The Forbidden Trilogy(226)

She put her finger to her mouth. "Shhh... don't tell."

He nodded and smiled. "Thank you. What's your name?"

"Serena. Yours?"

"Tommy. I just got here, but I don't like this place. I miss my mom. She got hurt, and they took me away. I don't know what happened."

His mom was probably dead, but Serena didn't want to say that. "I'm sorry. They hurt my mom too. She's... well, I don't want to talk about it. Nobody likes this place, but at least you're a D. Means you'll get to leave, eventually. That's good." Angel walked up to them and purred. "Hey, here's my cat, Angel. She likes you."

Tommy smiled and petted the white ball of fluff. Then his face dropped into a frown. "I don't think D's get to leave, though. I heard the man with the tattoos talking to another man. They said the kids they took away would be sold as slaves."

Serena felt sick again. "Are you sure? Maybe you misunderstood or something? It has to be a mistake."

Besides, Serena planned on leaving tomorrow, and she had a plan of how to do it, though she didn't tell Tommy. He'd get to leave anyway, but she'd been watching and she figured out the only A's that got to leave were the ones who had gotten in trouble. First they were sent to their cells, then a few days later, they would be called. Maybe they didn't want kids here who were troublemakers and it was easier to let them go. Whatever the reason, Serena could make trouble, and she would.

The perfect moment arrived when the tattooed man called them back in. She ran out of line and kicked him as hard as she could. Well, she tried to kick him, but he twisted so fast and pulled her behind a corner where no one could see them. She wanted to scream for help, but who would help her?

He stared at her with his dark, horrible eyes. "What are you doing?"

"Let me go!" She kicked and punched her small fists. "I'm not afraid of you." She opened her mouth to scream, not caring who heard, and he put a large hand over her face to quiet her.

His grip tightened. "Listen carefully, girl. You do now wish the others to see you behaving like this. Understand?"

She didn't respond.

"Understand?" he asked again, with more of a growl behind his voice, like a wild animal about to be let out of a cage for a hunt.

She'd seen that on television too. She nodded.

The moment he let go of her, she bit into his hand so hard it hurt her jaw. He pulled her away from him and she kicked at his legs. "I do want them to see me, so they'll let me leave. I'm not afraid of you. I hate you!"

That last part she added because she'd heard other kids say it. She'd heard worse things too, but her mom would have been upset if she'd said more than that. Even saying "I hate you" was probably not okay, but she thought her mom would understand, under the circumstances.

The man grabbed her so fast she didn't see him move, covered her mouth again, and pulled her down the hall. "You're going in a cell."

Yes! Her plan had worked. Soon they'd let her go.

The other guards followed the tattooed man as he threw her back into her stinky cell. When the guards left, the tattooed man leaned in and frowned, not in a mad way, but in a sad way, like before. "I'm sorry for all that has happened. I shall order the guards to forget this matter. Do not act out again! I might not be there to save you next time."

He left and Serena slammed her small hands against the bars and cried. She wanted them to remember so they would release her. Now it would never work.

Angel snuck into her cell through the bars and cuddled up with Serena that night, as she tossed and turned and tried to sleep.

The next day, Serena couldn't hide her sadness when they let her out to hear the next set of names called. First the D's were called by a different man in black—lots of names, but not Tommy, so he had to stay too. A new guy, a scientist in a white coat, called out the second set of names—eleven names, more than ever before. Something had changed, and it scared Serena.

She looked around at how few of them were left: mostly A's.

The man spoke. "Tomorrow, no names will be called. We have what we need."

Serena dropped her head, knowing she'd never get out now.

He adjusted his glasses and looked back down at his list. "Oh, we have one more name. Serena Stevens."





Chapter 103 – Lucy



Lucy stood before the giant beetle, careful to stay calm. Sunlight flickered off its jewel-toned shell and made it look like a beetle pendant made of emeralds and sapphires. A really huge pendant. For a giant.

Stay focused, she admonished herself.

This idea had come to her during one of her meditations with Mr. K, when she'd been able to connect to other living things in the jungle. She now silenced her mind to the clatter that usually consumed her, and focused inward first, allowing the calm to flow through her, and ultimately out of her and into the world around her. The energy of the beetle buzzed in her mind like another presence, non-threatening and at one in its world.