Beast

Starved

Chapter Ten: Starved

Belle's small body lay on her bed helplessly. She had been locked in here without any meals for three or four days now. Some part of her had hoped that Callahan was bluffing, but she knew that that was not his character. When he said something he meant it.

She could barely sit up without tears forming from the pain it caused her. She had near to no energy and couldn't walk straight. She hobbled, bent in the middle to avoid the stinging pain it caused her to stand up straight, to the table.

"Table?" The soft glow of the screen told her that it was listening. "Can you please send me some food?" Just thinking of the daily meal she got made her mouth go numb in agony.

"Belle, those settings are locked for me. I cannot access the kitchen's database nor can I override the master's commands. I have done all I can for you." The table's light grew into a light blue color which indicated the emotion it had.

"Can't you send for help? Surely he is not alone in this mansion." Belle's tears were nearly gone. She was dehydrated although she had the bathroom sinks. She could barely move herself toward them without hurting herself.

"I have been sending emergency messages to the master's assistant in hopes that he gets them but I haven't gotten word from them yet."

"What am I supposed to do? I...I'm so dizzy, Table."

"Light-headedness can be caused by lack of food and water. My medical records and databases suggest a healthy diet and plenty of water as a solution to your vertigo."

"I'll just wait for your databases to remember the situation I am in." Belle rolled her eyes and waited.

"Oh. Well. I will send another urgent message to the master. But ignore the assistant this time. This one goes straight to his office." Belle nodded her head. Although she doubted highly that the master would let her out of here and feed her enough to keep her alive, knowing that he would see this message gave her some hope. That hope, however, did not keep her going for long. For not even an hour passed before she was too weak to go on.

xxx

Hours later, a soft red light blinked at the end of Callahan's desk. This had been happening for the past couple of days. His damned assistant kept sending them through. Nothing could be that important that they had to bother him 24/7 when everyone knows how busy he is. Callahan went ahead and called the girl in, scowling at the petite blond with wide eyes. She gazed at him expectantly, ready to fetch him whatever he needed.

"Why, Jaqueline, do you keep sending these infernal messages into my office? I told you last time to ignore all of them." Callahan's hard stare caused Jaqueline to shift uncomfortably.

"I haven't sent any through, Sir. No messages have come through my desk yet today." At this, Callahan's eyes darted to the blinking light. The girl's hands fumbled behind her back, clutching the sliver doorknob.

"Go, Jaqueline." Callahan sent her away instantly. She threw open the door and exited as gracefully and quickly as she could. Once his office was empty, he focused on the light that wouldn't stop blinking. This was sent directly to him, meaning one of two things. Either the Table in Belle's room detected no vitals sustaining life, or she figured out how to send a message on the Table herself and hack the urgency setting. And being that this girl was taken from an uncivilized world, the former is more believable.