Part-Time Griffin

Frenemy

Gray light. That's the first thing I see. It comes from some unknown source.
My head throbs. Everything is spinning. It hurts. My head hurts.
What happened?
Then everything comes back to me. Roxanne's confession, drinking the drugged drink, and passing out on the sofa. It's so much to take in at once.
Opening my eyes wider, I force myself to sit up. This fails. The migraine in my head makes me lay back down.
Instead, I stare around at my surroundings. A few seconds pass before I comprehend where I am. Then I finally recognize what I am looking at.
Apparently, I'm in Roxanne's basement.
My house doesn't have a basement, but like I said before, the houses on this side of the lake have more value and floor space.
I've been in her basement a couple times before. I just never thought that I'd be kidnapped by my best friend and get left down here.
A washer and dryer sit in the far corner. A television sits below the wooden stairs. I'm on the couch that faces the television. Near the TV is a small black fridge which is as tall as my hip.
Pulling myself upright, I notice that someone, probably Roxanne, has laid a blanket on top of me.
After a few more minutes the migraine subsides. Thanks to griffin healing abilities. Then I'm finally able to clearly survey my surroundings closer.
Wow, that was a wicked headache!
Standing from my resting place, I notice that there are a few chainsaws, axes, and crowbars sitting at the foot of the stair steps. Three small windows line the farthest wall.
Quickly, I go over to the washing machine and jump up on top of it with ease. Looking out one of the tiny windows, I see my house far across the lake. The sun's golden light barely exists in the sky.
I try crawling out the window, but it's much too small. My shoulders get stuck. The window is too narrow and too slim for me. Backing out of the window, a griffin-like growl rises up my throat.
I have to get out of here!
I know that trying the door at the top of the stairs is useless, but I go check it anyway. Maybe I can knock it down with some extra griffin strength.
When I reach the door, I'm shocked to find that it's a solid piece of steel. No door knob either. I knock on the door to see how thick it is.
I'm more shocked when I find out that it's at least five inches thick.
Angrily, I pound on the door twice. It makes no sound when I bang my fists against it. Nothing can be heard from the other side. It's too thick to discern any sounds.
Trudging back down the stairs, I search for any tools that might help me. The chainsaw will be useless against the metal. The same goes for the axe. The crowbar may be different.
I snatch the crowbar and try to pry open the metal door. After a few attempts, there are no results beside some scratches on the metal slab.
Violently throwing the tool down the stairs is the only way to release my anger.
My cellphone was obviously taken, and so was that note I brought with me. The only piece of hard evidence I had had.
What does someone do when they've been kidnapped by their best friend and left in their inescapable basement?
Sitting there on the stairs, my mind wanders far and wide. My options, what can I do, and any other ways to get out.
Somehow Diesel comes to mind. He will be waiting for me tonight. What will his thoughts be when I don't arrive?
My own thoughts then return to Roxanne...
I'm not sure if Roxanne did this because she thought I'd tell someone or either she did it to protect me. Either way, she's my friend. I know she doesn't do things without a reason.
The betrayal hurts like a snake's bite. It pierces my heart and courses through my veins. Like venom.
I go to the bottom of the steps hoping that there's some slim chance I can find another escape route.
I hear a faint voice speaking. At first I think I'm losing it, but as I listen closer I notice a laundry shoot next to the washing machine.
A few seconds later, I'm sticking my head inside it. The faint voice becomes louder and I'm able to hear the words clearer.
"...yes, Olivia will be spending the night. I hope that's not a problem... Okay, thank you Mrs.Davis. I hope this wasn't too short a notice... I'm glad to hear that... Bye." Roxanne hangs up the phone.
That's pretty smart. She told my parents that I'd be spending the night. I guess there are perks to having the person you kidnap also being your friend...
I'm not sure if Roxanne is my friend anymore though.
I stare up the laundry shoot. Smooth sheet metal siding goes all the way upward. Faint rays of light emit from the opening at the top.
If I try hard enough, I might can get in here.
With much tedious work, I manage to work my way inside the small shoot. Once I'm wedged into it, a sudden claustrophobia takes over. I can feel all four sides touching me. The walls seem to instantly want to crush me as I stand there frozen.
Olivia, you have to get out of here!
Raising my two hands over my head, I make my front talons grow from my fingertips. The long black claws look deadly in the faint light that pierces the darkness.
Digging my talons into the sheet metal, I start climbing upward. I press my back against the metal behind me as I go higher. Each time I reach out I become closer to my escape. For some reason, I glance between my legs, and a dark abyss yawns far below me. Those next few seconds pass with me staring fearfully downward into the pitch darkness.
My talons slip and I'm brought out of my trance. I start climbing higher, digging into the sheet metal deeper each time.
A sigh of utter relief escapes me when I finally reach the tiny flap that covers the shoot. Pushing it open with my head, I crawl on through it.
The floor is four feet below me. I extend my hands as I push myself out the shoot with my feet.
Then as I get half my body out, my hips get stuck in the opening. Looking behind me, I see that the lower half of my body is still inside the shoot.
"The things I get myself into." I mumble as I start to struggle harder.
I end up having to push against the walls beside the shoot to attempt freeing myself. No matter how I twist, turn, or pull I can't get my hips out.
A few minutes pass and I eventually take a break. As I am in this extremely awkward position, I survey my surroundings. I'm in the kitchen. Not a single light is on in the entire house. No sound can be heard either.
This I so embarrassing! Even if no one is around to see my pathetic attempts.
I kick again hoping that it may help, but it's futile. My hips just won't go through.
The air conditioning comes on and a cold breeze instantly starts blowing on me.
Could this be any worse? I'm stuck in my former friend's laundry shoot, and I'm slowly being frozen by their cold air conditioning.
It's completely dark outside, meaning that Diesel is somewhere out there waiting for a griffin. Too bad I'm in a tight situation, literally.
Wait... a griffin. That's it! If I can make my talons come out while in human form maybe I can...
Slowly, I start to transition from human to griffin. In the few split seconds that I am both a human and griffin, my hips slide through the opening and I drop flat on the floor. My face hits the tile then the rest of my body goes over my head. I cut a flip.
By now my body has involuntarily finished the morphing process. A full sized griffin now lays flat on her back in the middle of a kitchen. You don't see that every day.
I'm not sure why I thought that shifting would help me squeeze through. My hips are bigger in my griffin form than in human anyway. I guess that in those few milliseconds my waist shrinks slightly.
Standing up on my four feet, I walk through the kitchen and into the rest of the house. I quickly shift back to a human as I inspect every room in the house, but no Roxanne is to be seen.
"Where is everyone?" I ask the question out loud as I go into Roxanne's dad's office.
The first thing to make an impression on me is the grey notebook paper stuck to a bulletin board attached to the wall. Without having to flip on the light, I easily read the note in the darkness.
•Tuesday- Destroy Windows
•Saturday- Blow Town Hall
There is more to the note, but I easily figure out its purpose. It's a schedule for when they're going to do the attacks. Tuesday night is when they busted all the windows. Tonight is Saturday. But what do they mean when it says 'blow town hall'?
Wait, blow? Meaning explode?
No, no, no! I have to stop them. I know that they're blackmailed into doing this, but will it make any difference if something stops them from doing it? Maybe that freak guy who's threatening them will make a reconciliation... just kidding. That's probably not gonna happen.
I think these things through as I race out the back door. Shifting into a griffin, I jump into the sky and push myself toward town hall.
Is their enough time to save the building a second time...?