Passing Through

Chapter 9: Mazes

   We had arrived. Finally, we were there. I was brought against my will, but I was as happy as ever to know that we had finally reached our destination. The ride was torture; my patience had long ago dwindled down to nothing. I breathed a sigh of relief. I was going to get out of this stupid SUV.

   I turned to Ryder, whose eyes were closed, and thumped him mercilessly. His eyes flew open, and I whispered, "We're here. Wake up." He seemed startled, but then nodded in understanding. We both craned our necks, trying to see out the back windshield. Ryder was still gagged, but at least now he could see. I, on the other hand, had nothing on my mouth or eyes, probably because our kidnappers hadn't wanted me to come back to consciousness and have a panic attack from being gagged and unable to see. I shifted, waiting patiently for the trunk to open and hands to escort me to freedom.

   Well technically, once I got out there, I would still be a prisoner....but you have to be optimistic about some things.

   And I think this was something you kinda HAD be optimistic about.

   A whoosh of air came with the opening of the trunk, and I breathed it in. Fresh, fresh, wonderful air. How lovely. I squinted into the bright lights that were shining outside, and looked for the silhouettes of human beings. The two goons from our car stepped forward, and I glanced at Ryder, who then looked at me. He seemed to shrug, and I shrugged back. With some difficulty, we pulled ourselves up into sitting positions, and the goons grabbed our shoulders. I winced as my injured shoulder sent shots of pain through me. The guys hauled us out easily, and then roughly set us down onto a tiled driveway. I looked down at the rich stone for a few seconds, and then looked up at the beautiful sky. I felt like I needed to make sure it was still there. The sky was turning, the sun was setting, and different colors were twisted across the horizon. I returned my gaze to the earth. The sky was too pretty for me at the moment. Funny as it may seem, it was the truth.

   I didn't flinch when I felt a hand on my arm. I turned my head, expecting to see the blond lady from our car. Instead, there was a tall, middle-aged man in a suit gripping my arm like it was normal. I violently yanked my tied arms out of his reach, and then looked at him murderously. 

"What the heck do you want?" I suddenly felt tired and angry at being grabbed at and dragged around. I was tired and I needed to know where I was; I had just gotten out of the freaking car, and I was already being dragged away. I wasn't gonna let these people treat me like a doll, kidnapped or not.

The man looked taken aback, and I silently basked in my own approval. Yeah, you better be surprised. He lowered his head a little, and spoke.

"I'm sorry, I-I apologize. I'm Baskus. You must come with me."

"Must? Who said I must?"

"On the contrary, no one has said such. However, you are being held against your will. So...you must come with me," he said, toughening up a little.

I frowned.

"If you value your life, you must," Baskus added, with an unsure glance at the goons. I looked at the pair of burly men. One of them jerked his head towards me, as if saying 'try me, girlie'. He was lucky I was tied up. I didn't want to attempt to fight him, right now. I guess I could teach him a lesson later.

"Follow," Baskus said decisively, turning around and walking in the direction of a huge, mansion-like house. How did I miss such a giant building? I had no idea. Surprisingly, Sky, you were too caught up with the sunset, a voice in my head said snidely. I glanced nervously at Ryder, who was staring at the mansion, and made a move to drag him along with me.

"Naw, just you," one of the goons said roughly.

Ryder broke his gaze from the house, and looked at me. He glanced at the goons, and then seemed to shrug. He couldn't exactly talk, since he was gagged, but I could still tell what he was saying. He gently nodded towards Baskus's retreating back. I nodded sharply and told him, "Try to be rebellious. It's fun." Then, trying to be brave, I turned around and hopped after Baskus, trying not to trip over my bound feet.