Chapter Seven
It was difficult to walk with a sense of vague purpose when many doors stood locked in Emmy's way. Occasionally, she could push or pull hard enough to force the electrical latch off the frame, but she spent a lot of the time turning round and going the next door, then the next, then the next. Once or twice, she could have sworn she heard something on the other side of the wood, scuffling.
"Sanchez?" she would call, knocking. But the noises would stop and she scolded herself silently for it, knowing it was just her mind playing tricks on her in the complete silence.
The bleeding from her foot had almost stopped now, but the pain was still there, pounding through her calf with every step. She didn't like that feeling and bit her lip so as not to cry out. We mustn't cry she'd told Georgina, so she wouldn't cry. She'd do anything for G. The two had been friends for as long as Emmy could remember, but they hadn't been allowed to talk much recently; Doctor Mora thought G was a bad influence.
She'd been walking for around fifteen minutes – but it was hard to tell – and her legs were tiring. How long had she been in the chamber, unmoving? Doctor Mora had told her that she'd been extremely tired once the two years were up and the medicine would have a few minor side effects, like exhaustion and aching. At least I wasn't in D ward… they got the strong stuff she thought.
She decided to rest a while in one of the storerooms. The floor was littered with debris and shattered glass from the cabinets. Breathing slowly, she cleared a small area and sat and leant against a ceiling high cupboard. Before she knew it, her eyes were drooping and she soon fell asleep, giving in to fatigue.
She awoke suddenly to fast footsteps coming towards the room she was in. She stood up quickly, panicked. She searched the room for something with which to defend herself. Nothing. The room was emptied. Except for the glass a small voice said in her head. She hadn't heard that voice for a while and it startled her. With every second the footsteps grew louder and louder and her eyes flicked between the door and the shards of clear glass on the floor. Just as the footsteps came right behind the door she lunged forward, grabbed one of the larger shards and swung to face the enemy, backing towards the wall. Debris crunched under her feet and her cut reopened. She could feel blood seeping out onto the floor. The door swung open.
Without thinking, Emmy lunged forward, slashing at the intruder, no… intruders, with her weapon. Before she could do anything the glass had been knocked out of her hands and she was on her knees with her hands behind her back. Terrified, she began to scream. It hurt her throat and her ears, but it was the only thing left to do. She screamed Georgina's name, praying that her friend, or anyone, would run in to rescue her. Her mind blinded with panic and her whole body was throbbing with pain and exhaustion. Help me, she thought, someone.
And then someone had a comforting hand on each of her shoulders and the grip on her arms was released. She opened her eyes and deep brown ones gazed back into hers. A man… not Sanchez. He smiled at her, a warm smile.
"Hello," he said, his voice swimming into her mind, calming.
She looked at him and decided she liked the look of him. He wasn't threatening. She reached a hand out and let a finger trace his cheek. On his skin she felt trust and kindness, and something else… something hidden, but it didn't scare her.
"What's your name?" he said, though Emmy saw in his eyes that he already knew.
"Emmy Walker," she managed to whisper, hoarsely.
"Hello Emmy, I'm the Doctor. And behind you is Joseph. He didn't mean to hurt you. Are you all right?" he looked genuinely concerned and Emmy was reminded of Sanchez. She thought about the question. She wasn't all right, she realised; she needed her friend.
"I can't find Georgina," she looked down at the floor, ashamed to talk about Georgina in front of the staff, but she needed G with her. "Can you help me find my friend?"
"Of course we can," the man grinned, he was telling the truth.
