Children's Games: A Story of Modern Consequence

Chapter 37

~Katerina~

"Katerina?" It was Anna lightly rapping her knuckles against the bathroom door.

"I'll be out in a second!" she called back in a calm voice. Katerina turned on the tap and splashed water over her face a few times to make sure that she was fully awake. She then leaned against the sink and stared at herself in the mirror, finishing her silent peptalk about what she had to do from now on.

The woman in front of her suddenly sparked a sense of hope as she considered what the dream actually meant... she had a family, and a life; a sister that she could return to. She couldn't have been more excited and couldn't have felt more alive. But as usual, it all came crashing down as she remembered who she was supposed to be.

She opened the door to Anna leaning against the frame with a smirk on her lips. She was holding a tall glass that had the familiar green liquid in it to help her sober up.

"Finished fixing your hair, princess?" she asked coolly, looking up at Katerina's knotty bed hair. She quickly brushed it down with her fingers as Anna laughed, then promptly offered her the green sludge. As she gulped down the vile liquid, Anna kept a finger at the bottom of the glass, keeping its contents from being refused. "You've slept a few hours, very good, but it's lunch time now. We've still got things to do today, you know."

Katerina disappeared back into the empty bedroom and quickly changed into better clothes that hadn't been slept in. She had chosen her black cargo pants and a dark red t-shirt that clung to her torso like a bandage. She almost skipped out of the room as she thought of telling Joshua about her findings... then she stopped, again reminding herself of where she was.

But Joshua was wrong about Australia not making the disease... so what else could he be wrong about? Can I really trust him? Her heart told her that she could, but her brain felt apprehensive of what he was actually trying to do here. The more she thought about it, Dominik had been right all along, and their mission did have evidential grounds. Joshua had even mentioned that he thought that their memory alterations were performed to make them better soldiers... so maybe I am better off this way. In conclusion, she decided that it would be best to work alone from now on while she still figured out on where she stood.

***

They were having finger sandwiches for lunch. Everyone had only one sandwich full of lettuce, cheese, and some thin meat patty. Katerina felt a bit cautious taking a bite as she remembered Anna telling her that fresh food around here was scarce and expensive, and most people live off of preserved and processed 'shit' made from the natural proteins of the desert. Grubs. She tried not to think about it.

Dominik arrived, all broad and broody. She had the urge to tell him about her dream, as he probably knew more than anyone, and could tell her what it meant. She had assumed that it was a memory but couldn't be too sure. But she decided, after much consideration, that speaking up never got her very far with these people. She would have to do it on her own. She offered him a small smile instead... to which he returned and visibly relaxed. She wanted to apologise for her reaction so early that morning when she thought he had misidentified her but didn't want to interrupt his daily lecture that he no doubt was about to start.

She made a quick mental note to guard her emotions more closely to prevent any more outbursts, drunken or not. That was how Joshua went by, and he was well respected by the others in the group, despite his secret distrust for them, and his constant scheming to... whatever it was that he was trying to prove. He was sitting opposite her, like he always did, looking calm and cool and collected. She mirrored his composure and ignored the fluttering in her stomach as he stared right back at her.