Runner

Runner: Part 8

It was only then, when the door burst open, that I realized Captain was supposed to check on both the boy and I. Instantly, my hands fly over my heart as it threatens to jolt out of my chest. Like a deer in the headlights, my whole body freezes. Captain's eyes bulge out of their sockets as she looks from me to the boy. Slowly, I turn my head to look at the boy crouched on the edge of my bed. His mouth is slacked so wide open that I don't think it's going to close anytime soon. A pang of guilt crashes down on me because I feel like it is somehow my fault that the boy didn't return to his room. I gradually ease my way out of my sitting position so that I would be able to face Captain head-on. I shiver as her heavy gaze settles on me, but I can't seem to tear my eyes away from her. Her beady eyes stay locked onto mine revealing nothing but anger and hatred. I don't dare look away from her because that shows cowardice, so I muster all the courage I have and return her signature stare. Slowly, the corners of her lips form into a wicked grin that forces me to cringe.

"How did I not know that you would be here?" She spits out to the boy.

The boy refuses to make eye contact with her, but manages to escape his daze. He opens his mouth to say something but claps it shut when no words escape his mouth. I watch eagerly as he struggles to find the right words to say. Before I get the chance to utter a word, Captain abruptly leaps toward the boy like a ferocious predator ready to pounce. My heart jumps into my throat when she grabs the boy by his shirt nearly lifting him off the ground. Her black eyes are burning with fury as I stare at the ravenous look she holds on her face. I jump to my feet and attempt to move but my fear holds be bound and my feet are securely planted to the ground.

"Who let you in here?!" She growls in a low voice as she penetrates her eyes through the boy.

I am sure that he is trembling on the inside, but he shows no fear in Captain's grasp.

"Speak up!" She yells.

When he doesn't say anything, she violently shoves him back onto the bed. Instantly I jump onto the bed and stare at the boy's trembling body. He looks so small. Captain has her ways of crushing people. I sit there helplessly staring at the boy when I feel a shooting pain on my scalp that spreads all over like a fire that ceases to stop. I scream out in pain as I'm yanked away from the bed by a lock of my hair. As soon as my feet touch the ground, she releases my hair and throws on a wicked grin. The pulsing sensation on my scalp forces me to rub it with my hand, but as quick as a flash, she snatches my wrist, bends my arm behind my back and pins me to the wall. She quickly does the same to my other arm, instantly arm locking them behind me. I feel like I am being arrested by a crazy mad woman disguised in uniform. Beads of sweat form on my head as I squeeze my eyes shut while inhaling the dusty smell of the wall. I struggle to get free from her hold, but the more I do, the more she twists and pulls back on my arms causing me to scream out in agony.

"So you think you can get away with anything you want, huh?" She asks as her sickly warm breath reaches my neck.

I squirm away from her head and look toward the boy's figure on the bed as I feel her smile widen. A brisk shiver runs through my whole body. I stare at the boy's lifeless-looking body on the bed and I involuntarily gasp. My heart thumps louder and faster in my chest as I try to replay how hard Captain threw him against the bed. But my thoughts are interrupted and my breath catches in my throat as soon as long cold fingers slowly wrap around my neck. My whole body turns rigid and a cold sweat runs through my body. The sickening feeling of Captain's fingers around my neck forces me to swallow the bile lodged in my throat. My thoughts are running wild in my mind, but then again I am completely silent. My heart skips a beat when her long fingers slowly tighten around my thin neck. I can feel every pulse in my body run wild as she tightens it even more. Even though I am still as still as a statue, I start to lose my breath. Frantically, I try to draw steady breaths through my nostrils but it isn't working so I start to panic. My lungs are screaming for air but none can come through. Immediately my hands shoot up to my neck trying to pry Captain's fingers off my neck but they don't budge. I kick at her and jump around like a lunatic which only makes it worse. I shriek in sudden pain when she lunges her piercing fingernails deep into the side of my neck. The only breath I have left is taken is short gasps. My whole body is drenched in sweat as small black dots begin to cover my vision. The only air left in my lungs puff out in shallow wheezes making me sound like a dying dog. I choke down on the tears threatening to dampen my face but they soon flow freely. My grip on Captain's hands start to loosen and I become weaker. The tears violently burst out from my eyes and my sobs wrack through my whole body. My knees buckle and I drop to floor with a thud. I plant my hands on the ground with my fingers apart arching my back like a convulsing cat choking on a hair ball. The sounds coming from my mouth sound non-human and I can only wonder when her grip on my throat will be released. I blindly struggle and claw at her fingers as the corners on my vision fade to black. With her hand still attached to my neck I feel myself fading from reality into a black sea of nothingness. I try to hold on, but I can't. I give up.