Page 32 of Stay Awhile
Barbara loudly inhaled, and Richard’s eyes expanded for a moment before he steeled his features once again.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” he asked.
“Let’s not play dumb. That program you created called The Void, well, you’re looking at one of its creations. You want to know what makes all of this even more funny? I truly believe you know who has your daughter just as much as I do. It’s something that you’ve quickly gotten your other children under one roof with you. You realize if she wanted you, she could have you. As quickly as I slipped in here, she could too.”
Richard kept his gun trained on me, still not willing to give in to the situation that was happening. I didn’t give a damn. This was bigger than me or him, and we didn’t have time to waste.
“How do you know anything about my daughter?” he asked.
“I met her in Fiji and she was quickly put on Vlad’s radar. Not just because of me, but you, too. I didn’t know the ins and outs of this program, but how did you get on her bad side?” I asked.
I needed answers, and whether he believed me didn’t matter to me. We only had but so much time to get Skye out of the situation she was in. Our eyes stayed locked until Richard slowly lowered his gun and placed it on the desk behind him. He noticed the file I had secured from the safety box. I removed thepistol I had positioned at Barbara’s temple. I stepped back as she ran over to her husband’s side.
“This program was not created for children and it was never supposed to be involuntary. It was supposed to be tested on adults who knew all the risks and wanted to protect this country. Patricia flipped and turned this project to mirror her own perverse scheme. It didn’t help that the government backed her, thinking the idea of children who didn’t have anyone being the best course of action. I told her we were going to notify the public and that it didn’t matter what happened to us,” Richard explained.
“That’s when she started threatening our kids and sending assassins to watch them when they would hang with their friends or go to school. Then they would send us pictures regularly to keep us in place. I regretted the very day that we made this thing. We were just trying to show we could take initiative,” Barbara added.
I nodded, taking in everything. Although I understood what they were trying to do, it didn’t help the fact that this was who I had become because of it, while their children got to live a life that each of us in the program deserved, too. In their eyes, we were disposable and worthless.
“I’m glad my pain and the deaths of many other kids, just like me, afforded you all of this. I don’t care about the why’s anymore. I came here for one thing and one thing only. I need the coordinates for that camp. They made sure any time we left to do missions, or when we came back, our eyes were covered, so we would never know how to get back. I need them.”
Richard took a few steps in front of his desk as guilt settled into his features. “You think they’re holding her there?”
“I know. Vlad is all about control, and what she can do to get it. She wants to bring me back to a place that held ultimate control over me. That’s the only place. Now I need thosecoordinates. Skye is a good shot, but she is not prepared for what takes place in there.”
Barbara’s eyes misted as a few tears slipped down her cheeks. She turned to look through the file before pulling a single sheet out of it. She walked over and handed it me but held on tight.
“Please save my baby,” she pleaded as she finally released her hold on the paper.
I nodded and turned to leave the room, but not before Richard called out to me. “I’m going to do my best to fix this for you and all those who are still alive.”
I never turned to face him because I didn’t need hope, especially when I didn’t believe there was life after all of this. The end was still my plan as long as I saved her. She didn’t deserve to pay for the sins of her parents or me. If anybody should, it should be them.
A piercing painshot through my head as my blurred vision tried to make way for me to see, but the vibrant white lights made it difficult, so I quickly closed them again. Still, I found no comfort. Metal springs dug into my side while a chilling breeze made sure I knew this was not home.
I tried to remember how I got here, but my memories were even blurry, and that was only making my anxiety shoot through the roof. I inhaled and exhaled to relax as much as I could, but the air tasted recycled, as if it had been breathed in by too many lungs too many times, then released. When I inhaled, the mineral taste of concrete met my every movement. It didn’t help that the mattress held a musty undertone, along with something else I couldn’t fully identify.
I needed to see where I was, so I turned over onto my stomach, facing away from the lights, then slowly tried to open my eyes again. Each lid felt as if I was lifting heavy sandbags, butI kept going. My only mission being that I needed to see where I was so I could get the hell out of here.
Finally, my eyes gave way, and the brown and deep hues on the mattress came into view. Bile came up in my throat when I noticed the multiple stains covering the mattress. It was like they had found the nastiest mattress they could find and laid it in here for me. My skin immediately itched as if a million different creatures had bitten me.
The urge to spring up hit me, but my body betrayed me. My muscles were useless, refusing to help me sit up. Even the simple act of turning my head was excruciating, leaving me to survey the room in slow motion. The drug they’d used—whatever it was—was something I never wanted to experience again.
I blinked a few times as I took in the concrete walls surrounding me and beneath the mattress I was on. I finally noticed a camera in the room’s corner high up. I could feel my arm having more function, but the cold air in this prison made it hard to move. With everything within in me, I lifted my hand, then my finger, to flip the camera off.
Fuck them. If this was going to be my life, or lack thereof, they could kiss my ass. Once my muscles loosened up a little more, I stretched my legs out in front of me. I was preparing to stand when the door wrenched open. There stood Ms. Patricia, and she had a pleasant, almost elated smile on her face. That was when it all came back to me. She was the reason I was here, but I didn’t understand why. She was my parent’s friend.
I squinted as I tried to rack my brain for any signs of a problem that, as a child, I may have overlooked. Only one incident came to mind. I had just come home from cheerleading practice with my sister. We rarely ever heard my parents shout or remotely argue, so when the loud noises were coming from the office, it shocked my sister and I.
So much so, we waited until the shouting was over to see what was wrong. We were nosey ass kids, although we could never pinpoint what that conversation was about. The moment the door opened, Ms. Vlad stepped out with a smug smirk on her face. She walked right over to me and tossed my pigtails, then looked over at our parents. When I was a child, I never paid their tight smiles any attention, but now that I thought back on it. They were the smiles you gave to folks you didn’t fuck with, but you didn’t want to alert anyone around you.
I was sure whatever happened that day set whatever led me here into action, or at least removed any loyalty she once held for my parents. The guard placed a metal chair across from me as she took a seat. He stepped back, then leaned against the wall while he kept his hand on his weapon.
“I’m happy to see you’re finally awake, honey. I was beginning to think we gave you a little too much. How was your nap? I hope you feel well rested. We have a long day of events today, and guess what? You’re the main attraction. I know how much you loved attention as a little girl, so this should be a piece of cake for you,” she said.
This bitch must be deranged.
“This has got to be a joke. Why am I here?” I asked.
