Wings

Chapter Eleven; Officially Free

Sang

It was uncomfortably quiet as Victor pulled out two of the dining room chairs, turning them to face each other a few feet away from the table. There was barely any space between them, and the idea of being so close to anyone had me shaking as he waved me over.

He flashed a small smile at me as I sat, and I ducked my head. I had to lean forward a bit to avoid crushing my wings against the wooden back of the chair.

Victor grabbed a bag from the table, rooting through it to pull out a few tools. I recognized some, but I wasn't familiar with many of them. Dr. Green walked over to join us, pulling an extra chair up. I shivered as both of their gazes fell on me.

"Ready?" Victor asked, taking his seat across from me, scooting his chair even closer, making me lean backwards. We were inches apart.

Dr. Green clicked his tongue. "Maybe this can wait a bit." I glanced up at him to find his eyes on me still, looking concerned. "What do you say, Sang? If you're uncomfortable we can wait a few hours."

Victor shook his head. "Sorry Doc, but I don't think that's an option. I looked into the dampers and they only work for so long. They shut off after twelve hours."

"I'm okay," I piped up. At Dr. Green's suspicious look I added, "Really." Why did he never believe me when I said I was fine? I knew I was a terrible liar, but I was telling the truth right now!

"Good," Victor said. He leaned forward and I froze, eyes fluttering shut. I could sense a presence near my neck. "I'm just looking at it right now, okay?"

I started to nod then realized I should probably stay still. "Okay."

The sweet scent of moss and berries comforted me as I took a deep breath, willing myself to relax. Other than being an annoying reflex, the way I cringed away from people could prove detrimental right now. If Victor was taking the collar off and I flinched... would messing up make it shock me?

"Hmm." I opened my eyes as Victor leaned back, lips pressed together, eyebrows drawn. His eyes were focused, the fire in them calm. "This might be a bit more complicated than I thought."

"What is it?" Dr. Green asked. "You've taken them off before, right?"

"This is an older model then what I've been working with. It was replaced a few months ago. These old ones were designed to just be left on."

"Months?" Dr. Green gaped at me. "How long...?"

My cheeks heated.

Dr. Green's expression steeled over. "We'll talk about that later. You can still get it off though, right?"

"Yeah. But it'll take some time. And if I screw up it's still actively trying to shock her. The damper is the only thing keeping her safe."

I gulped.

Forty five minutes and two minor shocks later as I clung to Dr. Green's hand, neck stinging and burning, there was a click and a pressure I had learned to ignore released around my throat.

"Got it!" Victor said, relief coating his voice.

The moment was surreal. Victor was talking. Dr. Green was cheering. But it was all just a blur of noise and movement around me. The collar... it was...

I reached up for my neck, hand shaking.

"Nuh uh little missy!"

Hands seized mine, startling me back to awareness. I was met with Dr. Green's playfully scolding expression. "I can't have you rubbing your germy hands all over those burns, can I?"

He let my hands go, fingers brushing just under my jaw to move my hair. They skimmed the top of the old bandages as he inspected the burns both new and old. I was sure there were layers of puffy, ugly scars.

"Here's the plan-" Dr. Green started, catching my eye and smiling. "First, I take a look at your burns and get them taken care of. Then you have breakfast and go get cleaned up and have a nice bath, and then we'll talk and figure out what to do next. Sound good?"

My own lips curved to mirror his. "Sounds good."

~ | ~ | ~

The initial warmth of the bath had me on edge, but slipping down into the water I instantly relaxed, leaning against the side of the tub. I had grown used to having body hair, but I was looking forward to getting to shave again once I had figured things out.

If I did, that was. I didn't have anywhere to stay. My stepmom would kill me if I went back to her house.

I pushed the thought from my mind, trying my best to silence it. I didn't need to think right now. One step at a time.

Sometime later, noise brought me back to awareness. I yawned, realizing I had started to fall asleep, and I sat up, reaching for the soap Dr. Green had pointed out, suddenly feeling awkward at my lack of clothing.

"-highly irresponsible!"

I startled, almost dropping the soap into the tub as raised voices echoed through the vents. What was going on? That wasn't Dr. Green. Was he okay?

The same voice continued, slightly more restrained, but livid nonetheless. "You've endangered the whole team, Sean. When they realize that girl is missing-"

"They were going to kill her!" Dr. Green said, voice raised, but not quite a shout.

"I know. It's not fair. But if our cover is blown before we've finished gathering evidence so is every other creature housed in that placed!"

"Creature? Housed? Do you realize how you sound right now, Owen?"

"You better know what you're doing. Six favors docked. Two hours every day for a week. We'll talk more when you get home-"

The voices faded to a normal speaking tone by that point, leaving me unable to discern any words. Several minutes later a door slammed shut.

I gulped. What the heck was that about?