Page 19 of Tyrant

There’s a couch, love seat, and a huge armchair. I plop down in the armchair and Esme sits behind her very clean and organized desk.

“You’re new,” she says.

“Freshly kidnapped I guess you can say.”

“Don’t look at it that way. Everyone has a story and a purpose here.”

“What’s mine? Because I haven’t done anything wrong. This is some kind of sick revenge.”

“A lot of people feel that way when they arrive,” Esme says. “They’re scared. Angry. I get that. You’ve been taken from your home.”

I scoff. “Home. It was never a home there.”

“Talk to me about that.”

“No,” I say. “I don’t know you. Who are you?”

“I’m like a liaison around here, Serafina. I keep things moving along, okay? You will be scheduled to take classes. Everything you need to get yourself ready for life.”

“Wow, what is this? Forced college? Did you pick a degree for me too?”

“Everything is mostly generalized,” Esme says. “If there’s something specific you’d like to look into, we can help with that. Ultimately, we want everyone to make it through.”

“Make it through,” I whisper. “To… where?”

Esme looks down, totally ignoring my question.

Great. Thanks.

“Are you a shrink or something?” I ask.

“I’m just here to help. That’s all. I facilitate and I coordinate.”

“So you must have talked with mymotherthen. Organized the whole kidnapping ordeal.”

“We have a process here. One that must be followed. There is no chance of returning once the decision has been made. We always assure safety.”

“Safety,” I laugh. “Ripped out of my bed and thrown around. Yeah, real safe.”

“Were you hurt? Physically? Did you require medical attention when you arrived? Was there not two people waiting for you to escort you to your private bedroom in an apartment?”

Where did the guy in the black mask with a knife forced me on my knees come into play then, Esme?

“Sorry for being harsh,” she says. “This journey is about realization. Now what I would like to do is get you set up with a few classes. You like to read? You like to paint? Right? I’ve gone through your file. Your entire life, Serafina. You’ll be okay here. You’ll settle. You’ll figure it out.”

“What if I want to be a lawyer? Huh? You have classes for that?”

Esme folds her hands. She’s not going to answer that. No, I don’t want to be a lawyer, so I don’t really care for her to answer my question. She knows it.

“I was in one of the libraries earlier,” I say.

“You’ll find a lot of libraries around here,” she says. “Enjoy them. Try not to be stubborn and resist what this place is.”

“And what exactly is this place?” I ask.

Esme stands up and folds her hands in front of herself. I guess we’re done talking that quick then. I stand up.

“Any questions?”

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