Behind the Walls. NOVEL By Claire Darcy.

45. Baby Slade.

ROWAN.

My body weighed more than the ground beneath my feet. Everything about me was numb; physically, mentally. I didn't even notice when I tripped.

"Get up, Baby Slade," one of the soldiers taunted, shoving the barrel of his gun between my shoulder blades. I pulled myself clumsily to my feet, my hands raw from the pavement.

"My name is Rowan," I mumbled, too exhausted to argue any louder. The soldier ignored me.

It was raining out, but I didn't feel it. It was only a light sprinkle, and the air was thick with moisture, sending a chill down my spine. I worked my jaw and cracked my knuckles as I walked through the dark, rubbing the back of my neck. It hurt there.

"It's past curfew."

"I know."

"Get to your room."

"I will."

The soldiers left me outside building 7, and I opened the door. I stood inside for a moment, nothing but the sound of my own breathing and the pitter-patter of rain just outside. It was too dark to see inside the building, but I was staring out the window, anyway- waiting until the soldiers were out of sight. Waiting until I could go back out.

Someone rounded the corner outside, and I ducked down behind some pot plants in the lobby. Through the glass and metal building, I watched as Joshua was brought inside.

The guards left him, and he headed blindly towards the elevator, to his room. I held my breath as he passed, then he was gone. I wasn't afraid of Josh- but I knew he would question me. I didn't have time for questions.

When the ground floor was silent again, I leapt from my hiding place and ran out into the night, momentarily winding myself with the sudden movement. My fancy clothes from the vote had been tattered and ruined in the beating I'd gotten from the guards. I hadn't fought back. I regretted that now that the icy wind was numbing my skin.
Out of habit, I placed my hand over my heart, trailing the shape of the scar that still lingered there. It was sort of the shape of an 'X' now. I crossed my heart with my finger, right over the lines. How ironic; the symbol of keeping a promise, over my heart.
I couldn't remember ever keeping a promise.

I followed the path in my memory; ten steps forward, round this corner, down that alley, passed those trees and so on.

I soon found myself walking slowly through the shadow of the Arena, headed towards the bridge. On the other side of the bridge was the "abandoned" side of the campus, separated by a gurgling river that rushed below me. I leant over the railing, a deep sigh lifting from my lungs. I looked at the concrete of the guardrail. Right where I'd stopped, two initials were dug into the edge, a plus between them and a heart shape around them.
'L.S + R.M'
I knew who the initials belonged to, and an empty ache formed in my chest. Without warning, I spun on my heels. I needed to get back to my room and sleep. I needed to forget this whole night.

As I marched hastily back to my room, I was stopped when I heard a strange sound. A whimper; a voice- two voices. One was crying, the other was yelling something. I could tell it wasn't too far away. That infuriating hero-instinct in me had me sniffing out a trail.
I rounded a couple of corners, my feet moving soundlessly across the glistening pavement. There was a light on in one of the buildings; the second floor of Building 24. It was the only indoor light on that wasn't blacked out by the Council's tinting. I recognised it as one of the training rooms. There certainly wasn't a class in there, so why was it occupied?

Soundlessly I made my way into the building, curiosity pulling me like a magnet until I was standing in a semi-dark hallway on the second floor. From one door at the end of the corridor, a stream of light shone through the edges onto the carpet. I could hear the voices more clearly now.