Cast The Die

Chapter Nineteen

April 2019

I can't tell if I'm beginning to hallucinate or if there is a real box in front of me. If it grows legs and starts dancing, I know I'm going insane. I feel weak. My eyes start flickering and I blink a few times to try and find my vision. I'm tired. It takes a few moments for me to realise it's the torch that is flickering, not my eyes. The batteries must be running low, I'll soon be in complete darkness.

I have no idea how much time passes. At first, I was keeping track of how many people swap shifts at the end of the corridor. I've counted three different voices, and that includes the one that brought me gifts. There was only a tiny drop of water left in the dog bowl and I couldn't get to it, I'd have to lift it up to be able to pour it into my mouth. I'm struggling to keep my eyes open, but I look over at the flickering torch, getting dimmer by the second.

I always wondered how long it would take a person to go insane whilst being locked away with no human contact. Completely isolated from the world, from sunlight, from the only things that keep us sane. If my calculations are correct, it's 11pm on Sunday night and I've been here for nearly 48 hours. Is 48 hours enough time to go insane? Am I still sane? I look over at the torch and it goes out completely, like I have a super-power to make things happen with my mind. If I could have any super-power right now, I would choose super-strength. I'd tear the ropes from my wrists and kick the shutter door and it would smash into pieces. I'd run down the corridor and fight off The Nights Watch, I'd make it to the ground floor of Shed Space and burst through the doors. The sunlight would hit me like a slap on the face and then I'd change super-powers. I'd swap to super-speed, and I would run home in five seconds to my parents. I'd hug them so tight they won't be able to breathe, and I'll tell them how much I love them. I'd tell them I love them no matter what, even if they separate, it doesn't change how much I love them. They're my parents and I was stupid to be so selfish and act like they didn't love me. Of course, they love me. I'm sorry, Mum. I'm sorry, Dad.

"Please...forgive me..." a whisper left my mouth. Did I just say that? Am I talking to myself?

Footsteps. I can barely open my eyes. I can hear footsteps. My head feels heavy. The shutter opens. The nice man rushes to me and holds a bottle of water to my mouth. I can feel my head being tipped back but I'm not the one doing it. I'm drinking the water and it's sliding down my throat like ice cream on a Summer's day. It makes me feel better, I can open my eyes slightly. I look up to the nice man, but I can't make out what he looks like. There's dark hair, and dark eyes, it's a nice face. I want to ask him why he's being so nice to me. I want to know why I'm here, and what they want from me. I want to know if I can go home or if I can eat something.

"How long..." I croaked. "How long have I been here?" I asked quietly. That wasn't the question I intended on asking but I would still like to know the answer.

"You need to drink more water" he sighed. There was a long pause. "It's Tuesday. You've been here four days." Tuesday? Four days? I'm shocked but I'm too exhausted to express any emotion right now.

"Four days...that's...a lot of hours" I gasped.

"Look, I want to get you out of here. You're not meant to be here. You shouldn't be involved in any of this. I'm sorry this has happened to you" he sounded sincere.

"Can you...take me to my parents? I want to see my parents" I muttered.

"I can't right now, I want to tell you what's going on, but I need you to trust me. I'm going to get you out of here. I promise" I nod to the nice man and close my eyes. I can feel myself being lifted. Is he carrying me home? That's a long way to carry a human being. I feel a huge release in my arms when he cuts the rope behind me. I'm too weak to move them but it still feels good knowing that I can. He picked up my hands and placed them in my lap. He covered me over with the soft blanket and I tried to say thank you, but no sound came from my mouth. The shutter closed and so did my mind.