Jeremy managed to convince Sean to take part in the drugs tests too. I was allowed to watch while they did it. I sat in the corner of the room, silently watching as they administered a ‘shifter dose’
into his arm. Almost instantly he disappeared from my head like when I was given it. Jeremy barely got through two tests before Sean was already fighting to drug though, the normal shifter dose was burned out of his body within about fifteen minutes and he was back to normal. Jeremy was extremely excited about it. They gave him more and more of the drug, testing his healing ability and his shifting ability. It became apparent very quickly that Sean couldn’t heal under the influence of the drug either, a deep cut that Jeremy made on Sean’s arm, continued to bleed until the drug was burned off, then he healed immediately.
At just after nine, I yawned, bored and tired of sitting around all day doing nothing really. I felt a little like I’d get jaundice soon if I didn’t see some natural light instead of the bright strip lighting that they favoured in the labs. I hadn’t been out in the fresh air for days - well, apart from travelling to and from the lab each day.
Sean looked over and me and smiled apologetically. “Tired, baby?” I nodded in response and he immediately pulled the blood pressure cuff off of his arm, much to Jeremy’s obvious displeasure.
“We’re done,” he said firmly in that tone that no one seemed to argue with. Jeremy nodded as Sean pulled off all of the other wires and clips, throwing them on the table before walking over to me.
His arm snaked around my shoulders as he kissed the top of my head. “Let’s go home.”
I nodded knowing that ‘home’ meant the hotel we were staying at. I let him lead me through the hallways, occasionally stopping to show our passes to security and then we were out of the building.
I gulped in lungful’s of the fresh air and closed my eyes as the wind whipped my hair around my face. I smiled as Sean tugged on the zip of my hoodie, pulling it up under my chin so I didn’t get cold. Our hotel was only a couple of hundred yards from the lab so we walked hand in hand down the road, talking about random unimportant things.
By the time we got back to the hotel room I was wide awake so I pulled him to me and kissed him fiercely, gripping my hands around the back of his head so he couldn’t pull away. He caught on immediately kissing me back with so much passion that it could have possibly set the building on fire. I giggled against his lips as we fell onto the bed peeling each other’s clothes off, never once breaking the kiss.
The following day Sean was off at yet another meeting with Roland and Charles, they were reviewing security footage of the train crash in Japan; I opted not to go because that wasn’t really my thing. Sure I was interested in what they were doing, but watching footage of the aftermath of a disaster didn’t really appeal to me - or my delicate stomach - at all. Instead, I stayed around the lab building, sitting in the grounds, reading a book and texting Ryce back and forth about how everything was going.
Edward, one of the council members, walked past me and smiled politely before stopping next to the bench I was sitting on reading The Hunger Games. “Morning,” he chirped.
I smiled politely. From what I’d heard, this guy was one of the council members that didn’t want to believe that Sean was ‘the one’ and was the reason for most of the scrutiny we’d faced for the last week. I had no idea whether he was a believer now or not though, I hadn’t ever spoken to him directly.
“Morning. Nice day,” I commented, making polite conversation. The weather topic never fails.
He smiled and unbuttoned his cuffs on his white shirt, rolling up his sleeves to his elbows. “It certainly is.” I chewed on my lip, wondering if I could just start reading and ignore him even though he’d sat down next to me. “So, how are you finding London so far?” he asked, looking at me curiously.
“I haven’t seen much of it actually. We had a couple of days before we came to meet with you, but since that first meeting we haven’t been anywhere. This is the first time I’ve been outside for awhile,” I admitted.
He nodded. “That’s a shame, maybe you and Sean will get time off and you can explore a little together,” he suggested. “Anyway, sorry to interrupt your enjoyment of the sunshine, but I came to collect you. Jeremy wants to do some more tests on you with the drug,” he said shrugging apologetically.
I frowned. “More? I thought he was done yesterday,” I whined.
He shrugged, standing up and looking at me expectantly. I sighed and shoved my bookmark into keep my place in the book and snapped it shut angrily. “I’m sure it won’t take long and the council appreciates you being so cooperative and helpful,” he said, obviously trying to placate me.
“Yeah, it’s fine,” I grumbled, throwing my book and cellphone into my purse. Edward turned and started walking off so I jogged to catch him up - that was one thing about shifters that I still wasn’t used to, they walked so damn fast, even the older ones could still get a march on when they wanted to. Instead of stopping at the elevator like I thought we would, he walked straight past it, heading towards the lobby.
I frowned. “Um, where are you going? Jeremy usually likes lab three,” I commented, confused.
He nodded but didn’t stop walking. “Usually, but he’s in one of our other labs today, they have better equipment there and more camera’s. He said he’d like to do the healing test again but have a time lapse running at the same time so that your healing is documented. They don’t have that kind of recording technology here. It’s only a five minute car ride,” he answered.
I frowned but followed him across the lobby anyway, heading towards the glass doors at the front of the building. “I really should tell Sean that I’m going to another building,” I muttered, smiling politely as he opened the front door and motioned for me to go out first.
He waved his hand dismissively at my comment. “Sean’s with Charles, they’re with the chief of police reviewing footage, I don’t think it’d be worth you interrupting them. Besides, he’d only worry and not be able to concentrate on the task at hand. You’ll be back within the hour anyway.
But if you feel like you need to interrupt him to ask his permission, then by all means, go ahead,” he said, smirking at me. His voice was a little condescending as he spoke, making me feel as if I was a silly little girl asking for her husband’s permission to leave the building.
I gulped and tried not to scowl at the old man in front of me. I was actually pretty glad that this was the first - and hopefully last - conversation I’d ever had with him, the guy was a jerk. “It’s fine.
Let’s go,” I answered, shrugging confidently.
He smiled and waved his hand at the door again, signalling for me to go ahead. I stepped out into street and squinted against the bright sunshine. “My car’s just down here,” he said, nodding to the side. I spotted a posh black car sitting there parked just outside, and followed him over to it. The driver saw us approaching and jumped out, opening the back door as we approached it.
“After you, Tyler,” Edward offered, motioning towards the door. After I’d slid in, he climbed in after me. I shifted away from him, he’d sat just that little bit too close to me for comfort and I wanted a little personal space. “Want a drink?” he offered, waving his hand at what looked like a little mini fridge stocked with all sorts of juices and bottles of water.
“Um, sure. I’ll have a orange juice, thanks,” I replied.
He immediately reached for one, opening it for me and passing it to me. He grabbed a water and sat back in his chair, obviously deciding not to talk to me anymore. I sighed and looked out of the window as I drank my drink, watching the streets whiz past. It was only after about ten minutes that I realised he said we’d be there by now.
I looked back at him, noticing as I turned my head that it felt like I moved too fast, my eyes struggling to keep up with the movement. Edward was watching me curiously. “I thought you said it was only five minutes away?” I asked, confused.
A
smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “We’re just making a quick stop first. I have someone who’s been waiting to talk to you,” he replied, looking like the cat that got the cream.
I frowned, only now just realising that my head felt a little empty, that I felt a little like I was watching this scene from somewhere further away, that my muscles felt a little heavy. “Who?” I asked, confusing, trying to work out why I’d felt like this before - maybe I hadn’t eaten? When was the last time I ate?
Edward chuckled and reached out taking the empty orange juice bottle from my hands, putting it in a little trash can with his unopened bottle of water. “You’ll see soon enough,” he replied.
I looked at him with wide eyes as my brain slowly worked out where I had felt like this before - the lab, the drug.... he’d spiked my orange juice! Oh shit. I moved in my seat, trying to scoot forward to do something, what exactly I was planning on doing I don’t know, but I knew I needed to get out of here and fast. But as I moved a black haze started settling over me, tugging at my subconscious, trying to pull me under. Something that Jeremy had said earlier seemed to be on repeat on my head
“If I was to shoot you with the same amount as what I gave them then you’d probably go into a coma or cardiac arrest. It’s all about the doses” . My last thought was of Sean but as the drug finally won over and I lost consciousness, I realised that he would have no clue where I was or what had happened, I couldn’t reach him to tell him I was in trouble, the stupid inhibiter drug had ceased all communication with him and I was alone.
Chapter 33: Captive
As I slowly started to wake the first thing I realised was that I hurt, a lot. Every muscle in my body felt stiff, especially my shoulders. I groaned, immediately wishing I hadn’t because it felt like someone had poured acid down my throat. Thirsty, I was so thirsty that my tongue felt like it was stuck to the roof of my mouth. I peeled my eyes open, wincing as the bright light made me squeeze them tightly together again.
“Sean?” I croaked, my voice coming out as a cracked whisper.
I tried to call him in my head but I couldn’t even feel him at all, the drug must still be in my system.
Keeping my eyes shut, I tried to move but I couldn’t. My hands were tied behind my back, the rope chaffed on my skin as I tried to pull my hands free, making my wrists burn. Whimpering, I waggled my fingers, trying to get the circulation back into them because they felt a little numb. I cracked my eyes open, looking through my eyelashes as the light was just too bright.
I was in a room, a room with concrete walls, kind of like a cell. There were no windows but the overhead light was blinding. I couldn’t see a door. As my eyes slowly adjusted to the light in the room, I glanced around; trying to work out where I was but I couldn’t see anything. The room was small, maybe only about eight foot square. There was no one else there, unless I couldn’t see them but there were no shadows or anything for them to hide in. I looked down at myself quickly, trying to assess the situation. I was tied to a chair metal chair that seemed to be bolted to the floor. My arms were secured behind my back, way too tight. Even if I could get my arms free they would probably be no use to me, my whole body felt weak and numb. My feet were tied to the legs of the chairs too. There was an IV pole next to me with a bag of clear liquid hanging from it. Was that going into me?
I fought against my bindings, only managing to make my skin sore before I felt the devastated tears flow down my cheeks. Sean was going to go crazy that I was gone. This was entirely my fault. Why had I left with Edward? Why had I not questioned going to another lab? Why had I taken a drink from him? The answer to all of those questions was simple, why would I suspect a seventy year old member of the council as plotting against us? He’d devoted his life to sitting on the council, fighting against the Organisation; I had no reason to suspect this could happen. I wouldn’t be that quick to trust anyone ever again - well, that’s if I made it out of here alive.
Why had I had no visions of this happening to me? Had the drugs somehow inhibited the visions, because the drugs were involved I couldn’t see this because they inhibited it all? It was all too confusing, my brain was fuzzy. How long had I been here? If the drug was still in my system then that meant that I had been here less than four hours, because it worked its way out of my system in four hours - unless, maybe I’d been here longer and it was in my system longer because I was given a bigger dose? How long would it be in my system for? How long would it be before I could contact Sean?
“Help!” I croaked, knowing it was useless, who was going to help me? I was God knows where, with God knows who. I was in deep trouble right now and I couldn’t even see a way out of the room.
A click of a lock from behind me made me jump in my chair and pull against the restraints some more. I looked around frantically, trying to turn but just succeeding in making pain shoot down my neck and shoulders from the effort. The door must have been directly behind me so I couldn’t see it.
“Is someone there?” I whispered, twisting my hands this way and that, trying to get them free so I could at least defend myself. A slow trickle of warm liquid ran down my palm, dripping from my fingertip and I realised it was my blood. I’d been pulling on the ropes so much that it’d cut into my skin, but I didn’t stop trying to escape. I blocked out the pain as I wrenched on my restraints. “Is someone there? Can you help me? Please,” I begged, feeling the desperation wash over me as I realised it was hopeless. I wasn’t getting out of this room unless someone let me out, I couldn’t move an inch.
Footsteps echoed on the concrete floor, getting closer to me and I flinched as a hand stroked the back of my head. “Don’t fret little one, you’ll just end up hurting yourself unnecessarily,” a voice cooed.
I squeezed my eyes shut as I recognised the voice. It belonged to the lying scumbag who’d tricked me into going with him. Edward. “What do you want? Just…. Just please let me go,” I begged. I choked because my mouth was so dry, each word felt like I was scraping a knife on the inside of my throat.
He laughed, a wicked chuckle that made the hair on the back of my neck stand-up on end. “Like I told you, I have someone that wants to talk to you. He wasn’t too pleased that I’d got the dose wrong, he doesn’t like being kept waiting around but now that he knows you’re awake he’s coming right over,” he replied, stroking my hair again.
I flinched away from his hand, hating the fact that he was touching me. “How long have I been out?” I asked, willing my voice not to betray how frightened I was.
He sighed. “Two days.”
I gasped, immediately choking again because my throat was so raw. I’d been unconscious for two days? Sean was probably going insane!
He stepped out from behind me, holding out a glass of water to my lips. I shook my head, clamping my mouth shut, not wanting another thing from him, the last drink he’d given me landed me into this mess! His top lip curled up as his eyes turned hard, pushing the glass against my lips so hard that it made my lips bleed. The metallic taste of my own blood made me retch.
“Just drink it. It’s just water; I don’t want you knocked out again do I? Stop being stupid!” he snapped, pressing harder, mashing my lips against my teeth.
I looked into his cold, blue eyes and weighed my options. What was the worst that could happen?
He could drug me some more, that wouldn’t exactly make a difference to me right now! My brain was still telling me that I shouldn’t accept, but my body wanted it so bad that it was impossible to resist. I parted my lips, gulping it down greedily, not even caring that loads of it dribbled down my chin and wet my shirt. Each mouthful hurt to swallow but I couldn’t stop drinking it. I whimpered when he took it off of me. I eyed the half a glass, trying not to beg for it.
He smiled wickedly, cocking his head to the side. “Thirsty?” he teased. He looked down at my arm thoughtfully. “These can be taken out now,” he stated, reaching out and tugging on the sticky tape that was holding the IV line into my arm. I whimp
ered as he pulled out the needle none too gently, pressing his thumb over the hole to stop it bleeding. Before sticking a piece of the sticky tape back over it.
He unhooked the little bag of clear fluid and held it in his hands, shrugging. “Had to keep you hydrated. Don’t want to lose you now, do I? Not after all the trouble it took to get you here.” I glowered at him, not wanting to talk to him at all. “You hungry? You must be hungry, I’ll see if I can get you something.” He stood up, waving the glass under my nose teasingly. “Want some more of this before I go? You gonna be a good girl and stop pulling on your restraints?”
I gulped, my eyes flicking to the glass, watching a bead of condensation run down the side of the glass. “I want it,” I confirmed, deliberately not agreeing to stop trying to escape, I wouldn’t ever stop.
He smiled and pressed the glass to my lips, tipping it up so the liquid sloshed towards my mouth.
Just as I parted my lips to drink it, he tipped it the rest of the way up, slopping the contents down my chin and into my lap. He smirked at me. “Silly me. What a waste,” he stated, rolling his eyes playfully before stepping around me and walking out without another word. The heavy door slammed behind him, the click of the lock made my heart sink. That was when I lost control of myself and started screaming. I screamed so loud and so much that my voice eventually gave out and I had to cry silent tears as I slumped forward in the chair as much as the restraints would allow.
I closed my eyes and tried to see Sean, I tried to picture his face, I tried to call him and beg him to help me, I tried but it was useless. I was alone.