Dale
Since she kissed me two days ago, I've only seen Leah once, to tell her we'd be meeting in the solar room this morning. Evita is on the second level, wiping mirrors, while I wait with Nadya on the ground. The seconds tick by. I don't think she's coming.
It took me hours to fall asleep the other night, after the kiss. When I first got here I had a crush on Leah. Who wouldn't? She was good looking and had confidence that could kill. But she wanted Trenton, and he was my best friend. Now, with Trenton gone, there's nothing to stop us.
Except that when we kissed, I felt nothing.
No, not nothing. I felt sympathy. Leah would hate me for that. I'm sure she doesn't really have feelings for me. She was just lonely, looking for the closest source of comfort. At least I hope so, because someone else has been jump starting my pulse lately. I glance up at Evita, and notice the way her sweatpants cling to her hips.
Someone bangs on the door, tearing my gaze away, and when I open it Leah strides into the room. Evita peers through the door as she enters. "Did any guards see you?"
Leah frowns. "No."
"What about Brandt?" Evita eyes the door again, though it's already closed.
"I told you," Leah huffs, "no." She collapses onto the floor, leaning against the wall next to Nadya. "What 'plans' do you have so far?"
Evita rolls her eyes and steps onto the lift, maneuvering it to the ground floor. "We think we have a way to turn off the alarms."
We tell Leah about the room and what we think it contains. Her frown deepens as we talk.
"That's it? That's nothing."
Evita exhales sharply. "You have a better idea?" She narrows her eyes and purses her lips. I find myself staring at her mouth, it's perfect heart shape. It catches me off guard. Evita notices my stare and turns her head, blushing, breaking my gaze.
I clear my throat. What am I doing thinking about her lips? Evita puts on a mask every day to hide her feelings. I'd need a crowbar to peel it off her, and even then I'm not sure she doesn't have another beneath it just in case. Still, I find my mind drawn to her when I'm lying in bed at night, or methodically cleaning the solar panels. Her voice, and the faint smell of sulfur, tears me from my thoughts.
"Nadya, stop it! You're going to burn yourself again. Or worse, start a fire." Again? Evita frowns and snatches a match from Nadya, who was holding it up to her bracelet. "Where did you even get these anyway?"
Nadya sighs and looks at Leah, who coughs and hides a lit cigarette behind her hand. "What?" she asks. "She wanted one. I wasn't going to tell her no."
I stride over and seize the cigarette, stubbing it out on the solar room floor. It leaves a smudged circle of ash behind on the tile.
"Hey!" Leah shouts, but I fling the cigarette aside.
"What the hell were you thinking?" She knows what Nadya is like. I can't believe she gave her a match.
Leah picks up the cigarette and brushes it off. "Thanks a lot. That was my last match. I finally convinced Brandt to give me some." She narrows her eyes. "And that wasn't easy."
"Look," I step forward, my jaw set. "I don't care-" I begin, but Evita steps in front of me. She places her good hand on my chest and gently pushes me backward. The physical contact melts away my anger and I comply, taking a step back.
"You don't have any more matches?" Evita asks.
Leah, who was gearing up to yell right back at me, stops and shakes her head.
"Damn," Evita says. "Because that's the perfect distraction. Has there ever been a fire here?"
My lips part as I comprehend her meaning. I can picture it in my head. A fire starts, somewhere in the back of the facility. The guards aren't able to put it out, so they round us all up. Only, unlike the lightning, they can't just stick us in our rooms until it passes. We would die of smoke inhalation or be burned alive. They would have to take us outside Elysia. From there, we could escape.
I grin and grab Evita's hand, the one not in the sling. "You're brilliant. It's the perfect distraction."
She smiles, her face tight, and pulls her hand away. To Leah she says, "Can you get more matches?"
Leah grimaces. "I guess-" she begins, but is interrupted by banging on the solar room door. My heart leaps into my throat. A guard? Evita drops my hand and opens the door, taking a quick step back when Weston barges inside.
"I knew it," he says. His eyes scan the room, and when he spots Leah, the cigarette still dangling from her fingers, his face twists in disgust. "I knew you guys were sneaking around, planning something. You shouldn't be doing this."
Leah rolls her eyes. "Run back to Ellis, back to your research," she sneers. She's never been a fan of Weston's relationship with the researchers. He ignores her.
I avoid his eyes. Not because I'm ashamed of what we're doing, but because if I have to look up and see the sincere disapproval in his expression, I might puke.
"Nadya!" Weston says, spotting her. "You brought her into this too? You should be ashamed." He walks across the room and reaches down, taking Nadya's arm and tugging her gently toward the door.
She stands, but her brows are knit together and her mouth is slightly open, like she's unsure.
"Hey," Evita says, "she can be here if she wants to. Let her go."
Weston glares at her. "You stay out of it. She's not strong enough for this." He looks at Nadya and the glare disappears from his face, replaced with an endearing smile. "Are you tired? Do you want to go rest?"
I study Nadya. Sure, she's mostly been able to shelve the books on her own and she's eating normally again, but she still has dark circles under her eyes. Is Weston right? Is it draining her too much to help us plan this escape? Maybe it would be best if she left with him.
"I'm not tired." Nadya's voice is clear. She pulls away from him, just a little, but his grip is loose and it's enough to slip out of his grasp.
His eyes widen. Nadya ignores him and sits, braiding a tiny lock of her hair. Weston's expression hardens. We make eye contact, and even through all his faults, his concern for Nadya shines through. "Don't do anything stupid."
He turns and leaves the room, slamming the door behind him.
"So," Leah pipes up. "Should we get back to planning how we're going to set this fire? We're definitely going to have to steal some fuel."
*
Evita
None of my food looks appetizing. It's been weeks since I had a proper vegetable, long enough that even the wet clumps of algae on Nadya's and Dale's plates make my mouth water. I force myself to choke down the bland meat and bread. Oddly enough, I'm not hungry at all. Maybe it's only nerves at what Nadya and I are about to do.
"You ready?" I ask her on the way to the pill window. She just smiles. Is she really not nervous at all? Or does she just hide her feelings better than me?
About twenty minutes later Nurse Cerny finally leaves the exam room and I jump off the table. I tug open the door and peer around into the hallway, cautiously, looking for Nadya. She peeks her head around the corner and I gesture her into the room.
"Did they buy it?" I ask. She nods. I wish she would tell me more. How did the nurses react when she said she wasn't feeling well? They must have taken her to the recovery room like we thought they would, or she wouldn't be here. But was anyone suspicious?
I don't know how long it will take Brandt to get his butt in here this morning, so I yank open the cabinet doors. On the second one I try, I spot the bottles we're looking for in the back, behind some cotton balls and bandages.
I take them down, as quickly as I can with one arm in a cast, and Nadya lifts up her shirt so we can tuck them in her waistband. She may be healthier than she was when I got here, but Nadya's waist is still tiny and the bottles aren't noticeable under the large sweatshirt Leah snagged from the laundry.
I stare at her, her frail frame concealing enough alcohol to start a raging fire, and feel like I've strapped a gun to a small child and am sending her into battle. I wrap my arms around her and pull her to me, squeezing tightly even though the bottle caps dig into my stomach. She places her hands firmly against my back. I won't let anyone break her again.
"Go," I say, my hand on the door ready to send her back out. Before I can, the handle turns beneath my fingers and Brandt enters the room.
His eyes narrow when he sees Nadya. "What is this?" he asks, looking at me.
My heart pounds and I fight to keep my voice even. "She wasn't feeling well and came to see the nurse."
He frowns.
I continue, "But the nurse wasn't here." I place my hand in my pocket, pressing the pill bottle against the fabric so he can see the bulge. "So I gave her something to help her feel better. Don't you think Sheer would want me to help her feel better?"
He spots the bottle and smirks. "Right," he says. I stop myself from letting the relief show on my face. He opens the door and ushers Nadya out. "Feel better then." His voice is anything but comforting. At least he let her leave.
He holds his hand out and I place the pill bottle on his palm, then sit back onto the exam table to wait. My heartbeat slowly evens out, now that Nadya is gone. I'm not worried about Brandt checking the pills, because I took one again this morning. He dumps the pills onto the counter and counts them slowly, plopping them one at a time back into the container. I wish he wouldn't enjoy this so much.
He hands the bottle back to me. "Only four days, and already you're forgetting to give her the pill before breakfast ends? You're lucky she wasn't feeling well."
He takes a step closer and I bite my cheek, fighting the urge to lean away. He sets his hand on my knee. "Don't worry, I won't tell Sheer about this," he says, then winks. What happened to the guard ready to kill me at my next mistake? Maybe he doesn't feel the need now that he has that power again.
Finally he backs away, though the place on my leg where he set his hand is suddenly cold with it's absence. I don't allow myself to move until he's left the room and closed the door behind him. Then I squeeze my eyes tightly closed, and shudder.
***
Author's note: Thank you so much for reading! Please don't forget to vote if you liked this chapter :).
And thank you to the readers who have enjoyed Escaping Elysia so far and left me comments and votes!