Rebels

Ch. 36

When Jack came to, his mind was foggy. His thoughts were wandering, and his spine was itching with pain. A bright light had shone down on him, and he squinted, the light itself causing his head to ache even more. He tried to swallow, but his throat was burning. This brought his mind back to when he had been poisoned. Lyla had saved him then. He wondered where Lyla was. As he tried to prop himself up on his elbows, he found his arms would not move. He tried to move his head, but something held him down. He realized he was restrained. He began moving against the restraints, but this made them dig into his skin. He scanned the room around him, his heart beating harder in his chest. Everything was white, and there was a window across the room from him. He watched as a man with a white lab coat walked from behind the window and opened the door to the room, a smile on his face. He held a clipboard, and he wore glasses. The man's smile was what spooked Jack the most.

"I see you are awake!" The man exclaimed, setting his clipboard down on a white counter. "And how are you feeling, Jack?"

"H-How do you know my name?" Jack spoke, though it came out as a whisper.

The man picked up what appeared to be a long, metal stick. On the end, two letters were formed from the metal. Jack realized the man was going to brand Jack, just as they had done with Arin. The end of the stick was already boiling hot, and Jack began to squirm.

The man frowned, inching towards Jack until he was hovering above him. "Don't worry, Jack. This won't take long. You just have to be still, and this will be over soon." He spoke in a soothing voice, and tears began to swell in Jack's eyes. "You don't have to do this." Jack whispered desperately.

The man snickered. "I'm afraid I do." He tightened Jack's restraint running across his head with his free hand.

Jack could feel the heat of the metal hovering above his temple, inching closer to burn his skin. Tears escaped Jack's eyes, for he did not care to hide his fear anymore.

The door flew open, and a soldier stood there, panting. Jack took one look at the guard, and then his stomach flipped. It was Tom. He still had a large cut on his nose from when Jack had hit Tom.

"Stop the branding. The King would like to see him at once." Tom spoke, his eyes glued to Jack.

The man in the lab coat scoffed, yet he set down the metal. "I do not understand- what matter can be so urgent?"

Tom stepped towards the man. "Never mind that. This is a confidential matter."

Before the man in the lab coat could protest, Tom grabbed the metal stick and slammed it against the man's forehead. The man screamed in anguish and fell back, and Tom grabbed the butt of his gun and slammed it over the top of the man's head. He fell to the floor unconscious, and Tom unlocked the restraints that held Jack down.

Jack was confused by this notion, but he stood, rubbing his raw wrists. He ignored the pain that flared trough his spine. "What are you doing here?"

Tom smirked, "What happened to your voice?"

Jack bit his tongue, remembering why he had hated Tom in the first place. "Poison." He whispered.

Tom frowned. "I didn't think they were serious about that. I truly am sorry about that. I didn't know."

Jack only shrugged. "Why are you helping me?"