Inoperative

Chapter 5

The small cabin was crowded with the six of us standing in there. Nadia lingers with her arms crossed, a bored expression on her face. Aiden runs his fingers across the etchings in the wooden wall and I stand there clinging to Brayden's hand like it's the only thing that's keeping me on this earth. I'd decided with myself that I would give us two twenty four hours of happy reunion before I got angry and hated him forever.
    Lewis and Marcel turn to face us.
    "We've made a decision," Lewis says. "On the condition that you follow our rules to a tee, you will be allowed to stay here under the watch of Marcel or myself. The only reason we have granted you this privilege is because of your relations with Mr Ferris. Therefore, your chances are numbered. We will not hesitate to hand you over to the guards of Akaecia if you disobey us."
    "We will not allow you too to build any sexual relationships with each other or anyone else in the camp. For this reason, we have split you up. Until more permanent living arrangements can be made, Aiden will stay with Mr Ferris and Amara will stay with Ms Riddick," Marcel orders.
    "What?!" Nadia exclaims. "She is not staying with me!"
    "Ms Riddick, please. I advise you to refrain from making a scene otherwise some sort of punishment will be implemented," Marcel warns.
    "Stop calling everyone by their last names," she says. "You may think it sounds all 'leaderish' but it actually just makes you sound like you have a pole up your —"
    "Nadia!" Lewis says loudly, silencing her instantly. "Marcel has given orders and they will be obeyed. Now, if you wouldn't mind showing Amara to your shared cabin, that would be helpful. You too Brayden. Make them comfortable here. Until they prove themselves to be untrustworthy, they are to be treated as family."
    "Ugh! Why do I never get a say in these things?" Nadia protests but after another stern look from Lewis, she turns and storms out of the tiny cabin. "Keep up!" she calls to me.
    I hug Brayden again really quickly and follow her out the door, glancing back at Aiden for just a moment. I don't know when I'll see him again because this place seems to have pretty strict rules about even friendly relationships between two people of the opposite gender.
    I'm surprised when Nadia stops at a cabin just two doors down from the one we were just in. She looks at it for a moment before she groans and heads inside. I follow her in hesitantly. I know it's silly but for a moment I'm afraid she'll punish me for entering her home or something but I quickly shrug off the notion. When I'm inside, I find myself surprised at the cleanliness of the room. With no kitchen, her small cabin only has three rooms. I look around in awe at the room I'm standing in. It's fairly bare when it comes to furniture, with only a small couch to one wall but around the room she has an assortment of plants and flowers of all different species. Some larger than others, they're all just scattered around the room at regular intervals but in a perfectly organised and neat way.
    "Two rules. One. You do exactly as I tell you. Two. Don't go in my room," she justifies. "You can have the couch."
    "Thank you, Nadia," I say sincerely.
    She looks back at me for a moment with a strange expression on her face. I know that expression all too well. The face one makes when something is said to them that hasn't been said to them in a long time.
    "What, people don't say that to you around here?" I ask.
    "I don't know what you're talking about," she says, shaking her head and turning away from me.
    "We're not all that different, you know," I say, walking over and taking a seat on her couch. She stops mid-step but she still doesn't look at me. "We've never had anyone there that stuck around for us and so we just refuse to let anyone else slip into our self-revolved little lives. Take Aiden for example. He annoys the hell out of me because for the longest time, I've been alone. And then, he shows up like a lost little puppy, begging for me to take him in. And he's changed everything in my life. Did you know, since he showed up, I've had almost no sleep, I almost drowned and my house burned down."
    I must be getting somewhat through to her because halfway through my little rant, she turns to look at me.
    "He's forced me to take care of him and no doubt, once he's done with me and doesn't need anything else from me, he'll just be on his way like everyone else," I say sadly.
    I don't mind that he'll leave though. In fact, I'm actually looking forward to that day after all of the trouble he's caused me. Nadia comes and sits down next to me on the couch.
    "I have someone though. He's there but he doesn't care about me," she says, fiddling with the pillow she's pulled onto her lap. "Lewis is my father."
    I give myself a moment to take that in. Now that I think of it, the man's tall figure, blonde hair and blue eyes do match hers.
    "He never cared about me though. My mother died during child birth with me. He blames me for something that I had no say in. Hell, I wasn't even capable of thinking about anything. I was a tiny baby, ignorant to everyone and everything around me!" she says, her eyes beginning to water.
    But, just like me, she turns away so that I don't see her cry.
    "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I've had a pretty terrible life myself," I said.
    "I—I'm sorry that I tried to, you know, kill you. It's just, with everything going on with the guards in Akaecia and everything, I think everyone's a bit on edge," she says apologetically. "Speaking of, it looks like your scratches have all healed up nicely."
    I tenderly brush a finger over my cheek. I grimace at the dry blood I can feel covering half of my face.
    "Yeah, sorry about that. We don't have running water but you're welcome to have a bath," she offers.
    "Thank you. I really think I could use a bath. I look like a freaking tree with all the dirt and leaves stuck to me," I say, standing up and looking at her. She's smiling at me. "What?"
    "Nothing. It's just, it's nice to have someone who. . . gets me, if you know what I mean."
    I smile because I do. I really do.