A Heart Unbroken [Book One]

The Escape ~ Louis

Meghan had been silent and thoughtful all night, and into the afternoon the next day. I could tell she was formulating a plan by her pensive looks and her endless flow of questions to our guards. Meanwhile, Marshall was getting worse.

The dust in this cabin angered his lungs, and they tried so hard to cough it out. All they managed to do was cough up blood, and enormous amounts of it. Finally, I'd had enough. While Marshall was sleeping, I confronted Meghan about her plan.

"Okay, Louis, but you're not going to like it."

"If it gets Marshall back to Lilly so he can be healthy, I'm fine with it," I responded.

"Good!" she exclaimed. "During our captivity, and specifically in the last twenty-four hours, I've been observing their habits. They are obviously schedule-driven women, so they are extremely punctual. However, I've noticed that one guard in particular is always two minutes behind. That two minutes could give us enough opportunity to escape."

"When does she come on duty?"

"Not until morning. Now, you're stronger than I am, so you will carry Marshall while I stay behind to make sure they don't follow us. Got it?"

"Wait, you're not coming with us?"

"I'm going to take you into a confidence," she said, ignoring my question. She then proceeded to ask me more questions, "Do you remember how I knew where we were supposed to go? How I was so sure of my information?"

"Yes, I remember, but-"

"When I was younger, my dad tattooed this on me-" She lifted her tank top and showed me the intricately drawn map on her stomach. "-And I never knew why until you all showed up at my door. Lilly would probably say it was a bad idea to guess, but I know for sure that it's where She is. I've been listening to the guards, and they're constantly discussing 'the island.'"

"Okay...but what does this have to do with Marshall and I?"

"I want you to take it," she said firmly.

My jaw dropped slightly. "You want me to take your tattoo? How am I supposed to do that?"

She laughed. It was forced, and there was a twinge of regret in it, but it helped to lighten both of our moods. She then pulled out a flint knife from her boot and handed it to me. "I need you to cut it off."

"No, I won't. You'll be coming back with us; I know you will." I pushed away her knife, looking at it with disgust. There is no way I could make it through an operation like that."

"Louis, you said you would do anything to help Marshall. If I don't make it out of here in time-"

"You are going to make it," I said firmly. I would not budge on this subject; Meghan was coming back with us. "Hanan will come for us and everything will be fine."

"Listen to me!" she exclaimed, but quickly lowered her voice. "You need to hear what I'm saying. Marshall cannot get any worse, or Lilly may not be able to fix him. We have to be proactive, and a sacrifice will have to be made."

"I'm not leaving without you, Meghan. I can't."

She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. She began to pace, and she was obviously frustrated with me. But how could I let her do it? Hanan would hate me if I let anything happen to her...I couldn't have that.