Among Us

Chapter Fifteen - Strangers

Chapter Fifteen

She passed deep into unconsciousness; she was drained, her body needed time to heal. The time she stole had to be recuperated somehow, it was like a toll, for every minute taken equalled hours of subsequent suffering.

She roused when the pain was tolerable. The ache was no longer a drum but was a tap, tap, tapping inside her skull. Her eyes stung when she opened them. The room was bright, sunlit and sufficiently humid. She lay to her surprise on a single mattress on a hardwood floor, with a thick quilt smothering her with warmth. Sitting up wearily, she eased the covers away from her. Strangely, she still had her wellies on, and they were thick with mud; she pulled them off and set them down beside the mattress. Her school bag was close by, left at the head of the bed. Grimacing, she swept her fingers across her forehead and looked around.

The room had two more empty mattresses, with quilts and pillows of their own and quaint wooden chests between them. A low roof slanted toward a wide window, which was slim like a letterbox. She peered outside and saw endless fields, and just off to the right a dense forest with tyre tracks running up to it, disappearing within. That must have been the road they drove on last night. She was in the middle of nowhere, a completed secluded spot. It's okay, scream as much as you need; no-one will hear you. He'd said that to her when they'd arrived. She shuddered, but not from cold this time.

Where was he anyway, had he left her alone? Surely, he wouldn't abandon her in this place, but then again what did she know, she didn't know him at all.

She heard a sound. She wasn't certain at first; it was muffled, like someone having an argument but really quietly. Listening, she recognised one of the voices and lifted herself up, careful not to bang her head on the low roof. She was drawn to the voices and crept barefoot toward the door.

It was darker in the hallway outside, and when she closed the door behind her, it turned murky. A low glow of artificial light came from a stairwell and she followed it. The floor creaked under her feet, it was oddly bowed, the surface not flat but almost. She took the stairs slowly; she wasn't sure if she wanted them to know she was awake yet. Maybe she would need to find a way of escaping, her lips thinned as she passed the bottom step, but then it would have made better sense for her to have taken her bag with her, or at least put on shoes.

One voice grew louder, not able to keep their tone level, as anger spilled from their mouth. It was an argument, was it about her? She shoved her hands under her armpits as she turned a corner and found herself in the dark corridor, thin light stationary at the end.

She heard his voice, soft and calm. His name was Jenson, she remembered. He'd told her his name; she thought that was only right as he knew hers already. She moved toward it.

"I had no choice, they came to take her," he said impatiently. "She was in danger."

"You had a choice, you chose wrong," said another. It was a woman, her tongue was sharp, but her voice was sweet and came out caramelly.

"What should I have done, left her there?"

A third voice, this one was deeper. The man she'd heard last night. "He's right Michelle, he did the right thing."

"She can't stay here, take her back, take her home," Michelle spat.

"She can't go home, it's too dangerous, she can't go back at all," Jenson replied, anger rising in his voice.

As Lain emerged from the corridor, she let out a short gasp. She'd not considered that. She knew she needed to get away from her family, but she'd not thought that she couldn't go back. She didn't think she wouldn't be able to see her family again.

They turned, staring at her with blank expressions. After the initial surprise, the woman scowled, loathing on her unfamiliar face. They were standing in the U-shaped sitting area, just ahead of Lain. She didn't know what to do with herself, feeling awkward and embarrassed; she wanted to return to the mattress to hide. She wished she hadn't snuck down, but it was too late now.

Jenson crossed the room to her in a few short strides. "Are you okay?" He asked, searching her face.

She realised at once that he was talking about last night and how sick she was, not what she had just learned from his words. She slowly nodded her head, answering both questions, said and unsaid.

"Where did you put her last night?" Michelle asked, she sat on one of the squishy armchairs and stared ahead of her, avoiding looking at Lain completely.

Lain studied her face; her lips were set in a thin line, there were creases on her forehead from years of frowning and she had russet eyes that curved in an almond shape. She was beautiful, when she let the anger disappear from her face, which she only did when she closed her eyes for a brief moment. Her hair, jet black, long and wavy, fell just below her shoulders and curled upwards at the tips. She twirled strands between her fingers without thinking, turning them into coils as her jaw clenched and unclenched.

"In my bed," he said reluctantly.

Michelle glanced at him, her eyebrows raised, she wasn't expecting that answer. Neither had Lain, she too looked at him in bemusement. She'd taken his bed? Why would he put her there?

A ghost of a smile appeared on Michelle's lips, she asked. "Where did you sleep?"

His eyes roved the room awkwardly, and then fell on the long sofa, "the sofa," he said. A blanket rumpled over the back of it, was evidence enough of this.

"I don't see why this is relevant," said the other man, raising a brow. "He gave up his bed, so yours wouldn't be used. Though I didn't see a problem in using yours, you weren't here."

Michelle's eyes narrowed and she waved her hand dismissively. "You have to take her somewhere else. She can't stay here."

For a second, when no-one said anything, Lain drew in a panicked breath. She realised that she didn't want to go anywhere else, the only place she knew she could possibly be safe, was where Jenson was. She didn't want to be left somewhere; the thought of being abandoned, left to fend for herself, was horrifying. She grabbed Jenson's arm and looked into his eyes pleadingly. He blinked back at her.

The older man answered. "There is nowhere else. This is the only safe place for her now." He said that as if it was final, and to prove it, he marched off, passing Lain down the corridor behind her.

Jenson nodded once and smiled at her apologetically.

Standing swiftly, Michelle marched to the door, sidestepping the 4x4 blocking her path. Lain noticed that this door, was on a wall without bricks and instead, it was boarded with the same kind of wood which decked the floor. It looked odd, like someone had bits leftover and they didn't want to waste it, so they thought 'I bet it'll look nice here'.

"You brought her here Jenson; it's up to you to look after her, I'm having nothing to do with it," said Michelle fiercely. "Don't forget, we still have a job to do and it's getting worse than ever out there. Remember why you're here."

"No problem," said Jenson evenly. Though his tone was calm, Lain looked down and saw his hand clenched into a fist at his side. She went very still as he spoke again with a hint of hostility and she thought maybe—pain. "And it is because I remember that I brought her here. I won't lose someone else."

The dark-haired woman exhaled in a heated gust and she left. His eyes narrowed after her, his jaw twitching irritably. Then it was silent, silent, except for the persistent tapping in Lain's ears. 

**Authors Note**

Now we're starting to learn a little more about some of the other characters. What do you guys think about this little rag tag group of people?