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Allie had her chair out in front of her up to her face. The boy jumped off the table and charged her again. She kept a firm grip on the chair, blocking his attacks. Carefully she backed up to the wall and braced the chair with one hand and got ready to grab him with her other. He merely slapped at the chair, shattering it to pieces. At the same time, Allie reached out and managed to grab his shoulder and press down hard. She pressed as hard as she could – he stopped and stood straight up. His eyes returned to their usual brown. Allie held her grip and approached him. Unsure of what to do next, she stayed where she was and waited for help.
When Malcolm opened the door, he saw the smashed chair – and in front of him stood Allie, holding a boy with great care. Malcolm looked at the mirror, bowed, and motioned for Allie to come to him with the boy. He told Allie how to get to the nursery and he took the boy back to his room.
Allie entered the nursery, sunk into a chair and breathed deeply. Her heart pumped and for the first time she began to rethink working there. Sara was in a chair rocking baby Kelly while Melanie fed the other baby in its crib. “Hey, y’all.”
“Are you all right?” Sara asked, trying to conceal the worry that swirled inside her.
“Yeah, the test got to me.”
“What happened?”
“After you left me in the room, someone came over a speaker and told me to remove my jacket, earrings, and necklace and put them in a drawer. When I went to another drawer to get a new jacket: nothing. A door opened and a boy came in and attacked me. I managed to get him calmed down when Malcolm walked in and took him away. Why would they do that? What kind of test is that? I could be dead right now!”
Sara knew it was no test but she held her tongue. “Did he hurt you?”
“No, I got to him in time. I don’t understand why they did that to me.”
“I imagine we will find out soon. You better just rest for now.”
Melanie went over and put her necklace around Allie’s neck and then she left the room.