Hallucinations (rewriting post-physical publication)

Chapter 37 - Riding A Wave That Never Breaks

Our mini-army stands at attention.

Unmoving, and tense.

Dr. Ellias doesn't move an inch.

Not a single muscle in her body twitches.

Neither do I.

Nor do any of the people standing behind me, and to the sides of where I am standing.

The whole waiting room is at a standstill.

All eyes flicking back and forth between our mini-army and the evil doctor.

It's like we are stuck in a game, and she's the puppet master.

Everyone was motionless.

Until.

Dr. Ellias slowly, and carefully reaches down into her right pocket.

She pulls out a small remote with two small buttons on the remote.

A yellow one at the bottom.

And a red one right smack dab in the middle of the remote.

Then she pulls out a skinny black wire from a small hole, almost invisible in the top side of the remote and a small bulb at the end of the wire begins to rapidly blink a flashing red color.

She looks down at the remote, and hovers her right thumb above the red button in the middle of the remote.

She looks up and scans her eyes around the space of the waiting room and then trains them on our small group of her non-allies.

That would be us.

She smiles deviously and says; "Well, this just became, a dilly of a day".

She looks back down at the remote and lowers her thumb over the red button slightly.

She traces her thumb over the surface of the button, etching curved vmarks into the skin of her thumb.

She looks back up at us and says; "Do you know what this button does when pressed"?

We say nothing.

"Not so talkative now that I've got this nifty little device at hand now, eh, Nina"?

Conor puts his arm across my chest, shielding me from her words, and says; "You have no right to talk to her". His voice is colder than the suddenly freezing air around us.

Maybe the heaters broke?

I doubt it.

"Oh you have no idea, Mr. Carter. I have EVERY right to speak to Miss Montez".

"How so?" he counters.

"Wouldn't you like to know".

She looks once more at the button her finger is still tracing circles over and chuckles softly.

She looks back up at me and grins in only the way a madman manwould, or in this case; a madwoman.

She looks deeply into my eyes, deep enough to see into my soul.

And she says; "Any last words, Miss Montez"?

I think for a moment, trying to sort out the countless different thoughts rammed inside of my brain, then I say; "What does that button do"?

She only chuckles again and shakes her head sadly.

"Oh Nini. I had such high hopes for you. And yet, you are in no way smart enough to even comprehend what this tiny little button could evoke, with just one small push".

"She is plenty smart," Conor snaps.

She whips her head to the side and glares at Conor, meeting his fierce gaze.

She turns her eyes away first and glares back at me and says; "Well, I might as well answer your question".

I meet her glare and do not step down.

"All I can say is; It's for me to know, and you to find out".

I give her a confused look but it's immediately swiped away when she yells; "You should be dead! I should have finished my job when you weren't killed"!

"You won't get away with this," I tell her, a spike of fear clawing at my throat. Saying it out loud made the fear tangible. 

"Oh sweet, helpless Nina, please believe me when I say," she pauses, "I already have".

I'm half mad with fear. I feel the color drain from my face and panic weighs down my shoulders. 

If I wanted, I could destroy everything.

But I'm a good girl. 

I give away my final thought as soon as I glance down at the red button her touch still lingers on.

It was only a second.

But it's as if it was an entire lifetime.

She catches the glance down, and knows my mistake.

She rubs her thumb across the red button once more before giving me one last glance.

She winks at me and waggles her fingers in front of my face.

"You're a psychopath," I say. 

She looks down at the button again.

"I prefer creative," she says. 

And she presses it.

And then.

The world explodes.