On the Run

Chapter Ten

After assuring her everything was fine, she retreated from the room. Amelia began nibbling at one of the sad-looking chicken nuggets. She chewed slowly for a moment, deciding if they were satisfactory or not. Her lip curled slightly in disgust before spitting her food out onto her plate. “Yucky, Mommy,” she told me.

I urged her to try the macaroni and cheese while I began to eat my own food. The chicken was as bland as it looked. I begrudgingly chewed through the hunk of meat in my mouth, which felt more like chicken flavored saw dust coating my mouth. I quickly reached for my cup of water, desperate for a drink to wash it down. “Yeah, it’s not the best but I’ve had worse,” I agreed. “Let’s do our best to try to eat it so we both can get big and strong.”

“Like Mason?” Amelia asked.

I chuckled, “Yes baby, big and strong like Mason.”

Our time together passed quickly and before I knew it, visiting hours were over and Mason had returned to collect Amelia. Saying goodbye to her, even if it was just until morning, hurt something deep inside me. We had never been apart before and being away from me for a week didn’t seem to upset her too much, which I was glad for. The realization provided both pride and a little grief. She was getting older and less reliant on me both emotionally and physically. Amelia was able to go to the bathroom, get dressed, and comb her hair all by herself.

Once again, I was left to my own thoughts. The fluorescent lights above me flickered occasionally. The muscles in my legs ached to move. I tried stretching and moving around in the bed but it offered no relief. I couldn’t take it anymore. I had been sitting alone for hours, maybe a walk up and down the corridor for a bit would satisfy my need to move about. I gingerly placed my bare feet on the cold tile floor. Dragging along the monitor tracking my vital signs with one hand and opening the door with the other, I peeked outside the room to see if the nurse was at her station.

Luckily for me, she was sitting at her computer, one hand propping up her head, fast asleep. So, I tip toed past her, trying to roll the monitor along as quietly as possible. The halls were the same bright white as the room I had been in and the tile floor was a pale gray with splotches of white, peach, blue and gray. Paintings of landscapes and motivational posters decorated the walls.

After turning a corner, I found the elevator. I pressed the button to call the elevator and seconds later the doors opened smoothly. I stepped inside, pausing for a moment to look at the floor options. The buttons were each illuminated except one. Curiosity getting the better of me, I pushed the button and the doors closed. The elevator groaned and jerked as it began to descend. My stomach flip flopped inside me from the speed it was moving downward. My palms began to sweat, I swallowed hard. Oh goddess, this was a terrible idea, I thought to myself.

The elevator came to a sudden grinding halt, throwing me to the ground. The doors opened slowly to reveal a dimly lit corridor. I cautiously stepped out, pulling the monitor and its wheeled stand behind me. Looking around, it seemed to be a very neglected part of the hospital. The damp, stagnant air assaulted my sense of smell.

The nameplates outside the doors were covered in a layer of grime. Using my thumb to wipe away the filth of one of them, the plaque read “Breeder 3”. My eyes widened in horror. This isn’t the first time the breeding program was forced upon women of the pack. How many times has this pack been responsible for such atrocities? There had to have been close to twenty doors leading to the cells where female shifters were imprisoned. I continued down the hallway until it opened up to a large open room with a large metal table. Cuffs of silver were fastened to each corner of the table, ensuring whoever was confined in them would never be able to escape.

It finally dawned on me; my nightmare was real. I stifled a sob. My body had been violated here in this hospital. I can’t trust the staff; I’m not safe here. Every part of my being was screaming at me to get out of there, but my desire to find out the truth and stop this from happening to me or any other woman in this pack again pushed me to continue.

The monitor beeped, showing a message saying the battery was low on the screen. I continued through the room to a door on the left. Try as I might, the knob would not budge, another locked door. I looked at the table again, approaching it cautiously. I could feel their fingers digging into my skin all over again. I hugged myself tightly, turning back to the corridor of cells so I could return to my room until Mason arrived in the morning.

I started down the corridor of the cells, tearily looking at my impending future here in the Marshes. Does Mason know about this? Does he know what they did to me? I thought. Am I actually safe with him? Oh goddess, is Amelia? Panic started to set in and my pace quickened. f**k going to the room, I’m getting my daughter.

My pace picked up to a full run, my feet slapping against the floor. Before I reached the elevator at the end of the hallway a set of hands grabbed me from behind, dragging me away. “NO!” I bellowed.

I could feel their hot breath on the back of my neck. Their scent gave them away immediately. The Leader, Randall. “I knew you wanted more,” he hissed in my ear.