Intertwined

Chapter 27

*(The girl in the photo is Danielle)

Lauren's POV

The next morning when I wake up, I make sure to wake up the girls too. We quietly get ready. Dani carries Lila to the bathroom and cleans her up with a wash cloth and then proceeds to clean herself up. They change clothes (I've been sharing my clothes with them and making shirts that fit them better) and then come back to the room so that I can brush their hair. Lila's hair has grown significantly much. She's also gotten healthier. Since I've been giving her my food and only eat once in every blue moon, she has gotten the nutrition she needs, especially since Lloyd has been giving us as slightly bigger proportion of food. She's gotten so beautiful. In just 5 months she has grown a couple inches and her hair has gotten thicker, her eyes have started turning from hazel to a blueish-green color. And Danielle...she's grown as well. She's gotten taller and gained some more pounds since I give her any left overs that Lila leaves. Now she doesn't look so malnourished. And her eyes go from green to gray all the time. Her hair is also getting darker. I mean, it's a darker shade of light brown but it is starting to actually turn into a dark brown.

I braid some a crown-like braid on Dani's hairline above her forehead to keep her hair out of her face, and leave the rest of her hair down. I simply brush Lila's hair and leave it down. I gather all of my stuff and put it in the backpack. Lila and Danielle have nothing of theirs to bring so I really don't have to stuff my bag anymore than it needs. 

"Lolo, can we go to mommy's room?" Lila asks poking my cheek as I'm putting stuff into the backpack. This is strange to me because she hasn't been in her mom's room since her mom died. I look up at Dani and she just nods her head. I've never been in Lena's room at all in these past five months. Dani had pointed at the closed door at the end of the hallway and told me it had been Lena's but I never dared to go into there. 

We walk down the hall to the, still, closed door. Dani unlocks the door and pushes it open to reveal a plain room with a couple shirts (big and somewhat small) on the floor. Lila lets go of my hand and goes over to one of the shirts on the ground. "Mommy said this shirt is the one she came here in." Her innocent voice echos a little in the empty room. The mattress in this room is much cleaner, but smaller then the one I was given. And there's a giant black wooden panel screwed onto the wall. "That over there is a window, Lloyd made sure to cover it up pretty well so we can't get out or be seen." Dani said once she saw me eyeing the panel. "Perfect, I have a new plan, let's go." I said, gesturing my hand so they can come back to our room with me. But Lila grabs her mom's t-shirt and sits down. She just looks down and stares at it. This just leaves me and Dani to stand there awkwardly.

"Lila, honey, we gotta go, Lloyd will be up soon." 

"Can I take this?" She asks with big, watery eyes. I smile at her and nod. She stands up and holds my hand as we walk back down to our room. Again, we sit on the mattress in a circle and discuss a new plan that is probably our best chance of getting out of here. Just as we finish our plan we hear the thumps of footsteps coming up the stairs. Looks like Lloyd is finally up. 

The door swings open and the nasty, smelly, abominable nitwit stands before us once again. "Listen, I feel as though you have been very well behaved lately but have been getting pretty...well...fat. All of you, except for that one over there." He points to me, making me really self-conscious. "She's staying stick thin just how I like it. Until you get skinny again, no food for you. You're all disgusting. No one wants a fat ass. You come here." He says looking to me. I do as I am told and follow him out the door, I look back to assure Dani and Lila that I'll be fine and to not worry. He takes me downstairs to "The Room" and instructs me to sit down. I sit and wait as he gathers several things in his hands. When he turns around I see a couple bottles and some medical needles in his hands. Panic within me begin to rise. His yellow teeth appear once again as a sick smile appears on his face. "It's time you begin to do this. It'll feel good, trust me. I never could give it to that bitch, Lena because of the kid but you are so much more different. Your mine. You are the best one I've ever had. You've gotten me so much money and you can get me so much more by doing this. It's my gift to you." He says as he begins to prepare. He slowly inserts the needle into the bottle and retracts the liquid in it into the needle. "They say heroin is bad but you can't trust those uptight doctors that have never tried it. It's a bunch of bullshit. If it feels this good, then it must be good, right?" He says passionately, all while inserting the needle into my inner elbow and injecting the heroin into me. I nod. I feel nauseous and my head begins to spin a little after a couple seconds. "Alright, let's go back upstairs." He says holding onto me, taking me back upstairs. He's holding the bottles and needles in his other hand, in the meanwhile. Dani guides me to the mattress when Lloyd tells her to take care of me. I watch as he gives her the bottles and needles before announcing his departure, "See you in a couple days, sluts."