyelids are slowly drooping and my feet are dragging along the pavement as I walk.

I'm exhausted.

I don't want to fight anymore.

But I can't give in. Not today.

Maybe tomorrow. But not today.

"We're here." Liz's voice causes me to perk up. I wipe a stray strand of hair away from my eyes. At first, I don't process her words. They're just two more insignificant words that don't mean anything other than to fill me up with false hope. But when I meet Liz's eyes, there's a glint in them - a shine of excitement. This girl likes the hunt. She's nobody's prey.

"Thank my lucky stars." Alix says, sighing deeply. "I was about to fall asleep standing up."

I can believe that. Dark smudges line his eyes, which are sunken into his head. With the dim light from the streets and no sunlight to light up his features, he kind of looks like a zombie.

"You'll wake up when you meet Harrison." I hear Liz mutter under her breath, and through my exhaustion, my brain stays alert for something - anything - out of the ordinary.

On Liz's count, we're running across the street, boots slamming against pavement, misty breaths fogging up our vision, and only the light from the lamp posts to guide us. I find that I keep looking back where we came, but that's in the past. Right now, in the present, I need to focus on not getting caught and sent to jail. If I'm going to get arrested, I better have found my parents first.

We are led down a long alley next to a shoe store, and Liz keeps us going at a clipped pace, as if we're going to be late for an appointment or something. She finally stops us in front of a door. The number on the top reads: C15. The numbers are covered in dirt and another substance similar in sheen to honey. I don't want to know what it is.

Casting a cautious look behind us, Liz hesitates only a second before knocking on the door. The door opens immediately, revealing a man in his late 30's. He's quite a sight to see, though.

Harrison stands, almost a foot taller than me, in his doorway, large, muscly arms folded over his chest as if impatient. Tattoos cover every area of his dark skin that I can see, which is more than I'd like to see at the moment, and blue eyeshadow brightens his almost-black eyes. A dark brown beard surrounds his mouth, making him appear much older than he probably is. When he speaks, his words are spoken in a deep, rumbling voice that reminds me of thunder.