Chapter 18

The sound of our bare feet lightly slapping against the tile floor resonated throughout the hallway. Turning my head sharply, I glanced behind us to see if there was anyone there who might have seen us. Paranoia and fear intermingled in my system, making me feel nauseous.

Jessica followed along behind me; I could hear her attempting to control her breathing, fighting the panic, just like me. Stealthily, we moved through the long hallway until we came to an intersection. Pressing my back up against the wall, I motioned for Jessica to copy me. Complying a little too quickly, she practically slammed her back to the wall.

Giving her a compassionate look, I took her hand and gave it a squeeze.

Taking a deep breath, I prepared myself to peek around the corner. I could hear voices in the distance but couldn’t determine which direction they were coming from. Slowly, I turned my body and slid myself toward the corner. My right eye scanned the area. Seeing no one down either hall, I grabbed Jessica’s hand and led her across the intersection.

Row after row of white doors, just like the ones Jessica and I had been held in.

Do each of these have a prisoner? My heart was heavy just thinking of all the stolen souls that could be trapped within these walls.

Constantly checking behind us, we jogged silently down the hallway. Narrowing my eyes to focus, I could see a door at the very end of the corridor—a metal door.

Quickening our pace, I could almost taste freedom. With Jessica huffing and puffing behind me, we finally reached it. Placing my hand on the cool metallic surface, tears welled in my eyes as I read the sign above it. Backlit with a hot red light, the letters leapt out at me as though screaming the words of my salvation.

EXIT.

Pushing the silver bar in the center of the door, I winced as the hinges squeaked in protest. Praying that there wasn’t an alarm that would scream as soon as I opened it, I sucked in a deep breath before I pushed.

“Hey!” I heard the sound of angry men yelling and running up behind us. Jessica screamed and pulled on the back of my jumpsuit. Turning my head sharply, I saw five agents in black sprinting for our location.

Agent Meyers was in the lead.

Making eye contact with him, I saw fury behind his eyes. Giving him a defiant glare, I shoved my shoulder into the door as hard as I could. A piercing pain shot down my arm as the big metal door flung wide open.

Air. Sunshine. Wind.

All the elements in which I’d been deprived of for so long rushed to greet me.

I didn’t care what happened at this point. I didn’t care if I died anymore. Feeling the rays of the sun kiss my face for the first time in months was heaven enough.

My maternal instincts, however, kicked in with another scream from Jessica. Bolting from the facility, I pulled Jessica along as I ran across an asphalt covered yard. Littered with army vehicles, I surmised we were trapped on some kind of military base. Sprinting for the edge of the pavement, my eyes darted left and right as they searched for a way out.

Corralled by an electric fence, sharp barbs snarled from their perch atop the metallic latticework. Beyond the fence lie acre upon acre and mile after mile of grassland. Even if we’d managed to escape the enclosure, we’d have to run for days to find civilization.

Tired and frustrated, I stopped running. Jessica looked up at me with confusion as I suddenly came to a halt.

There was nowhere to go.

The five agents that had been chasing us had grown to over a dozen as they surrounded us. Falling to my knees, I covered my face with my hands and wept. Jessica hugged me hard. Realizing I didn’t get the answer to my question earlier, I looked up and grabbed her by the shoulders.

“Jessica! Quick! Do you have a birthmark here?!” I pointed to my chest. The agents rushed in, forming a circle of black around us.

Jessica cried openly as one of the agents picked her up and whisked her away. Reaching her little hand for me, she screamed the answer. “No! Cassia! I don’t!”

A familiar sensation of cold loneliness overwhelmed me. Watching them take the little girl back into the building, the numbness of alienation swept over me.

Alone.

I barely noticed as Agent Meyers took a step toward me. Lifting my face to him, I glowered at him like a feral cat that had been cornered. Raising his right hand and balling it into a fist, he brought it down across my cheek. Shock jarred my senses as a sharp pain ripped through my jaw. My head bounced off the pavement as I hit the ground. Crying, I coughed and spit blood out of my mouth. The stun of his strike made my head spin as I struggled to lift myself off the ground.

Pushing myself onto to my hands and knees, I noticed him pull back his foot, readying himself to kick me in the stomach. Right before his release, I heard a familiar voice holler from the door in which I’d just escaped from.

“Stop! Don’t hurt her!” Keanu ran up, breathless as he stooped over, slid his hand around my waist and helped me to standing.

“Why not? She’s just a freak.” Meyers sneered as he rolled his eyes at Keanu.

Keanu’s entire body tensed beside me. Tired and beaten, I reluctantly leaned against his broad chest. Memories of our night together flooded back and I silently cursed the tears fighting their way to the surface.

The heat from his body. His scent. I closed my eyes for just a moment to bask in it. Just a moment to pretend I was somewhere else. Someone else. Something else.

The tension between the two men peaked as Keanu thrust his pointer finger into Meyers’ face. “Just leave her alone!”

Smirking, Meyers responded with a move of his own. Smacking Keanu’s hand away from his face, he stuck his face into Keanu’s and asked with a venomous tone. “Or what?”

“Enough!” Agent Evans yelled, his brow furrowed in annoyance as he approached the circle of agents and me. “I’ve had enough of you two! Take her inside!”

With my arm around Keanu’s shoulder, I hobbled back into the building. Weeping and bleeding, I was led back to my cell.

“Get the medic to clean her up.” Agent Evans ordered a nearby agent. “Pretty stupid move Miss Tiponi.” He added as he turned to me. Nodding my head in agreement, I winced as the entire right side of my face ached in protest.

Keanu seated me on the cot and then sat down beside me, his arm still around me.

A line of drool escaped my swollen lips as I quietly mumbled. “Jessica?”

“She’ll be fine.” Leaning his hand against one of the walls and dropping his eyes to the floor, Agent Evans looked far more stressed than usual.

“Agent Evans?” My voice was that of a meek child. “Is Jessica…like me?”

Barely moving and not looking up, Agent Evans answered while still staring at the floor. “No.”

Hesitating, unsure as to whether he’d tell me the truth, I finally decided to ask the one thing that would change everything for me and my future.

“Am I…the only one?”

Sensing the depth of my question, Keanu squeezed my shoulder gently.

Sighing deeply, Agent Evans turned to face me. His eyes serious, he looked me square in the eyes as he responded. “Not anymore.”