I pulled in at the roadside hotel for the night at around midnight. I'd
emptied my bank accounts at the service station just east of Avimoore,
before I'd changed direction and headed south, to cover my tracks. I had
three accounts, all under different names, but I couldn't take the risk
Simmons knew about any of them. I was surprisingly calm, considering that
my life had just been turned upside down. That afternoon I had headed home
from the school, worrying about marking. Now I had to worry that the head
of NID would track me down to experiment on me. The whole idea was aliens
experimenting on humans had been turned upside down as easily as my life.
None of the aliens I'd met had shown the slightest interest in cutting me
up, but the humans did.
It was almost pitch black as I headed from the car park towards the hotel door, but that didn't bother me. My eyes could adjust to the dark much quicker and better than most people's could. Simmons had given us much more of an advantage than he realised when he started experimenting on us.
The room I was given was damp and had a musty smell, but it was only for one night. I sat down on the bed and decided that I'd felt rocks that were softer. I didn't have any clothes with me, my departure had been so rushed, and all I had was what I was wearing, the red dress, and the money I had collected. I would stop at the next town I passed and buy something. I just had to sleep naked that night.
It was only when I was sorting through my handbag to see just how little I had, that I saw the letter again. I must have shoved it in there when Brian and I left. I looked at it again, it's simple message so clear, and I kicked myself mentally for not paying attention. I folded it to put it away again, and saw writing on the back. I knew that there hadn't been any writing there before, so I read it, curious. Makepeace must have written it when he arrived at my flat. Its message was as simple as the one on the front. "Daniel and Susanne" it said, followed by an address.
I knew where my friends had gone.
My heart leapt up and started dancing, before the suspicious side of my nature began to question this. I didn't know for sure that Makepeace was on our side, this could easily be a trap. A major argument raged in my head for almost an hour after that, as I considered the pros and cons of going to the address. I finally decided that if Makepeace had wanted to turn me over he would have done in Avimoore.
I set off immediately, so that I didn't change my mind on the way down. That also meant I didn't stop to buy some new clothes, because I knew that if I did I would lose my resolve and end up abandoning the whole idea. It probably would have been better for all of us if I had.
Several hours later, I arrived at a rented house in London. I was tired from lack of sleep in that awful hotel and the hours of driving. I was hungry because I refused to waste my money on that expensive food they sold at service stations. And I was terrified. I was standing at a door where the very act of knocking could be as good as signing a death sentence. I'm not sure how long I stood there, it felt like hours, but eventually, I lifted my hand to press the doorbell. I was half-relieved to find it didn't work. It seemed Daniel was going for the cheapest accommodation just as I was. I knocked instead. I wasn't to know how quickly I would come to regret that action.
The wait for the door to be answered felt longer than my decision making, although it couldn't really have been much more than a minute. I think I proved all my theories about time and relativity in that instant. I started breathing again when the door opened and Daniel stood there, I hadn't even realised I'd stopped. It felt as though a lead blanket of fear had been lifted from my heart and I almost fainted with relief. Although, it could easily have been hunger and fatigue.
"Sam!" Daniel exclaimed when he saw me. He glanced nervously outside, his gaze seeming to measure up every passer-by in the street, assessing for danger, before he yanked me inside. However lax I had become, it appeared Daniel had stayed paranoid. There was a tense moment as we stood looking at each other in the hall. Both of us were eyeing up all the changes that had occurred in each other. Daniel wasn't wearing glasses any more, I found out later he wore contacts, there were worry lines across his forehead and he looked almost twenty years older. His hair was thinning and going grey. Living in a constant state of paranoia couldn't have been very good for his health. "How are you?" he asked eventually.
"I've been better." Then I smiled, "It's good to see you." The tense moment was gone and I found myself enveloped in a hug. Daniel had never been much of one for hugging, but it seemed he was as relieved to find me OK as I him.
"How did you find me?"
"Makepeace found me and gave me your address." I think panic crossed his face then, I supposed he was worried about Makepeace knowing where he was. "Where's Susanne?" I had expected her to be here, and I was anxious to remove my worries about her as well.
There was a short, almost worried, pause before Daniel replied, "She's just popped down to the shops." I heard the relaxed and pleased tone of his voice and decided I'd been mistaken about the pause. "Do you want something to drink while we wait for her? Coffee?"
"Yes please." I needed coffee otherwise I'd be in danger of collapsing, and Daniel always had good coffee. The amount of it he drank, he was an expert on it. I'd been drinking instant since I left the base, but I knew Daniel must have a coffee machine here.
"Make yourself at home," he said, indicating a sort-of lounge. There was a rather moth-eaten sofa in front of a TV which looked like it had been dragged from the dump and would explode at even the suggestion of being turned on. A small coffee table, in roughly the same condition as the sofa, was between the other two items of furniture. Daniel's house was no better than my flat had been. I sat down in the sofa and waited. It didn't take long for Daniel to return from the kitchen with two steaming mugs.
"We've got so much to catch up on," he said, smiling, as he sat down next to me, giving me one of the cups. "Do you know where the others are."
I shook my head. "I haven't heard from any of them since we left, none of us knew where the others were going. You?"
He shook his head in return. I lifted my mug and swallowed a mouthful. It tasted strange, almost sour. I just dismissed the thought and surmised that it was only because I hadn't had real coffee in so long. Although, drinking that stuff, I couldn't quite work out why I'd considered real coffee better than instant. It didn't seem to be waking me up either, in fact it seemed to be having the opposite affect. I realised Daniel was talking, but struggled to grasp the words. I was having difficulty keeping my eyes open. Then it hit me. The coffee was drugged!
I dropped the mug and tried to stand up, but my legs were too shaky to hold me. Daniel reached out, but I snatched myself from his grasp, I knew, even in my hazy state, that Daniel must have done this on purpose. I attempted to make my way to the door, away from Daniel, but the drugs were preventing me. My legs gave out on me before I even travelled a metre and I collapsed to the floor. Daniel was by my side, supporting me, so that it didn't hurt when I fell. It was a bit late for friendly concern after what he'd done. I struggled to stay conscious and fight my way free, but with every passing second I was losing the battle.
"I'm sorry, Sam," was the last thing I heard, before the world went dark.
THE END
Author's note: Don't worry, the sequel will be posted soon.
It was almost pitch black as I headed from the car park towards the hotel door, but that didn't bother me. My eyes could adjust to the dark much quicker and better than most people's could. Simmons had given us much more of an advantage than he realised when he started experimenting on us.
The room I was given was damp and had a musty smell, but it was only for one night. I sat down on the bed and decided that I'd felt rocks that were softer. I didn't have any clothes with me, my departure had been so rushed, and all I had was what I was wearing, the red dress, and the money I had collected. I would stop at the next town I passed and buy something. I just had to sleep naked that night.
It was only when I was sorting through my handbag to see just how little I had, that I saw the letter again. I must have shoved it in there when Brian and I left. I looked at it again, it's simple message so clear, and I kicked myself mentally for not paying attention. I folded it to put it away again, and saw writing on the back. I knew that there hadn't been any writing there before, so I read it, curious. Makepeace must have written it when he arrived at my flat. Its message was as simple as the one on the front. "Daniel and Susanne" it said, followed by an address.
I knew where my friends had gone.
My heart leapt up and started dancing, before the suspicious side of my nature began to question this. I didn't know for sure that Makepeace was on our side, this could easily be a trap. A major argument raged in my head for almost an hour after that, as I considered the pros and cons of going to the address. I finally decided that if Makepeace had wanted to turn me over he would have done in Avimoore.
I set off immediately, so that I didn't change my mind on the way down. That also meant I didn't stop to buy some new clothes, because I knew that if I did I would lose my resolve and end up abandoning the whole idea. It probably would have been better for all of us if I had.
Several hours later, I arrived at a rented house in London. I was tired from lack of sleep in that awful hotel and the hours of driving. I was hungry because I refused to waste my money on that expensive food they sold at service stations. And I was terrified. I was standing at a door where the very act of knocking could be as good as signing a death sentence. I'm not sure how long I stood there, it felt like hours, but eventually, I lifted my hand to press the doorbell. I was half-relieved to find it didn't work. It seemed Daniel was going for the cheapest accommodation just as I was. I knocked instead. I wasn't to know how quickly I would come to regret that action.
The wait for the door to be answered felt longer than my decision making, although it couldn't really have been much more than a minute. I think I proved all my theories about time and relativity in that instant. I started breathing again when the door opened and Daniel stood there, I hadn't even realised I'd stopped. It felt as though a lead blanket of fear had been lifted from my heart and I almost fainted with relief. Although, it could easily have been hunger and fatigue.
"Sam!" Daniel exclaimed when he saw me. He glanced nervously outside, his gaze seeming to measure up every passer-by in the street, assessing for danger, before he yanked me inside. However lax I had become, it appeared Daniel had stayed paranoid. There was a tense moment as we stood looking at each other in the hall. Both of us were eyeing up all the changes that had occurred in each other. Daniel wasn't wearing glasses any more, I found out later he wore contacts, there were worry lines across his forehead and he looked almost twenty years older. His hair was thinning and going grey. Living in a constant state of paranoia couldn't have been very good for his health. "How are you?" he asked eventually.
"I've been better." Then I smiled, "It's good to see you." The tense moment was gone and I found myself enveloped in a hug. Daniel had never been much of one for hugging, but it seemed he was as relieved to find me OK as I him.
"How did you find me?"
"Makepeace found me and gave me your address." I think panic crossed his face then, I supposed he was worried about Makepeace knowing where he was. "Where's Susanne?" I had expected her to be here, and I was anxious to remove my worries about her as well.
There was a short, almost worried, pause before Daniel replied, "She's just popped down to the shops." I heard the relaxed and pleased tone of his voice and decided I'd been mistaken about the pause. "Do you want something to drink while we wait for her? Coffee?"
"Yes please." I needed coffee otherwise I'd be in danger of collapsing, and Daniel always had good coffee. The amount of it he drank, he was an expert on it. I'd been drinking instant since I left the base, but I knew Daniel must have a coffee machine here.
"Make yourself at home," he said, indicating a sort-of lounge. There was a rather moth-eaten sofa in front of a TV which looked like it had been dragged from the dump and would explode at even the suggestion of being turned on. A small coffee table, in roughly the same condition as the sofa, was between the other two items of furniture. Daniel's house was no better than my flat had been. I sat down in the sofa and waited. It didn't take long for Daniel to return from the kitchen with two steaming mugs.
"We've got so much to catch up on," he said, smiling, as he sat down next to me, giving me one of the cups. "Do you know where the others are."
I shook my head. "I haven't heard from any of them since we left, none of us knew where the others were going. You?"
He shook his head in return. I lifted my mug and swallowed a mouthful. It tasted strange, almost sour. I just dismissed the thought and surmised that it was only because I hadn't had real coffee in so long. Although, drinking that stuff, I couldn't quite work out why I'd considered real coffee better than instant. It didn't seem to be waking me up either, in fact it seemed to be having the opposite affect. I realised Daniel was talking, but struggled to grasp the words. I was having difficulty keeping my eyes open. Then it hit me. The coffee was drugged!
I dropped the mug and tried to stand up, but my legs were too shaky to hold me. Daniel reached out, but I snatched myself from his grasp, I knew, even in my hazy state, that Daniel must have done this on purpose. I attempted to make my way to the door, away from Daniel, but the drugs were preventing me. My legs gave out on me before I even travelled a metre and I collapsed to the floor. Daniel was by my side, supporting me, so that it didn't hurt when I fell. It was a bit late for friendly concern after what he'd done. I struggled to stay conscious and fight my way free, but with every passing second I was losing the battle.
"I'm sorry, Sam," was the last thing I heard, before the world went dark.
THE END
Author's note: Don't worry, the sequel will be posted soon.