Pinned

Chapter Four

I can't move my legs. 
"Denver, I don't think the medicine's quite worn off yet."
"Oh, well, that's fine I'll just carry you." 
I'm not quite sure that I should be okay with him carrying me around. But I let him do it anyways. Why? Because he's hot, and hot guys can always carry me around. Even though he is way too shy. 
"Well I'm flattered."
"I said that out loud?"
"Yep."
Oh Jesus. 

"So, uh, I'm just going to start with the garage, where we are now, and we can work our way out to the main buildings and power grid. Okay with you?"
"Yeah that's fine."
My dad held me up by my wrists so Denver could wrap a blanket around me. I was so embarrassed I couldn't even look at him, and that was bad considering he was actually looking at me. 
They finished wrapping me up and I fell. 
"Dammit! You were supposed to hold her up!"
"Well I thought you'd catch her. You sure were staring at her hard enough to notice even the smallest amount of movement."
Denver didn't blush, "Well excuse me for wanting to make sure your daughter didn't have any bruises or infected cuts. Sorry for caring." 
Caring? Awe he seems kind of sweet. 
"For God's sake Violet we can all hear you!" 
It was my turn to blush. I need to learn the difference between thinking and saying things.
"Vincent, shut the hell up. Nobody asked for your input." I looked at Denver, his reaction was a lot more hostile than the situation called for. He made eye contact with me for what may very well have been the first time,
"Put your arms around my neck so I can pick you up."
I awkwardly tried to wrap my arms around him. Vincent kept making jokes and laughing at us from the other side of the room, I was blushing so hard I thought my face would explode; I didn't even notice I was crying from the frustration.
"I - oh fuck I'm sorry I can't control my arms just. Ugh. I'm sorry. I'm trying so hard they just wont do what I need them to they're fucking useless!" 
"Why are you apologizing?" He lifted me up in one quick sweep. I can't breathe. 
He turned and started walking through what I'm assuming is the garage.
"This is the garage," I guess I was right, "It's not as big as you would expect for a factory but it's still pretty okay. It can house twenty people for a few days, and right now that's all we need." 
"Are we all going to have to sleep in the same room?" 
Denver looked at me like it was the most obvious answer in the world, I felt idiotic. 
"No. I'll give you a tour of the bunks last, so you can go straight to bed when we're done."
"Do we have bunks right beside each other?" 
"No."
"Oh," I tried not to sound disappointed, "Then where's yours?" 
"We share one." 
"Oh." Okay.
My dad came up the stairs, smiling and happy for the first time in... no, for the first time. I had never seen him this genuinely glad to be alive. "Dinners ready,  if anyone's hungry." He tousled my hair and made his way back downstairs- the building smelled like frying potatoes and... eggs? Whatever it was, my stomach growled loudly for it.
I looked at Denver, he was startled. I started laughing. 
He looked at my stomach, "Yeah? Is that how you feel?" He laughed,"I guess we better head downstairs then, unless you want to see the bunks first?"
I looked up at him. "I do, but you know you don't have to carry me, right?"
"Yeah I know."
"Then why do you do it?"
"Because I want to. Do you not want me to carry you?"
"No I want you to I just wanted to make sure you weren't doing it because you thought I still couldn't walk."
Denver sighed and sat me down. 
"Well, if you can walk, I am tired. Wanna go check out the bunks?"
"Sure"
 
He led me down the hallway to a dead end. "This is it?" I start feeling the walls for cracks in the seams of the wallpaper.
"Violet." 
"What?" 
"It's up here." 
I look at the ceiling. Sure enough, there's a door up there. There's also a very plain view of Denver's butt. 
"Wow. Nice buns." 
I wink at him. 
"Oh shut up." There he goes blushing again. He sure does blush a lot. I reach up to take his hand, the blanket falls; he looks down at me, "Wow, nice boobs." 
I blush. I guess I deserved that one, "Hush," my hands are still reaching toward him, "Please just help me up there."
He reaches down, grabs my hand and pulls me up into the air shaft with him. "It's a pretty tight space."
"Well then I would have ended up losing my blanket either way."
"Yeah I guess so. Just stay beside me," he says quietly between wheezes.
"You okay?"
"Yeah I'm just a little claustrophobic. Gimme a minute." He rolls over on his back and breathes deeply, I watch his chest move. 
About half an hour later he was still laying there so I layed down beside him. 
"Could you move?"
"Why?"
"Uh.. because you're.."
"Naked?"
"Yeah."
"Ugh you get uncomfortable so easily. Just tell me how to get to the bunks."
"Follow the shaft until you get to a T, then turn left and keep going straight. I'll meet you there."
"Okay." 

I was about 50 feet away when I heard it. It shook me down to my bones; a low, angry growl. 
"Denver.." I whispered down the shaft as loudly as I dared. The thing barked. 
Was it a dog? No it couldn't be, the shaft was too high for a dog to reach. 
"Denver!"
"What?"
"Something's growling at me!" It snarled. It showed it's teeth. I froze. 
"Violet.."
"Yes?"
"They found us." 
Oh my God no.
"My dad!" 
The dog-like thing snarled and snapped its teeth in my face.
"Vi, I need you to slowly and calmly back up. Do not turn around, just back up. I promise I wont stare at parts of you you wouldn't want stared at."
"Wow you can't even say ass, huh?"
"Right now is not the time to be criticizing my lack of nerve." 
I started backing up, It followed me. "Denver it's following me."
"That's okay, just get back to me."
"I'm scared."
"It's going to be okay."
"We have to warn the others." The thing bit me in my left forearm, hard. I could hear my blood dripping from my arm to the metal airshaft.
"Violet! Don't scream. The others already know, that's why they're being so quiet. I just need you to get the dog to me. Okay?"
"This thing's a dog?"
"Yes, the guards must have sent them in through the outer vents."
I kept backing up, I was almost to Denver. 
"You ready for this thing?" 
"As ready as I'll ever be." 
I crawled up behind Denver. 
"Turn away Vi."
"Why?"
He sounded angry, "Can you just trust me?" 
I turned away. 
"Please cover your ears sweetie," he whispered back at me. I didn't do it; nobody calls me sweetie and actually gets a response, I have a name for a reason.  
I regretted not listening to him. 
He lured the dog closer, quietly whistling as it edged toward him. These animals are trained to retrieve, which often requires maiming the target- they are trained to be ruthless and clever. The dog stopped snarling and put its ears back, wiggling forward with an innocent expression until it was close enough to reach him. In less than a second, the creature was lunging for and almost at Denver's throat. I heard him snap its neck, I listened to it whimper as it stopped breathing. 

I love dogs. 
Even mean dogs.
I can't believe he had to kill one.