The Unnaturals (Discontinued)

Nine.

I hadn't slept much last night. Dreams of dying a hundred different ways while Jade and my step-mother laughed plagued me until the wake up alarm sounded. My feet dragged as I went through my morning routine, ignoring the concerned looks from Gabriel and Nathan. Shortly after breakfast three handlers came to our room to escort us to our designated chores for the day. I was on laundry duty with Nathan and Elie. We were led to the basement of the compound, through twisting hallways and steep staircases. As we neared the laundry room, perspiration started to gather on my hairline and the back of my neck. Nathan's strong hand gripped my smaller one, guiding me around a cart full of tablecloths. After crying my eyes out to him and Gabriel yesterday, hand holding seemed almost natural. Still, little shock waves from where our hands were intertwined exhilarated me.

"Sorenson, you're folding. Griffin, delivery. Johnson, washing." A handler shouted over the noise of the machines.

"See you later?" Nathan whispered into my ear, his lips just brushing my ear lobe. A shiver ran down my spine.

"Sure," I whispered back, turning my head to face him. Our faces were inches apart. A blush rose in my cheeks. He was so close and looking at me with such intensity, his gaze darting down to my lips.

"Sorenson! Griffin!" The handler screamed. Nathan flinched back and blinked rapidly, as if being woken from a trance.

"See you later, Sang," he grumbled, and took off to his work station. I released the breath I had kept pent up and scurried off to the steel tables set up for folding. I kept my head down while folding the black pants and green shirts that made up the handlers' uniforms, with the occasional pair of socks thrown into the mix. After a few minutes I developed a rhythm and was able to push aside the strange moment I had with Nathan. I was so consumed by my task that I didn't notice anyone approaching me until she was right in front of me and a basket of towels was dumped on top of the clothes I had already folded.

"Sang," Jade snapped in greeting. People from surrounding tables stared at us, no doubt curious to see if we would get into another fight. I held eye contact with her for a minute before going back to folding. I could feel her eyes glaring daggers through the top of my head.

"You know," she drawled on, "I don't normally do chores. Funny, the one time I do and they put us together."

"Hilarious," I muttered. The second it was out of my mouth I regretted it. So much for keeping my head down.

"Are you excited for our fight Wednesday? Because I am. I'm going to love ripping your pretty little wings right off your back." My wings shuttered, as if personally offended by her taunt. I glared up at her through my lashes.

"What, you don't want to talk to me?" Jade scoffed. "Or is your mouth just sore from sucking the dick of the new handler?" My jaw dropped and I could feel heat rising to my cheeks.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"How the hell did you get off with no punishment for yesterday, but I'm stuck with this?"

"I'm not the one that broke someone's nose."

"Like that fucking matters. You were involved. What I want to know is what you have that I don't? You're a fucking half-breed and I can imagine those." She flung a hand in the direction of my wings. "Only get in the way. I can fuck him way better than you'll ever be able to. You're not as fucking special as you think you are."

My cheeks were still bright red, but it was for a whole different reason now. I gathered my folded laundry and placed it into a cart.

"Neither are you. Goodbye, Jade. See you Wednesday." I walked away, gripping the handle of the cart as hard as I could. I handed it off to a young girl, who looked up at me with anxious eyes. I offered her a weak smile, and went to find more laundry to fold. I shouldn't have said that, but it didn't matter now. Jade would just be that much more eager for our fight.

"Sang Sorenson," a gruff voice called from behind me. I spun around, nearly hitting a wing on the low-hanging pipes. Two handlers stood before me with their arms crossed, a hysterical Jade behind them. What did she do?

"I'm sorry, Sang," Jade cried, "it's just you-you know the rules and I-I..."

She broke off into a blubbering mess, repeating that she was sorry and she didn't know what else to do. My face drained of color.

"You've been reported for plotting to escape," the handler on the right said. "You're going to have the come with us." They each grabbed one of my arms and dragged me from the laundry room. I looked back and locked eyes with Jade. She smirked. Her lips parted and she mouthed: who's special now?

I was led to a part of the compound I had never seen before, but I had heard it plenty. This is where people were punished, and it wasn't uncommon to hear the screams and pleas of those tortured. The handlers shoved me into a small room with no windows or artificial light. I was alone in the darkness and shaking from head to toe. A few minute after they left, I checked the door, but no amount of shoving or yanking could get it to budge. I backed up and my back hit rough, cold stone. I sunk to the floor, my wings wrapping around me in a protective blanket. This couldn't be happening. All of this was a nightmare and I would wake up in bed any minute now.

I sat in the same position for long time, all the while listening to some poor boy scream for mercy. Approaching footsteps jolted me from any sense of calm I had mustered while waiting. My fingers prodded into my lip.

The door opened and a handler stormed in, and yanked me to my feet. She sneered and dragged me though a labyrinth of hallways until we were in a room from one of my nightmares. Every torture tool imaginable was lined up on one wall, the knives aligned in order of length and all the whips perfectly coiled and tipped with silver. The far wall was made up of mirrors, but if I had to guess, they were only one way and allowed for people to look in. Chains dangled from the ceiling in the center of the room. The handler led me to those and locked the cuffs tight around my wrists. Being as short as I am, I was forced to stand on the balls of my feet. With a cruel smile, the handler retreated out the door we came in, leaving me alone with my terror. I let out a broken sob. I was going to die here.

A creak from behind had me spinning. A man walked in. He was middle aged with close cropped hair and a businessman's smile.

"Hello, Sang," he said, his voice gruff and piercing. "It seems you have broken my rules."