Hungry Heart

The Awakening

A piercing alarm shook my bones. I jolted upright, frantic.
"Don't worry," Diana sat next to my small hospital bed. "I'm sure it's just a drill. Daddy makes us do them all the time."
I tried to get my heart to leave my throat and settle down into my chest as I slowly fell back down into bed.
"Are you feeling better, Alice?" Diana beamed, "That's what Daddy called you. So you must be Alice!"
I pressed a hand to my forehead and nodded.
"Do you feel better, Ali?" Diana asked slowly. I nodded.
"Well you look-" Diana was interrupted by the door swinging open.
The man with the Grey beard stepped into the room with two guards on his tail.
"Diana! What did I say about coming here?" Maurice was furious with his daughter.
Diana hung her head low and murmured, "Sorry Daddy." Her head then shot back up and she looked at me with big eyes. "She's my friend, Daddy!"
Maurice looked like he was going to lose his temper any second. "She is not your friend, Diana. She will never be your friend. Go to your sister."
Diana started to protest, but her father cut her off and told her to leave. When she was gone, he instructed his men to cuff me to the bed.
I wish I knew how to talk right now. I would have told him that he's being an asshole to his daughter. I tried to form the words, but only a small whimper left my lips.
Maurice grinned at me. "Oh, what's that?" he cupped his ear, "Alice Bradley can't speak? Well, that's new." I sat back up and stared at him.
What do you want with me?
I had to say it. I had to try. "Wha...wan...w...m..." I hung my head in defeat.
Maurice was silent for a while. "I wanted to thank you, Alice."
I looked up at him."You saved my girls back there. I owe you. You saved them, so I won't kill you."
I nodded. What else could I do? If I could talk I would've told him where he could shove it.
"I'm sending one of our elementary teachers in tomorrow to help you with your little talking problem. For today, you should just rest."
Amd with that he was gone. I sat there in my bed, thinking.
I'm at the Eastern post. This is Maurice's Haven. I tried to remember why I hated Maurice so much, but I couldn't. How did I even know him? I made a mental note to call him out on it when I could talk again.
The door clicked open and a short man with stubble slowly walked in. He kept staring at me like I was the missing link. After a while I sighed heavily. It was getting uncomfortable. "Alice!" the man shrieked. I frowned and nodded wearily. "My name is Doctor Franco."
Of course. Just what I needed. A doctor trying to cut me open to see what makes me different and why it makes me different.
I closed my eyes and choked my tears back. I'm never going to get to Kyle with a doctor on my back. I hung my head and clenched my jaw.
"Oh, don't worry dear. I'm just excited to finally meet the girl who cured herself." I looked at him.
He stared at me again. "Fascinating."
"Anyhow, Maurice wanted me to study you and make sure you're human. I've got good news and bad news. Which would you like to hear first? "
The bad news, please.
"Oh, right. You can't talk. So why don't I start with the good news?" I rolled my eyes.
"Your DNA is clean. You're not a zombie."
No shit.
"And the bad news.. " the doctor paused. He took off his glasses and wiped at them.
Spit it out!
The machine next to me started to beep furiously. Both the doctor and I looked over at it. Was this normal?
"Oh dear. " I heard the doctor say. Oh dear? What 'oh dear'? What's happening?
I started to panic. I felt something stir inside me. It felt painful and...
Hungry...
No. No. No.
This can't be happening. The doctor scurried to a desk and pulled a needle from the drawer.
My fingers twitched and I felt my nek crane. I started shivering as a slow moan escaped my lips.
The doctor pulled a vile from the shelf and stuck the needle in it.
"Guards, will you strap her down for me please? Her head too, if you don't mind. Just like before."
There was a before? What before? What's happening to me?
The two men came rushing to me and forced me into tons of straps, despite my protests. I felt a sharp sting in my thigh and another one in my neck soon after.
"Oh, my dear Alice." I heard the doctor say as my body stopped shivering and I fell into the black abyss.