Mirror Image (Under MAJOR editing)

Chapter 25

Marley leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes with her right hand. She looked down at her left hand, still handcuffed to the chair. She couldn't even try to get out without her guard seeing. After her outburst, he had been watching her like a hawk nonstop. Well, whenever he wasn't in the restroom. She had finally finished the last report... Nan's death as well as her own. 

She leaned back in her chair, knowing she had two more hours until she would go to bed for the last time. She couldn't help but remember all the times she had here... even the ones that weren't so bad. 

When she was little, maybe seven, she was in basic training. This was advanced elementary school so to speak. She remembers learning long division and this little red headed girl was struggling with it. Marley didn't understand how anyone would struggle with this but she was different. She was smart... very smart, yet not in a booky math way. It was in how to help people. 

Marley laughed a little. She had been involved in Nan's life since the beginning. She remembered seeing the pain in Nan's eyes during those classes. Now she realized her parents were murdered. She didn't understand those feelings.

"No dummy. How can you not understand this? It's simple! Give me that." Marley yanked away the paper from the boy's hands. He ended up being her competition and the same boy who was Intel 1 and pushed her into the river.

"Shut up Marley!" The boy stood up and punched Marley in the face, sending her to the ground. Marley put her hand to her eye and tried to get up but the boy kicked her and sent her to the ground again.

"Stop!"  Marley was on her back, covering her face as the boy was going to roughly stomp on her torso when Nan jumped in front of  Marley, saving her from more broken ribs. "Leave her alone!" Nan turned around and looked at Marley. "That was quite rude."

"It was the truth." Marley answered as she tried to get up. 

"Well, the truth is going to get you in trouble. And it's going to get you hurt." Nan helped Marley up. "What do you want to be anyways?"

"I want to be Intel 1 some day." Marley said proudly. "You?" Just as Nan was going to open her mouth, Marley answered. "Mechanic?" Nan shook her head. "Darn! Well, I don't think you would be a good mechanic anyways. I think you would be a good Medic."

"Really? I never thought of that. I was thinking field tech." Nan shrugged.

Marley shook her head. "I don't think so. Medic suits you better."

Marley smiled. 

"What are you smiling at?" Her guard asked.

Marley turned towards the guard. "What? Oh, uh, just remembering something."

"Oh." The guard shrugged. Marley heard a rumble come from the guard. "I gotta go." The man ran out of the room, leaving Marley alone... at last.

Marley spun towards her computer, quickly opening up her security tab and laying out the map. "Perfect." Marley stared at it, committing it to memory. Marley heard the door open up after ten minutes, startling her and quickly making her minimize the window. "That was fast..." Marley spun around in her chair, getting hit in the head, sending her to the ground, attached to the chair. "Wha?" Marley looked up and saw the devious smile of Picasso staring over her. "No no no. I didn't do anything wrong." She said, panicked. Marley tried to pull her arm away from the handcuffs but all it did was cut deep into her wrist. She didn't pay attention to the pain though because she was too worried of what he was going to do to her. She needed her strength for tomorrow.

"Oh you did do something wrong. We are just fixing it." Picasso picked the chair up and set it down, re-orientating Marley. She felt the blood trickle down the side of her face from the cut on the side of her forehead. Picasso unlocked the handcuffs and gripped Marley's shoulder. 

"No! Let me go! I have one more day!" Marley screamed, fighting against Picasso's iron grip. She kicked at Picasso and tried to push his hands off her but he gripped harder and shoved her to the ground. "I have one more d-"

Picasso shoved a cloth in her mouth, tying it around her head. "Shut up." Picasso roughly pulled her wrists behind her back and tightly tied them together with rope. "You know, I'm really glad that you are so skinny because it's so easy to throw you around." He tied the knot, pressing into Marley's cut wrist, making her gasp and try to pull away. She was yelling into her gag and trying to squirm away.

Picasso whipped out his knife and held it to Marley's throat, pinning her between him and the knife. "Just. Stop." He hissed, slowly dragging it across her throat. "Yelling will do you no good without your windpipe." Marley swallowed and stopped squirming. "Good girl. Now, let's go see Moriarty. He's been dying to see you." Picasso chuckled as he let go of Marley and yanked her through the door, shoving her down the hallway.

Marley struggled to make it slower but Picasso was too strong. The metal door slid open as the dreaded room was laid out in front of her. Marley's yells of protest were muffled by the gag as she was shoved in. Marley fell forward onto her knees, scraping them on the cold concrete. She couldn't catch herself as she fell forward. Marley rolled onto her side and tried to get up but she heard that horrible clicking sound and froze. She was going to die in here without being able to save Nan; without being able to live a life that she wanted away from this facility. Heck, she could have worked at Scotland Yard for all she knew but she was too late.

"Ahhh, Miss Marley. A day early I see." Moriarty chuckled as he stalked closer to her.

Marley rolled over onto her back to get up so she could properly see Moriarty.

"Oh goodness. Picasso, take that cloth out of her mouth. Her insightful comments are oh so helpful."

Picasso nodded as he slowly walked towards Marley. "You better watch your mouth if you know what's good for you." He looked into Marley's green eyes as he untied her gag. As he pulled the gag off, Marley spit in his face. Picasso growled and slapped Marley, sending her to her right side. Marley's cheek was cut from the contact. 

Marley looked back at Picasso. "Was that necessary? You were the one that gagged me, James." 

"Excuse me?" He asked through tight lips.

"You heard me. You use my name but I can't use yours? And I wasn't referring to that James over there." Marley motioned to Moriarty who was standing there chewing gum with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Oh dear me Picasso. Has someone got under your skin?" Moriarty laughed. "I think James is a powerful name meant for powerful people if I must say so, but then again, I am biased."

Picasso quickly shot his hand out and wrapped it around Marley's petite throat, causing her to stiffen in his grasp. "How do you know my name?" He violently pushed the words out of his mouth.

"Isn't it obvious?" Marley choked out. By looking at his blank face, she smirked, despite paying attention to her restricted airways. "Isn't that sad. Moriarty has a pet!" She squeaked out. Marley allowed herself to basque in the glory a bit before she explained. "You introduced yourself to Nan the first day we all met." Marley took in a shaky breath. "You introduced yourself to me as Picasso but I heard you speak your name as I was getting beaten in the chair behind Nan. You should remember that keenly. It was the first time you met Nan and me face to face. You should choose your timing better Mr Byrne."

Picasso clenched his hand around Marley's throat, quickly cutting off the words that were coming out of her mouth. He picked her up and slammed her into the wall. Marley flashed back to the first time she was in the room. She had almost died in the same situation, but that time she was protected by her usefulnes. Now, nothing protected her. Marley couldn't reach up to lessen the pressure on her neck due to her bound hands. "Picasso..." Marley saw white spots across her vision as her feet dangled against the wall. 

"Oh, so now you choose to call me Picasso instead of my actual name? Is it because of your current situation?"

 "St-op," Marley stated as she started to lose conciousness. She kicked her feet and tried to loosen his grip. Her eyes flooded with involuntary tears as she saw Moriarty leaning against the wall, smirking. "He-..."  Marley fought against her need to pass out as she finally gave in, losing her breath and slumping into Picasso's arms.