The UnNameables

Chapter 7

         When Jamie woke up he couldn't see a thing. He was lying on his back, but he couldn't tell what way was up and what way was down. An old, dry stench filled his nose and he tried to move his hands, but all of his limbs were bound tightly to something cold and hard. A cloth was wrapped tightly around his mouth and he could barely breathe. The events of the past hour came rushing back, but the only thing he could really remember was being in the forest before everything went black. Now Maria had him captive, and one thing was for sure: he was nowhere near the base.

Jamie pulled at the restraints around his wrists and squinted into the darkness, trying to see where he was. For all he knew he could have been in a cathedral or a closet. The only thing he could move was his head, and when he did, he felt something tugging at his temples.

Just then, lights above Jamie flashed on. The brightness was so intense he nearly screamed, though the sound was muffled by the gag. He barely caught of glimpse of a vast, cement room with high ceilings and no windows before a large, metal door at the far end of the room clanked, whirred and swung open heavily. At first there was nothing but a cracked, brick wall on the other side. Then Jamie heard the sharp echo of heels on a hard floor. He tensed, watching warily as the sound grew louder and louder until the shadow of a woman appeared and stopped just before the door.

"It's so kind of you to visit us, Jamie," a grating, sickly-sweet voice said. A silence followed in which Jamie tried to say something but could only grunt through his gag. A dark, ringing laughter filled the room and made Jamie cringe. It was strange because despite the size of the room, the sound did not echo. "Oh, dear me. Where are my manners? I seem to have forgotten that you are incapable of speech. Sophie! Come remove his gag."

Jamie's eyes widened and he pulled against his restraints, and, for the first time, he realized he was chained to a metal table with thick, iron shackles around his wrists. Sophie shuffled across the floor to where Jamie was lying, head down so her curtain of white hair concealed her face. Without looking at him, she reached out and relieved Jamie of the gag. He breathed out and in deeply, his lungs thankful for more of the stale air. "I know what you're doing," he said immediately. "And trust me. You'll never get her. So why don't you stop being a coward and show yourself?"

Maria laughed and stepped forward, allowing Jamie to get his first full view of the woman hunting them. Her hair was as wild as he'd glimpsed in his vision and she wore a black dress with a tall collar, pulling her high cheekbones into sharp relief. The dress was made of some kind of lacy black material and, all-in-all, she looked like an evil queen from a fairytale. "Such bravery," she crooned, her dark eyes glinting with amusement. "Calling me a coward is not so wise, dearie."

"Yeah? Well, neither is calling me dearie," Jamie glared at her and tried to ignore the nagging tug of fear in his gut. "Trust me. You don't want to go there."

Maria stepped closer and ran a fingernail across his cheek. "You're mine, dearie. You're in no position to be making such strong statements. You have no control over what happens to you," she leaned in closer and whispered, "Just accept it, dearie."

If Jamie's hands were free, he would have strangled her to death on the spot. But under the circumstances, he wasn't in any position to retaliate. Clenching his jaw, he pulled away from her leering face. As he did, the tugging sensation on his left temple intensified. Out of the corner of his eye he tried to see what was attached to his head. Maria, seeing his confused look, grinned maniacally.

"Well, enough small talk," she said, stepping back to inspect him better. "You think you know what I have you here for." Her grin turned into a sneer. "You're a smart little boy, aren't you? Yes...you think you have it figured out. Sophie," she said, turning her attention to the cowering girl. "Bring me the monitor."