Page 24 of Scarred Sins
His gray eyes bore into mine, and electricity shot through my body. I grip the small bag of candy in my hand, the shuffling of the wrapper creating the only noise in the otherwise silent room.
He takes a step back, chuckling. “Fine. I won’t tell anyone, but promise me you’ll take care of yourself.’’
“I always do.’’
He rolls his eyes, speaking with sarcasm. “Evidently.’’
I go back to sit on the bed, opening the bag and tossing a few in my mouth.
“I’ll have to cuff you to the bed, though,’’ Benjamin says, and I shrug.
He whisks out a pair of silver cuffs from his lab coat, hooking them on the index finger. There’s no escape from here. I tried everything, but the security is too tight, and there isn’t a single opening that I can use.
Last year, two women tried escaping, but it was futile. We’re being watched all the time, and we can barely breathe without being reprimanded. Freedom is something I don’t dare to even think about, let alone fantasize about my escape.
However, as I stare at Benjamin’s back, a speck of hope rises in my chest.
For the past three months, I’ve visited Benjamin’s office more than anyone else. Soon enough, he captivated my mind, and all I wanted was to be next to him, to speak to him, and to see his face. However – he did the same.
Herequeststo see me a lot. He says it’s to inspect my wounds and to check on me, but every time I’m in his office, he has candy ready for me. From M&M’s to some candies and chocolates I’ve never seen or tasted.
But that only made Cherryl jealous.
Benjamin sends me books weekly to read, and she hates it. She ruined every single one I received and, one night, tried slitting my throat with a razor. She failed because, fortunately for me, my insomnia was at its peak, and I wasn’t asleep.
I managed to snatch it out of her hands and leave a nasty gash all over her cheek.
But I wasn’t prepared for her to have another razor prepared. She sliced along my ribs, and that only got me sent to Benjamin’s office again. However, Cherryl being Cherryl, spun the story, and of course they believed her.
I don’t know how long I’ve been in solitary confinement when I heard all the piercing screams, the begging, and the guns going off. Once I step outside, I’m met with bodies upon bodies, but the only thing that’s on my mind is Benjamin.
I fall on my ass and get back to my feet as quickly as possible, running toward his office. My breathing is heavy, as I don’t remember the last time I ran as quickly, but I don’t care. My main focus and priority is to see if Benjamin is among the people who are dead.
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that every inmate, every security guard, and everyone in between was brutally murdered. The only reason I’m alive is because I spent time in solitary. My heart thumps in my chest, my legs moving faster and faster, until I reach the infirmary, finding his office immediately.
My heart sinks to my feet when I see that the door is cracked open, possibilities of what will wait for me terrifying me. My chest moves up and down rapidly, and the thought of seeing Benjamin’s lifeless body inside makes me ill.
I push the door open and immediately gag.
The stench of chemicals hits my nose, and I’m unable to breathe for a moment. It takes me a while to get used to it, but when I look inside, I halt.
There’s nothing inside.
As in… absolutely nothing.
The desk, the cabinets, the bed, and the chairs – everything is gone. The room feels larger now that it’s empty, and it’s been wiped clean. It’s almost sparkling. I’m pretty sure even the doorknob has been sanitized.
That’s when I snap back into reality and immediately start running out.
I’m happy that I don’t see Benjamin’s body. I don’t know who he is. In fact, to him, I’m just another insane inmate that he had to treat time and time over. However, the fact that he may be alive brings happiness and a genuine smile to my face.
The amount of bodies I have to step over to get outside is insane. Some were just shot between their eyes; some have their limbs missing. Someone massacred an entire prison, and I’m the only survivor.
My feet drag me outside, and I don’t stop running. I dart toward the woods, the cold, crisp air causing shivers to dance all over my skin. It’s a matter of time before the scene is discovered, and I need to be as far away as possible.
I don’t know how long it took for those people to die. In fact, all I know is that the screaming is something I’ll remember forever. It’s only after the power went out that I was able to push the door of solitary confinement open, and that means that the cameras aren’t working, either.
My cheeks are freezing, and the tips of my ears are almost getting frostbite. Without looking back, I continue running. Branches snap under my feet, and a couple of them trip me, but I don’t stop moving. My feet are getting tired, and I’m struggling to breathe.
