Chapter Thirteen:

I didn't know how long I was out or even where I was, but I knew before my eyes even fluttered open that it wasn't somewhere pleasant. Finding the courage to open my eyes, they felt heavy. Everything was so dark. The only light that filled the room was that of the unknown, beyond the metal door. But it was enough light to see the entirety of the room. Although, there wasn't much to see. It was a prison cell in every sense of the word.

Silence stirred in my ears like a rattled hornets' nest. I wanted to scream, cry, something just to end the buzzing. Would someone come looking for me if I did scream?

My first thoughts were of Benny. Was he dead? I stopped myself. I didn't want to think about that. I couldn't. He wasn't dead. He couldn't be. Blood oozing from his wounds filled my mind. It stained everything I saw. His tired eyes holding mine, whispering for mercy.

I needed to find him.

The only way out of the cell seemed to be the metal door. There was no handle on the inside. Well, I guess there was only one thing to do. I thrust my fists against the door. The metal vibrated with contact, pain aching in my joints. The metal rang loud with each impact of my hands. I couldn't find my voice to scream. My body was so tired. It took all I had to keep hitting the door.

I presumed the metal ringing was enough once I heard tumblers clicking. Blinking against the bright light, two humans hoisted me up, their hands rough. Pulling me through endless white halls, many doors lined the walls. To be honest, everything kind of...blurred. My mind was fuzzy from who knows what and my body felt sore and much like dead weight. I don't think I could make it one step on my own.

The humans dragging me never made a sound. The soft pitter-patter of their shoes was a small comfort, dulling the silence. Stopping in front of a door, one guard folded both of my arms behind my back as if I was going to make a move. Yeah, right. The other guard slid a card, the machine beeping. The white door clicked and slid open. The guard behind me pushed my shoulder, urging me on. Picking up my foot to move forward, my entire leg shot with pain. Slowly, I waddled into the room.

The room was huge, bigger than a plane hanger. Computer screens littered every inch of the walls, people clicking and clacking on keyboards. In the very middle of the room was a contraption that had a belt leading into a metal box.

That's when I saw him.

I forced myself to keep standing when all I wanted to do was falling to my knees and cry. Benny was strung up by his arms, chained to a metal bar. His face was caked with dried blood, his clothes unrecognizable. What did they do to him?

I choked by tears. If he was here, that meant he was alive, right? They wouldn't torture a corpse...would they? Building up the courage, I screamed, "Benny!"

I kept screaming over and over, my lungs burning with each breath. He had to hear me, he had to wake up! I shouted his name over and over. A sensation crawled through my every nerve. A mixture of saliva and tears mixed on the floor.

"Lilian Tyler, would you please stop your screaming. It's giving me a headache."

Staring blankly at the floor, I froze. I heard that voice before. She was the announcement voice. Glancing up, a tall, stiff woman stalked towards me. She shifted her weight, her feet crossing each other with such confidence. Her pencil skirt and blazer screamed power. She controlled things, even I knew that.

"I'm sorry, how rude of me. Let me introduce myself, my name is Victoria. You can say..." she paused, twirling her hand, acting nonchalant, "I run things around here."

"What do you want with Benny?"

"Whoa-ho-ho! So hasty and quick to the point! We haven't finished introductions. I'd love to hear how you got here." She stood above me, her blue eyes piercing my soul. Her presence was intimidating to say the least.

"What do you want with Benny?" I stared at her face, her black hair pulled tight behind her head. Her face looked so familiar.

"Aren't you concerned about yourself?" she asked, her voice coy.

"What do you want with Benny?"

"You've known him, what? Three days? And you're more concerned with him," she paused, eyeing Benny. Her face was disgusted at his appearance. She did that to him. She made it happen. I didn't even know this woman and yet my blood already boiled looking at her face. She sighed and finished her thought, "than yourself."

"What-"

Smack. My cheek radiated with heat from her hand. I felt blood bubble behind some teeth. "You don't know how long I've been waiting to do that."

Swishing the fresh blood around in my mouth, I pondered her words. What did she mean 'how long'?

"What do-"

Another hit. This time she put even more force behind it, her hand clenched into a fist. My head jolted back, my vision a little off. Blinking, I saw her fist arch back once more.

"STOP."

And just like that, my hearts fluttered back to life.

A/N: I know, this one is super super short. I kinda had a writer's block, I'm working myself out of it, just hang with me. I'll post more as fast as my fingers can produce coherent words.