The Prey

3. Triggered

I was sitting next to the window, feeling the comfort of the sun rays. This morning, Luke drags one of the sofas and places it near the big window, then he slides open the window glass and lets the morning breeze fill the room. I inhaled the cool and fresh air a few times until I could feel my lungs full with it, cleanse the last air from that foul basement. As I lay my head on the window sill, I can hear the hustle down here then I notice we're on the third floor. The birds are chirping in the trees near my window. Woah, the oak trees grow high here. I glanced into the room and felt the room slightly bigger because the machines were gone. They removed the heart monitor last night along with the infusion tube and it's pole. They said even though I'm still dehydrated, we will try to manage without it. Do it the old way, drink water and have a good meal. With that, Luke constantly tells me to drink a lot of water every half hour. My body is still on the edge of normal hydration, but I can feel it getting better than yesterday. And of course much better than last week. And now he was out, to the cafeteria, I could enjoy the silence for a few minutes. I smiled and continued to drink my tea. There's a lot in my mind, but whenever I try to pull it to remember anything, it gets too blurry and dark. 

Why me? I couldn't understand why he chose me. What have I done to him? 

I shook my head and shovelled the dreadful questions to the back of my head. I took another deep breath, leaned back and stared into the sky, Oh how beautiful the sky is. How I miss this simple thing.

My mind drifted to one person, Luke. Why is he acting nice to me? He doesn't know me. Hell, I don't know myself either. I can not remember my name, my birthday and even my zodiac sign. But why is he treating me like this? Is he just being nice? If I can not remember anything about myself, how will he know about me? That foul man outdone himself, he erased all of my identity. And he will soon erase me and my friends. I don't want anyone to feel sad when I'm gone. I used to be alone. I think. Luke didn't deserve that sadness. No one deserves it.

Ash, Melinda, Paige. My friends. Are they my friends? We know each other just because we're trapped in the same basement. Experiencing hell together and possibly death soon. I look up at the blue sky, and a few soft clouds are seen here and there. It's gonna be a beautiful day, I smile. I hope they are okay this time. Keep hiding guys, I will find you. We will get through all of this together. I prayed silently.

Luke, I spell his name softly. Tara. Matt. Can they be trusted? Or maybe they're just doing their work. It doesn't mean that they care about me. Once everything is done, I hope it will end soon, without me being dead of course, they're gonna go and I will be left behind like before, right? Before? What's my life look like before? I can't remember much. Will my brain fully function ever again?

Too many questions. My brain chimed. I chuckled at its response. This Luke guy, can we trust him? Or his friends? Personally, I can trust Matt. My brain said again. I nodded in agreement.

"I don't know, Luke seems nice and he took care of me, but I'm not sure either. I don't think we should trust anyone here" I said quietly to myself. "We're not gonna stay here for long, we have our own life to rebuild"

I'm not gonna trust any of them!! The voice snapped. They are liars and I can feel they are just using us as bait!

Well, the voice isn't wrong, though. Without me, they wouldn't be able to lure him out of his hiding. Besides, I'm the one he wants. I'm his prey.

My tea is gone, and I want some more. I look at the teapot Luke left before, but it's not there anymore. Oh, did he bring it with him when he was out? There's a new tea packet actually, but the hot water machine is in the hallway and I'm too afraid to move, let alone walk out from my room. And even with Luke's friends watching outside, I do not feel safe at all. Who knows what that Psycho changed himself into. He was so good at pretending to be someone else. It makes him so dangerous and I'm not ready to meet him today. Or tomorrow. Disappointed for not getting warm tea soon, I lean onto the window sill again. There's a slight whiff of freshly cut grass and I found it relaxing, almost making me fall asleep. Glancing at the wall clock, the meds should be here in 15 minutes, then I can sleep peacefully. I wonder how long the drugs on my brain will be fully worn off. Is there any way I can do something to clear it off of my head? I know the drugs tempered my mind in every other way. It made me fear everything, cautious of everyone. It also made my memory blurry. And I hate myself at this time. It's not myself. I feel like I'm a mouse, always concerned about what if the cat got me. I shook my head and leaned back onto the couch.