Desolation

Chapter Eighteen

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"What?" I say, my eyes widening,

I couldn't have heard Ian correctly.

"I said, we are going to escape from here," he says, lowering his voice to nearly a whisper.

"Ian, we are trapped in locked cages," I say.

"Yes, I know that," he replies.

"So what are you talking about?" I ask.

"I'm coming up with a plan to escape. It's not fully developed yet, but I have an idea," he whispers.

I stare at him, dumbfounded. If he can think of a way to escape a locked cage, he must be going crazy.

I guess we all are going crazy.

Since my head is still spinning, I lay down onto the metal floor of the cage, closing my eyes. I never thought that there would be anything more uncomfortable than sleeping on the jungle floor, but metal floor of the cage proves me wrong. I shift back and forth, futilely attempting to get comfortable until I finally give up and lay flat on my stomach.

All that I want to do right now is sleep. Forget about everything going on for just a few hours. I try clearing my mind of everything, and although it is hard, I finally do. And that is when sleep comes.

I am running through the jungle. I don't know where I am going, but my heart is pounding in my chest. I am being chased by someone.

I suddenly emerge into a clearing and stumble to a stop when I see the someone, their back towards me.

Ian.

"Ian?" I call out breathlessly.

He doesn't turn around; he just stands there as stiff as a board.

"Ian! They're coming for us, we have to go!" I shout frantically, panic rising in my voice.

Then slowly, he turns around. And all the blood in my body runs cold when I see that it is not the face of Ian.

It is the face of Hal.

I slowly begin to back up as he stares at me with his piercing blue eyes and his malicious smile.

"Tessa, where are you going?" He asks icily.

I shake my head, starting to back up faster.

"You can run away. But remember, we will always find you..."

I wake up with a start, gasping for breath. The suns streams down from the sky, blinding me for a moment. I immediately notice that I am soaked in a cold sweat, even though it is hot.

"Tessa?" I hear Ian's voice say.

I sit up, rubbing my eyes then looking up at him. He is sitting in his cage, looking at me intently.

"What happened?" He asks.

"Nothing, just a bad dream," I say quickly.

He nods.

I look next to me to see that both Tristan and Dylan are up as well. Dylan is laying on the floor of his cage, tossing his rock up and down.

"Morning," he murmurs.

Tristan is sitting in the corner of his cage, a distant look on his face.

"Hey Tristan, you okay?" I ask.