The room had a thick, aromatic scent to it. It reminded me vaguely of roses, and sent a tsunami of memories swimming through my mind. The walls were plain and white, the nurses’ choice of color for the man’s room, and the floor stood in stark comparison with the room’s simple décor. The heavy sound of rain pelted the roof of the facility like hail.
It was the perfect weather condition for a figure to slip through in complete silence.
I had finally planned to escape from his imprisonment. I desired to see my family once more, even if that meant killing others, and I was going to initiate it today. I was positive, ninety-nine percent, that my flight of fancy would fail but I’d concluded that it was worth the try.
My loose, black shirt would make for an excellent getaway, at least I hoped, so in the darkness of the night it would be difficult to make me out. The sandals I was wearing weren’t my favorite choice to go with, as I hated the mud and being unclean, but I’d have to live with it since my nurse decided they matched my blue jean shorts.
They did everything for me because they felt I was helpless. But I was twenty-six, and certainly capable of taking care of myself.
There was a light knocking at the door, Nurse Anne’s, and a second later she stepped in.
She smiled genuinely at me. “I’ve brought you a before-bed snack,” she said, placing an oatmeal granola bar on my table littered with writing.
I grimaced. Oatmeal was disgusting, but not wanting to diminish her feelings, I said, “thank you.”
Nurse Anne nodded and turned to leave, but John raised a hand. He had to make this count. “Before you go, I went to the restroom earlier and noticed a leak springing from the stall,” I informed sharply. Good lie, she’s sure to fall for it.
Her facial features rose in surprise. “I am terribly sorry! I’ll have a look right away.” The nurse quickly sped toward the bathroom and disappeared a second later.
I stood up, trembling in my shoes. A lock of coppery, thin hair fell into my light blue eyes filled with harsh experiences. Did I really want to try? It would be hard, but I knew I had to. I must.
After finishing a quick debate in my mind, I rushed out of the room a moment too late. Nurse Anne’s disbelieving voice died down behind me quickly as I sprinted down the corridor of cells. Everything swished by in foliage of black and gray. Dim lights filtered throughout the building providing enough illumination to herd moths at the source of them.
Suddenly, an earsplitting noise shook the institution. Someone had signaled the alarm.
A deep, husky voice echoed in the hollow building, causing other people to stir and panic. “Lock down all exits in the building! There is an escaped patient amidst the facility!”
Red lights flashed all around, but I continued to run. His pursuers were likely to be coming. He wasn’t sure where to go. Up ahead, the hallway opened up to a dome-shaped room.
The lobby?
John breathed a sigh of short-lived relief when he saw doors and windows. Adrenaline pumping, I rushed forward to a double, metal doors and pulled the latch.
It didn’t open.
Alarmed voices resonated not far off and I began to worry. I had to escape, I had to see his family, just once more and tell them what happened. In my peripheral vision, i caught sight of a large, brown window placed in contrast to the wet, stone wall it was built on. Could it be unlocked?
I grabbed the switch on it to open, but a hollow click came in reply. No! I thought.
The sentries were smart to lock the windows too, but they didn’t appear thick. I hurried sideways, aware of fatally close footsteps, and heaved up a large chair. He threw it at the window, exhaling with hope when it shattered into a bunch of pieces. But suddenly a man with a tranquilizer gun said
“Freeze, John Goddall!”
Wide-eyed, I dove out the window in a swan dive from way high up, and landed clumsily but safely on the ground. Gunshots rang out from above and shredded the bark and leaves of the trees around.
Outside, tall towers held searchlights that scanned the ground below for any figures. The rain drenched John from head to toe as he pounded through the grass and mud. Willpower urged me faster and the fence ahead came into sight.
Just as I fixed himself to climb over, a bolt of blue electricity slithered its way across at an unnatural speed.
“No!” I roared.
Flashlights surrounded me like a maze and the escapee turned to face his adversaries.
“I’m actually impressed you escaped. It’s a sign we need to upgrade security.”
The head of the institution smirked at me, unblinking in the relentlessness of the rainstorm. “But you’ve hit the end of the line.”
I inhaled sharply at the sight of the man’s raised shock gun.
My eyes caught hole of a hole at the bottom of the electric fence. But how could he slip down there without getting shot by the head of the facility or one of his sentries?
“Come with us and you won’t have to taste this gun,” the head of institution offered.
I swallowed. It was crazy – his plan – but worth it. Another reckless decision.
I pounced on the head of institution.
There were shocked gasps, muffled by the thunder and rain, followed by confused voices. I struggled with the head before wrenching the shock gun from his hand and backing off. Without hesitation, he shot the man, causing him to writhe in pain before instantly fainting from blood loss.
I froze in shock at what he’d done, watching the other sentries scatter in terror. Battle-scarred memories weaved in my mind of my previous misdeeds in the war.
Recovering from my daze, I dove under the hole with shock gun in hand and dashed into the dense forest, almost incapable of believing I'd gotten freedom.
