Conspiracy Theorist

Chapter Three

“I have a neck. I have a neck. I have a neck.” Scarlett used the technique she always used to calm herself down, telling herself she had a neck. She rubbed the smooth skin comfortingly.

Jocelyn threw her a strange look. “We all have necks,” she whispered to Scarlett.

They came to a door that was just as brilliantly white as the rest of this strange place they were in. Gem started banging on the door, her hands started fidgeting and sweat beaded on her brow. This Boss must be terrifying, Scarlett mused, even Gem is scared.

“Come in,” a raspy voice choked out and it was followed by a fit of coughing.

Gem swung the door open and pushed Scarlett and Jocelyn in before her and Jason followed. A middle aged man sat in a pure white chair at a pure white desk. Scarlett wondered what all the white was for and she couldn’t figure it out. If they were planning on murdering the two girls then why would they pick the most easily stained color?

The forty-something man ogled Scarlett and Jocelyn, lingering a little long on their chests. Scarlett resisted the urge to say, ‘Keep your eyes up, Buddy.’ She bit her lip; she was smart enough to know it would only get them killed faster.

“Hello, Scarlett.” He nodded his head towards her, and then focused his attention on Joz. “Hello, Jocelyn.” Jocelyn’s features showed no fear, but Scar knew her well enough to realize she was terrified.

When the two girls remained silent he sighed. “Do you know why you’re here?” He chuckled, “No, of course not.” His raspy voice and his cold gaze made Scarlett’s skin crawl.

“Why are we here?” Scarlett barely managed to keep her voice from cracking, but she knew not to show fear.

The Boss licked his lips and there was raw lust in his eyes. Scarlett couldn’t help but wonder if he was planning on selling them into prostitution or human trafficking. “You two have been chosen,” was all he said and all sorts of appalling scenarios swam through Scarlett’s mind. She blinked back tears to keep from looking like a baby in front of her kidnappers. Jocelyn was looking strong and confident so Scarlett had to mirror her image.

“What do you mean ‘chosen?’”Jocelyn’s voice sounded meek, but she made up for it with straightening her spine to her full five foot five stature. She wasn’t extremely tall but the way she carried herself showed she was not to be messed with. Jocelyn’s blue-gray eyes looked dead and older than they should be, all the beatings had really aged her, and she wasn’t the carefree teenager she should be.

Delight played in the Boss’s eyes, he had been expecting the question and he was thrilled to answer. “Now dears, you have been chosen to participate in our program. We have been injecting you in your sleep with a medicine to change you into extraordinary individuals. Something told Scarlett he had given the speech before.

“So we’re you lab rats?” Scarlett tried her best to keep her voice even, but even she could hear the shrill edge to it. “What do you want to do to us? Isn’t this illegal?”

The Boss chortled and Jason and Gem looked extremely uncomfortable. “Well, somebody has to be our lab rats, right? You two ladies get the pleasure of being the experiments, isn’t that nice? It really is a great privilege.” The way he looked at Scarlett made her feel like a new toy a little kid got on Christmas.

Jason cleared his throat uneasily and drew Scarlett and Jocelyn’s attention to him. “Of course it’s not illegal, were a government division.”

Scarlett felt as if she had been slapped. “Tax payers are paying to do this?” She couldn’t even fathom what was going on.

“Of course,” the Boss continued for Jason, “they’ve been paying for it for twenty-eight years.”