They Chose Me (Draft 1)

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

                Violet leads me through the maze-like corridors, down the elevator, and then through the hallways again. Once I’m in my room, I sit in the corner opposite to the door. Violet closes the door with a lock and I’m alone again. Pulling out my mom’s note again, I think back to the conversation I just had. Leader Mason has one thing right. Being confused is an understatement. I barely even understand this government anymore and its set up.

                Before I have time to slip the note away, the door unlatches and Violet walks back in. She’s holding a tray of food and I catch her eyes on the piece of paper.

                “Here you go,” Violet says. She hesitates, but then decides to ask. “What’s that?” She awkwardly stands above me, holding the tray. Instead of having her tower above me, I stand up as well to accept the tray.

                “Thanks. It’s a note from my mother,” I simply state. I hold it out briefly for her see, fast enough so she can’t read it, but slow enough so she knows it’s a letter. I watch her expression as I slip it into my front pocket. It’s hard to reach my back jean pocket with handcuffs. Violet looks across at the wall, her eyebrows bent in like she’s thinking.

                “Listen, Emma,” she begins. I haven’t heard her call me by my name yet. She lowers her voice down. “I don’t want to be here. I’m trying to leave. But when I got assigned to a rebellious girl, I was very intrigued. I am here to help.” I look down at my shoes, the same dirty, black Converse. Those haven’t changed, but I feel like everything else has.

Before I can say anything, Violet takes the tray from me and puts in on the floor. She then takes my arm and pulls out a key from her pocket. My arms sling to their sides and I can finally rub my wrists once the handcuffs are placed on the ground. I sit back down and look at the contents on the tray: a small portion of red meat, some dried fruit with leafy greens and a bottle of water. All these are iron-enriched which can only mean one thing. I will be losing lots of blood while I’m here. I want to cry in the corner, run away from here. Example 134 of why Leader Mason is a horrible person. I look at Violet again in the eyes. She’s probably in her thirties, but I’m as tall as her.

“Please. I don’t want this. I never asked for this. I didn’t choose this, they chose,” I say the last word a whisper. “Me.” Slowly, the realization of that phrase starts to dawn on me. The government chose me, my family chose me. It seems the only person who didn’t choose me is myself. I need to learn how to do that.

“That’s what your mom said, isn’t it? Well, Emma, I’m not going to choose you for anything except for my partner in crime,” she says with a small smile. I can help but crack one myself, the first smile since I’ve been here. I wasn’t expecting one at all. “I couldn’t help but notice, did that have F22 on the note? I think I can help you with that.”

When she comes back, she puts the handcuffs back on me. Her hair is back up in a ponytail, except this one you can see. Violet leads me back out of the room and through the hallways. I peer around another hallway and am able to see a window. It’s evening now. It would be nice to go outside again. I almost smack into another official from yearning for freedom outside. I keep walking, trying not to get distracted. I follow Violet into an elevator with a few other officials. One of them pushes me with their shoulder, probably not accidentally.

                From what I noticed of my short time being here and living in this country is that some officials are like Violet, the ones who work out of fear. But others want to be here as much as I want to be back at the rebellion camp. Sometimes desire for authority can do that. I stand still, next to Violet. The elevator stops a few times until it’s just Violet and me. We maneuver our way out of the elevator to the bottommost floor which is darker than the rest. We stop at a door as Violet enters a code. There are these keypads that stick out of the wall next to important places. I can’t help but notice how they use the same ones as the rebellion camp.