Hero

Chapter 3 - "You're welcome, Rhylee..."

Chapter 3 - "You're welcome, Rhylee..."

As they had promised, Dr. Sean came to my cell early the next morning, armed with a clipboard. He was going to ask me a few questions about my progress before giving me my drugs for the day.

“Good morning, Hero.” He smiled brightly at me. I tried to return to smile, but it appeared more as a grimace. “Good morning.” I mumbled back. He sat across from me in a white metal chair, scooting a bit closer to me as I sat on my bed. The sound of the metal chair legs sliding across the floor made me shiver, scraping against my eardrums as they did so.

“I just need to ask you a few questions, you know, to see how you’re doing with the Gold.” He explained. I still just sat blankly, not really caring. I knew I wouldn’t find anything new about this, and no matter what I said they would continue to give me the drug.

“First, what are the side effects of your new drug? Have you noticed anything…unusual?” He clicked his pen and readied it on the paper.

I gave the question thought, wondering which of my side effects might result in them quitting the drug all together, and not risking it being used on myself or Robert. Dr. Sean awaited my reply patiently, staring at me with waiting blue eyes. His eyes were much brighter than Roberts; more turquoise than sapphire. I once again questioned what color my own eyes were. “Well,” I sighed as I began. “There’s the blurred vision; I can hardly see a thing sometimes. It’s worse than ever today…”

“Here,” He held out his clip board and pointed to a blurred sentence. “Read this.”

I stared and started at the small letters but only shook my head, “I can’t.”

“I see,” He muttered before setting down his clipboard and writing something down.

“Then there’s the depression. My emotions are a blank, and the only emotion that seems to rise above the others is sorrow.”

He nodded; writing that down as well then motioned for me to continue.

“As well as the itching skin; my skin itches all the time now, and if I scratch, my skin seems to come off some…like, flake off. Look,” I held out my left arm; red and raw looking. It was very worrying, but also painful. It felt like miserable sunburn every moment of the day.

Dr. Sean thought about my answers for a moment, writing each down, before sighing and putting down his pen. For a moment, I could see genuine care in his eyes; something I’ve never seen in these people. “Hero, I’m sorry you have to go through this. I told them you were just too young; but they won’t listen to me. You’re healthy, and that’s what they need. Caine, your neighbor, smokes and that won’t work with the research of this drug. I could ask them to give you a lower dose; that may help, but for now I can only tell you to hang in there. You’re doing great so far.” He grinned once more then stood.

“Thank you, Dr. Sean.” I whispered after him. It shocked the both of us; making Dr. Sean freeze in the doorway of my cell. I stared at the floor, feeling him turn a bit to look at me. Silence filled the cell as he stood there, wondering what to reply with.

“You’re welcome, Rhylee…”

“He said he’ll give you a lower does?” Robert repeated, exhaling a deep breath of smoke in the air in front of him. I nodded in reply, trying not to breathe in as he did so; I hated the over powering smell of smoke. Just a small hint is enough to remind me of Robert; but not a fill cigarette.

“And they won’t use it on me?”

“Because you smoke,” I nodded.

“Well that’s just ridiculous.” He muttered.

“I told you it’s not good for you. Even the psychos agree with me.” I smirked to myself, watching him take a deeper breath of smoke, just to annoy me. He knows I hate it that he smokes. “Hopefully this helps me, though.” I sighed.

“Yes, a smaller does would at least warm your body up to it. Then maybe you’ll get used to the drug, and it won’t be as bad.” With that, he reached out his hand. “Let me see your arms.”

I held out my arms as he requested. I knew he was examining the usual large bruises that the shot produced the first time I took it, but now they were hardly noticeable. Perhaps my body was getting used to it already. A part of me was sad about that.

“That’s good; you don’t look like you’ve been shoving pipes up your arms.” He let go of my hands and put out the cigarette butt in his fingers before lighting another one. It surprised me how white his teeth were, even though he did smoke like a chimney. “I’m glad you got the one smart doctor – aside from me – in this place.” He smiled.

I gave a weak smile in return, but it only lasted a brief moment. As I looked around, I thought more about the meeting between Dr. Sean and I; the way he looked at me, how he offered to help me.

Using my real name…

I wondered if he had done that on purpose, or had just forgotten his morning coffee. No one here, aside from Robert, calls me by my real name. Hearing someone call me Rhylee again was alien, almost disturbing. I chewed the side of my mouth – an awful habit I acquired when I was young – while I looked around the yard. There were less people out today, or maybe it was just me. After Dr. Allen made that comment in his office, I searched the yard for Amy, but never once saw her. It worried me, but there hasn’t been any word about a death yet… Maybe she’s just not feeling well today.

I nodded to myself, deciding to go with that. She’s just not feeling well; nothing to really worry about.

Robert and I sat in silence, not having anything to talk about. In the six years we’ve spent together, after we’ve shared each story four times, after we’ve listened to everything there is to listen to, we learned to welcome silence and just let it fill the void. Words were hardly needed anymore as we spent hours outside; either playing cards are staring into space, imagining what our lives would be like right now if we weren’t captured.

Robert always told me he would be a famous doctor; the best surgeon there is to have. He would find to cure to cancer and be a millionaire for it. I believed him; I knew he had potential.

Knowing what I had been thinking, Robert gave me a sly look, “What are you thinking, Rhylee?”

I shrugged, “Just thinking about this boy I knew when I was thirteen…he went to my school, was the cutest boy in class, and I think he even had a crush on me. I don’t see why…” I giggled to myself, feeling like a small girl again. “The day I was kidnapped, he said he wanted to kiss me at lunch.” I smiled as I thought about it, staring at a distant wall, my terrible vision making it easier to space out and just remember. Slowly, my smile faded. “But they pretended to be friends of my father’s and said they had to take me home early. They brought me here that night… I can’t remember anything from that day, other than when the man held a napkin to my mouth before I finally fell asleep… I still don’t know what it was.”

“Chloroform,”

“Excuse me?”

Robert looked to me, an irritated look on his face. “The napkin was doused in chloroform; a drug that sedates you when you breathe it in. It’s popular with these guys… I remember when they did it to me.” Another cigarette.