Deep in the Woods

Chapter 7

I stare at the dried blood tracked up the hall, waiting for the girl to return. Eventually I hear a door open and the sound of wheels echo down the hallway.

I lift my head from my hands, my eyes heavy with the exhaustion and stress of the last few days. I keep my gaze trained on the hall, curious to see the source of the strange and unexpected sound.

A trolley enters my line of vision and I run my eyes over it in shock. Then I jump back, my heart in my throat as tears leak down my face.

The girl is positioned on the trolley, her head turned towards me, her glassy eyes staring right through my body. Her skull is deformed, a shallow dent in her left temple draws my attention,  the cause of her death is obvious, intentional. They killed her. I glare at the guard pushing the trolley, but he just stares right back, then turns and exits the hallway, leaving me seething with anger.

Why? It is in this moment that I know that I have to get out, get out before they kill me too. I pace my cell, adrenaline racing through my blood as I plan my escape.

My chance comes only hours later, guards enter the hallway and head for my cell, I am ready.

This time when they reach my cell, I ignore the weapons lining their belts and focus on what I am about to do. As they unlock my cell I move towards them, bouncing on my feet, alert. They enter, lunging for me immediately, trying to catch me off guard. But I dance back, away from their grappling hands, avoiding them by inches.

Suddenly I realise that I am in the wrong place for my plan to work and as they move closer again I begin to panic, my plan disappears from my mind and I act on instinct. I dart forward, towards the closest guard and scratch at his eyes and latch my teeth onto his arm, drawing blood.

Then suddenly I am flying across the room a  searing pain in my ear.  Blood drips down onto my shoulder, matching the blood staining one of the guards knife. I reach towards the burning pain and freeze when I find my ear sliced in half, I bring my hand back around to my face, it is sticky with blood.

Suddenly a movement outside the corner of my eye catches my attention and I realise what is happening two seconds late. I shoot towards the door, skidding on my own pool of blood before I feel hands grip my neck and a needle slides under my skin before I can stop it. My body immediately reacts and I sag to the ground, my mind spins, I have been sedated. The guards grip my hair, pulling me after them as they drag my limp body down the hall towards the familiar door. I panic slightly before calming myself, I have fought this drug before and I will again. But last time it was already wearing off... I shove my worries from my mind. My thoughts are the only things that I control at the moment and I will not lose them.

I am placed on the bench once again and my vitals are checked by the vial lady in the white coat. But I don't pay attention to what she is doing, I instead focus on drawing feeling back into my limbs, pushing the drug out of my system.

I battle with my limbs for a solid few minutes, ignoring the pain caused by my silent fight. I begin to lose hope, but just as I decide to give up a spreading warmth caresses my fingers, making its way up my arms and over the rest of my body.

I fight down my building excitement, careful not to give my success away, I remain stock still on the cold metal, relishing the warmth that has now consumed my whole body. Sure I am in pain, my body is still heavy and I feel a bit dizzy but I have control, I can move.

But I wait, surveying the room; the guards have left, leaving me alone with the lady, who is shuffling about in the corner opposite me. I watch her carefully, my defences going up as I track her hand, she picks up a razor and glances over at me. I struggle not to cringe under her gaze and will myself to remain still as she approaches me, turning on the razor.

I eye the buzzing object as she reaches towards my head, pressing it firmly against the top of my head, this time I do react. I flinch away. She freezes. I don't.

I throw myself off the bench as she lunges for the closest needle. But as she closes her fingers around it I leap at her back, throwing us both into the wall. She slams into surrounding bench, her head bouncing off it with a sickening crunch, her hand falls limp and the needle clatters to the ground, its vial shattering at the contact, the orange liquid seeping into her pristine coat as I spin around.

The door is thrown wide, three guards stand in shock, alerted at the sudden crash. As they process the scene in front of them I catapult my body straight into the legs of one of the men, he buckles and I leap over him, my feet sliding as I turn sharply, shooting down the hall in the opposite direction of my cell.

I make a split second decision to take the chance of the doors lining the end being unlocked. Luckily, just as I reach them, one swings open. I charge through the gap, knocking the appalled woman aside.

However my heart sinks as I enter the room, no doors, one window, no escape. The men burst through the door behind me, I didn't lock it, I spin to face them and find myself looking down the barrel of a gun, the cold metal caressing my face cruelly.

I freeze. The gun does not.