*Erin's POV*
Justin is in danger.
And it's up to me to help him.
The longer I wait around with no plan is the longer it will take to save him.
And the more time that passed was the more danger he would be in.
"Pack up all the equipment, we're leaving in five," I overheard a voice by the FBI vans say.
Reacting before thinking, I ran from my hiding spot and jumped into the back of a van.
A plan would have to wait.
However, Justin could not.
I didn't even bother to observe anything in the van before ducking behind some crates as one of the FBI members glanced around the van.
"What are you looking around in there for?" a disembodied voice asked.
"Nothing, I just thought I heard something," he replied, closing the door of the van.
I exhaled a heavy sigh of relief.
My risky move worked, now I'm on my way to saving Justin.
With more careful actions and maybe a bit of luck, I can sneak him away from the FBI and safely return him home.
I just hope I'm not too late.
-
The entire ride in the back of the van was dark, cramped, and musty.
It was too dark to see, but I could tell that there were forms of weaponry accompanying me in the van because of the almost inaudible clinking and scraping metal sounds I heard.
Crates of what I assumed was meat because of the smell, slid around as the vehicle made even the slightest jerking movements.
The smell of the substance in the crates was awful, and I nearly passed out three times.
I barely had space behind all of the cargo in the van, and stayed cramped behind a crate for most of the trip.
And the worst part of my stay in the back of the van: the unwanted presence of fear and doubt.
I tried in vain to steer my mind from negative thoughts about what I was trying to do.
I know it's best to stay positive, but I couldn't help doubting myself.
What if the members driving the vans discovered me, the stowaway, in the back of one of their vans?
What if I ended up getting captured?
Or what if I altogether failed my mission, and wasn't able to save Justin?
He could end up dead because of me.
I hated how his life was deposited into my hands like this.
Because one wrong move from me, and I never see him again.
I can't bare the thought of not being able to visit him anymore, and see his beautiful smile.
It would break my heart permanently if anything happened to him...
The vehicle swayed yet again, abruptly pulling me from my thoughts.
How long have I been riding in this suffocating space?
I must have forgotten to keep track of the time.
Just then, the van jerked to a stop.
Silence followed the lack of movement, then the sound of footsteps against metal.
Thump, thump, thump.
If I could hear them through the thick exterior of the van, then they must belong to someone with really big feet.
I assumed my position behind the crates again.
The van's doors opened, and two men stood there, conversing with one another.
Light filtered into the area, and I could now see the sharp knives and various guns attached to the walls.
I was lucky that none of them came loose during the trip here.
"...he's gone about mad for attention. He nearly had our heads when we failed the last mission," one of the men said.
I peeked cautiously from behind the crates.
"'Mad' isn't the right word. The Director has gone absolutely ballistic, and there's no doubt about that," the other man replied.
He was lanky and wore a blue regulation shirt, sweatpants, and a black bulletproof vest.
A small handgun was in a holster around his waist.
His hair was blond and messy, as if he'd just woken up and started his day.
He had a short and scruffy blond goatee, and his piercing blue eyes were hard, almost like they were constantly alert.
The guy he was talking to was his polar opposite.
He was buff, and his body mass was greater than that of most football players.
His footsteps were most likely the ones I heard earlier.
He wore the same regulated apparel as the blond man.
His hair was black, and wasn't unkempt like his partner's.
His brown eyes were more amiable than the other man's eyes.
"The whole case about this vampire is just immature," he spoke, and I stopped analyzing him.
"I couldn't agree more, but we should probably stop talking about this before- Wait a second..." the blond man said.
I tried to slip back behind the crates, but the black haired man picked me up.
"Well, what do we have here?" the blond asked, chuckling.
"Hiding in a top-secret van and trying to sneak into a governmental facility?"
"I'm sure the Director would love to hear about this," the black haired man added.
Not crying was all I could really do as I remained silent, preparing for inevitable doom.
-
*Justin's POV*
"Don't worry, it's almost over," Director X spoke into the speaker.
The gas continued to leak into my chamber, and just as I was sure that I couldn't breathe anymore, it stopped.
I coughed insanely and swallowed humongous gulps of air.
"Please..." I rasped, light headed from the extreme lack of air.
"Please don't make me do this anymore."
"Oh, but we're not done Justin. There are still so many gases that I could test on you," he grinned devilishly.
At this point, I was sure that his experiments were just to torture me instead of collect research.
"Y-you don't need to do this anymore. I think it's obvious that I can only breathe air," I tried to reason.
"Is it now?" he asked.
I nodded, too weary to audibly reply.
"I don't think so," he confirmed.
"Please, stop doing this. You're going to kill me," I pleaded.
"You just don't get it, do you?" he inquired.
"This is supposed to push you towards the brink of death. These experiments are going to go to the fullest extent so the research team can collect the most accurate test results possible. Of course, extreme circumstances may lead to death. But that's just the way things work. What I'm trying to say is simple: these tests will stretch your abilities to the maximum. They will be harder than anything you've ever experienced, and I'll make sure of it. Because Justin, I'm going to break you. I'm going to break you until you give me the results I want; And I'm going to break you until you conform to me."
I didn't answer him.
What could I possibly reply to such a direct threat?
I was clearly dealing with a mad man.
"So," he continued.
"Until I get what I want, you will continue to go through my tests. And I should remind you, this is only the first one."
He walked away from the control board and commanded a female in a white lab coat next to him.
"Begin the next test."
That's the end of Part 23 :)
Comment what you think!