Run (#Wattys2016)

5

This chapter has been revised. To view the revised version, go to the table of contents and select Revision of Chapter 5.

I woke up with a groan. My head was finally clear. Unfortunately, that meant I could feel pain. I sat up and looked down at my re-chained legs. There were two cuts where I'd felt the pinching. They sure didn't feel like pinches anymore. I gritted my teeth against the pain and tried to ignore how bloody the cuts were.

"Does it hurt much?" asked a voice. I jumped. Looking up, I saw Emma and the three other girls.

"Of course it hurts," I moaned, rubbing my forehead. Emily held out a roll of bandages and a soaked sponge. My hand reached out to grab them but Emily pulled them back.

"He asked me to do it," she explained as she started to unroll the bandages. Why would Aaron ask her to put on bandages? No time for questions like that, I told myself.

"What is this place?" I asked.

"We call it the bar," the girl to Emily's immediate right answered. The one who'd called the others over earlier. She seemed familiar.

"Keke? Your Keke right?" I asked her. She nodded mutely. I looked at the other girls. Yes! I knew them too. Kala, Keke, Emily, and Levi. But how did they connect to Aaron?

Then it clicked. Memories came flooding back. Kala's short black hair being pulled by Aaron, her native skin being caressed. Keke's shoulder-length black hair being stroked by Aaron. Her native-skinned hands pushing him away. Emily being harrassed for not being native. And short Levi being thrown over Aaron's shoulder as his 'native prize'.

I'd defended all of them against his attacks. This was why they were so in awe of me. I should have seen it earlier. His current victims were ones he'd attacked earlier in the year.

"Lekia?" a small voice asked. I turned to see Levi's big eyes filled with concern.

"Sorry, what?" I asked. Everyone except Emily, who was still tending to my cuts, was staring at me.

"You just dropped off there," replied Kala.

"Oh. Sorry. So, what did Aaron mean by for rent?" I volleyed. Three pairs of eyes immediately dropped to the ground. I sighed in exasperation. They were going to tell me my fate.

"You can tell me, I'm going to find out anyway," I reasoned. Still no response. Fine. I looked at Emily.

"Emily," I started, "What did he mean?"

"Fine," she said, putting a last strip of tape on the bandage, "You know those black boxes? He puts you in them at the start of the day. Then these guys come up and decide which one to rent. He pays his money, takes you and your his personal bar maid. They're allowed to do anything they want with you. Except take you home. But...." She just stopped.

"What? What's but?!" I asked. She took a deep breath.

"There are rooms in the back," she whispered. I grew rigid. My mind raced from the possibility of what they could be.

"But no one knows what they're for," she hastened to add, "None of us have ever been back there." I visibly relaxed. That was too much for me. Going to bed with a total stranger gave me the shivers. Thank God it was probably forbidden to us.

"How long have I been out?" I asked. Kala immediately responded, "Well you got here at eleven, passed out for an hour, Aaron took you thirty minutes after you woke up-"

"Whoa!" I warned, "What time did I get here, what time is it now?"

"Oh! You got here at eleven and it's six now," she said quickly. I looked up in shock. Seven hours?

"How do you know what time it is?" I asked. They all pointed at a digital clock above the door. I nodded to show I understood.

"Your going to get tired soon," Levi whispered, "It's a side affect of the drugs." Several minutes later, Levi's words rang true as I slipped into sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I dreamt that I was in a dense fog. With no where to go. Then a room solidified around me. There was a door. I walked towards it. Before I reached it, a hood was thrown over my head. I struggled, but strong arms grabbed me and dragged me a long distance. They threw me on the ground and my hood came off. I was in another room.

That's when I heard them. The whispers. They were telling me to run. Again and again. Getting louder and louder with each second. I tried, but the room had no door. Trapped. The crack of a whip sounded behind me. I turned to see Aaron holding a nasty looking whip. He didn't advance. Instead he turned to face three hooded figures. Their hoods flew off and a gasp escaped me. He had my sister,  my babies, against the wall cowering. The whispers had turned to shouts, but they were coming from me. I was begging him to take me instead. But he smiled a nasty smile and started towards my babies.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trisha woke up screaming from her dream. It had been awful. Aaron was advancing towards her with a whip, but then Lekia appeared. She'd screamed at Aaron to take her instead. Telling Trisha to run. Aaron stopped, smiled and started heading towards her. Now it was Trisha screaming for Aaron to stop. But Lekia stood there and braved herself against the whip. The dream had ended once Aaron raised the whip.

Trisha sat in bed shaking. She almost got out of bed to see Lekia. But reality hit her with a cruel force as the days events came rushing back. Running through the house looking for Lekia, seeing Aaron's truck drive away, calling the cops. They hadn't believed them. It was easy to tell. At least they took statements, Trisha thought. Then the last memory came. All of the remaining Borns huddled on her mother's bed. Praying for Lekia.

Trisha held back a sob as her door opened.

"Trisha?" a voice asked.

"Yeah," Trisha replied. It was Eliza. She came in and closed the door behind her.

"Everything okay?" Eliza asked, "I thought I heard screaming." She came and sat on the bed with Trisha.

"Yeah, just a bad dream." Trisha wiped away a few escaped tears and fell into Eliza's open arms.

"What was it about?" Trisha couldn't hold it back anymore. It was too much. She burst into sobs on Eliza's shoulder.

"It was awful!" Trisha manaed to sob out, "Lekia was there, about to be whipped by Aaron. But he'd been coming for me! She saved me." Eliza stroked her hair while she sobbed. She had to be strong for Trisha.

"Why did God do this?!" Trisha sobbed, "Why would He take her away?! She holds our family together!"

"I don't know. We may never know. All we can do is pray to the Lord that she'll come back." Eliza was crying now too. She tried to wipe away the tears, but more kept coming. For several minutes she tried to wipe them away. Then she gave up. It was too hard. She couldn't be strong like Lekia yet. Tonight she had to mourn. She hugged Trisha even tighter. Both sat there. Hugging, crying, praying for the other one. Praying for Lekia.