Faces, Names, and Memories (completed)

Chapter 36 - Reunited

The guards let me walk once we're out of the room, but I quickly realize it's only because they'd bound my hands at the wrists. With each of them holding one of my arms, I couldn't escape regardless, but they apparently aren't taking any chances. It's not like I would try anyways, not without my friends. The LEs roughly push me down a corridor, though the aggression is unnecessary, given that I'm very compliant.

They stop in front of an electronically sealed door. I watch the LE's fingers as he plugs in the code. The door opens and the guards shove me through. The hallway is lined with cells. The doors are just like the doors in the basement, and it gives me a Deja Vu feeling. Though, it's weird being on the outside and seeing the shut doors. In the basement, whenever we were in the hallway, either aIl the cell doors were open, or the guards were pushing us along much too fast for us to get a good view. I now understand that in order to unlock the cells, an actual key is needed.

The LE's stop walking -pulling me to a stop with them- in front of a cell labeled 12. One of the LEs pulls a card out of her pocket. The card changes into a key shape as it nears the door, and it slides in easily. With one turn clockwise, the guard removes the key, and the door slides open. Before I can even take a minute to look at who's in the room, the guards shove me to the ground. I land sprawled out on the floor with a grunt, and hear something making a soft thump next to me seconds before the door shuts and locks.

"Jade!" I look up to see that Tammie is the one that happily cried out my name. I'm relieved to see that also occupying the cell is Cale, Deen, Spenzo, and Tressa. All of my friends are accounted for, and most of them are unharmed; Zuke hadn't lied when he told me that they hadn't been hurt. I also suspect that he wasn't lying when he said that they would be if I didn't comply.

"Jade, are you alright?" Cale asks, getting up off the metal bench he, Spenzo, and Deen had been sitting on, and crouches next to me, placing a hand on the small of my back.

I'm not alright, but my well-being is the least of my concerns right now; they don't need to worry about me. I'm not the one they should be concerned about. 

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lie, pushing myself to a sitting position. 

"Do you know what's going on?" Spenzo gets off the bench and crouches next to me. 

"Yeah, we just woke up in here in gray jumpsuits next to us, no explanation, no instructions. Only time the door opened was when a LE collected our hospital gowns after we changed," Deen elaborates. 

I don't answer right away, thinking about how to break the news to them gently. I decide to use a good news, bad news approach, because I remember that's a common way to give news to people. 

"Hey, what happened to your face?" Tressa asks me, noticing the bruise on my cheek. 

Cale sees it and scowls, but doesn't comment. 

I clear my throat. 

"Okay, so there's good news, and bad news, but it's mostly bad  news, so I'll start with the good, which is that we're going to be okay, probably. But, the bad news is that we're right where Jaz wants us, and in order to prevent you guys from being tortured, I have to do whatever he wants me to do, and I still don't know what that is. And, speaking of tortured, Kinnie's been tortured to find out where we were, and..." I swallow, because this part will hit them the hardest. I look at Tammie, who looks at me with wide eyes, waiting for the rest, already looking shaken up at finding out that Kinnie's been tortured. "And..." I shut my eyes, feeling the tears start to fall again. 

"Jade, spit it out, what happened?" Deen prods. 

I open my eyes and look back at Tammie. 

"Zuke's gone," I tell her.