I am on such a roll! Hold your applause, really. ) Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed and sent me e-mails..as always, it means a lot to me. I hope I don't disappoint!
PS: For those following my Beautiful Disasters, Chapter 20 is ALMOST done! )
Chapter Three: "A New Beginning"
Rain beat down on the roof of the warehouse ferociously as the night turned into early morning, a still sleeping Daniel Matthews tucked securely under an asortment of old blankets. His curled brunette locks were tangled and a complete mess as he lay face down against the pillow, his tightly bandaged wrists draped over the back of his neck. He'd been passed out ever since one AM, since he'd completed the sadistic trap Jigsaw had planned for him. His severe bleeding had been stopped only by the aid of Amanda but it was more than apparent that he needed stitches..and soon, or else the deep wounds would either become infected or the scarring would be far worse, although his wrists would forever be marked terribly. Thunder clapped loudly and was followed by a shocking series of lightning bolts, this being the reason Daniel suddenly awoke, his eyes too heavy to open. He rolled onto his back and shook his head side to side, hoping this could somehow enable him to view his surroundings. He didn't feel well..at all. His stomach churned with discomfort and he felt ready to vomit at any given second. Finally able to open his eyes, Daniel's blurred vision lasted momentarily before everything came into focus, the unfamiliar room bringing panic into his already upset stomach. It took a minute for everything to settle in but once it did, he wasn't sure if he should feel relief or make a run for it. Daniel looked down at the blood stained bandages that were covering his open wounds and held back the urge to cry out in shock. The sight of his own blood made bile rise in the back of his throat. He couldn't even manage to digest the fact that he'd survived Jigsaw..again. But where was he? Surely if the said killer wanted him dead, he wouldn't be here right now, that much he was sure of. He was also aware that he was lying on what appeared to be an old mattress covered in blankets that were somewhat torn in various places and that the dim lighting and dusty smell told him that he wasn't anywhere remotely new. Daniel layed back down and ran over both options that were coming to mind; he'd get up and see where exactly he was or he'd lay here until someone, surely Jigsaw, came to him. But, what if he was alone? What if while he was passed out, he'd been left in some abandoned warehouse to find his own way home and fend for himself? In one brief moment, all the answers became apparent in the form of a beautiful woman, one he instantly recognized as Amanda. Daniel sat up insantly, his mouth agape to question her presence but he was cut off by her before he could say anything.
"I need to see your wrists." Without thinking, he held out his arms for her, shifting towards her when she sat herself beside him on the mattress. Amanda pulled back the cloth and peered down at his gashes, a slight grimace shadowing her features. "They're pretty bad."
"I wonder why..what the hell is going on, Amanda?" Dark eyes stared back at him momentarily.
"Haven't put two and two together yet?" she asked, tilting her head slightly to the side. Daniel was pretty sure that he knew the answer to his own question.
"You were in it with Jigsaw all along?" Amanda nodded, flipping a few pieces of her short bangs from her face as she smiled gently at him. "Where am I?"
"Our workshop." Daniel looked out of the open door, his eyes rapidly scanning the area, dozens of papers and old furniture being the victim of his questioning stare. He turned his eyes back to Amanda, who was watching him curiously, as if he were some sort of bizzare painting on display. Biting down on his lip to keep from asking just what the hell she was staring at, Daniel shifted his eyes away from the brunette in discomfort, wishing he could somehow become invisible. "For right now, get some more rest. I've got something to talk with you about when we awake. You'll need a clear mindset for this." Amanda sent a smile over at him before pushing off from the bed and heading out the door, leaving Daniel staring after her, his brow furrowed in wonder. What more could they possibly want from him?
Xxxxx
Although Daniel hadn't planned on going back to sleep, he awoke three hours later, even more exhausted than he had been before. The nausea had become less of a burden..now it was just starvation that ate at his insides. The seering pain in his wrists was becoming worse by the minute and he wasn't quite sure what he should do about it. It wasn't like he could go to the hospital..they'd send him to some mental home, thinking he was suicidal. But the remembrance of his planned talk with Amanda blew any other previous thoughts from his mind. Curiosity was killing him..what could be so important? Daniel reluctently got up from the warmth of the blankets and crept to the doorframe, peering out into the workshop with great discomfort. Thousands of hand drawn traps sketched on large drawing papers, along with the plans for each of them, were scattered about on random desks and tables while some of the finished traps were resting neatly on the plaster mannequin bodies, soon to be used for deadly testing. Daniel swallowed the bile that arose in the back of his throat at the sight of these sadistic contraptions. He didn't even want to picture what they could do to the human body, although his imagination was running terribly wild.
"Rise and shine, Daniel." Jigsaw's voice seemed to pierce Daniel's being as he jumped on the spot, whipping around to stare into the elderly face. He didn't know exactly what to say..what does one say to a serial killer, one who had almost caused his death only hours ago? "How are you holding up?" he asked, referring to the deep wounds that were still aching on his wrists.
"F-fine.." Daniel croaked, gripping a nearby table for support until the point in which his knuckles turned white.
"Excellent. As you know, Amanda wishes to speak with you, as do I. Come." He carefully and even slowly followed after Jigsaw, repeatedly looking around as if every step led him to his demise. Amanda sat comfortably at one of the desks, her head bowed as she looked over a sheet of paper that was held firmly in her slender hand. Having noticed their presence, she looked up, dark eyes shinning in the dim light.
"Here, take a seat," she offered, pulling up a chair for Daniel beside her own. He cautiously sat down and stared between the two, his heart pounding severely in his chest. Whatever was about to be said was no doubt going to change his life.
"First, congratulations are once again in order for your survival, Daniel. It pleases me to see that another human has the will to survive and to live. Being the second to overcome one of my tests, I find it fit to say that you are indeed aware of the precious life you have," John's eyes gleamed with admiration as he smiled at the young man before him. "But, you have a choice..another one." He looked over to Amanda.
"The same choice I made..John saved me from myself and I knew that I owed him something. I wanted to help others, save them..the same way I had been saved." Daniel stared at her in both interest and caution, unaware of what he was supposed to say. "What we're saying is, Daniel, we want you to make that choice..you've met death and become reborn..but do you wish to offer others the same salvation you were given?" Surprise caught his breath in his chest as he soaked in the spoken words, his mind racing in a thousand different directions. What in the hell were they asking him to do? Put people in sadistic, twisted devices and hope for their survival, only if they could find it in themselves? They were asking him to give up his life and continue on by helping them cause potential harm to others. Daniel opened his mouth as if to tell them no, only to shut it seconds later. As if being at a loss for words was a problem before, it was a dangerous issue now. Their eyes were fixed on him and the pressure to answer was beginning to sink in.
"I..uh, I don't know..my mother..my education.." he looked up and met Amanda's eyes, her darkened orbs shining with something that begged him for help. Daniel swallowed deeply, turning away to look at anything but the expecting faces that were still watching him. He didn't owe them anything..they had almost killed him with their trap. If anything he should feel hatred..but he didn't. He looked at John's frail appearance and felt a twinge of thankfulness hit him hard in the chest. The elderly man looked to be close to death. Daniel then glanced back over at Amanda, who was staring at him still, her eyes explaining that more was to be said.
"You don't have to answer now," John said quietly, stopping to cough slightly, a trembling hand put over his mouth gently. Daniel winced at the terrible sound, wishing that it would just stop. Amanda wore a similar expression as she stood on the spot, motioning towards the room in which Daniel had been sleeping, it becoming apparent that she wished to speak with him in private. She excused them from John and followed after him as he stepped into the room and turned to look at her.
"Amanda..why are you asking me this?" The beautiful brunette crossed her slender arms across her chest after closing the door, her eyes dark as she looked back at him.
"John's dying, Daniel. I promised him that I'd carry on his work once he passed..I can't do it alone."
"Why me?"
"Because you survived..you're the only one besides myself that has done that. In doing that, you've become worthy in John's eyes." Processing her words, he stared at the ground, as if his shoes were the most fascinating thing in the world.
"But my mother, my schoolwork..I can't abandon my future," he whispered, his voice cracking slightly.
"What future? You spent too much time soaking in your own misfortune to even consider what you wished to do with your life," Amanda said blankly, the truth in her words making him flush with anger. "You've been given a second chance, you can save others from the same fate..look at you, scarred from the anger you chose to take out on yourself. You were ungrateful..you wanted to die. But when faced with that, you were driven by the will to live. How can you not see that we saved you?" No matter how true her words were, it scared him to death..how would he be able to live with himself if he caused the death of another human being? But he couldn't deny that Amanda was right..what would've become of him if he hadn't been chosen?
"I know..I just don't think I could do this to others.."
"We owe this to John." Daniel let out a shaken breath and ran a hand through his messy hair, thousands of thoughts racing through his already clouded mind. "Don't you want others to have the chance to save themselves?"
"Amanda, c'mon! Can't you find another way? Who are we to deal out death--"
"Most people are so fucked up that only death will awaken them! We are living examples, Daniel." Staring into the intense eyes, he realized that no argument he could attempt to think up would bury the fact that even if he didn't want to admit it, he did owe the elder man. Where would he have been if he hadn't met death? He probably would've ended up dead..or in even more trouble than he had been in. He was grateful..he should be grateful. Looking down at his still bandaged wrists, he felt his heart pound against his chest. He hated himself for what he'd done to his own body. Daniel looked up at Amanda and bit down on his lip, his mind running over the events that had taken place hours earlier. He had fought for his life even when he'd wanted to die days beforehand..he could still remember praying that he'd just pass away. The time he'd wasted become horribly evident and with a gentle exhale, he made his decision..he had nothing at home, nothing at school and if he dared go back to those places, he'd fall back into the same old terrible habits. Daniel nodded to Amanda slowly, his eyes stopping to bare into hers. He was grateful..
xxxxx
Karen Matthews wandered uselessly around the kitchen, her hands clutching a steaming cup of coffee. Her face was lined with worry as she glanced desperately at the clock, which read six in the evening, and wished that this past day had been nothing but a fearful dream. But, the reality was that it wasn't. Her son was missing. When Daniel hadn't come home by the time in which he'd agreed to be back by, it never crossed her mind that something awful had happened to him. She nearly took it as a normal seventeen year old who lost track of the time while with his friends. But once the clock struck midnight, Karen began to panic. Drew's mother had seen him leave at eleven and her son's best friend had confirmed that he had planned on coming right home. Still..no sign of Daniel. The cops had been called and leaving it in their hands, she waited. In terrible silence. Who was hurting her baby at this very moment? Was he still alive? Who was he with? Karen jumped at the sound of the telephone ringing, the loud noise sounding out into the quiet. Almost knocking the table over as she lept up, she ran to the phone and picked it up, forgetting her manners as she spoke into it.
"Yes?"
"Hello, Karen Matthews?" She swallowed the lump in her throat.
"Yes?" she repeated, blinking rapidly.
"Good evening, ma'am. This is Detective Rogers from the Police Department. I'm calling about Daniel.." Karen's breath caught in her chest as her grip on the phone tightened.
"Did you find him!" A long pause from the other line made her stomach churn with discomfort.
"I'm sorry, but we've had no luck so far. Our efforts are being doubled and we promise to find him as soon as possible." Karen didn't need to hear anymore. She slammed the receiver down and let out a heartbroken sob, slidding down to the floor as her knees gave out. She couldn't live without her son..he was the only thing that had kept her alive during her nasty divorce with Eric. And now..he could be dead, rotting somewhere where no one would find him..and this is what she had to live with..she couldn't do it..
xxxxx
Daniel wasn't sure if he should take back his decision or not but that didn't change the fact that he was having second thoughts. He wished that there was some way to know without a doubt that he had done the right thing..but all he could do was trust himself..no matter how hard that was. Amanda made things seem so right, she made him somehow feel that he belonged with them. Whether or not that was a true feeling, he didn't know..he simply cherished it. The previous days events had seen him moving into her apartment, where they would spend their days, only to use the cover of night to work. Everything was in perfect order..the worst was over now. All he had to do was go with it. He felt like he owed it to both Amanda and John. Whatever was in store for him didn't matter. All he knew now was that he felt at peace..but how long would that feeling last? How long would things go perfectly? Good things never seemed to hang around too long for Daniel to get used to. Whenever something incredibly wonderful took place, he expected it to evaporate just as quickly as it had come..not that he'd call his situation wonderful. He spent almost every waking hour analyzing his decision and more importantly, the well being of his mother. He knew she must have everyone in the city looking for him..but there was nothing he could do. He'd made his choice. He'd brought this upon himself by doing the terrible habits he'd so helplessly turned to. With a deep sigh, Daniel flopped down onto the couch beside Amanda's sleeping figure, looking over to study her. Her short, dark hair was a mess, every strand seeming to bend in a different direction. One arm was draped across her forehead while the other lay gently on her stomach, the arm that was over her face craddling her head as it was tilted to the side. One lone blanket was covering her legs, leaving her chest revealed, the soft sweater that was a light shade of blue keeping her arms safe from the chill. Her soft and barely audiable breathing brought a smile to Daniel's face..looking at her caused a sudden peace to fall over him as he continued to study Amanda. He swallowed deeply..she was so beautiful. Faint and barely visible scars were formed at the corners of her mouth. Daniel leaned forward to get a better look, wondering if his tired eyes were playing tricks on him. Sure enough, his eyes hadn't fooled him..but what were those marks? What could've possibly scarred her in such an odd place? Leaning back, he furrowed his brow in confusion and curled up against the corner, resting his head on the comfortable arm of the couch. The last thing he remembered was still staring at Amanda before he fell into a deep sleep, the exhaustion from the past days events finally catching up to him.