Veritas (Truth)

I bit my tongue to stifle the scream in my throat. Through the darkness I could make out the shape of his eyes. I tried to struggle free; this angered him. I felt his fist tighten around the collar of my shirt as he pulled me forward. “Keep. Your mouth. Shut,” he growled. The fury in his voice made me want to run.

Then he released me from his tight grip and stepped back, gesturing for me to follow. Now’s your chance to run, I thought nervously. I quickly stamped down the idea at the sight of his hand reaching for my sleeve.

Finally, I grudgingly began to walk behind him with a heavy sigh, glancing over my shoulder. All the while, my conscience screamed for me to run away, begged me to go back to the safety of my room. I was afraid of what might happen if I followed him. But I was also afraid of what would happen if I didn’t.

The boy approached an old, metal door in between a case and the wall, and jerked down on the handle. He leaned back until it screeched open.

Behind this door lay a dark, empty hallway. The boy jerked me through the doorway before I could protest and yanked it shut behind us, then grabbed my shoulders and prodded me forward. I tensed at the touch of his hands, balling my hands into fists. I’d had enough of this.

“Who the hell are you?” I demanded in a low whisper.

His response at first was nothing more than an angry grunt, but after a moment, he mumbled something to himself and replied, “My name is Bryan, and both of us are going to be in a lot of trouble if you don’t keep quiet.” The boy, Bryan, groaned softly. “Midge is going to kill me.”

“You know Midge?” I asked with surprise.

“I live with her. And I’ll tell you now, after that stunt you pulled, she isn’t going to be very happy with you, either.” I couldn’t think of anything to say in response. Relief was beginning to overpower my fear. He knows Midge. He lives with her. So he’s safe, right?

Suddenly, Bryan grabbed me roughly by the arm, pulling me back. I jerked out of his grasp in agitation. “What was that for?” I snapped. Then I looked down and noticed the stairway leading downward to another door.

“You’re lucky I stopped you,” Bryan said coldly. I cringed with embarrassment as we headed down the cold, smooth steps.

 I wondered what was behind the door. Would we emerge into a crowded place somewhere far away, or enter an empty room? Would Midge be there, waiting for us?

Bryan stepped in front of me and pushed the door open. This one, unlike the other, took little effort to open. Light flooded the hallway. I shielded my eyes, unable to see for a moment. I blinked a few times and found myself standing in another hallway, this one well-lit with green carpet and beige wallpaper. Several wooden doors lined the walls. Bryan walked over to the door right in front of us and knocked three times.

He leaned on his right leg and folded his arms over his chest with a heavy sigh. We waited in the awkward silence for several moments. Then he tried again, knocking louder this time. The door cracked open. Midge’s tired face appeared in the doorway. Her eyes were half-closed, and she was still in her red pajamas.

“What do you want?” she muttered. “I thought I told you all to leave me alone today.” She yawned softly and stretched her arms. Then she opened her eyes and instantly pulled the door open the rest of the way. She reached into the hallway and grabbed each of us by our sleeves.

She pulled us into the room, slammed the door, and shoved me up against the nearest wall. “Lacey, what is the meaning of this?” Midge bellowed. “What in the world are you doing here?” I shrank back slightly, cringing nervously.

“I got out of my room. Then Bryan–then Bryan found me and he took me here, to this place,” I stammered.

Midge’s eyes bulged. “You did what? What were you thinking, you could have been caught! Did the letter I wrote mean nothing to you?” I felt a stab of guilt, but it was quickly overthrown by the need to defend myself.

“You don’t know what it’s like!” I burst out. “I’ve been living in the same room for six years, and then you write a letter and tell me I’m in danger and you say we can’t talk about it, and you expect me to just sit there and pretend nothing has changed?”

“You think it’s any easier for me? I am putting both of our lives at risk by trying to help you! I’ve spent months trying to find a solution, and when I finally come up with one, you wash it down the drain,” she spat, jabbing her index finger at my face. I tried to back away but there was nowhere to go.

“You’re not the one being imprisoned,” I said calmly. Midge snorted and rolled her eyes dramatically.

“You know what, I’d say this isn’t about you, but it is. It’s all about you. I put myself in great danger by trying to protect you, and this is how you repay me?” she yelled through gritted teeth, leaning forward and holding her hands back as if to restrain herself.

“You’re repeating yourself.”

“That’s it, I’ve had it! Go ahead and leave. I don’t care what happens, just leave me out of it. Clearly, you don’t need my help!”

“Midge, it was an accident,” I protested.

“So, you just happened to trip and stumble out the doorway, is that it? Is that what happened?” The rage that had been growing inside of me finally ignited. She had gone too far. I drew back my arm, imagining my fist slamming into her nose.

Then something stopped my fist midway, twisted my wrist backward, and shoved it down. Bryan stepped forward and threw his arms out. “If both of you don’t shut up right now, someone is going to get suspicious. Keep it down,” he barked. Midge shot him a harsh look. Finally, after several moments of loud huffing, her expression softened.

“Sorry, Bryan. You’re right,” she murmured. Then she turned to me.

“Lacey,” she began. “I understand that you’ve made a mistake. But this is bigger than you, this is bigger than any of us. It’s not as simple as it seems and I’m not even sure I understand what kind of trouble I’ve gotten us into.”

“Then why did you do–whatever it is you did, in the first place?” I responded solemnly. Midge looked hurt. As my anger faded, I began to feel ashamed of myself, and sorry for her. Tears were beginning to well in her eyes.

“I did it for you. I disobeyed them for you. When I realized what was really going on here, I wanted to save you. There are others like you. And they might not be so lucky.”

I took a moment to consider what she was saying. It was touching to know that she was doing this to protect me; I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of guilt for ruining her plans, even if I hadn’t intended to do so. But if that wasn’t the case, then what had I wanted?

“I suppose it’s time I told you the truth,” Midge exhaled, interrupting my train of thought.

“Really?” I felt a surge of excitement and took a step toward her, staring up expectantly like a small child. “Right now?”

Midge opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it with a frown. “I think I’ll make breakfast first. I’ll bet you and Bryan are very hungry right now,” she said. I smiled a little.

“That sounds good.”

***

Over the sizzle of the frying pan, Midge called back to us. “Eggs or pancakes?”

Bryan shrugged his shoulders. “I’m cool with whatever Lacey wants,” he replied casually.

“Pancakes,” I decided aloud without thinking. I had other things on my mind, waiting anxiously to hear the truth, as if knowing would make everything better.

As Midge began to stir a bowl of pancake batter, I glanced over at Bryan, who was leaning with one foot against the wall to my left, his arms crossed. He stared blankly at the refrigerator in the corner of Midge’s small, kitchen-like area.

Midge’s home wasn’t nearly large enough to be considered a home. It was barely large enough to be considered an apartment. Beside the door sat a couch and a lamp, and in front of them, a “TV”. At the back of the room, divided by a thin wall, were the kitchen area and a wooden chair and table barely large enough for one person. Near the front door was the bathroom, and near the kitchen was the bedroom. Both were cramped and tight. I suddenly realized that I was being treated better than the doctors themselves, and that wasn’t right.

Finally, Midge finished cooking our breakfast and handed me a plate stacked with pancakes. Thick syrup oozed over the sides, and a small pad of butter at the top of the stack was beginning to melt into it. I took a bite of the slightly stiff pancakes and tried to ignore the overpowering sweetness of the syrup. Bryan sluggishly grabbed a plate and plopped onto the couch.

I took note of how he had chosen to sit at the very end, and the way he kept his eyes trained on Midge, who sat at the table in the corner, as if I weren’t there.

Now that I could see him in the light, he looked much younger. His tousled, light blonde hair looked as if it hadn’t been brushed in a long time. His black pajamas, unlike mine, were wrinkled and stained in some places, like he hadn’t changed them within the last week or so. He took enormous bites of his food and gulped them down without bothering to keep his mouth closed as he chewed or wipe up the syrup that had dripped onto his chin

Finally, after we had our fill of pancakes, the three of us piled our plates and forks into the sink and sat down on the sofa once more. I drew in a deep breath and released it as something fluttered inside of me. Midge was ready to open my eyes to the truth, whether I wanted to see it or not. She began by clearing her throat softly and folding her hands in her lap.

“As I’ve told you before, you are not like normal girls, or humans, for that matter. You’re special.”

“This whole mess started several years ago when a doctor–Robert Scham, I believe–noticed something unusual about one of his patients. You see, his patient had recently suffered from a severe head injury in a car accident, and it was Robert’s job to perform a special brain scan called an MRI on him. This scan allowed him to see picture’s of the man’s brain so he could verify that none of the tissue or cells had been damaged.”

“And as he was studying the pictures, he noticed some abnormalities in this man’s brain; there were clusters of cells that shouldn’t have been there, and the very structure of the brain itself was different from that of a normal human.” This was ridiculous. I shook my head and rolled my eyes.

“So you’re saying that I’m brain damaged? That I’m–”

“Not brain damaged,” Midge interrupted. “You’re actually at an advantage to regular people, I suppose.”

“The fact that the structure of the man’s brain was different had nothing to do with the accident, nor did the abnormal cell clusters. It wasn’t damage, Lacey; he had been like this for years. So have you, and all the others out there with this deformity.” I was sensed that Midge hadn’t told me everything. I was beginning to regret eating breakfast.

“So what?” I said, trying without success to sound nonchalant and unperturbed. “His brain was a little different. Why do they have to imprison us?”

“Because you’re dangerous.” Midge’s voice had turned suddenly cold. “This will sound ridiculous, but Lacey, you have–abilities. Powers.” I felt a combination of relief and annoyance.

“Powers?” I said skeptically.

“Yes.”

“I’m not sure I understand… This–this is too much. It’s too confusing.”

“It’s actually quite simple,” Bryan interjected sharply before Midge could reply, speaking for the first time in this conversation. “You, me, and everyone else here except for the doctors, have powers.” I stared at the floor. My mind couldn’t grasp this fact, no matter how many time I repeated it in my head. I kept waiting for one of them to burst out laughing and tell me it was all a joke, but their expressions remained solemn.

“Yeah, but… I thought that stuff was… fake. Fiction.”

“Welcome to reality,” Bryan responded bitterly.

Midge gave him a look of disapproval. “No need to be rude,” she scolded. Then she turned back to me.

“So… If you have them too,” I said to Bryan. “Then–what is your power?”

“I don’t know yet. I haven’t discovered it.”

“Sometimes it takes years after the mutation begins for people to discover their abilities,” Midge explained. “Part of that is because of the drugs they put in your food.”

I gasped and cringed. “They put drugs in my food?” I exploded. Midge nodded sympathetically.

“The whole purpose of this program was to find a cure for the mutations and stop them from occurring. But even after years and years of research, all we’ve managed to do is create anti-depressants that somewhat neutralize your emotions and cause your memories to fade.”

“That’s why I can’t remember anything…” I muttered, letting the words sink in.

“They also make you kind of stupid.” I glared at him as Midge slapped him lightly on the shoulder, scolding him again. He shrugged and held up his hands in self-defense.

“Hey, I was kind of stupid for awhile, until the drugs wore off. Just telling her the truth.”

“Knock it off, Bryan. Please,” Midge said firmly. We all stared at each other awkward silence, anxiously searching our minds for something to say. I bit my lip as a question came to mind.

“So, how do you and Bryan tie into any of this?” I asked. Midge stared at her hands for a moment before answering.

“About seven years ago, a group of doctors and psychiatrists were accepted and employed to work here. I was one of them. In the beginning, I thought we were working for a wonderful cause. Later on, I began to realize that this wasn’t a place to cure those who had the mutation; it was a way of imprisoning them. As soon as I realized what they were up to, I took Bryan, who I had been counseling at the time, and staged his death so that he could live with me.”

“So, you made it look like he’d died, but why did you keep him with you?”

“Even at the age of nine, Bryan knew something was wrong. He used to argue with me about leaving all the time. I don’t know, maybe I’m just a terrible counselor.” Midge chuckled at her own joke, but her laughter quickly faded to a deep, heavy sigh. “Finally, after I got past the fact that he was not a normal child and that this was an emergency, I decided that I would one day send him away to seek help. But I realized that he would not be able to handle it on his own, and found another child to accompany him; you.”

I tightened my fists; I didn’t like the turn this conversation was beginning to take. “And you can’t make the journey on your own because…?” I asked suspiciously. In response, Midge pursed her lips.

“The two of you are invisible. Almost all of your records have been kept hidden in a safe place. It would take a very long time for anyone who isn’t a part of our organization to recognize you. I would do this myself if it weren’t for the fact that I am trapped here and completely under their control. I’m lucky they haven’t put cameras in every room.”

I thought for a few seconds about what she had said. Then something occurred to me, and yet another piece of this puzzle was connected.

“You’re still going to send us away. That’s what the message was all about. You were going to have him find me and tell me everything…”

“Which was exactly what I was coming to do. I had temporarily disabled the security cameras. Had you waited just a few seconds, there wouldn’t have been a problem,” he said, sounding slightly annoyed.

“Look, I didn’t know what I was doing, all right?” I argued.

“Sure. I believe you.”

I glared at Bryan, unable to understand what it was about me that irritated him so. “I honestly wasn’t sure of what I was thinking, Bryan. You try living in the same room for six years. Then you’ll know what it’s like.”

“In case you’ve forgotten, I have been living in the same place for several years. More than you, actually.”

“At least you weren’t afraid and confused!”

“You were never afraid. The drugs won’t allow you to feel any intense emotions.” Midge placed her hands firmly on our shoulders.

“Please, you two. Settle down.”

Suddenly, there was a high-pitched beeping sound. I jumped back in surprise and stared intently at Midge; the sound was coming from her pocket.

“What’s going on, what is that?” I demanded. Midge held up her index finger. She pulled out a small electronic device, pressed a button on the front, and held it up to her ear.

“Hello?” she said into the object. “Yes?” She rolled her eyes. “Oh, god, no. You’re kidding me… She did not do that. Oh, god, I’ll be right there. Mhmm, I will,” she said with artificial fear and worry, taking long pauses between sentences. When she was done speaking, Midge pulled the device away and pressed another button.

“Well. My boss just called me and told me all about your crazy escape. I have to go to a meeting,” she said.

Wordlessly, Midge turned away, entered her bedroom, and came out in her usual green uniform a minute later. She hurriedly walked out the front door without bothering to say goodbye.

I stared at the wall for a few moments, slightly worried for Midge, who had seemed rather nervous as she left us. Bryan, instead of turning his head away from me, trained his eyes on me as if he were about to speak. Searching for an excuse for conversation, I pointed to the square, black device at a few feet away from the couch.

“What is that?” I asked him. He smirked.

“It’s a TV,” he replied, as if the answer should have been an obvious one.

“What does it do?”

“It shows different scenes and pictures that all form together into what’s called a ‘show’ or a ‘movie’.” I frowned. I didn’t quite understand his definition.

“Can you—make it work?”

He leaned over the side of the couch for a moment and came back up holding a small, black device with many buttons on it, like the one Midge had used earlier. He pressed one, and the screen instantly lit up, showing a picture of a man holding a bottle of toothpaste. I gasped in astonishment. “I’ve never seen anything like that,” I said when Bryan gave me an odd look. “How does it work?” Bryan snorted.

“Magic,” he said sarcastically.

The image changed to show a cartoon mouse and cat. The cat was chasing the mouse through a green field. The mouse suddenly disappeared, and returned momentarily with an enormous metal stick. He struck the cat over the head with it and ran.

“How strange…” I murmured. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Bryan rolling his eyes at me. I finally gave into the flicker of frustration, turning to face him.

“What is your problem?” I snapped. In response, Bryan only raised an eyebrow. “Every single thing you’ve said to me so far has been rude and… and mean!”

He wouldn’t answer me. Instead, he turned his attention back to the TV and watched the screen without interest. I punched the seat next to him to get his attention. “I’m jealous, okay?” His answer took me by surprise. I considered that for a few seconds, then shook my head.

“What is there to be jealous of?” I muttered in confusion.

“It’s Midge. All she ever talks about is you. ‘Oh no, Lacey is sick, I hope she feels better soon!’ ‘Lacey’s so wonderful’ ‘Lacey this, Lacey that’. It gets annoying after awhile. Midge is the closest thing I’ve ever had to a mother, and now all she cares about is you. The only reason she wanted to send me away with you is so that I could make sure you didn’t get hurt.”

“Oh…” I said softly. I looked down at my feet. Bryan had been so rude, because he was jealous… It didn’t seem right of him to say so, and if it was true, it didn’t seem fair.

“She still cares about you, I’m sure.”

“You don’t know her as well as you think you do.”

“But I know that she has a good heart. And if she didn’t like you, she wouldn’t have let you live with her,” I protested.

“Things changed. She cares way more about you than she does about… anything, really. But then again… Oh, never mind.” Unable to come up with anything good to say, I turned my attention back to the TV.

The cat and the mouse were gone now, replaced by three idiotically-dressed teenage boys. The style of drawing, I noticed, was also very different. One of them was holding a black object in his had. Four digits glowed green on the front of it, decreasing quickly; it was a clock, I realized. All four digits changed to zero. There was a sudden flash on the screen, and splashes of color exploded from the object.

“What was that?” I asked, slightly confused.

“That was a time bomb.”

“And a time bomb is…?”

“An explosive device that goes off after a certain period of time.” I tapped my chin with my index finger.

“So it’s like a… Clock, sort of.”

“Yeah.” The teenagers now stood covered in black marks and dust. One of them walked over to a vehicle on the side of the road they had been standing by and climbed onto it. It made a loud buzzing sound and zoomed off. The others watched him with black expressions.

“What was that thing?” I asked Bryan curiously.

“A motorcycle?”

He said this as if he expected me to already know this. Then he frowned. “Wow, they really messed you up… Do you know what anything is?” he asked. He sounded both concerned and skeptical, both of which were annoying, so I quickly stepped to my own defense.

“Of course I know what some things are,” I fumed. Bryan rose from the couch and led me to the kitchen area. He gestured to the counter with his hands.

“What’s that thing in the counter?” he asked. This time, I raised my brows. “It’s a sink. You turn the faucet, and water pours out,” I said, rolling my eyes. “I know about basic things. Everything else, though… Like “motorcycles” and “time bombs”… well, I forgot about them, because I never used them. Bryan nodded.

“Makes sense,” he said to himself. He tapped his foot for a few seconds. “Do you know what this is?” he asked. He reached into a drawer on one of the counters and pulled out an oddly shaped tool, with gears at the top and two plastic handles. I laughed a little.

“Not really,” I replied.

For the next thirty minutes or so, Bryan and I traveled from room to room. He stopped every few seconds to show me a new object and asked me if I knew what it was. If I didn’t know (and to be honest, I barely knew any of them), he would let me examine it and explain its purpose to me. “After all,” he had said, “If you and I end up traveling together, you’re going to need to know what you’re doing.”

Though I was fairly entertained by this little game he had invented, I couldn’t help but feel that he wasn’t doing it out of friendliness, or because he wanted to entertain me. At times, he seemed very annoyed by my lack of knowledge, though I explained several times to him that I could only remember things that I had read about in books, and things from my own room. Running away with him will be so much fun, I thought sarcastically. After having debated the subject with myself for awhile, I finally decided to let it go and be grateful for having someone to talk to.

The only room we had yet to explore was Midge’s bedroom. Bryan was a little reluctant about going in there at first. He paused at the threshold, leaning against the door frame. “I’m not sure if we should do that… That’s kind of her personal space,” he said, then added quickly, “but I guess it’s okay, as long as we don’t mess with anything important.”

We entered the room silently, as if not to disturb a sleeping person. Bryan walked over to a square, digital clock-like object sitting atop a small wooden table. He placed his hand firmly on top of it, and carried on with the routine.

“What is this?” he asked. I frowned and took a moment to study it. It reminded me a lot of the bomb from the TV show.

“I don’t know,” I admitted sheepishly with a giggle. “A time bomb?” This time, Bryan actually chuckled. He normally just smirked and explained, but he just started to laugh and didn’t stop for a few seconds.

“No,” he said. “It’s not a time bomb. It’s called an alarm clock. People use them to wake themselves at certain times.” I nodded to show him that I understood.

All of a sudden, as if it had been hiding and waiting for the right moment to come out, reality struck me; Bryan and I were freaks, and because of it, we were being held in captivity. I leaned back against the door and the side of a bookshelf; it felt as if gravity were trying to pull me down.

“What’s wrong?” Bryan asked. “Are you all right?” Apparently, he had noticed. He approached me slowly and stared into my eyes as if there were something he could see in them, something that concerned him. I drew back toward Midge’s bed and sank to the floor. He sat down in front of the book case.

“Bryan… When Midge was explaining everything to me, she never told me exactly what it was that these people were starting to do that she wanted to protect us from. What was it, exactly?” I asked. I was somewhat afraid of the answer I might receive. All of the information I had gathered that day was beginning to settle in, weighing down and cutting into my heart, into my mind, like stones, knives and thick, black ink.

Bryan gulped, clearly taken by surprise and unsure of how to answer me.

“Killing. Midge told me that her boss was considering having some of the more rebellious patients removed… Patients like you.” I shivered.

“It’s so hard to believe that everything I ever knew was taken away from me, and now, now it’s happening again. It isn’t fair.”

I felt stupid for ranting to Bryan, but his sudden sympathy only made me want to say more.

“I know what you mean. And you’re right, it isn’t fair. But there’s nothing we can do to change the past… All we can do is try to change the future. Which is why we’re running away.”

I tried to imagine being out of here and back to civilization. I tried to imagine being out in the open where we were free and could do as we wished. But I knew too little of civilization, had forgotten too much, to picture it. And when we did leave, if we did leave, we would never truly be free, nor would we feel as if we were. We would always be prisoners. Always.

“How are we going to do this?” I asked. My voice was beginning to falter. “How are we going to make it out of here, and save everyone, and not get caught? How can we do any of this?”

“I feel just as lost as you. Midge has explained everything to me in detail more times than I can count, but no matter how many times she does, I feel like I’m going to mess everything up,” Bryan admitted sullenly.

“Maybe when we discover our powers people will be afraid of us and leave us alone,” I said.

“I’ll tell you this right now; when we discover them, we can’t ever use them. Not unless our lives depend on it. Yes, normal citizens will be afraid. But the authorities aren’t going to hold back once we discover them. They won’t hesitate to have us locked away forever… Or worse yet–killed.”

I trained my eyes on one spot of the carpet to stop the world from spinning. With every second that passed and every word Bryan said, gravity pushed down a little harder. It was only a matter of time until it succeeded in its attempts to crush me.

***

Midge entered the meeting room swiftly, combing her fingers through her hair as she walked. James had sounded very serious; any delay might make him suspicious. When she stepped through the doorway, she was surprised to see not only James at the table, but another man that she recognized instantly. It was the way he kept his medium brown hair tied back and his dark blue suit that gave it away; this was Andrew Gerdman.

Midge took a seat at the end of the table near him. She tried to conceal her nervousness as she approached him. Andrew was the head of the SMRF. After Robert Scham had decided to retire and run off to live on his own, Andrew had immediately taken his position, completely altering the very purpose of this organization. The amount of power he possessed was frightening; he kept everything under the palm of his hands, at his control. All he had to do was say the word, and he could erase anyone or anything from existence with his political status and his money.

“Andrew Gerdman, it’s a pleasure to see you here,” Midge said politely, sounding very surprised. He smiled pleasantly.

“This is an urgent situation; I come when I am needed,” he replied. Though his lips were curved up into a smile, his voice was solemn, which made it clear to her that he was serious about this. Her muscles tightened.

“Well,” he began. “James, here, has told me that your patient–Lacey, if I’m not mistaken–disappeared from her room this morning.”

“Yes, she did. We’re not sure where she possibly could have gone off to,” Midge replied calmly, hoping that her voice wouldn’t break and give her away.

“I am terribly sorry about this, sir. I’m not sure why or how she managed an escape like this. She–

“No need to trouble yourself, Ms. Lattering, these things happen on occasion. And when they do happen, it’s not difficult at all for us to settle things. I just need you to answer a few questions.”

“Let’s go back to Lacey’s childhood… Was she ever a rebellious child?”

“No,” Midge lied. “She was always calm, always quiet, obedient.” Andrew frowned. He narrowed his eyes for a moment, and Midge wondered if she had taken it too far.

“At least with you, she was,” James interrupted half-jokingly. Midge silently begged him to close his mouth and keep it shut for the rest of the meeting.

Andrew turned to James with a look of interest. “Oh, really?” he said. “So she was a little rebellious. How so?”

“I counseled her for a little while when she first arrived. For the first month or so of being her, she would overload me with questions when I came to speak with her, as if it were her job and not mine.” James chuckled and Andrew joined in, but only for a second. Then he became serious again.

“I’m afraid that isn’t quite what I meant. Thank you, though, James.” He turned to face Midge once again. He cleared his throat. “Well, then. If she was never a rebellious child, why do you propose she would have decided to run off?”

“I don’t know,” Midge replied, realizing that by lying, she had walked herself into a trap. How could I have ruined this so quickly? she thought.

“I would like to point out that Lacey left her room at approximately 10:30 AM, during which time, our security cameras had stopped working. I find it–suspicious–that she should go missing at this exact moment.” He was beginning to close in. Midge felt her heart freeze and hands tremble. 

“Wasn’t her door locked?” James asked. Midge was surprised by how clueless he was acting right then.

“I believe that was Mike’s fault. He’s a newbie, isn’t he? And was it not your job to go through the rules with him?”

James looked startled. He was about to answer when Andrew turned back to Midge suddenly.

“Which reminds me,” he continued. “Mike said that Lacey complained that her shower was broken. As he was trying to repair it, he decided to clean the drain, and found several large clumps of wet newspaper inside of it. Have you any idea how she obtained this paper?”

“No, sir.”

“Then she must have had help. Do you not agree?”

It was then that it clicked in her mind. She knew that they knew. And what they knew was the truth, that she had been helping Lacey all along. They had set her up. They were testing her. All in that moment, everything became clear.

Andrew had the inexplicable ability to ease tension in any conversation. Midge knew that he used this strategy to catch people off guard. Like a predator, he would sit back in the shadows and watch calmly from a distance, waiting for the right moment to jump out and strike his prey. Worse yet, there was no telling when he would decide to strike. Midge took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Now she had been cornered, and this was her last chance to run. But Andrew was too quick; he would catch her if she did.

“Mr. Gerdman,” she said sternly. “Do you believe that I am behind Lacey’s escape?”

A cold, cruel smile formed on his thin lips. “It would certainly seem that way, Ms. Lattering,” he replied. Searching desperately for words to defend herself, Midge blurted the first words that came to mind. It was useless to turn back now.

“How dare you accuse me of something like this! The sheer fact that I happen to be Lacey’s counselor does not, in any way, mean that I was responsible for her running away. And although some of the evidence does point toward me, you have absolutely no right to accuse me of anything without proof.”

“But we have proof, Midge. It’s written all over your face. And the results from the lie detectors that we use during monthly interviews.”

She rose from her seat, her heart racing and ears roaring as she realized that this was the end. “The SMRF is not the same SMRF that I joined ten years ago! I don’t care what either of you say, we are not killing anyone. These children have done no wrong!” She jabbed her finger at Andrew’s face. “You disgust me. Murderer. I will put an end to this now, if it’s the last thing I do, and there is nothing either of you can do to stop me!”

Midge’s shouts resonated against the walls. A hollow, empty feeling settled over them. Midge slowly lowered herself into her seat, expecting Andrew to leap onto her. But he remained calm, sitting with his hands on his lap and his head held high.

“On the contrary,” he objected, shattering the quiet atmosphere. “We can stop you.”

“I’d like to see you try.”

Andrew smiled again. “Come on in, boys!” he shouted. The door squeaked open. Two large men in black uniforms sauntered into the room, eyeing Midge carefully.

“You see, Ms. Lattering; things can get very ugly in this sort of situation. That is why I always come prepared.”

***

“So, the only thing people really care about is money?” I asked in astonishment. For the last thirty minutes, Bryan had been explaining the different attributes of society to me, specifically, business and economics.

Bryan started to answer. Suddenly, there was the sound of something pounding up against the front door. I jumped, startled. Bryan jerked his head toward the bedroom door and listened intently. Someone was shouting from the hallway. Even through two sets of doors, Bryan and I both could guess that it wasn’t Midge. 

“Shit. They’re here,” he hissed under his breath. He swiftly scrambled to his feet, gave me his hand, and pulled me up. “We have to get out of here, to the bathroom,” he instructed. To our advantage, there was a bathroom door right between Midge’s book case and drawer.

Bryan sprinted over to it and pushed it open as silently as he could, then ran inside while I followed a few steps behind.

Bryan locked the door and shoved me into the shower. He managed to squeeze himself in and pulled the curtain closed. But even then, we could still be seen through the cracks; this shower was designed for only one person.

“We’re going to have to stand, back-to-back, and get as close together as possible, okay?” he instructed. I nodded and followed his instructions. I was too afraid to do anything else.

For a short while, the only audible sound was of our breathing, which we tried to make as silent as possible. I could feel Bryan shaking as he stood. I squeezed my eyes shut. There was an explosive sound from the living room as the door burst open, then the sound of footsteps.

“Come out now! I know you’re in here!” a man grunted. I stiffened and tried not to breath as they marched into Midge’s bedroom, then proceeded into the bathroom.

“There’s no where for them to hide in here,” one of them muttered. The other made a snapping sound in response. “They can’t be anywhere else.” A hush fell over the room. No one spoke. No one breathed.

As Bryan and I had turned ourselves around, my legs had been entangled with his. I had been holding my knee in the same stiff position for nearly three minutes, the pain growing with every few seconds. My knee suddenly buckled as my muscles started screaming. My foot slipped out from underneath me, causing me to slip and bang my elbow against the wall.

The curtain was yanked open. The two men, who wore padded, black uniforms, glared at us. One of them grabbed me by the arm and pulled me from the shower like a lifeless toy. Bryan could only watch them in frozen horror. I made a run for it. Immediately, the blonde-haired guard to my left stepped back to block my exit. He delivered a blow to my abdomen that made the air explode from my lungs and my stomach cramp and twist.

Bryan stumbled out of the shower seconds after me. He tried to run to the other door, but the man on his side took hold of his shoulders and tried to restrain him. Bryan kicked and struggled furiously. Suddenly, he slipped from the man’s tight grasp. His head connected with the porcelain sink with a sickening crack. He slumped to the floor.

Both the other man and I had been distracted by the scene. I jumped back to reality and threw the door open. The man spun around and started to chase after me. My ears were roaring. There was nowhere to go.

One moment I was running. The next thing I knew, the man’s arm crashed into my chest from behind and squeezed me up against him. I let out a cry of surprise and horror as a hand holding a damp cloth clamped over my mouth, making it nearly impossible to breathe.

When I inhaled, sweet chemicals flooded my mouth. I coughed them out, and choked them in again. My head throbbed dully. A loud buzzing sound from an unknown source rang in my ears. No matter how I tried to hold by breath, the nauseating sweetness continued to choke me.

I began to float. Colors became distorted. The room began to spin. Then, there was black ink. Nothing but black ink.

***

I opened my eyes. The moment I did, pain shot through my head. I shut them quickly, waiting for the pain to dissipate. I noticed that the surface beneath me was not soft and smooth like my bed, but hard, rough, cold, and uncomfortable like stone. “Where am I?” I murmured weakly.

I made an attempt to sit up. Every movement brought more pain to my head. My supporting arm wobbled, threatening to give way. All I could see was sheer blackness. Am I blind? I thought. Then the day’s events came rolling back into my head tumultuously, only adding to the forming migraine. Panic took hold of me. I rose to my feet, ignoring the burst of agony.

Even in the total darkness, I could see the outline of a door against a wall. I stumbled on stiff legs across the room and leaned my full weight against it. “Let me out,” I groaned. “Let me out now!” Of course, no one answered. I balled my hands into fists and pounded them against the metal and said it, much louder. I continued to scream for what seemed like an eternity until my hands were sore and scraped.

Finally, I sank to the floor in defeat and held my throbbing head in my throbbing hands. I was trapped, and Midge and Bryan probably were too. And it was all my fault. Everything.

–End of Veritas–