Deck of Cards

Day 35- Ava

Four of hearts- working in the field for 4rs

Ava's POV

The police station was feeling more and more like a home than before. The small bed which I slept in was more comforting than the king size one that I had slept in my past home. The memories came back and I shuddered as they replayed in front of me. Jen's chest fell and rose as she carried on dreaming, hopefully good dreams; her plump lips were parted slightly and every now and again she wheezed slightly, a side effect from the smoking that she had admitted doing a while before the game. She never complained, but I could see that it was gnawing inside of her like a hunger pain.

Today was the day that we found out the verdict for my father as well as being shown some of the evidence that was found in the house. Excitement wasn't quite the right emotion to use, in fact I kind of dreaded it. We were in such a limbo state and I didn't quite want it to be shattered yet; the past day had been the first normal one that we had experienced in what felt like a year. I had watched countless hours of TV and read up on what was happening in the world. A lot had happened since we had left.

Jen mainly slept as a coping mechanism for the loss which she had been faced with, her son had been taken away by the witch that was called her mother. She cried relentlessly and pushed everyone away which was understandable but slightly annoying when all you wanted to do was help her. I hoped that she would come out that day to see what justice we had been given and how long we could be safe.

I was intrigued by what they had to show us and what they could have possibly found that was worth bringing back the memories that everyone was suppressing with all their will power. I knew I was at least.
As I got dressed into some jeans and a plain top, I couldn't help but recall Hannah's phone call that I had received. It made me shake slightly when I remember hearing the fear in her voice, it was the same fear that I had felt when we escaped. I couldn't quite comprehend a life away from the game. I couldn't even imagine how much better it was.

"Ava," croaked Jen who sipped at some water beside her bedside, it was all she had accepted. No food had even touched her lips and she was still wasting away.

"Yes," I said quietly as not to scare her, it was the first time she had wanted to speak to me.

"What's happening today?" Her voice trembled slightly.

"We're getting the verdict and then they're going to show us something that they found in the house," I said as I took a seat at the end of her bed. Aimlessly I rubbed circles onto her calves as she continued to sip her water. The funny thing was that I hadn't seen her go to the loo at all since we arrived.

An hour later, Jen had dragged herself out of bed and managed to change out of her days old clothes. We were in a taxi and going into central London to go to see some police officials who were working on the pretty easy case; they had already come to a verdict. My father would be charged as guilty, we knew that much already. It was his sentence that I was anxiously awaiting. I wanted to hear that he would be away forever.

When we arrived there was already three girls standing by the entrance with a family member standing at one side. Scarlett's parents looked on disapprovingly at the other girls, Sally stood smiling and talking with her mother and Hannah stood staring at her feet forlornly. It was a pitiful sight.

Warily we walked inside, Jen and I were squeezed between the groups of dysfunctional families that didn't quite know what to say. It was probably the most awkward I had ever been.

Walking into a room we all took seats away from each other, it was like the mothers were trying to pull their daughters away from us. Like we were contagious. Like we were the reason that their daughters had been taken.

A stern faced officer stood in front of us looking slightly scared; he held some papers in his hands and I couldn't help but cross my fingers. I knew what I wanted to hear. He cleared his throat and I heard the tension in the room intensify.

"Thank you for all coming today for the verdict of Mr Ontoniores," I grimaced as he butchered my last name, "I will get straight to the point so we can all get back to our lives. It looks like he'll be charged with various criminal offences that date back since 1984. This means that he'll be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. The direct workers involved are being sentenced between 16-25 years in prison and the so called 'watchers' are being given a range between house arrest or probation." We all sat and stared as if we were waiting for more.

Instead of feeling ecstatic I just felt empty inside, like it wasn't anything that was out of the ordinary. The knowledge that he was locked up wasn't as comforting as it I had imagined.

"Oh and the investigators wanted you to have these, they found some kind of writing and photocopied them for you lot to see them," he said before handing out some pieces of paper that were stapled together.

"I would open them when you get home," was the last thing he mumbled before leaving us promptly. I heard some sighs from annoyed parents who had made the trek for a ten minute talk; all the girls held the paper to their chests. I think he gave the warning to stop prying parents from seeing the contents, whatever they were.

I didn't open it in the car, I took the warning we were given seriously. Jen also sat with the paper in her lap not touching it or even looking at it. I think she wanted to hear more about if they had got her mother, I think that was the only reason that she got up that morning and she was only left disappointed.

When we got to the station I ran up the stairs and jumped into my bed, hiding myself under the covers. I was nervous as to what they had found, I honestly didn't know what to expect. The first page was blank and gave no indication of what was inside the small booklet. Taking a deep breath I turned over the first page.

29th January 1984

Dear Diary,

The boss has given me a few sheets of paper to write on after I had begged him for days, I think he gave up in the end.

I shook my head as I kept on reading hoping that it wasn't what I thought it was.

The room is cold and the other girls are all sleeping; I haven't slept in days. I'm scared that they will slit my throat, I have been receiving special treatment after all. Today was a Jack of Spades and I thought I would see my dogs again but instead I got some other dogs who tore massive gashes in my legs. The boss just laughed before moving onto the other girls. I can't read him, I can't tell what he wants out of us.

Oh no, I kept repeating it in my head. This was a diary from the first girls, the original victims that my father had tortured. I couldn't decide whether I wanted to keep on reading, whether I wanted to remember what he had done.

The other girls spit at me when I walk back to my cell, they call me names. I don't understand why I'm the only one that gets good food or hot water- I just do.

I had been told about this, my father used to do this thing where when he got bored he would give one girl special treatment. This would spur the other girls to attack her and give him some entertainment. He was so sick in the mind.

I don't know what to do. I can't sleep and he constantly whips me for not doing the tasks right but I can't help it. I just want to go home.

Anna

I couldn't help but cry, I couldn't help the tears that covered my pillow. I didn't want to read the rest, to read what else he did to that girl because I was certain that it ended in her death. It was a diary, surviving proof of what he did, showing what he had done to so many girls. So many girls had gone through the same torturous experience but all had died. They were just numbers, there faces were never going to be revealed because the memories of them had died and faded. I couldn't help but fall into a deep sleep with the floating memories of past and present mixing together to form an array of horror. I would read the rest of her story the next day, I wouldn't let her die completely. Her memories would live on.