Without a Whisper //Danger Days//

13. Truth Bomb

Eleanor did not like her new visitors. They were loud, unorganized, and had an unhealthy taste for alcohol and cigarettes. She didn't want to confront them about her distaste for them, so she usually kept herself hidden up in her room while they were awake. Elle especially hated the one with the long black hair. Andrew had to be the most irritating out of all of them. She hated how noisy he was, and how perverted some of his comments would. Oh, how she wished that she could just tell him to shut the fuck up, but that was out of the question.

Nothing on this Earth would make Eleanor talk.

Freia seemed nice. Sure, she may be a bit hard on the outside, but Elle wouldn't mind being her friend. Linnea absolutely adored her. The younger girl never really had that much of a female role model besides Saida. She never looked up to her older sister, even if she did love her. Linnea just couldn't find motivation in someone who couldn't talk. It didn't matter that Elle raised the girl after their parents died, Linnea didn't want to be like her sister, and Elle didn't blame her.

Amsterdam only moved in with the two siblings a few years ago. He was too busy running the growing community, even though that was supposed to be Saida's job. Elle was grateful that her big brother was around to help her take care of Linnea. It made things easier for the teenage girl as well. She felt safer. She sat alone in her bed, her blanket wrapped around her bare legs. The newcomers were downstairs making breakfast, and the nocturnal residents of the block had begun to wake up. Her visitors haven't seen much of her since they arrived here around a month ago. Occasionally, she'd hear her name in conversation. James had once asked if she was mentally crippled, which pissed her off something fierce. She was intelligent enough to function as one should. Her mental stability had nothing to do with her lack of verbal communication.

Well, that wasn't quite true.

When her parents died, they died screaming. They died with their arms flailing in fire and gunshot. Linnea doesn't remember too much of that morning, but Elle never ever forgot. If any sort of counseling was available, then maybe she would still be talking, but that was a luxury. Instead, she had to pick up her baby sister and run away, all on her own. Weeks spent in the streets hoping not to be taken by the soldiers in white. She had friends who were taken. Family members. They never did end up coming back.

But then came Saida, a woman that Eleanor could never imagine to be real. She was kind, kinder than most of the people she had come to encounter, but she was so very strong. She promised to keep Elle and her sister safe, and brought them to a safe haven.

But Elle didn't feel safe.

She locked herself in an attic for a year, opening a window to gain any fresh air. She never wanted to leave, until her sister finally became aware of life. Linnea would come up to the attic, and speak to her sister about the world outside. Eleanor didn't have it in her to converse back, but she loved to listen to the stories. Eventually, she left her attic, and that's when everything changed. It didn't take long for Saida to realize that this girl wasn't going to speak any time soon, so she taught her sign language. Saida had a deaf son before the wars, but he passed away very young from sickness. Fortunately, she was skilled in signing, and was happy to teach the young girl. It didn't take long for Eleanor to become acquainted with Amsterdam, a boy close to her age. The two became inseparable, and eventually they found they're own abandoned house to live in with Linnea. Amsterdam was the brother Eleanor never had, and she was so grateful to have him in her life. For a long time, it was just him, Elle, and Linnea.

Now, there were a bunch of lunatics living in the house as well.

Eleanor listened intently to the conversation going on downstairs. She heard Freia's voice over top of the loud music playing from the record player.