"Fifteen months," one says.
"Two years and two months," says another.
"Four years, four months, and thirteen days," declares the winner.
My heart hammers against my rib cage, and my fingers fly to my temples. Wilson tries to speak, but I push him down with everything I have. I can't think beyond what I've just learned. I can't think beyond three simple truths.
I am Domino Ray.
I am afraid of nothing more than being alone with my mind.
If I try and escape Madam Karina's clutches, that is exactly what will happen to me.
Chapter Forty-Eight
Snap
I race up and down the aisle, frantic, searching for anything that will open their cells.
"Domino, we have to go," Cain says.
I stop and look at him like he's crazy. "Are you kidding? We can't leave them here."
"You can if you want to live outside these walls," Viviane says, but then her face falls like a thought has occurred to her. "Though … though maybe you can call someone. Tell the governor or something?"
A girl at the end laughs. "The governor? Oh, yeah, he'll totally believe this chick."
"The FBI then," Viviane says, her voice growing more urgent. "There has to be someone."
"No one cares about Pox," the girl jeers. "Lie down and go back to sleep."
But now Viviane is shaking the bars. Her body is coiled tight and her once-tired eyes are alert. "There has to be something we can do!"
I rush to her cage and clasp her hand through the bars. "I'll do something. I'll get you out of here."
"Domino," Cain says. The way he speaks my name causes me to turn. He's standing next to the stairs and motioning for me to stay silent. My scalp tingles as I weigh how long we've been down here.
"I thought I heard something," he whispers. "We have to leave."
"What about them?" My voice quivers.
"I thought we could get one girl out." He glances at Ellie. "But we need a plan to help them all."
He's right, I know he is. If they caught these girls within days of them escaping Pox, then how quickly would they find us if we ran together? I glance once more at the cells and say, "I will come back for you."
Cain rushes up the stairs, and I follow him, closing the trap door silently. After ensuring the officer is still gone, he pushes open the door. We hurry past the desk, my chest tightening so that my vision blurs. I can feel the caged girls behind me, can feel their eyes watching my abandonment. If I were smarter, I could figure out a way to save them now. If I were braver, I'd try something. The only thing that allows me to keep going is what I told them. I will get them out of there if it's the last thing I do in this miserable life.
The woman with the bubblegum nails is nowhere in sight when we fly by. We've made it into the parking lot before Cain looks back at me. "Want me to drive?"
My hands shake as I offer up the keys.
They're almost in his grasp when the door behind us bursts open. Cain spins me behind him so that he's blocking me. The police officer barrels toward Cain, his hand withdrawing a Glock and taking aim. Before I can think, I lunge out from behind Cain and throw myself in front of him. We look like idiots, the two of us clamoring to take a bullet first.
Mine!
No, mine!
I'm not sure what causes me to look back at Cain's face. Maybe it's the growl I hear in his throat. Or the eerie stillness that's fallen over our circle of three. But when I do, I see something in him that makes my blood run cold. Rage twists his features until he's unrecognizable. Gone are the wrinkles around his eyes that show themselves when he shyly smiles. Gone are the shadows that darken his features as he hangs his head. Now his chin is held high. And his eyes storm with unbridled anger.
"Pull the trigger," Cain says.
His voice causes a shiver to engulf my body. In this moment, he's not the boy I've grown to care for. He is not gentle or sympathetic. He is not fearful. Cain takes a step toward the police officer, and the cop yells for him to get back.
Cain tells him again, his words as unwavering as a stretch of pavement, to pull that trigger.
The officer's arm begins to tremble, and when his eyes flick to me with indecision, Cain lunges. He slams into the cop in a heartbeat, his arms wrapped around his waist in a bear hug. He takes the man to the ground and pins his body there. The officer has only a moment to grunt his surprise when Cain springs on top of him and jerks his fist back.
He hits him twice, quick like pop rocks hitting the sidewalk. Crack, crack! The officer fumbles for his gun. Grabs it.