Hiding in the Shadows

Chapter Four: A Twist of Fate

We traipsed down the hallway, taking turns and twisting through dimly lit passageways. The guard held me close, pushing his chest up against my back. 

We turned into our final hallway and confusion flitted across my face as we began to near a large, steel door. The theater. Why? My heart began to beat faster. We stopped in front of it and the man passed both of the chains into one hand. He shoved me towards the wall, scanning his key card against the card reader. It beeped and a green light flashed was the door began to open.

It was dark, blackness engulfed the theater. No windows. Until a small light flicked on far away. On the stage behind the closed curtain.

My legs were stiff from sitting, and they felt awkward as I walked through the rows of seats. Shadows loomed behind the curtain, slowly moving along the creaking floorboards.

Kai's eyes bored into my back as the man pushed me along. I stumbled up the stairs of the stage, slouching to add slack to the chains. But my escort quickly pulled them taught, forcing me foreword. I slowly reached a small, plastic chair sitting alone on the vast stage. A single spotlight centered around it. My captor pushed me down and I would not allow myself to look up. My heart was lurching out of my rib cage. I tried to distract myself by distinguishing shapes in the floor's scuff marks. Then the smallest man spoke, my stomach churned, and I swallowed the bile rising in the back of my throat. Dr. Kako.

The man who had caused me so much pain that I had begged for death, pleading with God. The man that should have been on my guilt masks. I should have killed him when I had the chance.

Rage boiled in my gut. But also fear. I could not hurt him, especially in chains. He had the upper hand. And his two companions didn't help; their guns sat lazily in their arms. I was no threat to them.

I looked up, sizzling hot anger setting my gaze aflame. Kako cracked his neck, exposing the warm, delicate flesh to the light. I knew what he was doing. Showing how vulnerable he was, how easy he would be to kill. But I could not reach him. He was taunting me.

A smile curled on his thin lips. "Elodie, dear, how are you?" His voice was casual. Cold.

I did not respond, instead, I looked back at the ground. But the man behind me grabbed my chin, forcing my eyes up. I narrowed them slightly, ignoring the sting of pressure from the soldier's fingers digging into my cheeks. Kako chuckled darkly and I clenched my jaw shut, I would not talk if I didn't have to.

"I see you haven't changed." His eyes bored into mine, making me feel small. He was one of the only people that could make me feel like this. And I hated myself for it.

His eyes glittered with malice while his nose twitched in annoyance as we sat, staring at each other in silence.

"As interesting as this conversation is, I'm going to have to get to the point. You have been entered in a drawing." His eyes darkened. "A drawing for fate," he looked down at his lap, smoothing out a nonexistent wrinkle in his lab coat. "You could say."

Dread pooled in my stomach. I didn't know what it meant, but coming out of his mouth it couldn't be anything good.

"A volunteer opportunity has been created for you." He watched as fear gripped my heart, grinning all the way. His eyes were hungry. They drank in my fear, feasting on it. Slowly he spoke again. "This lottery, shall we say, will give you one of three outcomes. First," he held up a single polished finger, "you could fulfill your sentence in your cell. Second," a second finger rose. "You could be given time in the Field in order to improve your rapidly declining health." He glanced over my malnourished body and humor flashed in his eyes. "Or third, you could be selected to join me in the lab."

My heart stopped. "No," I mumbled, barely audible. He licked his lips, and I wanted to cry.

"I'm short on new arrivals and I have some tests I would like to run. You have been given this opportunity to volunteer yourself valiantly for the effort. Or, if you decline to volunteer, you will be entered into the drawing."

I struggled against my restraints but the guard held me down, clamping his large hands onto my shoulders.

No way would I ever volunteer to be experimented on. But the drawing was worth a shot. One out of three odds. There was less of a chance. I would take less any day. 

"The drawing," I gasped out, wincing from the pain in my shoulder, "I want to be in the drawing." Kako frowned.

"You don't want to spend time with me?" He sounded upset but his eyes said otherwise. They shone with anger.

"Go to Hell," I spat and the guard grabbed my jaw, forcing it shut. My saliva landed at Kako's feet and he glared at it before turning his gaze onto me.

"Very well." He flicked his hand and the guard twisted my wrists, heaving me out of the chair. My captor dragged me out of the amphitheater as I watched the shadows crawl along the walls and the lights slowly flicker out.