Equals

Chapter 11

Answers and Questions

          “If you look below the tank of water you will see eight cables connected. At the end of these cables are five high-volt batteries just waiting to be used. The moment her skin touches that water, those batteries will send over twenty volts of electrical shocks into the water.”

          “YOU CAN’T!"

          “You really aren’t as bright as you look, are you? Oh and there is one more thing. If, and only if, she makes it past the batteries, we’ll release a highly toxic acid into the water.”

          “No! DON’T!”

          “Oh don’t worry dear; it’s only a last resort. But please, someone make her comfortable so she can enjoy the show about to come.” A guard comes to open the door as she walks out, and fluffs my pillows, forcing me to sit up, staring into her helpless face. After waiting about a minute I hear a door open on the screen. Maddy’s face loses all color as she dangles above the water in her chair. I hear her try to keep back from crying.

          “Where’s Azurite!? What’d you do with her?!”

          “Oh don’t worry dear; she’s perfectly fine, watching you now. Why don’t you say hello?” She grabs her face and forces Maddy to look into the camera. I look away. “Now, sweetie, why don’t you tell me about Michael? Where is his home?"

          “I-I…”

          “Maddy please…please don’t answer, don’t answer…” I whisper to myself, hoping that in some miraculous way she’ll hear me. “Lie to her, Maddy, I know you can.”

          “I-I honestly don’t know w-where he lives—lived. All I know is that it was on the-the outside of t-town.” I see Judge Maria point her finger to the ground, and hear the chair splash into the water. The guard grabs my face, holding my gaze on the screen. I’ve seen people shot to death, strangled, their skin peeled right off of their body, but something about this is so much worse. The way her body quivers and shakes in the water as the shocks enter her body has the most eerie, unnatural look in it. I’m screaming for her to stop, but she keeps it going for minutes. I finally see her point up, and they pull Maddy out of the water. She’s still shaking, the water must be freezing cold, and she has frost on her hair and face. She’s trying to gasp for air, but she’s so cold all she can manage are quick, shallow breaths.

          “Now, tell me, why you broke into my hospital the other week. I know it was you. Azurite wouldn’t do that…not alone, anyway. Now, did you plan it, and why? TELL ME NOW!”

          “It-it was m-me, A-Azurite only h-helped me b-break in.”

          “But why did you do it?!"

          “T-to find him, to t-try to s-save him…”

          “Who, tell me who?!

          “Maddy, don’t answer, don’t answer, please…”

          “The boy you killed…”

          “GUARDS TAKE HER UNDER!” I hear her scream before the shocks in the water muffle her sounds. Her body starts to shake and quiver again, I’m forced to stare. I see her eyes start to close and I scream as loud as I can to make it stop, to take her out of there, that this is my fault. But of course, no one listens. She stays in there, floating, but held down by the straps on the chair. They pull the chair back up, but she still doesn’t breathe. The guards pull the shocks out of the water and place them in her hands. She wakes up, crying, and panicked. Maria gives up on her, and tells the guards to get her out and take her to “the other one,” which I’m assuming is me. After about five minutes they throw her in the room carelessly, with nothing on but a towel. They take the restraints off of my arms and I pull the blanket over her, trying to get her to warm up.

          “I’m sorry, I-I didn’t know the answers, I really didn’t I-I just—"

          “Shh, just try to warm up. I didn’t know the answers either.” She knows what I really mean, and her eyes close. She doesn’t even sleep an hour, but I don’t force her back to bed. “What was it like, being tortured like that?”

          “Like a living hell…”

          “I hope I’m next.”

          “Azurite, don’t say that! You’re the last hope if-if our plan is ever going to work.” She can be so naïve sometimes.

          “MADDY DON’T YOU SEE?! THERE IS NO PLAN ANYMORE! IT’S OVER! I’M DONE!”

          “You can’t just give up!”

          “OH DON’T GIVE ME THAT SPEECH! I KNOW DAMN WELL I CAN GIVE UP! I’M DOING IT, NOW!”

          She sits back down with me, trying to soothe me, but it doesn’t work. “I deserve to be next, you know. After the way I’ve treated you, after all I’ve done to our cities, it’s the least I can do to repay everyone.” She doesn’t respond.

          “No, the least you can do is fight.” Her words reach me, but I can’t act upon them. I have nothing to fight for. Maddy can’t last much longer in here, soon I’ll be alone—Alone, and empty.