Dark Chronicles

Chapter Two

Interview with the Devil

"Turn left at the second exit, and then you have reached your destination."

"Yeah. Yeah, I know Tommy," Anastasia muttered aloud to her satellite navigation system. She had considered throwing the damn thing out the window numerous times along the journey, especially when it had almost navigated her into a ditch. Somehow, though she had persevered and her patience had paid off. The density of the forest surround her was gradually waning until she could see flashes of colours through the branches.

'They must be up to something. Nobody would hide themselves this well without having a reason,' the journalist mused as an intimidating tall mesh wire fence came into view. The forest cleared revealing steep hills on either side of the scenery and a small barrier with an intercom straight ahead. Her palms were growing sweaty and her heart rate was soaring erratically as her imagination created all sorts of horrible scenarios.

"Please state your business," Chimed a cool female voice as Anastasia drove her black van up to level with the intercom. She fished nervously in her pocket and pulled out her identity card which read; Amelia Hawkins. Aged 19 of Glasgow University. A pseudo name. Anastasia still ended up getting asked for ID whenever she tried to purchase a lottery ticket so passing for nineteen wouldn't even muster an effort.

"Amelia Hawkins…I'm here from Glasgow University?" Anastasia said hopefully. Pains were beginning to climb up her abdomen and into her churning insides. 'Nerve pains' as her mother so delightfully christened them. Right now a part of Anna wanted to drive back down the muddy, uneven track away from the anxiety. There was slight buzzing noise as the barrier lifted and Anastasia drove through down a pristinely kept gravel road leading into a small car park opposite a huge building.

It looked like an enormous white cube with perfect rows of rectangular windows at the appropriate intervals - six on each floor. The walls were a sterile white colour marred only by the faint green of climbing ivy. There was a small blue sign above the entrance doors that bore the title; The National Scottish Psychic Research Facility. Anastasia inhaled deeply ticking the boxes on her mental check list. Laptop. Pen. Paper. Inhaler. Purse. Mobile. She had them all in the black bag that hung loosely at her hip bound by the diagonal straps going over her shoulder and across her chest.

She could do this. It was only an interview. This is what she got paid to do. This is what she had spent the past three weeks working for. She did not spend two entire weeks slaving over research to not bite the bullet at the last minute. She was an adult, a professional. She would do her job and not screw up again. Examining her reflection in the mirror she eyed her hair warily, already it was trying to wrestle free from the ponytail she had shoved it into. Just for an added moral booster she had her favourite burgundy leather jacket on - the one her motor-biking fanatic sister Arianna had given her for Christmas. Coupled with a pair of black boots and dark jeans she felt relatively calm and mature. Bracing herself she switched off the engine and left the safety of Janine's vehicle. She had borrowed it...Janine wouldn't mind. Or if she did it would be too late to stop her.

"Ah. Miss Hawkins, good to see you!"

A robust man in his forties approached her as she walked up the pathway leading to the entrance doors. He was going bald around the crown of his head and his face was slightly unshaven. He wore a long white coat like they did in those sci-fi movies that she used to watch as a kid. His smile was not unpleasant though and he offered a hand in a friendly manner which Anastasia accepted.

"Thank you...I mean for letting me come and everything," Anastasia said stumbling over her words while she mentally kicked herself.

"Not at all, now if you'll just follow me I'll get you through the procedures - so tedious I'm afraid so I do apologise in advance. I'm the chief neurologist by the way. Doctor Oliver Kent," The neurologist said conversationally as he opened the door for Anastasia. The reception area was not what she had expected. In fact it resembled a very sophisticated dentist waiting room. The floor was cold tiles and the black shiny wooden desk gleamed in the pale light filtering in through the windows. There were several comfortable blue armchairs surrounding a bubbling fish tank along with a magazine rack and several pot plants. There was an elevator in the corner. The air smelled strongly of disinfectant like hospital.

"Now if you'll just stand still Miss Hawkins, the guards just want to check if you're carrying any weapons. Stupid really, believe me going through this sort of fuss at six in the morning isn't the best way to start the day," Anastasia remained rigid as tall dark uniformed guards swooped in around her and began to prod her with various instruments. They took out a blue object and scanned her with it carefully before nodding curtly at the Doctor.

"What does it show?" Anastasia asked innocently although she could probably guess the answer.

"Just weapons and such like. You carry an inhaler?" Doctor Kent said absently.

"Yes, I've got asthma...just in case. I mean it's not serious or anything..."

"Better safe than sorry Miss Hawkins," Reprimanded the Doctor as he scribbled down a few notes on his clipboard before passing it idly to a nearby guard, "Now if you'll just follow me and I'll introduce you to our secretary Miss Martins and we'll get you a cup of tea. Do you drink tea?"

"No, not really. I'll have water or something else. I don't mind," Anastasia said following the bustling doctor through a set of double doors that lead to the area behind the reception. Unlike the rest of the building which was quite cool this room was warm in comparison with a thick blue carpet and painted magnolia walls. There were a few tables and chairs scattered around the place and a large filing cabinet stood beside the window. From behind a computer screen a young woman of Hispanic origins sat up looking politely bewildered.

"Miss Martins this is Miss Amelia Hawkins, our guest for the day. Miss Hawkins this is our secretary Miss Jayne Martins," Miss Martins stood up and smiled mechanically as she shook Anna's hand. "Jayne, dear do we have so juice? Or do we still have diet coke lying around somewhere?" The girl gracefully strode over to the mini fridge and produced a half-drunk bottle of coke and then poured a glass before handing it to Anastasia who thanked her quietly and gazed at the fizzing liquid. 'Is it drugged? Or am I turning into a paranoid freak of nature?'

She took a cautious sip. It tasted like normal coke but then she wouldn't know the difference would she? Doctor Kent seemed to be preoccupied at the coffee machine. Reaching into her bag she brought out a notepad and a few pens. This would be a good opportunity to ask the staff some questions. In her mind she had planned most of her actions for today. Prod questions, ask about technology. Interview a few patients and relatives. The general sort of thing that goes into producing an article.

"Hi, sorry to bother you but do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" Anastasia asked shyly. Jayne nodded and smiled displaying rows of pearly white teeth.

"Right, um...how long have you been working here?"

"Since it opened in December. I saw the advertisement in the local paper and it looked like good money so I thought why not? The salary here is definitely better than at the care home I was working at," Jayne said with a shrug. Anastasia nodded and jotted down a few scribbles. The whole interview didn't conclude very exciting evidence. Jayne was thirty, she enjoyed her job, liked her wages and her treatment was adequate. Anna could see no complaints. Should she push a little bit deeper? 'Editor would want you too...another bog-standard article isn't going to get you anywhere. Remember last time?'

"What about the people you work with? Any queries or things that bother you?"

"Nope...not really. I don't really know much. I just do my job...make cups of tea...sort through papers and welcome relatives. That sort of thing. You'd be better asking some of the nurses, they'd know more than me," Jayne suggested carelessly. Anastasia sighed. If everyone was going to be this vague she would get absolutely nowhere. Whirling around her almost dropped her pen and uttered a small shriek as she nearly found herself flying into Doctor Kent's arms.

"Sorry about that," Apologised the Doctor, setting Anna straight on her feet, "The floors so thick you probably wouldn't hear an earthquake. So Miss Hawkins, are there any questions in particular you would like to ask me about this facility before we begin the tour?"

"Yes. I was wondering, I mean obviously you have patients here but what are your policies regarding their care? And also, what sort of psychic abilities do they possess and how do you monitor them?" That had been basically taken from the script on her laptop. Anastasia was genuinely fascinated though. After two weeks of intense research she was in awe that such things existed but strangely the more she thought about it the more it made sense. A good ninety-five percent of the brain goes unused in a persons life so isn't it possible that as humans evolve they gain more untapped abilities?

"Good questions, obviously all our patients are volunteers or the younger ones are temporary. We like to think of ourselves as a health centre for those who are gifted. We try to help them with their remarkable abilities as best as we possibly can while carrying out our research," Doctor Kent said taking a sip of his coffee as he moved towards the door. Anastasia followed dutifully, drinking up every word he said and imprinting into her mind.

"Younger ones? Do parents allow their children here?"

"Hmm? Well it's a long procedure. We advertise and try to appeal to those who think they may have some elite abilities. Naturally often we procure nothing but fanatical lunatics but every now and then we strike gold. The children in our care have all received signed permission from their guardians and stay here for one weekend in every month. We have special rooms and play areas along with a variety of games. Most of them enjoy their time here...a chance to make new friends," Doctor Kent said enthusiastically as he opened another door leading into a long tiled corridor.

"What sort of abilities? Telepathy? Empathy?" Anastasia was enthralled. This was amazed; it was like everything she had imagined. Proof that there was something more to humans, something more to mankind. A touch of light glimmering in the darkness. It was slightly scary but rationally explainable so Anastasia had warmed to the idea.

"We're examining the possibilities. You've heard no doubt about the theory that twins can communicate? That one twin can sometimes feel when the other is in pain and such like?"

"Yes...so telepathy between twins?"

"Precisely, although we do have some patients who demonstrate raw telekinesis. We find that it's...well...forgive me but are you familiar with any scientific terms?" Enquired the Doctor curiously. Anastasia faltered, on one hand she it would look pretty stupid if a student of paranormal research knew no terms for her subject...but on the other hand if she was trying to seem like a stupid little girl feigning ignorance would be a good choice. That and truthfully she knew her knowledge of science was below average at best.

"Right, well basically we find it's like a survival instinct linked in with the persons emotions. For example extreme amounts of rage, sadness or fear can trigger random outbursts. It's all to do with the mind. Emotions come from the brain; a sudden surge in activity manages to break the barrier. It's untamed and uncontrollable but that's what we're trying to help with. Some real progress has been made actually," Doctor Kent said as he pushed yet another door open leading into a carpeted red floor. Anastasia nodded empathically. She had more or less summarised that conclusion. In all the books she had read emotions seemed to be a base lining for any supernatural or unexplained phenomenon.

"Good, well this is our children's ward. I thought perhaps you might want to meet some of the patients for yourself. Today is there last day so you may catch a chance to interview some of the parents," Doctor Kent said cheerfully. She could hear the distant sounds of chatter and laughter echoing down the corridor. There was another small reception area and the windows offered a spectacular view of the rolling green fields and hills. The sound of bright cheery music chanted through the air and the neurologist opened a door bearing the title 'Playroom.'

It reminded Anastasia of her old nursery. The floor was a baby blue colour while the yellow walls were painted with Disney characters ranging from Mickey-Mouse to Aladdin. Sunlight spilled in through the windows causing swirls of dust to dance towards the high ceiling wheeling in and out of the strong wooden beams. Odd bricks and jig-saw puzzle pieces lay abandoned along the floor and several bean bags were positioned around a sand pit. On one side of the room several glasses of milk lay deserted on the unit while a huddle of about ten children were crowded around the television set which was playing an old classic - a retro cartoon version of Spider Man. Some children sat in the laps of their parents. All smiled. There was a set of triplets and two sets of twins.

"Sorry for the interruption kids. This is Amelia Hawkins, she's a student at Glasgow University...if you don't mind she might like to ask you all a few questions...come along now," The Doctor clapped his hands together jovially and several children huffed and reluctantly left their cartoon. The four adults present stood to their feet and greeted her warmly enough.

"It's so good this place is finally getting the coverage it deserves," A tall African man said holding on to his three year old daughter proudly.

"Um...yeah. It's more like a project for University," Anastasia said. It was easy to lie.

"Glasgow? My wife and I got a flat there once a couple of years back. I'm Richard and this is my daughter Sunny...she's awful shy though aren't you Sunny-honey?" Said Richard cooing at his little girl. Seizing the opportunity she flipped over a fresh page on her pad and let the interview begin. This day was going much better than expected, she had been expecting cold hearted, aloof scientists who would need their jaws pried open to say a word. 'Although it could be an act...but then I doubt it. The parents wouldn't be in on it.'

"Hello Sunny," Anastasia said brightly. Children were so cute until they developed the full capacity of speech! Sunny smiled and then hid her face playfully behind a curtain of dark black hair which was pulled into two braids by bright pink ribbons. "So how long have you been coming here?"

"Two months. Sunny was always special...my wife and I noticed it when she turned two. She always seemed to know if something bad was going to happen before it actually did. Like one night right, my Uncle was on his bike and he had a crash. Right before the phone rang Sunny burst into tears saying Uncle Max was in hospital! Couldn't believe it...but then it kept happening. She kept getting these bad feelings and crying. They say it's like empathy yeah?" Richard said in admiration.

"Wow...that is pretty special...obviously I'll censor it all but empathically precognition?" Anastasia said raising an eyebrow looking impressively at the little girl. She seemed ordinary...Anna was almost envious. She would give her right leg to have something that unique and special. It was making her feel strangely inadequate. Thanking them she turned to a set of triplets sheltered under the arms of a thin blonde woman. Like there mother all three boys were blond and roughly eight years old.

"This is Matthew, Tyler and Jamie. Stop looking at them like they're freaks!" Snapped the woman irritated. Anastasia muttered something under her breath before turning around. 'Nice cow, somebody get up on the wrong side of the bed?' She ventured towards a set of older girls of about ten. Both twins were identical to the last freckle and they stared at her silently with their large hazel eyes. Kneeling down on eye level she fixed a falsely happy smile on her face.

"Hiya...I'm Amelia...so what are your names?"

"I'm Lolly and she's Kay Leigh," Lolly said boldly with a frown upon her face, "Your hair is messy. Did you know that?"

"Um...no but I do now," Anastasia said as one of her hands instinctively flew to her ponytail. Her bronze curls were springing out slightly but not completely horrendously. She took in Lolly and Kayleigh's pristine matching outfits of pink summer dresses and immaculately kept sleek blond hair and painted pink nails. Almost instantly her mind jumped to the conclusion that these were rich spoilt brats who enjoyed manipulating adults so they would fulfil their every whim. These were the bratty Barbie girls who lived out of Daddy's big fat wallet and did not enjoy being told what to do.

"How long have you been coming here?" She asked returning to her routine questions trying to drill them out as a fast as possible.

"Three months. Daddy says we're special. Doesn't he Kay?" The other twin nodded meekly.

"Uh huh. So what do they let you do here?"

"They let us watch videos and then they speak to us and take us to opposite ends of the building. I end up in a room being asked to describe the one Lolly's in and what's she's doing. It always works doesn't it Lolly? They think we're teleepith-"

"-Telepathic," Corrected Anastasia glad to have reason to wipe the smirk of the preteens face. She flashed them a smile before moving on to the next couple which were another set of twins. Over, and over the interviews and general conversation continued for about an hour during which time chocolate cake was handed out to the children as a special treat. Doctor Kent then went on to implore the necessities of a healthy balanced diet and how there facility was unique in the respect that all children got their five a day. 'So we have Sunny who uses empathy to see into the future, the triplets who do God knows what, the telepathic twins from hell, the nice telepathic twins, the girl who sometimes sets fire to things and the telekinetic boys and the girls who can see flashes of peoples memories.' Even saying it in her head sounded incredible.

"We also have a ward upstairs for the teenagers. There are less of them, only five were willing to come forward," Doctor Kent sighed, "They prefer their own space understandably. Of course we have a councillor to help them since the experience for them is naturally more stressful than for children. In total we have twenty-five patients for the whole of the United Kingdom." Anastasia smiled and nodded preferring to let him do most of the talking. You learned more when you listened, people tended to slip up after a while of quiet intrigue.

"-And we'll let you interview them of course although be prepared for some confrontation. A few of them feel a bit isolated and lonely and might not want to be viewed as freaks. Rubbish of course but stigma always follows those who are different. Sadly quite a few of those in here have been neglected by their families...we have a young girl who in counselling right now. Her mother passed away and her father threw her out disowning her. Tragic."

"He threw her out?" Anastasia said incuriously. What sort of parent did that to their child? It wasn't very surprising...people threw their children out for lesser crimes. Everywhere there was neglect and idleness if you looked closely enough. Anastasia walked down Princes Street nearly everyday past the rows of beggars and tramps lingering hopefully outside the shops. Most of them were addicted to drugs and needed the money for a hit. Sometimes she tried to imagine what it must be like...how could you end up with nowhere to go? How could you face living that life day after day?

"Yes. We'd rather keep her here than send her into care; we've enough doctors around to give her a good education. It's a shame really though but the evils of this world are many. Sometimes one must preserve and fight them on the behalf of others. We donate regularly to charity," Doctor Kent said shaking his head before leading her away from the Children ward. Outside the sun was starting to sink into the horizon. Anastasia checked her watch...it was half past seven. Had it really been three hours already? She had left Edinburgh at two o'clock...she couldn't remember what time she had arrived at. 'I'll need my insulin in a few hours.' She smiled watching as the last rays of sunlight bathed the building in a warm glow while bursts of fuchsia and pink illuminated the horizon before fading into the inky shadows of twilight.

"My how time flies. Would you like something to eat? I'm sure I could get somebody at the canteen to rustle up some dinner? Or we could continue upstairs, perhaps you'd like to see one our experiments being carried out?" The neurologist offered generously. Amelia touched her stomach. She was quite hungry and she wasn't supposed to miss meals.

"Um...would it be alright if I got something to eat first?"

"Of course my dear girl, come right this way. I'll see if Mrs Florence has some lasagne left over," Doctor Kent said putting an arm around her shoulder to guide her through the double doors.

Amelia never heard Sunny wailing.

Anastasia yawned before smiling blearily.

Today had been...well enlightening and amazing for one thing. It had made her truly appreciate her career choice and how many opportunities being a journalist presented. Learning new things and having brand new experiences. This was what she had escaped home for, it might not be seeing the world like her original choice but it still allowed her a window in the learning's of others. This was probably the most intellectual day she had truly found interesting for a while.

She plunged her hands under the cold water tap. After finishing the lasagne which turned out to be quite good she had stopped in at the girl's lavatory. Like all the other rooms it was spotless with shiny white tiles and gleaming marble basins. It smelled clean, in fact it reeked of bleach but she preferred it to the toilet they had on her University Campus. They had made her shudder, she might not be the neatest, most tidy creature on the planet but at least she was hygienic!

Applying more eyeliner she checked her watch again. Eight o'clock...this was taking longer than expected. At this rate she wouldn't be home before midnight. And there was still so much to do, like interviewing the teenagers, the councillor, viewing some experiments. Getting to grips with the biology behind everything. Interviewing the doctors and nurses. She wasn't quite sure if it was the dramatic scoop her editor had imagined but it would make an interesting read. The supernatural tended to attract attention and she knew there would be sceptics among the readers but controversy also made a good read. At least the sales would go up.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

"Holy crap!"

Anastasia uttered a string of swearwords as she dropped her eyeliner in the sink. She froze for a second taking in the blaring sound of the siren, it reminded her of the school fire drills that-

"Oh shit," Anastasia groaned grabbing her bag. The noise was deafening, it seemed to slice through her head like a chainsaw. She flung open the bathroom door feeling a kick of adrenaline pound through her system. There was an ambience of urgency in the air and the first thing she was greeted with when she opened the bathroom door was the sight of ten lab-coated figures rushing past like a stampede. She might as well have been a doorframe herself. All of them were red in the face and looked panicky.

'What way do I go? He never mentioned what the hell I was supposed to do in a drill? Where's the fire exits? There are no ladders and I'm on the second floor for crying out loud!' Okay. Now this would be blemish on the report, update fire safety routine! She jogged towards the elevator and stepped inside feeling fear and nausea swirl in her mind as her stomach churned unpleasantly as she took in her boxed-in surroundings. Suppose the elevator froze and she was stuck in it while the building burned down around her?

Thankfully her fears did not come true as the elevator door chimed open and Anastasia had to elbow her way past more hurried, frantic looking doctors as they clambered into the lift. Somebody grabbed her roughly be the arm and Anna froze staring up at the stony faced guard before struggling as he lead her towards the doors.

"Get off me! I can walk!"

"Procedure. We will escort you to your vehicle."

"W-What? Shouldn't I wait for-"

"You will wait at your vehicle."

Anastasia considered for a moment punching the man square in the face but then reconsidered. He unclenched his iron grip and she rubbed it nursing a growing bruise and she stomped up the gravel path into the car park shooting doubtful looks at the guard. He was tall, he was well muscled and he looked like a dangerous FBI agent from an American crime movie. Why was he out here with her? Where was everyone else...wasn't the building supposed to be evacuated? She could still hear the sirens blaring nosily.

"Forget it," Grumbled Anastasia as she opened her car door, "I'm going home. Ask Doctor Kent if he'll phone me okay?" The guard nodded neutrally and she started up the engine. She reversed out the car park and watched as he marched back off towards the building. Instead of heading towards the intercom and the barrier she drove into the forest where among the darkness of the trees her car would go unnoticed. She wanted to see...when would they evacuate the building?

Something wasn't right. After ten minutes of waiting she could see nobody. Something wasn't right. She could feel it in her gut. Every instinct was trying to persuade her to leave. Maybe if she contacted her editor and he got the police to investigate? Or maybe the children were around the other side of the building? 'This isn't right...maybe I should leave...but last time I did that I looked like an idiot. What sort of journalist leaves at a moment like this?'

On the other hand what if she was in out of her depth? On the other hand...did she really want to be that big of a coward? Supposing she did get caught. She could come up with an excuse. She was good at lying...they wouldn't harm her. People would come looking if she went missing. All she had to do was walk around the building...simple? She could do that...she had to. What if the children were still inside? Could she live with that playing on her conscience?

Hopping out of the van she shut the door quietly. The outdoor lights on the facility made it glow in the dark like a flame flaring invitingly to a moth. This was ridiculous. This sort of scene belonged in a spy movie like James Bond or Mission Impossible...oh brilliant. Now she had the Mission Impossible theme tune stuck in her head. She didn't even like that movie, she'd fallen asleep in the cinema when she had to go watch it with Arianna. Sneaking as quietly as possible she stuck to the outskirts of the line of tree's flinching at every noise. Once she had covered the area of the building she could draw only one conclusion.

There was fire alarm.

And nobody had been evacuated.

'Now what? Do I go in and ask why?' As a journalist that seemed like the best thing to do. As a terrified unarmed civilian it seemed like suicide. Those stony faced guards could break her ribs without even trying. Anastasia had taken karate only once at the age of six and had quit after some little boy name Nelson had almost broken her nose. She knew basic restraining techniques but nothing incredible and nothing that would work on a six foot body builder. But...but people were still inside...'Maybe there's a reason...'

And if the reason was that innocent then there was no harm in her being there. She had to try, she wouldn't feel at ease until her conscience had been appeased. Walking quickly and swiftly towards the entrance doors she peered in. No guards, no receptionist. Good. Creeping inside she glanced at the fish swimming around contentedly in their tank. Lucky things. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she ready to jump at any noise. Every ounce of her body was tense.

'Blend in...I'll stick out like a sore thumb...' She glanced down at her burgundy jacket and green tee-shirt. She let her hair run loose and wrapped the bobble around her wrist before spying a stray lab-jacket. Flinging it on aimlessly she found a pair of glasses in the pocket. Popping them on her face her vision went wobbly. She could only imagine what a complete and utter fool she looked but at least she didn't look like a lamb running amuck among the lions. Now what? Take the stairs or the elevator? Should she go to the children's ward...maybe she could take refuge with some of the parents. They would be confused wouldn't they?

She chose the elevator. Faster and more silent. She had barely entered when she gasped as a female and male doctor dashed in after her. She sucked in a breath moving subconsciously into the corner. They would notice...wouldn't they? Why was their a pale, queasy looking girl among them? Surprisingly neither spared her much of glance but both were twitching nervously. Perspiration slipped down their foreheads and it was only then Anastasia noticed the life wasn't going up.

It was going down.

The doors opened with a ding like a microwave and the two stepped out. Cautiously Anastasia stepped out, her boots finding a smooth concrete surface. A lower ground floor? Doctor Kent hadn't mentioned this at all. It wasn't on the website either which meant...'a secret base. They upstairs is just the surface...this is what they didn't want me seeing...this...oh hell what the heck am I doing?'

Red lights were flashing reflecting off the cold grey concrete walls. The corridor snaked onwards in both directions with several doors along the way. Anastasia took a few breathless steps in the right direction. Her heart was going to self implode, she needed her inhaler but she dare not to reach for it. Damn. Why did her boots have to make so much noise? This was stupid...she needed to phone the police. 'This could be run by the Government! They're not exactly performing anything illegal by not letting you see this!'

Withholding information from journalists was not a crime. Quietly she slipped through a nearby door listening carefully for sings of life. There were none so she proceeded into a dull room. There were units, sinks, mirrors, and syringes lying out. There was a computer switched on, instinctively she ebbed her way towards it clicking on the screen.

Experiment 675 on patient 129 - Telepathy.

Result. Affirmative.

So...they tested people for telepathy down here...how though?

"You've heard no doubt about the theory that twins can communicate? That one twin can sometimes feel when the other is in pain and such like?"

No...That was wrong...illegal...wrong...illegal...oh God! This wasn't a horror movie...things like that didn't happen in real life. In real life people weren't used as lab-rats. But then how else did they test...and why hide it if it was harmless? No...It wasn't possible. They couldn't do that...people would find out. Surely...people would find out. This wasn't the Dark Ages...the world had a camera on practically everything. Why should the media ignore this.

'You're the first one they let down here...they tried to keep the media away...the powers that be...' Her insane imagination was pounding into overdrive. Slowly she backed away from the computer like it was infected with a terminal disease. The Government wouldn't do this. Maybe the American one might but the British and Scottish ones were different. Not as big or intimidating...'The Company in American. Expanding...' She sucked in a deep breath. It wasn't that this all surprised her, in fact she had fantasised vaguely that this might be real...but the fact that it was actually in front of her. It was like the difference between knowing terrorists exist and then having your house bombed. Cold. Hard. Truth.

Shakily she moved towards the door...

She pushed it open...

Inside was all the evidence she needed.

There was a single bed and on the bed bound to it by steel manacles was young girl. Her pale sickly yellow skin was marked with angry bruises. Her cheeks were scraped and her chocolate brown hair was matted and tangled. The light from above reflected off her sweaty skin and beside her the heart monitor was going berserk. Anastasia froze trying to process this. The girl...Patient number 126...a child. Not even a teenager. "We have a young girl who in counselling right now." That was how they did it. They stripped away your identity and left you with nothing but a number. All the kind wonderful words, words she had wanted to believe...nothing but lies.

Anastasia sank to her knees.

This wasn't a dream. It was nightmare and she was trapped.

There was no escape.

A bit longer then what I had intended but I hope I got the drama across. Anyway the next chapter is called The Great Escape and Anastasia makes the mistake of pointing a gun at the Carpathians before she then ends up at the mercy of one herself. Manolito, Mary-Ann and Zacarias will be in the next chapter.

Thank you for the reviews! Keep them coming! xx

Daydreamer