“What happened to me during those six months?” The only thing that kept her narrowing vision from fading completely was the knowledge that her body had appeared untouched when she’d examined it upon arrival. Surely she’d know if something was done to her. Right?
As usual Helas ignored her question. “I’ll allow you to try out your idea for two days.” Helas’ stare hardened. “If they haven’t appeared by then, I’ll strip you bare, double his medication, and throw him in this room with you unchained.”
Fear sliced through her at his words. Luka had been mostly in control of himself, but there were still rare moments when his eyes turned black and his muscles bulged that frightened her. In those moments, she was reminded she didn’t really know him or how much control he had.
Oddly enough, she was almost thankful. Those glimpses of darkness allowed her to keep part of her heart locked away from Luka. Alice knew how it felt to be betrayed by someone you thought you could trust implicitly.
“If I were you, I’d do everything in my power to make his marks appear before then.” Helas held her terrified stare for long moments before finally rising. “You’ll need to come with me so they can alter your room,” he said casually, as if his previous threats weren’t hanging in the air.
Hate was something Alice didn’t have much experience with. She always tried to find the good in people, even those who were seemingly awful.
Everyone has a past. Something that’s shaped who they are, she’d tell herself whenever she met an unlikeable person. She even felt a twinge of sympathy for Sal and Gishen. What had happened in their lives to make them so heartless?
There was no excuse for Helas, however. He had a rotten, black soul, and Alice was able to say with certainty that she hated the man. She hated his small, cold eyes and his fake charming smile. She even hated the faint scent of rubbing alcohol that clung to him like a sterile mist.
“How many women have you taken from Earth? How many mixed Clecanians have you kept drugged down here? And why can’t I remember six months of my life?” she asked, simmering with indignant rage.
In an instant, Helas’ passive coolness transformed into anger. He’d crossed the room and roughly grabbed her by the nape before she had time to react. Her hands latched onto his, trying to pry them away.
Through gritted teeth, he said, “Why don’t we go see the other test subjects right now?”
He dragged her out of the room, his cold fingers gripping the back of her neck. She let out a pained cry as he pushed her down the hall ahead of him.
A roar erupted from Luka’s room.
Helas wrenched her head close to his own. “Looks like your friend can smell your fear.”
She tried to keep quiet, knowing Luka was likely struggling to break out of his cuffs.
Helas guided her through a network of identical-looking hallways until they finally reached a large brass door. He raised his palm and placed it on the metal surface. A buzz sounded, and then the heavy door swung open, revealing a control room of sorts.
Both Gishen and Sal turned in their chairs, but neither looked surprised. She noticed Sal’s fingers momentarily clench the arms of his chair.
In front of her were dozens of holographic screens displaying video from different parts of the facility. A wave of hopelessness ran through her. She’d done what she’d thought was solid recon a few days ago, counting all the cameras she’d seen between her room and Luka’s, but looking at the screens before her, she realized she’d underestimated the security of this place. Her stomach turned when she saw a group of video images showing women, all alone in rooms similar to hers.
“Sal, I need you to come with me.” He released his painful hold on her neck, and she scrambled away. “Gishen, stay here and watch her. We need to make some changes to her room.”
The winged man, Gishen, nodded solemnly and stood. After Sal and Helas departed, he grabbed her by the arm and plopped her into the vacant seat. “Stay here,” he rasped.
Too mesmerized by the multitude of images in front of her, she didn’t respond. At least five human women were visible. Some were meandering around their rooms. A couple of them were sitting quietly, and one was huddled on her bed, head in her hands, crying.
As she examined the small woman, Alice felt like she was having an out-of-body experience. It was as though she were watching herself on that screen. She ground her teeth together and balled her fists. She was tired of feeling like that woman. Vulnerable and scared. These monsters needed to be stopped.
Alice scanned the other displays, looking for Luka. Interestingly, most of the hallways and small rooms on the screens were vacant and bare. In fact, other than Sal, Helas, and the women, she didn’t see any other people. Were these three captors the only ones standing between her and freedom?
At last she found Luka, and a weight settled in her stomach. He was pulling at his wrists savagely, trying to break free. Blood trickled down his forearms from where the shackles cut into his flesh. She needed to get to him, to calm him down.
“Gishen, can I use the speaker to calm Luka down? He’s going to hurt himself,” she pleaded.
Gishen glanced at her with his ugly red eyes and sneered. “Sure.”
He reached for a button amid hundreds on a panel in front of him, and she leaned forward uncertainly, readying to speak. When he pressed on the button, she saw Luka’s body convulse as electricity zapped him. Gishen laughed cruelly. “Oops. Wrong button.”
Alice felt the tears she so hated beginning to
