searching for someone.
“Right. Okay then, where to?” I felt myself grow cold with her behavior, my defense mechanism rising to shield me.
“Um, down the hall and to the left…it’ll say…um Psychiatric Ward.” Her eyes darted aimlessly around the room as she obviously avoided making eye contact with me, and was that…sweat!? Beading on her brow? Sweat?
Turning abruptly, I walked quickly away from the crazy, rude receptionist. Looking back once, my brow furrowed as I saw her lunge for the phone and dial quickly.
The halls felt eerily quiet, even more so than usual. In the distance, I could make out the sign I was looking for.
I wasn’t one to believe in hunches and intuition, but something about this visit was creeping me out.
As I turned down the hall, I bumped right into an assistant who I recognized from the first day of testing. As a reflex, I smiled apologetically.
The girl’s face paled more than I thought a human face could pale when she saw me. Tucking her chin into her chest, she darted past me and nearly ran down the hall toward reception.
Testing my breath quickly, I seriously wondered if I smelled bad or something. Smoothing my hair back and adjusting my clothes, I considered leaving. They had all been so polite and kind the first two days, why were these people acting so weird?
Opening the door that led to the ward, I was surprised to see so many people standing there. All in black suits, four men stood before me, apparently having a private discussion as their voices were hushed.
Upon noticing my arrival, they silenced immediately and turned to me.
“Miss Tiponi.” An older gentlemen spoke, his ice blue eyes piercing mine as he walked toward me. Not extending his hand to shake mine, he stated with a Cheshire grin. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Please sit down.” Though his words were polite, his request sounded more like an order.
A nervous flutter in my stomach made me feel nauseous. Was I in trouble? Maybe I wasn’t supposed to use the medical faculties’ money for my tuition.
Maybe…I seriously had no idea; this was all just getting weirder and weirder.
“Miss Tiponi.” The man in black rolled my name off his tongue like a snake hissing. An odd gleam in his eye inspired a fresh wave of nervousness to roll through my system. I could hear my heart pounding in my ears, and the stupid thing was, I didn’t have a reason to be worried. Did I?
“Is there a…problem?” I could hardly stop my teeth from chattering as I spoke.
My mind searched every crevice of memory for any reason why I might be in trouble. Looking around the little room they’d put me in, I realized that the door had no handle on the inside…I was locked in.
His hand lay protectively over a manila folder in front of him, tapping it lightly; he chuckled as he repeated rhetorically. “Is there a problem? Why don’t you tell me?” His face flickered with an instant irritation as he stared at me.
“I honestly don’t…know what you’re talking about? I’m only here for testing…for tuition.” My temper suddenly flared when I answered.
How dare he lock me in here for no reason! I had rights and I realized they were being violated. Amy would have a field day with these assholes! “Look! I have rights…”
Slamming his hand down on the file, he leaned over the table and put his face directly into mine. His expression was…violent. I leaned far back into my seat, clutching the arms of the chair with a steel grip. Instantly silenced, tears fought their way to the corners of my eyes.
What the hell was going on?!
“Miss Tiponi.” The man sighed, his face relaxing a little. “I have a few questions for you.”
“Okay.” My voice shook uncontrollably. Keeping my eyes down, I fiddled with the zipper on my jacket to keep from looking at him.
“Where were you born?” He began as he flipped open the folder in front of him, holding a pen over a blank piece of paper as he awaited my answer.
“Sedona.” My voice was barely a whisper.
“Sedona? Where in Sedona?” The irritable edge returned to his voice, slicing at the tension already in the room.
“A…cave. I don’t know the exact location. My grandmother…the medicine woman at the reserve…found me.”
Chewing on the inside of his cheek and giving me a sarcastic glare, he shook his head and marked down my response.
“Who are your parents?”
“I…don’t know. I was…abandoned there, in the cave.” The tears that had been cowering in the corners of my eyes released and ran down my cheeks with shame. Wiping them away with the cuff of my sweatshirt, I slouched even further into my seat.
Slamming his pencil down, the man in black stared at me with a cold and hardened expression. “I can see that you’re not going to be very forthcoming.”
My eyes widened with fear and disbelief. “I’m telling you the truth!”
“That’s a ridiculous story and you know it! I want to know
Suddenly the door opened and another man, also dressed in black, entered. “That’s enough. Out.” The first man left, closing the door hard behind him.
“Miss Tiponi. I’m Agent Evans.” Taking a seat in front of me, his face was calm. His green eyes were kinder than the last man’s, but still had a cold stare that froze my soul. “We need to get to the bottom of this, please answer our questions honestly or we’ll have to move on to more extreme measures.”
“I am being honest!” My voice was becoming shrill as I felt the grips of a panic attack crawling through my system.
“Alright.” He sighed as he too opened the folder and held the pen over the paper. “Let’s try again. Where are you from?”
The same questions over and over, for hours and hours. I had no idea how long I’d been sequestered in that tiny room, but it was long enough for me to become so tired that I finally just rested my head on the table and closed my eyes as they relentlessly pursued my past.
Never once did they explain why they wanted this information. Over and over, they took turns grilling me about my birth, my parents and my history. They wanted every detail of my upbringing, medical attention and knowledge of my ancestors. I answered every single question to the best of my ability…but they would not believe me.
I begged for water, food and a bathroom break, all of which were promptly denied until I told them the ‘truth’.
Finally, after what felt like days, I lost it.
“What do you want from me?! What do you want?!” I snapped, my mind teetered on the verge of insanity.
Sweat mingled with tears as they ran down my face and strands of my disheveled black hair stuck to the dampness.
Falling onto the floor, I huddled into a ball and rocked back and forth. All I could do was cry. They’d worn me down to but a mere shadow of myself. I was willing to tell them anything at this point. Anything that would make them let me go.
“What do you want? What do you want? What do you want?” I babbled incoherently as I pulled at my hair.
“Let’s get her ready for transport.” Agent Evans informed one of the younger agents.
“Yes sir.”
I didn’t look up; I just rocked obsessively within my own little world.
