The Fox and the Pigeon hole Chapter 6

6. Reunited

Lance wakes warm and comfortable, he does not open his eyes but just lies, imagining that he is at home, that any moment now his mother will come in and tell him to come for breakfast. But he knows that she will never call, he knows that when he opens his eyes he will see the bright white ceiling above him, the windowless room and the locked door, so Lance decides to try and re enter his world of dreams, where everything is as it should be there is no government, no death, just him and his family and Dawn, everyone that is important to him is there and if he could then he would sleep forever. With this happy thought in his mind he tries to roll over, but he can’t, his eyes snap open and he frantically tries to move any part of his body, terror taking over, it seems he has been strapped to the bed. The leather straps restrain his every movement and his breathing quickens, even his head is strapped down, all he can move is his eyes but all he can see, as he predicted, is the flat expanse of white ceiling above him. And then something else comes into his field of vision, a man, just the sight of him almost makes Lance cry out, his heart beating so hard against it hurts, the man is wearing a white gown and gloves and his face is covered by a mask, he was right, this is some sort of hospital, he thinks trembling with uncontrollable terror. The man leans back so that Lance cannot see him anymore, what are they doing to him, he thinks, his eyes wide with fear, and suddenly he can feel his eyelids getting heavy, no, he thinks, he must stay awake, he won’t let them do anything to him, but the drug they must be administering is too strong and although he fights Lance is pulled under, back into his world of sunshine and happy memories.

*

The men are walking up and down, in two’s, talking and sometimes looking at her, she is suspended by her wrists with painfully tight metal shackles, attached to chains from the ceiling, she has tried shouting out at them, insulting them and making empty threats, but they hardly take any notice and one put his glove in her mouth to force her to stop. Smiling, the man pulls on another absent-mindedly and slaps her hard across the face walking away, back to his group of laughing friends. The prison is modern, newly built, it is completely made of flat, smooth grey stone and the lobby which is just visible from the girl’s cell is welcoming, with a large window taking up one wall and a soft couch in the centre, it has a desk where the receptionist sits writing papers and emails on her computer. Even though the girl is dirty with sweat and the mud she has accumulated from the forest, the rest of her cell is sparking clean, even the chains that suspend her, the officers watch her from another circular room that opens onto the line of cells, it is filled with matching, comfortable sofa’s and coffee tables where they sit and talk, taking it in turns to patrol the line of cells in two’s. The girl, who has been trying for several minutes, succeeds in spitting out the smooth glove, “You!” she shouts angrily, the officers turn smirking “Stop smirking, you twats!” but they continue to smile and snigger as they unlock the girls cell and walk inside, “What you gonna do?!” she shouts again, louder this time, but the officers remain silent and one walks over to the wall and removes a long metal instrument from a cupboard that he opens by inserting a card into a small slot on the wall, “Oh, what’s that? You gonna poke me until I be quiet?!” She still sounds angry but is getting slightly worried as she sees a long wire attached to the rod. The men come closer and sniggering, one nods at the other and hits a button on a panel, which is full of different buttons, she doesn’t even want to think about what those might do, the metal rod suddenly starts humming like an electric fence, and the man, laughing now slowly jabs it into her stomach. The pain is immediate and unbelievable it seems to send searing hot fire through every vein in her body; she is screaming before she can stop herself and the officers are laughing, some have even come from there sitting area to watch. The officer takes the metal rod off of her body but the pain carries on, it is as if the officer has burnt a hole right through her, she stares defiantly back at the officers with tears in her eyes “Your, Pathetic” She says angrily as he turns to leave, stopping the officer turns around slowly his smile has gone and he walks quickly back jabbing the still humming rod hard into her arm. It is more painful this time, maybe she’ll die, she thinks, it would be a relief, anything to stop the pain but the officer keeps it there snarling and staring into the girls eyes, he twists it slowly a sort of mad enjoyment in his eyes as the girl screams piercingly and then blacks out.

Dawn wakes, still hanging in the spotless cell by her wrists she can still feel stabbing pain in her stomach and her right arm, it makes her gasp and bite her lip, she is determined not to cry, The group of officers are gone and only two walk up and down taking no notice of her. She feels so enclosed, so alone, she wishes she knew what had happened Lance, whether he had escaped or the officer had caught him, it is her fault she thinks, she didn’t do anything and only seconds after the officers had grabbed her, another had come to take his place, while he went after Lance. She could have done something, she thinks, she has been spending the days in her cell, that are not taken up by torture, wondering what could have happened and what she could’ve done, occasionally slipping into terrible dreams where she watches her parents die, they are dead and she knows that but it is still a horrible thought, then she watches Lance die and always wakes sweating and shaking with terror and utter hopelessness.

*

The next few days pass in a blur of suffering and depression, the pain of her Dawns injuries slowly lessens with time but they are still sore and aggravating. She is hanging in her cell thinking of Lance and her home when the officers come, four of them, they say nothing, they don’t laugh or taunt her they just unlock the shackles binding her and force her to her feet when she falls to the ground, she is led from her cell two firm gloved hands on her shoulders, they walk down the corridor through the lobby and into another corridor which is entirely made of glass apart from the grey ceiling and floor, it is tantalising to see the forest so close on either side of her she can taste freedom, but before she knows it she is being directed through a set of automatic metal doors and past several rooms with windows looking in at them. She looks into the bare rooms, one holds an old man just sitting there and another holds a cot with a small baby in it but just as she is coming to the end of the long room she looks through the last window, and her heart stops there, through the clean glass she sees him, its Lance, he is strapped to a bed and officers wearing whit gowns are bending over him. Dawn stops, staring, “move!” says one of the officers angrily increasing his grip on her shoulder and pushing her forward she walks on thinking fast, Lance is alive, she thinks frantically, strapped to a bed and being probed by officers, but still, alive. She hardly notices where she is going until the officers push her roughly into a room and, stepping inside themselves, they lock the door. Dawn stands looking straight at them and then, looking sideways and trying to look like she doesn’t care, she throws a punch at the officers nearest her, but he moves quickly and grabs her hand in his, he squeezes it hard looking at Dawn who, face slightly contorted with pain, stares back.

The man lets go of Dawns hand and then pushes her backwards, she walks backwards as they advance on her, she will put up a fight, she thinks, but then she collides with the bed and falls backwards onto it, moving in a flash the officers grab her arms and legs and then begin strapping her to the bed “NO!” she screams writhing and trying to push them off, but they are strong and they pin her down and strap her tightly to the bed with leather straps, she continues to scream but the officers do not do anything and once they have finished by strapping Dawns head down, they leave the room swiftly locking the door behind them. Dawn lies there staring up at the ceiling, breathing fast, whatever they are doing to Lance they are doing to her, she thinks.

After Dawn has calmed down a little she thinks about the officers, they were acting very strange, they did not laugh or taunt her or punch her or anything, what could have happened to change their attitude so much, she wonders, and now she thinks about it, all the officers that she passed on the way here shared the same look, not a look of boredom, they look more upset and depressed, she wonders what can have happened, they are normally so superior but now they still have a look of power and authority but not as if they are enjoying it anymore. She is still thinking about this when the door opens, she tries to see who it is but her head is tightly strapped to the bed and she cannot see the door, suddenly an officer leans over her and shines a light in her eyes, she squints against the light but he holds them open with his gloved hand, Dawn hears him walk away and pick something up, coming back into her view she sees that he has a long syringe in his hand, “what is that?” she says, her voice cracking with fear, “What is it?” she says again louder but the officer just looks down at her and, sighs with what looks like pity. Something is definitely wrong, thinks Dawn, this officer is feeling sorry for her, but before she can say anything more she feels a jabbing pain in her arm and almost immediately drowsiness takes over and before she can do anything, she has slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep.

The dark skinned girl walks through the forest looking around cautiously, she knows where it is, the place where they violate people, where they conduct their sick experiments, she walks on looking around and then she sees it, the huge grey building in the middle of the forest. The girl crouches behind a large bush and looking through it she sees the two officers guarding the door, opening her bag she takes out a small flute like object and several metal darts, she also takes out a pot. She sets her equipment out on the forest floor and dips each of the darts in a red, blood like substance from the pot, looking up to make sure she is alone. She edges around the bushes until the officers are only a few feet away to her left, turning; she takes a dart from her belt and loads it into the flute like object. Taking aim, she blows hard sending the arrow straight into the man’s neck, he falls almost instantly and the officer next to him ,startled, looks around the forest before making for the door, but before he can dash inside another dart catches him in the neck and he too falls to the floor sprawled out and unconscious. The girl looks around and then through the glass double doors into the building, she takes out another dart, inserts it into the door and after a couple of minutes of silent concentration the door clicks open on well oiled hinges. She slips inside, looking around and ducking down to hide her tall figure, “That’s right” says a voice to her left, and, quickly putting her back to the wall, she listens on, “The procedure will take about three hours” Continues the voice a woman’s,
“And how soon can we start” replies a man’s voice, the voice of an officer
“I’m not sure” says the woman and, at the man’s sigh says “I’m sorry, for all of you” and hurries away in the opposite direction. The officer stands in the corridor for a while, deep in thought and then strides off after her.

The girl waits with her heart pounding against her chest, and then after deciding that the officer will not return, slips out into the corridor and follows. She takes many turns, goes through many doors but she meets no one else. Then she sees it, the large circular room, with the thin, blonde receptionist sitting behind her desk and beyond, the wide corridor with the windows, windows into the room where she is sure they will be, waiting for her. She ducks under the desk moving quietly, but the woman doesn’t hear her, and then she is outside the first room wondering which one they will be in but just as she is thinking this the double doors at the other end of the corridor open and a group of officers walk in, not talking just looking sullen and serious. In single file the officers enter the room furthest from the girl and the lock clicks behind them, what will she do now, she thinks desperately, she doesn’t know where the other one is and she can’t just go bursting into rooms. So she waits, for what she is sure will be hours but turns out to be only a couple of minutes, when the officers come out of the room and back through the double doors. Seizing her chance the girl dashes to the door and seeing that it is open, she slips inside, hardly making a sound. She turns and sees her, the girl, she is lying on a bed, strapped down in every way possible, but conscious. Walking over to her the girl sees that Dawn is staring wide eyed, up at the ceiling and breathing fast, she leans over her slowly and then, smiles, Dawn is still wide eyed and scared looking but she seems comforted none the less.

“Who are you?” Says Dawn, hardly moving her lips
“My name is Suheila” Replies the girl, looking into Dawns eyes “I’m here to save you”
“But” says Dawn looking as far as she can towards the door,
“Shh,” says the girl holding Dawns hand and starting to undo the leather straps that bind her to the bed, “Shh” she says again, soothingly. It takes about ten minutes to undo all of the straps, and for Suheila to coax Dawn into a sitting position, but then Dawn stiffens and looks at Suheila tense, “Have you seen Lance?” She says her eyes wide again.
“Lance? Where is he?” Suheila asks, and Dawn points through the glass door at the double doors beyond. “He’s here?” Suheila says, surprised, she looks down thinking hard,
“Yes” Says Dawn urgently, “We have to save him”
Making her mind up, Suheila smiles “come on” She says and, getting up, she walks towards the door, but Dawn is weak and has trouble walking, her torture has affected her body just as much as her mind. With Suheila for support they manage to slip outside and through the double doors without making a sound, on the other side of the doors the find just one room with a large window looking into it, they try the door and, not believing their luck it swings open and they walk inside. Lance is lying on a bed, strapped down like Dawn but he is asleep, they hurry over to him and, with tears in her eyes, Dawn leans close. “Lance?” She says her voice slow and croaky.

Just as a tear rolls off Dawns face and onto Lance’s, his eyes snap open and behind them the door clicks. Turning, they see a group of officers standing in the room the door closed behind them, they are not smiling or sneering, or sniggering or laughing, they are just standing there and then Dawn sees it, in their eyes, pity, the officers are looking at them with pity, perhaps ,she thinks, everything will change now.