Imprisoned (24 page)

“The only thing that makes me nervous,” Piper said, “Is that we’re dependent on Alyx to get that key card and we don’t know yet if Billy can get matches.”

“I know.” I frowned, not liking to hear my own fears vocalized. “But Billy thinks he’ll be able to find something to start a fire with.”

“And what if someone comes in the bathroom while we’re trying to start the fire?”

“Everyone will be asleep.” I didn’t like the way she kept putting obstacles in our way. This
had
to work.

“Don’t you ever have to get up at night to go to the bathroom?”

“Well, yeah. But we’ll time it right.”

“And what if we can’t stop the bleeding when we cut out the chip? Or what if we get an infection? We could
die
from those things.”

I gave her a stern look. “Piper, stop. That’s not going to happen.”

“But it could.”

“It won’t.”

“You don’t know that, Morgan. You’re just
hoping
.”

Of course she was right, which didn’t help. “Think about what it will be like once we get out of here. No one will make you exercise if you don’t want to. Or eat those power bars all the time . . .”

“I happen to like those power bars,” she cut in.

“So do I, but you know what I mean. And no one will make you fall in a trench full of spiders.”

She grimaced. “That’s true.”

We chatted about other things until it was time for me to go to my counseling group. I got there before Billy, but when he arrived a short time later, he sat next to me.

“How’s it going?” he asked.

“Good.” I leaned close to his ear. “I should be able to get a key card for us to use.”

He looked at me, his eyebrows raised in question.

I just nodded, a sly grin on my face, pleased with my ingenuity.

When Mrs. Reynolds arrived, she had a guest. Dr. Bradley. The same doctor who had inserted the chip into my arm without my permission less than a week before.

After we said the pledge, Mrs. Reynolds explained why Dr. Bradley had joined our little group of delinquents. “Dr. Bradley will be drawing blood from each of you this evening.”

We looked at each other, alarm clear on everyone’s face. Mrs. Reynolds must have sensed our anxiety because she said, “Nothing to worry about. It’s all routine.”

I leaned towards Billy. “Have they every taken blood before?”

He shook his head. “Not since I’ve been here.”

I saw Dr. Bradley setting up a small table in a corner of the room.

“When I call your name, you’ll go to Dr. Bradley’s station and she’ll take care of you.”

I’ll bet, I thought, remembering how she had taken care of me when I first arrived.

The first three kids had their blood drawn without incident, but the fourth kid refused to go.

“Now, Thomas,” Mrs. Reynolds said. “Don’t be such a baby.”

“But I hate needles,” he said, his eyes wide.

“Well, that’s the only way to get the blood
out
,” Mrs. Reynolds said.

He crossed his arms over his chest. “I won’t do it.”

Mrs. Reynolds stared at him for a moment, then typed something on her tablet computer. Less than a minute later two large Enforcers burst into the room and dragged Thomas, who kicked and screamed, over to Dr. Bradley. One of them held him in the chair and the other pinned his arm to the table while Dr. Bradley jabbed the needle into his arm.

None of us could tear our gaze away, and when Thomas let out a blood-curdling scream, I grabbed Billy’s arm. He glanced at me and I quickly let go, embarrassed by my reaction.

“It’s just a little prick,” he said. “That kid’s just making it worse.”

I could see that, but that didn’t help calm me. When Dr. Bradley was done with Thomas, the Enforcers let him go. He walked back to his chair and sat down, whimpering the whole time.

Even though I didn’t think it could be as bad as Thomas made it out to be, I still didn’t like the idea of them getting any of my blood. What were they going to do with it anyway?

“Morgan Campbell,” Mrs. Reynolds said.

My heart stopped for a moment. I
would
have to go next—after the hysterical kid and while the Enforcers were there. At least Hansen wasn’t one of them. Pretending not to care, I stood and walked over to Dr. Bradley, ignoring the Enforcers who stood nearby. I sat in the chair, aware all eyes were on me, and rested my arm on the table.

Dr. Bradley tied a piece of rubber around my upper arm, tapped on my inner elbow, wiped a spot with a pad of alcohol, then poked a needle into my vein. Blood flowed into a glass tube and a moment later it was all over. She put a Band-Aid on the spot where the needle had been and smiled at me.

I couldn’t bring myself to smile back, but stood and walked back to my seat, glad my turn was over. The rest of the kids went through the motions without incident. As Billy was having his turn, it suddenly occurred to me that it was odd that this was happening now, during our counseling group. Were all the kids at Camp Willowmoss getting their blood drawn? Or just us?

When I got back to my room Alyx wasn’t there—probably off with Austin—so I got ready for bed and decided to write a letter to Mom.

Dear Mom,

I got your letter. Thanks for writing to me. I’m learning a lot here, but I miss you guys and wish I could be there with you.

I set my pencil down, wondering what else I could say. I was certain my letter would be read before it was mailed—assuming it was even sent—so I couldn’t tell Mom the truth about anything. Sighing, I picked my pencil back up.

I’ve made some friends here and have done a lot of exercising. I’ve lost weight, which is good. I want to be healthy and I hope that when I get home I’ll be able to continue the healthy habits I’m learning here.

Love,

Morgan

I reread the last paragraph and snickered. What a load of crap. But if Mr. Madsen read it, maybe he’d actually think I meant it.

I folded it up and tucked it in the drawer, then filled out my food journal. It was pretty easy since all I had to do was write down how many power bars I’d eaten. Of course I didn’t mention the one I’d stolen for Beth but had eaten myself. As I thought about the power bars, I felt a craving for them and looked forward to getting my two at breakfast—especially since that was all I was getting.

A few minutes later Alyx came through the door, a big smile on her face. I could only imagine what put it there, but didn’t want to think about her and Austin, but she gave me no choice.

“I’m so happy,” she said as she spun in a slow circle. Then she stopped and looked at me. “Have you ever been in love, Morgan?”

I thought about Connor and my one date with him. He hadn’t even bothered to write to me since I’d been in here and I wondered who he was dating now, though it didn’t matter now.  “No, not really.”

“Well, just wait. It’s so
amazing
.”

I really wasn’t in the mood to hear about her and Austin and how much they loved each other—especially since I knew he was just using her as a diversion until something better came along. “I’m sure it is and I’m glad you’re happy, but I’m really tired so I’m going to bed.”

She frowned. “Already? It’s only nine thirty.”

I climbed under my covers. “I have to get up early, don’t forget.”

“Okay, okay. Good night.”

When I woke up the next morning, I realized that one week earlier I had been dragged out of my house and brought to this place.
The bruise on my face had faded but the bruising to my spirit was fresh and tender. As I dressed, I noticed the Band-Aid on my inner elbow from where Dr. Bradley had drawn blood and again wondered what that was all about. I tore it off—noticing a tiny bruise where the needle had pierced my skin—and threw it away, then headed to the cafeteria to begin my pre-breakfast shift.

Towards the end of my shift I found myself feeling light-headed and my stomach rumbled and I could hardly wait until I could tear open my two power bars. I even stepped away from the sink of dishes and walked toward the pantry where I knew the power bars were kept, tempted to go in and eat one right in the middle of my shift. But as I approached the open door, I saw one of the adult workers inside organizing boxes. Disappointed, I went back to the soapy water and scrubbed dishes without thinking about what I was doing. My mind was on eating my power bars.

Finally it was time to have breakfast. Piper and I walked together to get our food, then sat at a table by ourselves. I scarfed down both power bars, a feeling of satisfaction washing over me as they filled my stomach. “Can I have one of yours?” I asked Piper, pointing to her power bars, which she’d set aside to eat last.

She put her hand over them protectively. “No.”

I tried to hide the frown that was trying to push its way onto my face, then found myself looking forward to the post-breakfast shift. I would try to find a way into that pantry to get a few extra bars to eat later. After all, I hadn’t had anything to eat
but
power bars in over twenty-four hours, it was no wonder I wanted some so badly. Trying to take my mind off the strong craving, I thought about our escape plans. “So, do you think Billy will be able to get matches today? Maybe we can put things in motion tonight. Can you imagine—maybe tomorrow at this time we’ll be free.”

“Stop it, Morgan. I don’t want to talk about that right now.”

I looked at her in surprise. “What’s wrong?”

She shook her head. “Nothing, okay?”

Obviously something was bothering her. “No it’s not okay. We have plans. It was your idea, remember?”

Her eyebrows drew together. “I know, but maybe I made a mistake.”

“Piper. What’s going on?”

She sighed. “I just keep thinking about all that could go wrong and it freaks me out.” She stared across the room, then looked at me. “Maybe it’s not so bad here.”

“What?! Are you serious? Have you already forgotten about the pit of spiders?”

“Well, no. But besides that, it’s not so bad. I mean, we get three meals a day, we have time to exercise, we keep busy.”

I couldn’t believe what she was telling me. “Those things are all true, but you’ve forgotten one little detail. We have no choice in the matter. We’re
forced
to exercise. We’re
forced
to keep busy by working these jobs that they assign to us. And we’re
forced
to eat the foods that
they
decide we get to eat.”

She stood. “I don’t want to talk to you about this right now.”

“One other thing.”

She stopped and looked at me.

I pictured Thomas being held down and blood forcibly removed from his arm the night before. “What about being
forced
to have your blood drawn?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Didn’t you get your blood drawn yesterday?”

She looked at me like she thought I was crazy. “No.”

So, it really was just the criminals. “Well, I did. Along with everyone in my counseling group.”

She laughed. “You’re just making that up to try to change my mind.”

I held out my arm and showed her the small bruise on my inner elbow.

“Oh.” Then she smiled at me. “I still think it’s not so bad here.”

I watched her walk away, worried how her change in attitude would affect our escape plans.

Chapter Twenty Seven

During my second shift, which was right before lunch, I kept one eye on the pantry. I waited until I was sure no one was near it, then hurried over to the door and glanced inside. No one was there. I raced over to the boxes of power bars, thrilled to see a box standing open. I grabbed four and stuffed them into my pockets, then went back to my station. No one seemed to have noticed what I’d done and I smiled as I set the next pot in the hot water.

As I leaned against the sink, I could feel the bulkiness of the bars in my pockets and looked forward to eating them later. It was only after a few minutes that I realized I hadn’t even considered giving them to Beth. Feeling torn, I wasn’t sure what to do. I needed to give her something so she would leave me alone, but I really wanted to keep them for myself.

Maybe I could keep these and then steal a few more in my last shift to give to her. Problem solved, I thought as I dried a cleaned pan.

At the end of my shift I rushed up to my room, hid the four power bars in the box springs, then went down to lunch. I got in line, received my allotted food—two power bars and a box of skim milk—then went to my table. Everyone was already there.

“Where’d you go?” Piper asked. “I looked for you after our shift but you’d already left.”

“Oh. Uh, I forgot something in my room.”

She looked confused, but didn’t ask anything more.

I watched the others eat their veggie burgers and vegetables, but oddly I didn’t even want any. I just ate my power bars and felt my craving for them lessen, but the thought of the four hiding in my room comforted me.

At the end of the meal when Alyx, Cassidy, and Piper left, Billy moved to the seat next to mine. “Any luck getting first-aid supplies?”

I’d been so focused on getting the power bars, I’d forgotten about my assignment. “Not yet.”

“Yeah, I haven’t gotten the matches yet either, although I think I know where I can find them. I just need a chance to get in and take them.”

“Good.” I thought about what Piper had said. “I think Piper might be backing out.”

“Why? What happened?”

I told him what she’d said. “It’s kind of weird. I mean, it was her idea in the first place.” Of course I didn’t mention that I’d been thinking about escaping since I’d arrived.

“Huh. Well, what about you? You still want to do it, don’t you?”

I pictured the tunnel that would take me home. “Yes. Absolutely.”

“Good.” He stood. “I’d better get back to work. I’ll see you in class.”

After he left, I went back to the kitchen for my final shift. The power bars I’d eaten at lunch had slaked my craving, but I still needed to get a few to give to Beth—giving her the ones I’d taken earlier was out of the question. I also needed to get some first-aid supplies, but I worried that my luck wouldn’t hold out and that I’d get caught if I tried to take more things.