Dead Connections

Chapter 4 - The bust out

Chapter 4

My next step was clear. I knew exactly what I should have done. I should have dashed out of that room and made a mad run for it. Of course, me being me, I also spotted something else at the same time. Unseen’s notebook, just lying on the chair, unguarded for my curious eyes to read.

I thought about this for a second. If I made a run for it, it would be possible that I could escape. But if I nosed around in Unseen’s notebook I could try and discover who he was.

I looked over my shoulder back at the notepad again, then back at the door, not knowing which one to choose. I realised that if I picked the notepad, I could still try and escape after, but if I escaped, there was no way I was coming back here to discover who Unseen was.

Dashing frantically to the notepad, I grabbed it with both hands and opened it to about half way through the book. As my eyes adjusted to the tiny scribbly hand writing I could just about make out the fine print at the top of the page that read ‘Starlings Hospital’. That was where I was born. My breathing quickened as I glanced at some diagrams that Unseen had drawn of the hospital, including what it looked like from the outside, above, in the main office, in some of the wards. The pictures were pretty good actually. If he wasn’t so busy keeping me as a hostage then he’d make a fairly cool artist.

I flicked backwards a few pages until I came to more writing, and as I skimmed the text, I caught me name somewhere in the middle.

Skylar Una Stone was the 3rd child, completed at exactly 12.30am on November the 1st, 1998.

What did completed mean? I was born on the 1st of November. Was completed another word for born because, although I was not the best at English Language, or any other school subjects, I was pretty sure that completed wasn’t another word that meant born.

I flicked to the front of the old book, in hopes of finding the owners name on there but all I found was more writing. I didn’t have time to look through everything. I had to go. My mind wasn’t working properly, and I knew that trying to escape was crazy, and that Unseen would recapture me again. I’d really pay for this.

I approached the top of the stairs and tiptoed down it, cringing each time one of the stairs creaked or made a loud noise.

Suddenly feeling rather vulnerable, I decided I needed something to defend myself with. As I approached the bottom of the old creaky stairs all I could see were general things you’d find in a house. A table, two chairs, some flowers, a photograph on the table. I snuck further along the corridor I was in until I came across an airing cupboard and slowly opened the door.

Inside were all sorts of things, but one thing that really caught my eye was a broom, and the fact that the handle and stick could be used as defence.

As I pulled the broom out of the cupboard a bucket came crashing down out of the cupboard into the ironing board and making a large sound. I froze, terrified, glued to the spot. There was no way Unseen hadn’t heard that, unless he was deaf.

I could feel the urge to flee creeping upon me, but I knew that I couldn’t. I’d already got down the stairs. I couldn’t go back because I probably wouldn’t ever have another chance like this.

Instead, with buckling knees and shaking hands clutching onto the broom stick, I propelled myself forward, not even bothering to shut the cupboard door before I left.

Racing down another set of stairs, I came across what I believed was the ground floor. Now all I had to do was find the way out.

Eerie silence consumed me, and I felt like I was in a horror movie, and my kidnapper was just about to pounce on me, knocking me to the ground and jamming a knife into my throat. I gulped just thinking about it, and tried to think logically.