Difference

Chapter 12

Mr. Orion breaks another finger, just for the fun of it. I cry out. Jakob, Peter, and Joe laugh. Tess sobs. They all marvel at how quickly I stop wincing, and how fast the bone repairs itself.

"Tell the staff that no one can claim her. She's mine," Mr. Orion orders Joe. He nods and struts out of the room. Mr. Orion turns back to me.

"Ready, Erinn? I'm sure this is much quicker than you would've thought, but we can't have you two informing the other kids about our ways here," Mr. Orion tells me. Ready?! No, I'm not even close to ready.

"No.. I-I'll resist," I stutter. Mr. Orion's grin plummets to a frown.

"Please don't resist. It'll be so much easier for everyone," He pleads. I wonder what would happen if I did resist. The thought of me doing that obviously upsets him.

"What happened to Tommy's difference when he tried to stop you?" I know I'm onto something, because he fidgets, but doesn't show any more signs of weakness. Tess can see where I'm going, though.

"You won't get Erinn's difference as strong as it is now," She says smugly, like it's a tiny victory. I guess it is.

"No, her difference will be perfect, and it will be mine," He protests. I shrug.

"Whatever you say. Let's do this," I start to head towards the door. He catches my arm in a steel grip.

"I'll give you a bit of time to talk to your friend Jakob," He says, and gives Jakob the "don't mess this up" look. Jakob nods. Mr. Orion and Peter leave the room, but I know they're right outside the door. They tie me up first, though.
Right after they leave, Tess starts, "HOW COULD YOU?! We trusted you! I trusted you!"

Jakob doesn't react, other than shrugging, "Tess, you were stupid to not see it coming. Come on, you knew I had been here before you got here."

"Jakob," I whisper, and he turns to me, almost reluctantly.

"What, Erinn?"

"Why?" I ask him. He shrugs.

"It was my chance to help. My dad was killed by Tommy when he went crazy. This is my revenge, Erinn," He explains, and his words feel like a knife to my chest.

"Tommy killed your dad?" I ask, shocked. He nods.

"He went crazy, and started chewing the wires around him. My dad tried to calm him down and pull him away from the wires. Tommy knocked over the glass of water next to his bed, and my dad was unlucky enough to get shocked. The shock killed him."

I know I shouldn't feel any pity for Jakob. He just laughed when my finger got broken. But deep down, I know he's hurting. He's just putting up the tough guy act.

"I'm sorry, Jakob," I say, and I really do mean it. I lost my parents before I even knew them. Jakob had time to love his dad before he was stripped out of his life.

"It doesn't matter now. I know what you're doing. You're trying to break me. Let me tell you something, Erinn," He leans in, his breath on my face, "I won't break."

Tess loses it then and pulls against the straps holding her back, screaming at Jakob. Jakob just watches her, laughing. I can't hold in the tears. I had thought Jakob was going to help us. I thought he was our friend.

Jakob walks over to the door and knocks on it three times, "We're done here."

Mr. Orion and Peter come back in. Peter has something in his hand. He holds it up and points it at Tess. I don't have any time to warn her. I don't have time to scream. Peter shoots the tranquilizer gun and a dart pops out and soars through the air, landing right on Tess's arm. She struggles for a few more seconds, then goes limp.

I stare at them while they walk in front of me, waiting for Peter to knock me out too. He doesn't. They stand in front of my chair.

"Well, we have a lot to talk about," Mr. Orion says. Peter nods in agreement.

"Then talk," I demand.

"Erinn, I wouldn't be talking to us like that if I were you. You're not the one in charge here," Mr. Orion warns.

" I know what you're doing here. I know you need me to get my difference, and I know that if I resist The Room, then my difference will be damaged. So who's the one who's really in charge here?" I say defiantly. Mr. Orion slaps me across my face, but I can see the terror in his eyes.

I don't show pain. Instead, I just stare at him. I'm determined to not show when I'm weak anymore. That didn't get me anywhere.

Joe bursts through the door, out of breath. He glances over at an unconscious Tess and his eyes bulge.

"Why'd you do that?" He shouts.

"She was hysterical. Now would you please keep your voice down. We don't want our other guests to hear our conversation," Mr. Orion warns.

Joe nods, "Right. Sorry, sir."

Mr. Orion turns back to me, "Erinn, please hear us out. I'm going to tell you the truth, since you already know most of it. Yes, we're taking your differences and giving them to ourselves. But for a good reason! A difference can only be disconnected from a body for a certain period of time. We need to connect it to a fully mature body before it goes.. Crazy. Eighteen year olds are not fully mature and fully developed, and you could turn your difference deadly. Therefore, we're helping you," He says, and it sounds like a speech that's been rehearsed thousands of times.

"I can't believe you," I say flatly, and his hopeful face turns into a scowl.

"Erinn, we're just trying to help you. Really, we ar-."

"What happened to Tommy?" I cut him off. At first he looks confused, but then a look of understanding washes over his face.

"He was resisting The Room. You need to be calm and at ease. The Room won't work properly if you're not. No one had ever tried to stop it from working before, so it wasn't used to that," Mr. Orion explains.

"You make it sound like the room is a person," I comment icily. Peter nods behind Mr. Orion.

"It.. has a mind of its own," Mr. Orion explains, "Now let's put her through."

I panic, "No! I'll resist!"

"Not you. Her," Peter scowls and points to Tess, and a sharp bolt of terror cuts through my body. Together, the three of them lift her limp body into their arms. There's nothing I can do to stop them. They'd just strike me down. They take her out of the room, and I'm alone.

Five minutes later, Joe comes back.

"Your friend is in good hands," He says cheerfully, "Now let's get you to your room."

We walk out of the room, but immediately we take a right when I know we should've gone left.

"We're going the wrong way," I try to tell him. He shrugs it off. We end up at the room I started in. The gray, dreary one. Great. Just what I need.

Joe shoves me in, "Don't worry about the bell. Evan will bring you your food. We'll let Tess come talk to you when she's out of The Room, but then she's going home."

I don't speak. He closes the door, and I hear it lock behind him. I flop onto the bed and lay there for the next hour.

There's a knock on the door. I hurry to sit up and brush my hair out of my face, and when I do, I see Evan walk in. He smiles at me.

"It's a little late, but I have some breakfast for you," He sets it on a gray table near the bed.

"Thanks," I say. He nods. Then he leans over the table.

"Coffee, water, milk, juice?" He asks. I ask for orange juice. He pours it and walks to the bed, where I'm sitting. When he hands me the glass, he trips and his lips are near my ear for a split second.

"Cameras," He whispers when he's close to me, before pulling back.

"Whoops! These feet like to mess with me," He laughs at himself, and I laugh with him. But I know what he said, and I know what it means. There are cameras in this room recording my every move. I try to thank him with my eyes, and I think he gets the message.

I realized something, though. Evan told me about how I was being watched. Does that mean he's on my side?