The Midnight Within

Chapter 19

Deeply asleep, Mia tossed and turned on her little couch. Dreaming of cold sterile halls and highly polished floors. She was dressed all in white, pushing a squeaky cart down the damp feeling hallway. She hated what she was doing, hated the too tight shoes and starched uniforms. What she hated most was the smell of urine and vomit. Luckily she had this one last round of pills and she could go home and take a hot shower in her tiny rented cottage.Reaching the heavy door of the ward she used her keys to unlock it and pushed her cart inside. All but three of the children ran to their beds. The twins, not to her surprise stood over a girl huddled on the floor who was crying softly.Sighing she took some candy from her pocket and placed them on the beds the twins should have been in. Clapping her hands, they ran for the candy, ignoring her completely. Elisabeth stayed on the floor until she was scooped up and carried to her own bed. For far to long the doctors had ignored her concerns about the boys, and from the look on the little girls face she needed to do something fast or they would be losing another one. Putting the girl to bed she glanced around the room, unhappy with how many empty beds they now had." Are you ok? "" I am now." Elizabeth snuggled her doll." You put this pill under your pillow, ok? "" But it helps me sleep. "" I know but I promised you I would help and I need you awake if you want to leave here. "" But, Lucian and Leland? "" They will be just fine, I will keep an eye on them."She kissed the girls head before mechanically handing out the other meds. The twins would get two each. It didn't knock them out but it made them less aggressive. Honestly she didn't know how much longer any kind of medicine would even work on the boys. Punishments were treated like games and she had no idea what that nasty woman did with them behind closed doors although there were plenty of rumors making the rounds. Her fear was for the girl and what would happen if they decided to begin tests on her as well.Suddenly the dream shifted and she was standing outside in the rain, lightning flashing all around her. There were tears streaming down her face as she waved at the retreating black limo that was getting smaller and smaller until it was gone from view. The tears were not for the girl but for her. Once they found out what she had done she would not be spared their punishments. Perhaps it wasn't too late. Quickly turning she ran for the doors, and came face to face with the head mistress, her red lips drawn into a cruel grin. She was backhanded and fell to the tiled floor. They were laughing as they grabbed her arms and hauled her up. The last thing she remembered was the drops of blood on her white shoes as she was dragged away.Gasping Mia pulled herself from the dream. Drenched in sweat she sat bolt upright on the couch, fully expecting to see a twin pair of shadows in front of her. She could still feel the woman's pain. Groaning she quickly reached for the trash can near the end of the couch and emptied her stomach into it. Finished she got up, noting the time as she got herself a glass of water. A quick look into her bedroom told her that Daniel had left. She hoped he had gone home, but that was not likely so her next guess would be Zakk's. A glance out the window at the early autumn sky told her it was too early to start trying to call or text bomb anyone, so she dug a joint from the box next to her bed. The pot was for those rare emergency situations and right now with the way her nerves were frayed it was one of those times. Why had he left? and where the hell had he gone and what the hell was up with the dreams? Finishing the joint she took a long hot shower and made coffee. Once she was cleaned up and feeling better she hopped in the bug. The sun now was a beautiful orange ball just coming over the treetops and she suddenly wished she had grabbed her camera. Perhaps it would be the day to head into the city and look for a new coat. She could go downtown and window shop before buckling down to work. A quick couple of blocks and she was at the Quick-stop. Giggling as she bumped her car up over the sidewalk, scattering kids in all directions. She turned the car off, shoved open the rusty door and climbed out. She would normally have stayed in bed, but sleep never did return so she thought a drive around town would clear her head, besides, she wanted to swing past Zakk's to see if Daniel was there and wanted to go into the city with her.She didn't get five feet before a pair of skinny arms came up around her shoulders from behind. " Boo! " She was almost knocked over as, Trez hugged her from behind. " Hey mom. "" Dammit Trez! Don't do that, " She gently growled as she disentangled herself from his arms. " Didn't your parents teach you any manners? " She favored him with a gentle smile, knowing what his answer would be." My daddy's dead and my momma killed him. " He cackled at his own joke. " Got any smokes? " he asked, trailing her into the store." You got any brains? " Her retort was friendly as she narrowed her eyes at him, giving the boy her best motherly look. " Doesn't your mother worry about what you're up to? "She knew Brenda didn't give two fart's about her only child, all that Woman cared about was her next drink. Mia had seen her enough down at Rock's to know that Trez was pretty much on his own." Maybe she would if I had a screw top for a head and was filled with rum. " Trez grinned, but the smile did not reach his eyes.Sighing, Mia tried to ignore the armload of crap he was collecting as they walked down each isle. " Sweetface. Your going to turn into a junky if you keep stuffing your face with all that crap. "" Please mom? "Laughing, Mia shook her head, growling softly at him. " OK but this is the last time I do this! You know your to much like Daniel. "" Thanks mom! " Trez dropped the armload of snacks on the counter, squealed and did a happy dance that made the chains on his shirt jingle. She knew the stuff would be handed out to the other kids as soon as she was out of sight anyway. Watching him get so excited over a few snacks made her sad. What the hell was it that his own mother couldn't give him that he had to find in people like her? She wanted to throttle parents who would rather ignore their children than try to be a part of their lives. It made her sick whenever she thought about it. The kid should be at home watching cartoons, not hanging out at the Quick Stop. Of course Mia herself had been much like Trez as a child. Not knowing her place in life, afraid and sometimes in a situation you couldn't control. And then it dawned on her that Trez might be in danger if he went to Britt's party, in fact a lot of her friends could be in danger if they attended it. " Your not planning on going to Britt's Halloween party this year. Are you? " She snagged her smokes and a coke from the pile before handing over her card to the clerk and turned to give him a hard look." Nope, I got banned last year for throwing firecrackers. " His eyes darkened as the smile dropped from his lips." And a broken wrist. " Mia said angrily." I deserved it. It was stupid of me to do. I could have set the place on fire. "" Nobody deserves to be hurt. Thane should never have laid his hands on you. " Mia saw the shadow of pain in his eyes, wanted more than anything to reach out and give him a hug but didn't. Trez had to work through his own loss, just like they all did." I swear I wont go to the party OK. " " Ok, I just worry about you. " She said, tussling his fine blond hair." You're always worried. " Trez said, the grin back on his young face." Yeah well that's what happens when I adopt a bunch of snot nosed kid's. Just promise me that you will stay away from the farm and stay out of trouble, and don't think I don't know about you hanging out at the Pagan Bookstore. "Trez's grin was wide as he gave her a shrug of his thin shoulders. " Don't worry about me, worry about him. " Trez pointed up at the small tv behind the counter. On it was Daniel's last school picture and the BREAKING NEWS banner. All the blood drained out of Mia's face as she watched the newscast. Her heart sank as it became clear to her why Daniel had come to her, and she was stupid enough to cut and dye his hair.~ Great! Now I am an accomplice to murder. ~ Seething she followed Trez out the door, her mind racing as she got back into her bug. She had every intention of going straight to Zakk' s and kicking Daniel's ass.