Thirteen

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She could run. The thought slammed and ricocheted around her mind. There were no guards on duty this late, at least not anywhere near the pit. Rene glanced up and eyed the camera at the end of the hall. Was anyone even watching? Why hadn't people come running after all that? Would they try to stop her if she made a break for it? Rene leaned against the wall letting the coolness of cement ground her. She had locked the unconscious Kristy inside the pit with a satisfying click of the mechanisms. Never had she been so happy to hear the pit's tumblers meeting their cogs, maybe? Rene should really learn more about locks. It'd be useful to know how to pick them. Off track, again. It still came back to what should she do? Running was tempting, but logically how far could she go before someone picked her off. It would definitely be worse if she was caught while making a break for it. If she stayed though she could possibly get the chance to explain herself and her side of the story. It was pretty incriminating evidence against Kristy. A knife and Rene's wounds, plus Kristy must have keys she picked or bribed off a guard to get into the pit.

Rene banged the back of her head lightly against the wall. Damn it. What was she supposed to do? She let out a frustrated cry letting the noise echo down the halls. She was an animal trapped in a cage. Now any animal would run once the door is open. It was instinct to escape, to be free. That animal could easily be running to its doom as well. But life outside these walls, it was practically imaginable, tangible even at this moment. This indecision was going to kill her faster than anything. What was she supposed to do?

A small groan emitted from the pit. Rene turned her head to press her ear to the wall. She could hear faint moaning and shifting. Kristy was starting to wake up. She clenched a fist. If that psycho was staying, she would too. She was never one to scurry away with her tail between her legs. Freedom would be...amazing, but not at this price. She couldn't leave and let Kristy concoct up whatever sob story she wanted to feed the higher ups. Making a break for it now could make things worse, not only for herself but also Cassie and Danny. Kristy could say they helped her escape or worse yet take her rage out on them. She couldn't do that to them. Rene could take the pain and survive. She would fight the darkness for them as long as she could, even if it meant fighting it here at the asylum.

Rene reached a hand backwards over her head to rap against the nearby door. "How are you doing in there Kristy?"

A lovely string of curses met Rene's ears. "Save some of that dirty talk for Miss Rachel. I'm sure she'll love to hear them as well." Rene hummed back.

No one got free without being let out of the pit. This was going to get interesting. The sound of Kristy assaulting the pit erupted. Her body pounded against the general area of the door, the joys of being trapped in complete darkness. Kristy was probably attacking based upon where Rene's voice came from.  Rene closed her eyes and remained quiet. Not that she thought Kristy could actually get out of the pit, but encouraging her really wasn't a smart idea. Then started the horrific sound of nail against cement. Chills raced up and down Rene's spine at the noise, she couldn't stop them. She knew people had literally ripped their nails out of their fingers trying to claw their way out of the pit after it had pushed them over the edge. Kristy seemed to have simply jumped. 

Rene slide down the wall shakily. She pressed her hands over her ears hoping to dampen the noise. Ever seen a bell in a cemetery right next to a gravestone? Apparently back in the day, people used to bury their dead with strings that attached to those bells and the grave tender would walk around listening for them to ring. Rather ridiculous right? Well, not if they accidentally buried someone alive. A person's heart rate could slow so much that they appeared to be dead by all appearances. Excavated coffins had been found with fingernails embedded into the wood and scratches along the lid. People woke up to find themselves buried alive and suffocated trying to get out. Such pleasant things taught at the asylum, a truth Rene was pretty sure they told to increase the scare of the pit. Especially considering the lesson seemed to be revisited always after a poor lost soul bloodied their fingers in the pit. It had definitely given Rene a fear of being buried alive and more than once she had to fight the panic while in the pit  to keep from scratching at the walls erratically. There was no bell for them.

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