Children of the Dead

46| What if she Betrayed us?

Somethings been off with Enver for a while and I can't figure out what it is. When I brought it up with Cash, he only smiled, placed an arm around my shoulders and told me she is just having difficulty getting along without Decklin. But I can't help but feel that it's something more than that. Despite my suspicions I don't bring up the topic again, keeping them more to myself.

 For two nights she's been gone. I don't know where, I assumed that she'd been going outside to get some air. So much has happened in such a short amount of time, it makes sense that she would want some time alone to think. But when I heard Holloway's voice last, I grew more concerned.

Sure, she's sent down there a lot and she's lucky to get away without punishment most of the time. I couldn't help but be bothered by the fact that Holloway would come here himself, in the middle of the night. He came and went without much commotion and I was confused. I checked every room, making sure I wasn't hearing things. Enver wasn't there.

Jayla would do the same thing, I would always hear Holloway sneak in and the two of them leaving for her to return alone hours later. I know that Enver would never side with Holloway, she's nothing like Jayla. I'm more worried about what Holloway is doing and saying to her.

I couldn't sleep after she left, anxious to make sure she made it back safe. Thankfully she was back in about an hour, too wrapped up making sure Hartley was okay to notice I was awake.

I'm in the same position tonight.

I wasn't fully asleep when I heard Enver's bed groan as she stood up and walked out of the white room. Worry and drowsiness bound me to my bed, this time I didn't check if she was still here. Only assumed that she really was outside this time.  I wanted to wait up for her again, I really did, but sleep got to me before I could protest.

It wasn't long until I was woken again. A harsh red light I've never seen before flashes through the room, an alarm following right after it. Confused, I sit up looking around, the others do the same. Quinn cowers into Cash's arms and he holds him securely while he looks around. Even from being in the white room, I can hear the noise of someone pounding on the entry door. 

"What the hell?" Both Cash and Omar are up to their feet in an instant. Panic is choking the air from my lungs as I make my way to the others. The room is painted an angry red from the lights, making it difficult to navigate the room as my eyes adjust.

"A fire alarm maybe?" Omar shouts over the blaring siren.

"I hope so." Cash responds, a strange tinge of fear buried in his voice.

Men dressed head to toe in black come barreling through the door. Quinn is ripped away from Cash, and both him and Omar are bound with metal cuffs and restrained. Omar is spewing a long string of offenses to the men, and Cash is trying to claw his way to the kids. My heart is pounding so hard in my chest I worry it might just break through my rib cage. I want to run away, fight back, but my feet are nailed to the floor. Another man in black charges towards me and fear swallows up my screams. The man cuffs me with ease, same with the kids. They also restrain Taylee, whose cheeks are streaked with tears. My mind goes straight to Enver. She didn't go to the yard. She went out. I can't help but think this all has something to do with her strange behavior recently. I try to stop myself from thinking the worst.

Maybe she escaped like Decklin did, I tell myself. Maybe she's getting help for us.

My arms are twisted painfully behind my back and I can feel hot, silent tears slip down my cheeks. I look over to Cash, whose eyes are full of panic. It's a terrifying sight. For as long as I've been here I've never seen him look as scared as he does right now. Omar is still shouting, fighting to get free.

"What did you bastards do with Enver?!" He shouts, his voice becoming hoarse. One of the men throws a swift punch to his face and he lets out a heart-wrenching sound, then goes limp. A horrible thought crosses my mind.

What if she betrayed us like Jayla? What if she made a deal for her freedom?

I squeeze my eyes shut tight, trying to erase the terrible thought.

Enver wouldn't do that.

The kids are screaming, and my panic is rising. Drops of blood pepper the floor, most likely coming from Omar's nose. Cash looks hopeless, as if all of his determination to stay alive has left him. We're dragged farther down the hall, the alarms still blaring. My arm stings under the grip of the man dressed head to toe in black. I look at his face and see tinge of sadness in his eyes. And despite how afraid and angry I am that this is happening to us, I feel a little sorry for him. I wonder if he knows what he's doing. We're taken into a large facility I've seen once before. My heart thumps into my throat.

The air is stained with the stench of bleach and other cleaners. The harsh fluorescent lights glare off the cold metal tools and supplies. Omar is screaming still, but his tone is more desperate than angry. Cash is focused on the kids, as am I. Tears streak their faces. Hartley follows the man assigned to her, but Quinn is trying to pry himself free. He's kicking and crying and my heart is cracking. The soldier he's fighting to get away from loses his patience and smacks Quinn's pale cheek with the back of his gloved hand. Quinn lets out the most heart wrenching yelp and something inside me sparks. I take a page right out of Enver's book of bad decisions and rip myself free from the man with sadness in his eyes. I run over to the man who hit Quinn as fast as my tired legs will take me. I catch a glimpse of Cash's stunned face, his eyes open wide. There is so much fear in his expression but also a little pride. I charge at the monster in front of me before the relization of how idiotic I'm being sets in. I use my entire body weight to tackle him to the ground, using all the pent up energy and anger from all of these months of silence to send every punch. His face a little bloodied when I'm ripped off him. I spit at him as he wallows on the floor. My body is humming with adrenaline, until I feel a sharp prick in my neck. 

Everything around me is moving slowly, until it all goes dark.