Page 43 of Angel Condemned

Jody

The Roulex Medic stomped to the door and flung it open. “Get Belr in here to deal with the human’s body. We don’t want it to start smelling too soon. Wouldn’t want the Angeliminir to become enraged.”

That was Axton’s species. What would happen if Axton did freak out?

Someone threw a sheet over me, then footsteps sounded and the door closed. The medic’s heels clicking on the stones in the hallway until they faded away. I sat up, glancing around for an exit. Only one door into this small room. And no real room to kick with all the equipment and gurneys.

Medical equipment.

Even though these weren’t Earth instruments or even a few of the other inter-stellar species I’d started to study in med school, they had similarities. A sharp scalpel was universal. I kept low in case someone peeked into the small window in the door and spotted me.

The tray of implements shone silver in the fluorescent lights. I found a blade-looking item and tucked into the hem of my pants. Next, I added a curved pair of scissors and two metal prongs. The medicine cabinet was locked, but I couldn’t read Roulex to even know what any of the vials were.

Plus I was allergic to Penicillin and had an anaphylactic reaction when I was five and couldn’t breathe. Now wasn’t the time to gamble that none of these were the antibiotic or had similar properties.

I dashed to the window, peering out, my heart hammered in my chest. There had to be at least half a dozen guards out there. No way could I fight my way through them all. I leaned against the door, panic scraping up my throat.

My dad was in danger. I had to get to him. But how?

Even with Axton’s help and the weapons I’d taken, we were outnumbered.

Wait. That was it. I needed to get somewhere that didn’t have a ton of guards.

The morgue maybe?

No reason to guard the dead right? I had a better chance if I let them take me there, then fought whatever Roulex I found.

Outside the door, voices grew louder. I scrambled onto the gurney, careful not to stab myself with the instruments I had and pretended to be dead, but I felt like my body was shaking all over. I tried to control my breathing.

Two Roulex came in, grumbling in their native language of clicks. One grabbed the head of the gurney and the other the end as they pushed the metal bed out into the hallway.

I fought to keep from crying out as the two whirled me through doorways and to an elevator that dipped at each floor.

Two Roulex to deal with. I hoped I was right and there wouldn’t be more once we reached the morgue. And with luck, they’d just leave me there. Had to be lots of dead in an alien prison like this even if they did have an incinerator for the bodies. Sometimes a medical staff member might want to determine the cause of death in case a bacteria or virus was running through the prisoners.

My breaths froze in my chest as we entered a dark room.

More clicks as they talked and one guffawed. Then the strike of something hitting metal and I resisted the urge to open my eyes.

The door closed. Had one left or did another Roulex come in? I strained to hear, feel where anyone was in the room. A faint humming answered me.

One left.

I could take one Roulex out. Blood and gore didn’t bother me. I just hoped I could maintain the element of surprise.

Slowly, I cracked my eyes open. I was right. Only one Roulex that I could see without lifting my head and looking around. His back was to me as he tossed glowing rocks into an oven-like furnace. The heat pressed into me even from halfway across the room.

I eased the scalpel from the edge of my pants and nearly dropped it on the metal gurney. My breaths quickened. I had to do this now or I was going to lose my nerve.

Sweat coated my hand as I eased up from the gurney, the metal gave a groan and the Roulex snarled, his head snapping around at me. He rushed at me, grabbing my shoulders, and leaning over me with a snarl.

Before I could think, I jabbed the blade deep in his eye socket. A slicking suction hit my hand and he roared, grabbing me and throwing me across the room. My back hit the gurney with a crack and I fell.

“Stupid bitch,” the Roulex roared.

The blade was still in his eye as he grabbed me by the throat, hauling me up into the air, squeezing.

“You’ll burn for that. The fire isn’t hot enough to turn you to ash, but it will melt the flesh off your bones.”

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