A “Dead” End

Chapter 7

I’d just finished narrating the entire incident when we heard Luke’s voice asking us to wear our seatbelts and prepare for landing. Mom quickly tucked Sarah’s belt, attached on the sides of the bed, then both of us took our seats in the front and buckled in for our descent. As soon as we landed mom rushed inside to check up on Sarah and started coordinating, her exit from the plane, with Jeremy. After settling Sarah  in the back of the fully equipped ambulance like van, Hope joined her friend to look after her meanwhile Abby gave a quick summary to both Luke and Jeremy to explain the seriousness of the situation to them. Luke stayed behind to ensure their tracks were covered from start to finish while Jeremy left with Abby to drive them home. Abby had asked Luke to join them as soon as his work is done. Abby and Hope stayed in the back with Sarah as Jeremy drove them to the underground facility, set up below Ms Abby’s mansion. Jeremy was smart enough to take all precautions to ensure they were not being followed and made sure to take a roundabout way to their destination.

As soon as Jeremy parked the car in the basement, Abby got down to key in the code that would open the entrance to her research lab/medical facility. Jeremy carried Sarah towards the imaging room as he knew that scanning her head and ankle were going to be a priority before any other treatment could begin. Abby gave him a grateful smile and requested him to start preparing for plaster and proper cleaning and bandaging supplies. She asked Hope to rest up a bit as she herself had just come out of a long coma and her body still needed time to catch up. Hope protested that she was fine but Abby interrupted, baby you are running on adrenaline right now and since the immediate danger has passed your body could fold up anytime. You are running on fumes my girl and I do not want another patient on my hand. Please sit on the bed and I will arrange for some food and electrolyte to be brought over to you. She could read Hope clearly and said do not worry baby, it won’t be any of our regular household help…..Luke had arranged for Susan to come here and take over as soon as we left to get Sarah home… 

As Abby was completing the imaging, Hope was having a very emotional reunion with Susan. She and Luke were like her pseudo grandparents and as far back as she could remember they had always doted on the mother and daughter duo….. My girl….my precious, sweet girl….Susan cried as she brought a tray full of food for Hope. She kept the tray aside and hugged Hope tightly. I was so scared baby girl, please do not scare us again like this….my poor heart can not take it. Hope could not stop her tears either, I missed you so much Susan….I wished for your hugs and fake scoldings….the delicious food and deserts…everything about you and Luke and mom….God, I missed you all so much. If it was not for all of you, I do not think I could have held on as long as I did….let alone come back…. Susan cried some more and hugged Hope one more time then she composed herself and set the tray on Hope’s laps and started feeding her like she was a small kid but Hope did not mind one bit……

Abby was relieved that there were no fractures or cracks in the head but there was quite a bit of swelling that she would need to keep a close eye on. The ankle won’t need surgery but it was definitely a fracture and thank God the ribs weren’t broken either. They were badly bruised and a couple of then were cracked but nothing time won’t heal. Abby cleaned Sarah properly with warm water, mild soap and sponge. She dressed her in a loose, sleeveless gown. She wrapped up her ribs tightly then applied butterfly sutures wherever possible and dissolvable stitches on deeper cuts and wounds. Jeremy helped her with the plaster on her hand and ankle and then they settled her in a hospital bed, the one where Hope was laying in coma before. Abby started her on an intravenous diet and antibiotics. Once she was sure she had done everything that could be done for Sarah, she checked on Hope. 

Abby could not help but smile at her baby, she was sleeping all sprawled up….she was laying on her stomach, slightly sideways, with one hand tucked under her head and the other stretched out…..one leg straight and the other stretched from knee down…. After seeing her laying down, straight and on her back for more than 6 months, she could not help but feel relieved and happy. She took a quick shower and changed her clothes and then headed to the conference room where Luke, Jeremy and Susan were waiting for her. Abby filled them in on everything Hope had told her about Sarah and her escape. She did not know how big the organization was and how far spread their resources were so until they know otherwise they had to assume the worse and up their security accordingly. She requested both Luke and Jeremy to keep their ears open towards any news regarding any activity along the areas that Hope mentioned to the location they found Sarah, lastly she cautioned them to be very careful and cover their tracks to ensure no one finds out about them.

“The voice” was mad as hell. He did not know if he should feel proud of his “protégé” for outsmarting a compound full of geniuses or mad at himself for giving her so much freedom and easy access to knowledge of all kinds. The dear girl had planned the fire of the circuit box in such a way that it could not be fixed with any repair, the entire wiring will have to be replaced and the leak in the generator was not easy fixable as well. Not only had she managed to empty the fuel tank with her strategic damage but she had also taken a small, but extremely important part of the motor. Even if they did a patchwork for the damage done to the fuel tank, it would take time to get the replacement for the missing part…..meaning they were stuck without electricity for the next 24-30 hours. 

It was taking all his guards, teachers and other personnel to keep all the prisoners contained without their top notch electronic system. There was no access to pull up the satellite imaging to determine where she could have landed. Hell, he could not even send out a search party, even if he could find some information. He could have asked someone from one of the other levels of this organization for help but that would make him look incompetent, moreover he could not let it slip that one of his most advanced “asset” had managed to escape the facility and could be alive and planning who knows what, outside these walls. No, he could not let that happen. He just hoped the little b***h was dead or too incapacitated to do anything…..giving him time to find and kill her…….

 Hope woke up to find her mother sleeping in a chair beside her bed. She quickly woke her mom and scolded her for not getting proper sleep. Abby was too overwhelmed to say anything…she just kept staring at her precious girl. She still could not believe that her baby was finally recovered…..that she was sitting in front of her, talking to her and planning secret rescues of all things. She was just so grateful she did not have words to express it. She just knew that she would forever be grateful to God and that girl, Sarah as long as she lived and no matter what she had to do, she would repay Sarah for returning her baby girl safely back to her….