Escaping Elysia

Chapter 13 - What Needs to be Done

Evita

Lying in bed, waiting for the lights to go out, my mind keeps drifting back to what Dale said, and I wonder why it's bothering me so much. I've only been here two weeks. I barely know him, or Nadya, or anyone else here.

The lights go out and I wait a few minutes, giving the guards time to get to their night posts. Nadya's asleep already—she has been for a half hour—but I'm still careful not to make too much noise when I slip out of bed. I open the door slowly and pick up the paperback I wedged between it and the frame, so that the door couldn't lock. I peer down the hall. All clear.

I thought they only turned off the lights in our rooms, but the main hallway lights are out as well and only dim emergency lights illuminate the way. The darkness doesn't bother me; it will only make it easier to hide. As I approach the end of the girl's hallway I find myself hoping Dale will be there, against all logic. But as I reach the corner it becomes obvious.

I'm still alone.

I'm surprised by the wave of disappointment. I didn't think I cared that much, didn't think I'd allowed myself to care that much. I push the feelings back down, and glance down the next hallway. No one.

As I walk I'm careful to keep my footsteps silent. I reach the clinic and crouch down against the wall, next to the corner, and take a deep breath. The doors out of Elysia, the ones I haven't passed through since I arrived, are just around this corner. I imagine Brandt sitting next to them, passed out from the alcohol. What if he's not passed out, but alert and wary? If I'm wrong and he catches me looking around the corner...who knows what will happen. I flash back to the taser, pulsing electricity across my skin. This time could be worse.

When I peek around the corner he's slumped in the chair, asleep, just as I expected. His mouth is slightly open and when he breathes in he makes a faint wheezing noise. His head rests on his shoulder, and the sleeve on his uniform is wet from where he drooled. I stifle a laugh and breathe a sigh of relief. This just might work.

There, attached to his right chest pocket, is his badge.

I creep forward until I'm right in front of him. It feels like he's a sleeping dragon. I make one wrong move and he'll set me on fire. The badge is simply clipped to his pocket; it doesn't look that hard to get off. I reach up and hold the metal clip between my forefingers then squeeze gently, raising the badge away from his sleeping body. And that's it. It's off.

It feels too easy.

I pull the badge back toward me, less careful than before in my relief, and the bottom edge catches on his shirt, pulling the fabric. I freeze. Brandt grumbles and readjusts his arm. For a terrifying moment I think he's woken up, but then he returns to wheezing and his arm stills. I remove the badge the rest of the way and clutch it in my fist, turning toward the doors.

I've seen the guards do it dozens of times, but I'm still scared something will go wrong. What if the alarm doesn't disable? And what's on the other side of this door? All I remember from my drugged state is a hallway and some stairs.

I swallow and hold the badge up to the alarm. The light turns from red to green. I seize the handle and turn it before the light can go back to red, then push open the door. I cross the threshold, bracing myself, but make it to the other side.

Again, it all feels too easy.

I'm in another hallway. It looks like all the others inside the facility, except nameplates beside each door suggest the rooms are offices.

The hallway is short, and at the end a set of doors are marked 'stairs'. An alarm is mounted beside them as well, with the same red and green lights. Right now it's on red. My heart races. That has to be the way up and out of here. I stride forward and I am so close when I hear a voice.

"Hey, wait a second." It's a man's voice. My hearts leaps and I spin around, but the hallway is still empty. Then I notice one of the office doors propped open. The nameplate by the door says, 'Evelyn Sheer'.

"Just give us a little more time." There's the same voice again. It sounds familiar. But what are they talking about? I look toward the stairs, longing to climb them, but curiosity gets the best of me. I peek through the crack in the door.

Sheer sits at a long table. People in suits and researchers from the facility fill the other seats at the table. I even recognize a few of them, like Dr. Ellis, the doctor who performed the procedure on me yesterday. He's the one who just spoke.

"More time isn't going to do anything," one of the women in a suit says. "You've had plenty of time and we haven't seen any results."

"We've had results, Ms. Gheretti," Dr. Ellis begins, but the woman shakes her head. Her shiny, dark hair falls forward, and she tucks it back behind her ear.

"The President doesn't agree. He wants you to start shutting down the experiments." She pauses, her gaze sweeping across the researchers and landing on Sheer. "Now."

Sheer's face is set, her jaw hard, but she doesn't respond. All the other suits are nodding, while the researchers seem to be holding their tongues. I feel hope rising in my chest. If the experiments are ending, does that mean Dale and Nadya will get to go home? If so, I don't feel as guilty for leaving.

Then Sheer speaks. "What will we do with the test subjects?"

The woman waves her hand dismissively. "You'll do what needs to be done."

Dr. Ellis's eyes bulge. "Those are still people, you can't just-" he begins, his hands gripping the edge of the table.

"Oh sure, people." Ms. Gheretti interrupts, laughing. "They lived like animals out there. Why shouldn't we treat them as such?" I frown. Out where? The woman looks at Sheer. "I trust you'll get things done?"

Sheer nods, managing a pinched smile. "Yes, of course."

"Good." Ms. Gheretti pulls a stack of papers from her briefcase. I turn from the door and press myself against the wall. Do what needs to be done. What does she mean by that? I'm afraid I already know. And the others don't have any idea what's coming. I look at the stairs again, and long to leave, but I'm rooted to the ground. I can't abandon them.

Maybe we could find a way to get everyone out. I don't have much time to decide. The meeting in Sheer's office could end any second. If I stay to warn the others, I sacrifice my own chance to escape. Would they do the same for me? A memory flashes into my mind of Dale on the floor cradling Nadya, his arms wrapped around her, his hands stroking her hair. When I saw that, a part of me was surprised that someone could care that much about another person. Another part yearned to be the one to care that much. I make my decision.

I turn to the door leading back into Elysia.