Caged In

Chapter 5

“So now it’s the four of us in here,” said Skye, trying to break the awkward silence.

            “Pretty much,” responded Alyce. “This place is so boring. I wish the dude had given me a book.”

            “Well, you didn’t bring one, so…”

            “Oh trust me,” she interrupted. “If I’d have known I was going to get kidnapped, I’d have brought something. Besides, how did you know to have a book or something?”

            “He caught me on my way home from school. It was in my backpack,” she said as she flipped the page in her book.

Slate came back from the restroom not long after. The man stuck him into his cage, and left without saying one word. “This guy is scaring me more and more each second,” Alyce said.

            “You’re telling me,” said Blake. “I’ve only been here for 10 minutes.”

Alyce turned to Blake. He looked scared and sad. “Hey Blake?” she heard herself say.

            He sat there, still looking at a blank wall. “Yeah?”

            “I was wondering. Was your family…nice?” she questioned.

            “Y-yeah,” he stuttered. His eyes looked even sadder than they were before.

            “I’m sorry I even asked, Blake. I didn’t mean to…” she trailed off.

            “No, it’s fine.” He turned to face her. “Yeah, they were nice. They gave me what I needed and did what they thought was best for me. And that’s all I ask.”

            “Yeah. That’s…good,” Alyce managed to say. She felt bad for Blake. He had an amazing family, but he was trapped in this basement.

            “What was your family like?” he asked.

            Before she answered, reality sank in. They were talking like they were never getting out of here. This whole time, Alyce really thought they would escape somehow, but now she didn’t think that anymore. “My family. Well, my dad died three years ago. My mom was really mean to me and I have no clue why. And my brother… he was really sweet,” she smiled. “His name is the same as yours.”

            “Oh, cool,” Blake said. He had no clue what else to say. “S-sorry about your…parents,” he said.

            “It’s fine,” Alyce said. She wondered if her mom missed her. Did she?