Inextricable: A Divergent FanFiction (Book Three) ©

Chapter 7

"Well isn't this just," I faltered for words as I scanned the new room I'd been wheeled into. "Cozy?" I paused and then pretended to tap my chin thoughtfully. "Oh wait, my bad, what I really meant to say was crazy."

"It'll only be for a short time," Grace said apologetically. "It was the only room that was vacant. Everything else was full; you know how the dauntless are, always getting injured."

As promised, Grace had found an unused and secluded area to take me to, unexpectedly though it had ended up being a padded room. While the floor looked to be made of cork, all four walls were covered with a white rubberized lining that had to be about four inches thick. And to my horror, the door –the fucking door– was without a handle or window. If someone were to close it from the outside, I'd be trapped.

"What, no straitjacket?" I tried to joke, though already shivers of unease were beginning to slide up and down my spine. "That's good, because I doubt I'd be able to pull it off."

When Grace caught herself chuckling, she again gave me that look of surprise; as if she'd never heard me joke around before. Dan also seemed amazed, but he readily appeared to accept it. In fact, he looked downright pleased with most of my reactions.

As they'd been wheeling me down various crowded hallways, a couple of people who'd happened to spot me had insisted on coming over to congratulate me for –as they'd so elegantly put it; not biting the big one. I'd nodded and responded as anyone else in my position would have; with two thumbs up, a casual shrug, or an a-okay sign. I think I even saluted a couple of people.

While I wasn't necessarily okay or remotely over what was happening to me, my mind had always worked in a way that allowed me to move forward even if I was faced a difficult hurdle. Just because I couldn't remember certain things of my life didn't mean I had to suddenly transform into some kind of tight-lipped coward.

"Seriously though," I said when they began to push me forward so that the bottom half of my body was already in the room. "Is there really no other place to put me?"

"You'll be fine buddy," Dan assured me, giving the bed another nudge.

I tried to nod, but as my eyes roamed the white walls, a sudden pinching sensation appeared around the base of my head. As my heart sped up, I could hear my pulse thundering in my ears; the roar like that of a vicious storm. Colorful spots appeared at the edges of my peripheral vision, but when I tried to blink them away they only seemed to spread and disperse.

"Wait," I said, hearing the panic rise my voice.

Uncaring whether or not I looked stupid, I shot both of my arms out and clenched the frame of the door, refusing to go in any further. However, while I was certainly not keen about being placed in the padded cell, that didn't seem to be the real root of my fear.

"What's wrong?" Dan asked, immediately on edge when he saw me squeeze my eyes shut tightly.

I gripped the frame tighter, until my knuckles were nearly white. I was beginning to get a sense of Deja-vu as something danced at the edges of my memory.

When I forced myself to open my eyes again I was shocked to see, not the padded room from before, but a room with–

Metal floor underneath my body, cold from it seeping through my clothes. The thought came from nowhere. Mirrors, mirrors all around me, reflecting my face. There's no door, no way out, and in the middle there's a... a noose.

"Sage?"

"Someone's coming," I found myself saying, the words escaping without my permission as if I were possessed.