Displaced

Chevelle - Five

When the half an hour was up, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Something to blow up maybe, or for our captors to show themselves with their weapons drawn. Nothing was kind of the last thing I thought would happen, but that's exactly what did happen: nothing. No flashing lights, no bells or whistles, not even a warning was heard – just more of the same heavy silence. The crying of the kids lessened. A few more of the adults took Timber's example and stepped up to care for a few of them. You know, attempted to make it less scary for all of us.

"Do you think this might be an elaborate reality TV show prank?" I asked quietly, leaning into Timber a little.

He shook his head. "Doubt it. If it is, I'm going to be having a serious talk with a lawyer." He checked his watch again. He did that a lot. "Ten minutes late. I'm not sure what that means."

"It means we are gracious and kind, giving the undecided extra time to choose their fate," a male voice said from behind us.

We both faced the source and saw a young man probably close to thirty in age. He had dark skin that caused him to almost blend in with the darkness. The blue lights reflected off of his bald head, the whites of his eyes, and his teeth. Kind of creepy, but his voice was gentle enough to make me want to believe he didn't mean us any harm. Obviously, I was still on edge and ready for anything. But it was a small comfort all the same. Like, maybe if we did cooperate with whoever these people, these things were, then we'd be safe and get to go home again.

Slowly, the other people waiting in the entryway of the mall all faced the young man as well. Some of the kids started to cry again.

"Don't be afraid. Because you've been obedient, no harm will come to you. I promise. Only those who fight will be punished," the young man said. "My name is Paul. I'm a regular, human being, just like the rest of you. There's nothing special about me outside of the fact that I've been chosen for a special purpose – and so have you."

I swallowed back bile. What if I didn't want to be special? Did anyone stop to think about that? Not everyone wanted to go places and do big things. Some people were content with just being and living from day to day in the ordinary. I was one of those people!

Paul brought a hand up to his ear and I noticed then that he had some kind of headset on. Kind of like one of those wireless devices that a lot of people used to talk on their phones everywhere they went. He tilted his head to the side, leaning into his hand and then nodded.

"What is going to happen now will take some time, and there is still a lot to explain as well. Trust you will get your answers shortly. For the time being, I need as much of your continued cooperation as possible. My superiors are going to divide you up. Your group will be moved to a new location. There you will gain more information and be allowed to rest."

Rest sounded nice, superiors and being split up not so much. Granted, the only people who could be taken from me now were Timber and Lara. I'd already lost Wicken. Being taken away from the other two would send me over the edge. We'd only known each other for maybe an hour, but I'd already come to draw strength from them both. Lara gave me a purpose to keep moving forward; Timber gave me security and protection.

Out of the corner of my eye I noticed movement above us. When I looked up, I saw the outline of several individuals. Almost all of them were female, I'm pretty positive. They all had long hair and slender frames, but they were also tall just like the man from outside of the store earlier when all of this chaos had started. The rest of the details were absorbed by the darkness. Those people had to have been the superiors Paul spoke of. They whispered to each other words I couldn't make out. The sound was like a soft humming or a breeze moving through the grass. These strangers' gazes were on us, I could feel it, and they watched our every move. Observed us. Discussed us.

Paul listened to his headset some more. "When I tap your shoulder, please stand."

He walked out into the entryway. A quiet murmur of voices rumbled through the crowd. Changing my mind and running seemed like a good idea. Of course, the whole part Paul had mentioned about being punished for fighting kept me glued to the floor. Punishment wasn't death, no, but that didn't mean it couldn't suck – a lot. There's that phrase that some things are worse than death. I didn't want to find out what those things were.

Instead of running, I did the next best thing and reached for Timber's hand. I would have killed for a hug, but that would be good enough for the time being. As much as I wanted to crumble and cry in his arms, I kept myself as strong and stoic as possible because for some reason I didn't want to be perceived as weak by him or anyone else there. His fingers interlaced with mine and he gave my hand a squeeze.

The first group called away was two of the older couples, and most of the younger ones. Once that one left, Paul selected the next group of people. This one had a few small families and more couples. Pairings seemed to be the most popular, so perhaps I would be able to go home soon after all. I mean, I was single. Maybe that made me less interesting than everyone else? When it was just Timber, a small group of kids, and myself, Paul used both of his hands to wave for us to rise.

Slowly, I stood. Glancing above me, I noticed that only one female spectator remained. I couldn't see her eyes, but I knew our gazes were meeting. She nodded at me and then walked away and out of sight. I shivered.

Paul smiled at us. "You're going to be coming home with me. Welcome to the family."