Stuck in a Dream (INCOMPLETE)

Chapter 7

"Seriously?!" Rose screamed as Dr. Cooper walked forward.

"What, you think you were just going to get away that easily? Not after last time, Rose. No, we're much more careful now," Dr. Cooper replies, a calm, but unnerving, smile on his face.

"What the hell do you want from me?" Rose shouts, gripping the bars with her hands, her hair falling into her face.

"We're not done with you, Rose. We still have many experiments to perform. And what will people start to think after people discover that you were the missing baby from 15 years ago?"

Rose was taken aback. Missing baby? But Dr. Cooper said... "You said that my parents handed me over willingly!" she accused him, her brain clouded by confusion.

"The doctor always lies, Rose."

"Damn you. Damn you to hell."

Dr. Cooper ignores her last statement, looking at the three of them curiously. "Hm, now who should be my first little guinea pig of the day? I know! Why not you, Logan? You're looking healthy and fit. All of that running away must really make a guy buff."

Before he could open the door, Rose shouts out, "If you want to get either of them, then you'll have to go through me."

"Ah, Rose. Always insisting on making things difficult. Who led you here anyways?" Dr. Cooper sighs, suddenly remembering that there was a traitor amongst his staff. He spins around to give all of them the evil eye, turning back around to look at Rose and sees her glance briefly at Elizabeth before breaking eye contact. He quickly walks over to Elizabeth and grabs her by the arm, pushing her into the jail cell with the three teenagers. "You're fired," he hisses as the doors slam shut and the mob of scientists walk out.

~*~*~*~

"Okay," Xander says, rubbing his hands together eagerly. "So how are we going to get out of here?"

"Well, we can't lift the cage, seeing as how it's screwed to the floor," Logan muses. "There's no lock, so we can't pick it."

Curious, Rose walks over to the door and realizes Logan was right; there was no lock. So how did the door lock? Maybe it wasn't even locked... She kneels down and lifts the door up off the floor, surprised at how heavy it was. "Guys," she says through gritted teeth. "A little help here?"

"You know," Logan says, once they had all slid out from under the door. "It's pretty stupid of them to not lock the door."

"You never know with these scientists," Elizabeth replies in a grave tone. "It may as well be a trap."

"Well right now, I don't care. Let's just get the hell out of here," Xander says, making a beeline for the door. With a shrug, the others follow him; what else could they do?

"Okay, we'll need more supplies," Rose whispers, turning to look at her aunt. "Any idea where those would be?"

"Through there." Elizabeth points at a white door, just a couple feet ahead of them. "All of your stuff should be in there. That's also the staff room, so there should be food and water there."

"We'll go inside to get supplies; meet us at the front entrance, okay?" Rose says as the two boys head towards the room. "You're coming with us."

Her aunt nods, a sad smile on her face as her eyes begin to water. On impulse, she pulls Rose in for a hug, whispering, "Be careful," into her ear before letting her go. Dazed, but happy, Rose walks into the room, seeing that Logan and Xander had already gotten their bags and were pillaging the room for extra stuff.

Once they had taken pretty much all of the food, they ran out of there, Rose telling them to head to the main entrance so they could meet Elizabeth there. She was her aunt at the end of the hallway and she surged up ahead, not knowing how much time they had left.

"Go, go, go!" Elizabeth whisper-yells as she motions them towards the door. They all run outside, determined to get as far away as possible from that place.

"Any idea where we are, Elizabeth?" Logan asks as they run, alarms suddenly blaring out. After a moment of silence, he calls out, "Elizabeth?" All three of them look around to see that Elizabeth wasn't running with them anymore.

Logan, Xander, and Rose all stop in their tracks, spinning around to find Elizabeth. And they found her.

A couple yards away from them stood Elizabeth.

She was struggling to get out of the hands of scientists; they had caught up with her.

"NO!" Rose shouts, making a mad dash towards her aunt. Elizabeth was the only family that she knew of. She was the key to finding her parents.

"Stop right there!" Dr. Cooper shouts at Rose, pulling out a gun from his back pocket. "Stop, or else I'll shoot."

"Rose," Logan says, tugging on her arm. "Rose, we have to go. We can't stay here."

"I'm coming back for you!" Rose shouts to her aunt, tears sliding down her face. "I promise! I promise, I'll come back for you! I'll find you! I promise!"

Elizabeth nods, understanding her niece's choice; it's what she would have done too. She watches Rose as she runs off with the two boys, wishing that she had been able to spend more time with the niece she never really got to know.