ZARA
"If you think they'll buy that, you're wrong."
Grace turns to me, twirling my cell in between her thumb and finger, smiling down at me chained to the wall, Julie on the opposite side, unconscious, chest rising and falling slowly, body still.
You see, Paul the wanker, the guard from Grace's facility that took a liking to Jane, he put the cloth doused in chemicals over my face. But, if he knew what he was doing, he would have known to keep it over my face for at least five minutes for me to be fully knocked out.
So, I played dead, or, played sleepy time. I stayed still when he hauled me over his shoulder and threw me in the car boot, followed by Julie. She didn't need to be chloroformed because the force of the smash hit her head hard enough to put her into a deep slumber.
I felt her heartbeat against my chest, so I knew she was alive. I also felt every bump in the road that winded me, every harsh turn of the car that crashed my head off a metal box, and each time they pressed the breaks I felt my insides mush up. All of this with my unconscious friend lying on top of me.
I didn't get away with the whole not falling asleep thing, as soon as he pulled the cloth away from my face it went numb, my headache got worse as the minutes went on, the twisting in my stomach had me gagging up vomit, and my vision was a little blurry. Trying to keep yourself from hyperventilating in panic isn't easy, but somehow, I managed to do it quietly.
My hearing is fully intact though, and I heard one of the men radio into their head office that there's no sign of the child. And a female voice radioed back that they'll find them once they get confirmation that Theo Dawson and Thomas Edison's bodies have been retrieved.
That hit me hard, to a point I nearly blew my cover and scream out. I covered my mouth, fighting back the whimpers, feeling the tears coating my face. There is absolutely no way that they're dead.
But I needed to keep strong, survive. I have tried to push it all to the back of my head and concentrate on getting out of whatever shit we're in.
I'd believe we were in some sort of hospital if I didn't catch a glimpse of the back of Grace's facility while pretending to be out cold. The room we are in is spotless, a steel table in the middle of the small room, white tiled flooring, bright white lights above us, the walls all shiny metal. The roof has small slit windows, three to be exact, all running the length of the room.
There are welded in chains on each side of the room, linked to cuffed that currently hold my wrists and ankles tightly, Julie across from me, also cuffed, comatose.
Grace put two and two together, the cab full of luggage, my boarding pass tucked away in my purse, seen it as a way to buy them some time to 'deal' with us. So, she took it upon herself to send my dad a message that'll have them thinking I got on that flight.
I was kind of hoping that Jane would notice I wasn't there and call my dad, or even Theo, but Grace saw the missed call from her, and a message came through. She cocked a brow and told me someone is waiting for me, so she sent her a message too.
If she knew my son was with her, everything would've been fucked. Thankfully, her pee-sized brain didn't register it.
"Your dad needs to give it a break," Grace says, thrusting the cell out so I can see my dad calling me. "You'd think after three times he would give up. I mean, he did years ago," she shrugged. "He even had to pretend to be dead to get away from your poisonous family. Especially the youngest, little Cole was a pain in my ass, always crying. I heard what Mac did, shame." She clicks off the screen, locking it. Placing it down on the table, she leans into me with a glare. At this point, I'm fuming. "I thought your mom would have at least warned you what was coming."
Don't' listen to her, Z. She isn't worth it. "Fuck you."
"No, I think you should know. Your mom and dad knew that we were dropping bombs over the towns. Your sister, Adrianna, she knew too. She was prepared to let you and your brother die when she found out your mom left you. She didn't really care, she was one of Mac's puppets too, just like Thomas."
Closing my eyes, I try to drain her out. My mom would never do something like that to us, she loved us unconditionally. My sister wouldn't risk our lives, I refuse to believe it.
Wait, is my mom alive?
Grace grasps my jaw roughly, yanking it so I look up at her. "I made sure my house was the first target, to remove the bloodline of Mac Dawson. Someone decided to take it upon themselves to warn my useless son, Thomas. So, I made his death permanent," she stops, looking at her watch. "about an hour ago."
"Thomas is dead?" I say quietly, my eyes not leaving her hazels as she releases me and walks backward with a smirk. "Why would you murder your own son?"
She's lying. She needs to be. Where's Theo?
"He is a constant reminder of what that horrible man did to me, what he did to all of us. I made it my mission to remove him and everyone linked to him. After I failed to have him killed year after year, I decided a prison would suffice. I even kept my other two children away from Thomas, and he still managed to get one killed! I will wipe them all out, Theo and his repulsing child being part of that."
I see red.
Call me the worst mother in the world, call me too young to know what the fuck I'm doing, but do not sit and fucking speak poorly about my son without expecting me to bite. If it weren't for these chains, I'd strangle the bitch.
"Don't you dare speak about my child that way, he's innocent," I spit, standing up, the chains on my wrists tightening when I get to full height, lunging forward. "Mac's dead, Grace, Thomas killed him. The son you said is so useless, managed to kill him," I laugh, watching her walk towards me until we're nearly nose to nose. "You're just as bad as him, Grace. You make me feel like a good mother and I'm not a particularly great one, seeing you wanting your own child dead makes me feel disgusted. I hope Thomas and Theo find us, because I refuse to believe those two can be killed so easily. And when they do, I want Thomas to rip your fucking heart out."
She slaps me full force, making my head snap to the side. Rubbing the raw, stinging skin, I shake my head at her, yacking spit in her face. Leaning my back to the wall while she wipes her cheek, I sneer at her. "You won't survive this."
"Paul, come here." She walks over to the guard, watching me while she speaks. "Make sure her friend suffers. Keep going until she tells us where the child is. If she gives the location, blow it." She whispers the last part, but I heard it loud and clear. Grace stops at the metal door, turns to me with a smirk. "If you don't let me do this, Zara, you will watch that devil child of yours grow up to destroy everything."
"I'll destroy you."
She laughs, slowly closing the door. "Cute."
___________
The next morning, with the sun belting down from the thin windows, small slits that barely light up the room, Julie loses her shit. And I don't mean she's upset and crying, she's full-blown raging.
"I'm going to kill her, then, I'll kill Thomas for not killing her when he got out the womb. Oh," she sits up, putting her back to the wall, eyes sunken in, voice croaky from constant yelling. "what about Paul, why is he not helping us? That asshole!"
"I don't- "
"Why is she doing this?" She interrupts, rolling her eyes. "She's getting a piece of my mind when she comes back in here."
No one has come to see us since Paul walked out a few minutes after Grace, receiving an order over the radio to make sure vehicles are ready to transport the explosives.
With no food, water, or bed, I'm dying to use the bathroom and my teeth feel like they need a good brush. You'd think after being in a dystopian prison for years I'd be used to this. I'm not.
I would go back there in a heartbeat, go back to when it was just the three of us, living in one of the little houses in an empty town. I would go back to hiding from A-centre, hiding from my dad, hiding from everyone who raised risk to me and my family. I would go back as far as not leaving the original camp, maybe my brother would still be here. I would even sleep in a damn tent for the rest of my life.
Picturing Theo lying next to me, deep in sleep, mouth open and snoring lightly, I close my eyes and imagine it's real. I imagine my hand sliding down his face, his freshly shaved face smooth against my palms. My thumb rolling over his lips, the groan he does when I interrupt him, telling me to fuck off then wraps his arms around me. I'd do anything to have it all back and for some annoying reason, it keeps getting taken away from me. When I do get everything back, because I fucking will, I will prove to the universe that we are meant to be together.
Knowing Grace didn't get to Teddy and Jane made me feel relief, the warm feeling that they're safe from all this bullshit. But, Theo and Thomas, where are they?
"Zara," Julie gets my attention, rattling her chains. She can be quite moody. "Are you listening?"
I lie by nodding, trying to keep the image in my head of Theo and I, tightly embracing while Teddy sleeps in his bed next to us. "Yeah," I say. I fight against losing control, losing myself in tears, panic, and despair. If I lose control, then what do I have, hope, luck? I laugh to myself. "Does your head hurt?" I motion to my own head, watching her run her finger over the dried in blood coating the side of her face.
Before she can speak, the door flies open and the sound of heels clicking along the floor echoes through the room, followed by Paul and another security guard. "Okay, Zara," she points to my cuffs, making one of the guards unlock me, freeing me. I rub my wrists, eyes darting from the door, back to Paul, scowling at him. "Stand up." I comply with her snap, standing slowly, legs shaking. "Where's your son?"
"You really think I'm going to tell you?" She tilts her head to Julie, one of the guards swinging his keys on his finger, the sole of his boot connecting with her face, so she falls to her side. "Stop it!" I shout, feeling a rough hand on my bicep when I try to get to my friend, sniffling into the ground and holding her face when he uncuffs her. "If you think torturing my friend will get the location of my son, you have massively underestimated how much I'm not like you, I will never give up my son."
She huffs, reaching into her pocket and pulling my cell out. "Get them off your back or I'll kill her," she says, walking over to Paul and pulling his gun out of his holster. "Answer it," she puts the vibrating cell on the table, making it move along the table with each ring.
Looking at Julie, I nod. "What do I say?"
"Something that will keep them off your back," she rolls her eyes, cocking the gun.
With a shaky hand, I swipe the green button, pressing it against my ear. "Hey, dad. What's up?" I try to put on a calm voice, like my heart isn't racing, my stomach isn't churning.
"Did she answer? Give me the fucking phone, Finn, before I kick your arse."
I close my eyes, biting down on my lip, trying to stop it from trembling. He's alive. "What's wrong, dad?"
"Just checking in, did you land okay?"
Grace raises her free hand, telling me to speak up, thrusting the barrel of the gun to Julie's head. She's scared, fear is in her eyes. "Yeah, of course. Um, I'll call you in a few days when we get settled, okay? Tell Theo to leave me alone too." I screw my eyes shut, regretting my words. "I told Theo what would happen if he didn't come back, so he can deal with it." I hate every single word, but for my friend's sake, I need them to back off.
"No, give me the fucking phone, Finn!" I hear a scuffle, then his voice boomed through me, breaking my heart in two. He sounds breathless. "Zara, babe. Please listen to me..."
It took me everything not to beg him to help us, tell him exactly where I am, pick me up in his inked arms, and take me away from all of this.
Instead, while watching Grace threaten my friend, I hold my breath and hang up.
-OLD VERSION-UNEDITED