Amnesia (Book 1 in The Forgotten Series)

Chapter 16

Where to next? She walked across the yard and opened the gate. There were no signs to follow, no trails, nothing. How am I going to do this? She stepped onto a large branch. A bullet whizzed past her ear, just scraping the skin.

The pain took a few moments more to register, and when it did, she swiped at her ear with a few fingers. She pulled her hand away and stared. Her fingers were stained red. This was no longer a race against the clock. No, this had become a test of survival, and she had become the lab rat.

Dawn began running, not caring about the imminent danger ahead or if she was actually going in the right direction. I'm coming for you. The only trail she left was the condescension that puffed out from her mouth, and even that didn't last forever. Rachael, I'm coming.

He sat concealed in the bushes, just a few feet away from the entrance. In his lap lay his favorite gun, still warm from the last two shots fired. He hummed 'London Bridge,' as he watched the speck grow closer and larger. When he could see her flowing midnight hair, he leisurely grabbed his hunting rifle and pointed the muzzle near the blur.

Squeezing the trigger, the rifle recoiled in his hands. He watched in amusement as the blur stopped growing and dropped to the ground. Come here little mouse. He chuckled. Lets play.

He watched her stand up and continue running before crawling out of the bushes. Brave little mouse, aren't we? Standing up, he walked inside. Lets see how long till you scream, little mouse, he walked down the steps and gazed upon his work.

The troublemaker lay unconscious on the table, the bloody ropes still tied around her body. Across from her was the stroller, with the infant. It's not crying, he sighed. Instead, the infant seemed to be staring at the troublemaker with curious eyes. That's impossible, he chuckled.

Though there she was, interested with that woman, as if she knew she was there. The infants cloudy eyes never strayed away. He stopped in front of the stroller and bent down. "Who's your daddy?" He glared into the child's cloudy eyes.

The baby didn't react, she just continued staring. As if she was staring right through him, rage burned through him with that thought. Standing up straight, he approached the troublemaker and skimmed over her battered body. She deserved much more, but he needed her alive. Reaching underneath the table, he grabbed a rusted pipe and turned to see a woman standing at the entrance.

Dawn stared down, her eyes wide. She didn't need a mirror to know her face had gone ashen. What happened here? Her eyes traveled to a wooden table. "Rachael!" Without a second thought, she ran down down the steps and confronted the man. "You," she glared.

"Surprised?" He dropped his rifle.

"No, I always figured something was up with you." Her eyes traveled down his body, observing his suit which was now splattered in blood. "I see you've been decorating."

His eyes traveled down his suit and smirked. "It's suiting, isn't it?"

A high pitch squeal made her turn. Her eyes widened. She was staring back at younger version of herself. A name slipped from her tongue. "Dawn." Before everything could make sense, pain exploded in her head. She saw bright flashes of light before everything went black.

She groaned, and opened her eyes. What happened? Glancing around, her heart started to race. Where am I? She tried moving, and found herself unable too. Looking down, she gulped. Ropes tied her wrist and feet together. She tried looking back and her heart dropped. Tied to a pillar.

Her eyes stopped at a stroller, and the events slowly seeped back into her head. Where's Rachael? Her eyes widened as she looked at the table. The ropes were the only thing left of her presence. Her head drooped.

"I'm so sorry Rachael. This is all my fault." Tears slipped from her eyes and down her cheeks. "If I had just kept my big mouth shut, then none of this would of happened." She shut her eyes. "You would still be safe."

"Oh, don't worry about her." She opened her eyes and glared. "You should be more worried about what's going to happen about you." Rage replaced grief, fueling her body.

He leaned in close to her face. "Drop dead creep." She managed to spit into his face.

Wiping his face, he chuckled. "Feisty, aren't you?" His eye swept over her face with hunger and something else. "Lets see how long that last." She noticed the knife in his hand and gulped.

Don't show him fear, that's what he wants. She looked him in the eyes and glared. This is all for family, she didn't watch as blade touched her skin. For Rachael, she refused to look down as the blade slit her thigh.

She could feel the sticky warm liquid slowly run down the sides of her thighs. Relax, she took a deep breathe. This won't last forever. "Watch whats happening to you." He grabbed her chin with one hand and forced her to look. "I want you to remember everything even after you die."

A chill ran down her spine. 'After I die?' All that rage died out and was replaced by fear. He looked into her eyes. "Where's that courage now, little mouse?"

She smirked. "Where's your sanity now, psycho?" Even afraid, she was still able to mock him.

Her head jerked to the left, her cheek now searing in pain. "You want a psycho, you got a psycho." He let go of her chin and drove the knife into her shoulder. Jolting, she muffled a scream. Tears escaped from her eyes as she managed to hang onto consciousness. Don't pass out, don't pass out.

He noticed her pain. "Did that hurt?" His eyes looked black in the dim light. "I'm sorry Princess, I'll try to be gentle next time." His voice was oozing with fake sympathy, making her sick to the stomach.