Felicio

Caught! In the Reflection of a Nightmare

Stephanie

I awoke in a cold sweat. The dream was still vivid. I gasped, afraid to look at the shadows to see what may lurk there. Never before had I wanted Peter with me so much. I clutched the sheets of the bed close to my body. My eyes were wide. I don't think I had ever had a dream that was that realistic before. The chill was still creeping in my bones and I could almost feel the oily blackness sliding over my body. I shuddered as an unsettling feeling crawled across my skin. I leaped out of the bed and went to the window, letting the air of dawn wash over my face. My chest heaved as I breathed in deeply and collected myself. It was just a dream. That man wasn't going to turn into a demonic monster. I wasn't going to be killed. I was starting to become paranoid. It was that place. That building. It did things to your mind and I had to keep in control. I was a woman of science, of reason, and I wasn't going to be betrayed by my own fears.

Yet as much as I told myself that, the horrific feelings of being dragged into that man's gaping maw would not subside. I ran a hot shower and tried to wash away the horror, but it did not work. I considered calling in sick but knew it would not look favorably upon me. I didn't want to do anything to draw attention to myself. My hands were still trembling as I got dressed and they didn't settle even when I was sitting in the car beside Gina. I wanted to talk to her and tell her that I knew how she felt. There were bags under her eyes. I wondered if she had been plagued by nightmares or if she just had trouble sleeping. I wanted to tell her that we didn't have to do this, that we could just stop the promises we'd made to our friends and wait until the internship was finished but I knew I wasn't possible. We were never going to be free of the Shaw corporation. They had their tendrils woven through the entire city and as long as we stayed there, we would always have them looming over us. If the truth was to come out then people like us needed to be brave. But being brave was often the hardest thing to do. It wasn't as though I had the reflexes of a cat or sharp claws that I could use to scrap. Gina and I were just young women playing a dangerous game, and the corporation was used to winning.

Gina and I didn't speak but we did exchange glances, and those said more than any words could. Her hand rested against her jacket pocket. It kept checking to see if something was in there. My heart sank. I didn't know what she was planning but I knew it wasn't going to be good. I wanted to talk some sense into her. It was one thing to observe and report back like I was doing but she actually had some sort of device. I needed to get to her. We left the car and I hurried to catch up with her.

“You don't have to do this,” I muttered. Gina didn't respond but her lower lip trembled and her eyes were filled with worry. I wondered if she had a friend in the world. We had all been sworn to such secrecy that for the rest of the interns it must have felt as though they were isolated from their friends and family. I felt it to some extent, since I couldn't tell my parents about my day, but at least I had Peter. The more I spent time in this godforsaken building of secrets the more I appreciated his friendship and what he was trying to do. He was putting his own safety on the line for the greater good, and that was something to be admired, even if I didn't always agree with him. But if more people acted like him then maybe the world would be in a better state than it was, and if that had to start with me then so be it. The right thing was never easy, but it had to be done.

I sat down at my desk as usual and got to work but I found it difficult to concentrate. I was all too aware of the blinking camera that was recording our every moments. It almost felt like they knew I was up to something. The images and feelings of my dream were still vivid too, and I had to keep wiping cold sweat away from my brow. My fingers danced over the keyboard, pretending that I was working hard. It was impossible to forget the slithering black mass that had extended from his mouth and dragged me by my ankles, helplessly drawing me into the abyss of infinity. I almost started to panic and had to excuse myself to use the restroom.

It was the only place where we were not watched. Even the Shaw corporation wasn't so inhuman as to monitor the restrooms. I splashed water on my face and looked at myself in the mirror. I couldn't believe that I was actually doing something like this, that I was spying on a huge corporation. I wasn't making a very good job of it either. So far I hadn't learned anything but I didn't know how to get deeper into the building. The key was getting into that hidden part of the elevator. All the secrets were deep in the recesses of the building and that's where Peter needed me to be. I needed to find him a way in so he could come into the building and do his thing. Then everyone in this place would see how wrong they had been. He'd show them justice and it would be glorious. I hoped they would all fight back because none of them would be able to stand up to Felicio. Once he was in he would bring this place down with his bare hands, of that I was sure. But how was I going to get him in? I would have to find a way to approach a guard or someone and try to steal their identity card. I had never been good at theft. I felt like I was entirely the wrong person for the job.

My thoughts were interrupted by the door opening. Gina was almost as shocked to see me as I was to see her. She clutched her jacket tightly around her but she stumbled forward as she stopped abruptly. Losing hold of her jacket, it opened and a bunch of paper spilled out onto the floor. I recognized it as the things we had been working on. Her face was a picture of horror. For a moment she paused and time seemed to stand still, then her hands shot out and she tried to pull them back.

“Don't say anything. Please! Oh God. I knew this was a bad idea,” Gina said. I felt pity for the girl because I knew exactly what she was going through yet I could not reveal to her that I was working at the behest of the city's resident superhero for I could not explain the connection without betraying Peter's secret.

“I won't. Gina, don't worry. I'm not going to say anything.” I smiled at her but she didn't seem to be relieved. I crouched down and helped her to gather up the papers.

“I knew I should have said no. She said that everything was going to be alright. She said that it would be easy. What have I gotten myself into?” she muttered to herself. I reached across the fallen papers and gripped her hand tightly. She looked at me directly. The whites of her eyes were wide.

“Gina, it's going to be okay. I did warn you about that reporter though.”

“I know, and I wish I could have just walked away like you did but she told me about all these stories and how she's working on bringing the corporation down. The things they've done Stephanie...it's horrible! Ariel told me that I had to make a difference, that I couldn't just stand by and let this all happen and I believed her. I thought I could do it but then it came to today and I just can't think straight and I'm so afraid of them finding out and...”

“What exactly did she want to you do?” I said, interrupting her rambling stream of fear. She swallowed and reached into her pocket, then pulled out a small camera. It was an ingenious device but I was angry again at Ariel for roping Gina into this. Peter was almost guilty of the same crime with me, but in my case we had been friends all our lives and he hadn't emotionally blackmailed me into doing it. By the sounds of it Ariel had done a real number on Gina. I had to help her. “This is what we're going to do. We're going to pick all of these up and then go back as if nothing has happened. You're going to forget about doing anything for Ariel until she gives you some guarantees of safety. It's not fair of her to expect you to put yourself in danger.” I think Gina got a sense of the anger I felt towards Ariel. Her head bowed slightly and she remained silent. I wanted so badly to tell her that I was working to reveal the secrets of the Shaw corporation if only to deepen the bond that had started to develop between us. It was nice to know that someone was going through the same things as I was, yet also awful to know that we couldn't actually talk about it. I helped Gina gather up the papers she had dropped. We stood up and she looked relieved.

“Maybe you're right,” she said, but then the door opened once more. Another intern walked in. She stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes moved from Gina to me to the papers we were holding. Gina and I both looked at each other in panic. I'd never felt more sheer desperation in my life than I did in that moment. Gina and I both moved towards the girl but before we could say anything she had already turned and was shouting for help. I clawed at her and tried to drag her back into the restroom but it was too late. The cat was already out of the bag. Gina and I looked at each other in panic. The security of the building was efficient. Before we could even get rid of the papers in our hands the guards were upon us. The man from my dreams was there. His cold eyes stared at me just as they had in that nightmare and whatever fight I'd had in me instantly evaporated. I glared at the intern as we were escorted away, not that I could blame her for what she did. Until someone exposed the Shaw corporation they would always rule by fear.

“I knew you were trouble when I caught you snooping around yesterday,” he said in his icy voice. Every time he opened his mouth I was afraid that the oily black liquid would spill out and engulf me. He took us to an elevator and then opened the hidden panel by holding his identity card up to a scanner. “You're going to like this. You're going to see a hidden part of the building,” he sneered. Gina was shaking and sobbing. I managed to hold it together, although my throat ran dry as the elevator doors closed. The machinery whirred as we descended to an unknown place, not knowing if there was going to be a return. I made a silent prayer that somehow Peter would save me because without him there was no escape.