Chapter 4
Four
He woke to the sound of guns going off. The doctor was long gone, and the two guards at the door stared warily at one another.
While he first thought it was the mean lady firing shots, there were far too many to be just here. Could it be that someone else was here? And what did that mean for everyone?
A silent alarm set the red light in the corner to flashing. He sat up at the sight. It’s never gone off before. He’d been told it existed, yet not once had someone ever activated it.
“If you see the red light, then you need to get to safety. The guards will take you to the secret tunnel we use.”
He looked to the guards, who also seemed amazed at the light. Forcing himself upright, he fought the waves of dizziness to wave his arms.
The movement woke the others from their dazed state. In an instant, they had their weapons drawn. One went to the door as the other approached the cage door.
“No fucking funny business, pet. You walk where I tell you to.”
He nodded as best he could. “Okay,” he said, forcing the single word from his lips.
The guard unlocked the door. He crawled forward until he was out. Standing was hard, but he somehow managed it.
As they approached the door, the guard standing there turned with panic in his eyes. “Other door!”
In the next second, he stepped into the hall. A bullet blew straight through his chest. A second through his head.
“Fuck.” The guard beside him cursed softly before redirecting them to the hidden door against one wall. He keyed in the code needed to release the locks. As soon as it opened, the two of them moved into the barely lit space.
It was muted in the tunnel. You could hear gunshots in the distance, but it wasn’t near as loud as it had been.
“What now?”
His question was as much for the guard as it was for himself. Though the woman had told him what to do in an emergency, she’d never explained the next steps.
Were they to wait on her? Was there a place for them to hide if anyone else found the tunnel? Was there an escape route away from the home?
The guard froze as he looked from the young man to the path ahead. “I honestly don’t fucking know. This wasn’t what I signed up for.”
“Go.”
“What?” the guard asked.
“Go. I’ll find the way.”
The other man pondered the words for a moment before nodding. “Okay. That’s… that’s good. I didn’t want to do any of this anyway. Fucking hell. I really hope whatever happens next works out for us both.”
He nodded, then watched as the other man took off at a sprint in the direction they were supposed to go. The guard’s footsteps echoed down the hall. As much as he wanted to follow, a wave of nausea tore through him. He leaned back against one of the brick walls to stabilize himself.
When that didn’t work, he slid down the wall until he was on the ground. With his knees to his chest, he buried his face. There wouldn’t be relief anytime soon. He’d have to wait it out.
Just like he intended to wait out the gunshots. Surely once whoever killed the mean lady, they’d want to help everyone she’d trapped.
Maybe he’d finally get the chance to be free.
Though he wasn’t all that sure what free even meant anymore.