The Super Jerk Trilogy (Now 3-in-1)

9. Unstoppable

{Cameron}

I've finally come up with an escape plan. A few more days pass — even though I can't say for sure how many — and I manage to lull Green and the others into thinking I'll help him. So much that he's stopped sending two guards to check on me. When it's just one, I can take him. I've done it before.

   So when the guard comes to check on me, I wait until the right second. I may not be able to use my powers, but my many years as a super had trained me to look for weakness, even if it was just a split second of it. The difference could be winning or losing a fight. I hear a loud snap, the door unlocking, and a hiss as it opens. Then a sudden silence as the force field power source cuts out. They do it every time they enter and exit, so they won't be burnt to crisps. And presumably, me as well.

   He comes in, his uniform obscuring his face. I can't tell where he's looking, but I know enough body language to see when he lets his attention slip. Right as he turns his back to close the door, I take my chance. I sneak up behind him and loop my handcuffed wrists around his neck and pulling tight.

   "Hey kid, don't–" he gasps, but I jam my knee into the back of his thigh and slam him into the wall.

   He struggles, arms flailing. I yank him from the wall and swing him around, momentum sending us crashing to the floor. I pull harder on the chain as he paws at it, trying to get loose, but his gloves prevent him from being too dexterous. He must have thought so too, because he pulls one off and gropes at the chain, his struggles getting weaker. I see his other hand, feeling around for the radio clipped to his belt. I nudge it off with a foot and then kick it away.

   He gurgles a protest, but I ignore it. Still keeping a tight hold on the chain, I feel around for the extra sedative darts the guards keep in their belts. He bucks under me, and I nearly lose him. But just in time I yank one out with my toes. His hand gets free and I jab the needle straight into it, right where his wrist meets his arm.

   "What the...?" He seems surprised that I've managed this much, but he doesn't get any time to think about it. The sedative's so fast-acting – not to mention he's still struggling – that he's out in a matter of seconds.

   When he's still, I free his neck from the chain and hunt his pockets for a key. I have to roll him on his back to find it. But when I do, and I'm out of the cuffs, I roll my shoulders and take a second to enjoy the freedom. Then I get to work, stripping him down to his underwear as I pull on his uniform. I feel almost like my old self again, with every part of my body covered. Except for the obvious absence of my powers.

   After I've put it all on, I take his dart gun and radio and step out into the hallway, securing the door and the force field behind me. Then I set myself on the same path we took when Green showed me his diabolical scheme to destroy the nation, except this time I take a wrong turn and find myself in a long white hallway lined with big metal doors. Each one has a number spray-painted on it. I walk up and down it a couple times, trying to think logically. I suppress a shudder. This must be where Green keeps his prisoners before he kills them.

   It takes me a while to figure out that I haven't even tried the doors. Each one slides on a track, and there seems to be no keyhole. So I grip the handle and pull. At first it doesn't budge, but eventually, with a loud squeal of metal, it creeps open. When the crack's wide enough, I peer inside. Nothing, except for blank walls and a drain in the floor. I don't even want to think about what that's for.

   I search all the cells, which wastes valuable time. But eventually I find Jocelyn, wrists cuffed to a chain hanging from the ceiling. I see bloodstains on the floor, the ceiling, and the wall, and it's clear how hard they've been hitting her.