Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue.
Sydney woke up with alarm. Then she remembered. She covered eyes and tried not to cry but that made it worse. She began to sob. She looked at the ceiling and screamed. But she had to think. She looked at the tied down shades then at the car keys. She got out of bed and grabbed them. Picking the key that looked the most jagged, she sawed at the ties until they broke.
She pulled the shades open and gasped. There was a familiar swing set. Sydney rubbed her temples, she just couldn't remember. She walked to the door and tried to open it but it was locked. She heard footsteps and backed away. She briefly looked at the door before deciding to sit at the desk. The door opened and Sark stood there.
He didn't speak, he just stood there. Sydney followed his gaze. He was looking out the window. She stood uneasily. Is he angry? He walked to stand beside her. She looked out the window to see a lawn with a few chairs on a deck. She looked again at the swing set, then back at him. He nodded. She was confused again and sat back down. He knelt beside her and covered her hands with his. He looked into her eyes. Why is he so familiar? His fingers gently touched her face and she reached her hand up to touch his fingers. He looked towards the door. Then Sark grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. Sydney tried to pull away.
"Unless you enjoy being confined to this room, come with me." He hissed.
Sydney hesitated. She in no way trusted him, but she didn't want to lose the opportunity to escape. "Ok." She agreed.
She followed him down the hallway. They heard voices down below. He motioned with his hand to stop and partially leaned over the railing. Then the voices faded away. They cautiously crept down the stairs. The woman from before was gone. He led her into another room and closed the door behind him. The moment he turned to close the door, Sydney instantly looked for a way out. There were long windows with a door between them. She bolted for the door. He tried to stop her but she opened the door before he could reach her. Sydney ran onto the deck and down the stairs to the lawn.
Sark yelled. "Sydney! Stop!"
She paused. That swing set, where... But he was on the deck. She looked for a gate and ran to open it. Across the street were a few houses, some with cars in the driveways. Definitely a neighborhood. But which way to go? Down. Sydney raced down the street. Sark had reached the gate.
"Sydney!" He yelled again.
But she kept running and running. She turned a corner, jumping a puddle on the sidewalk. Then she turned another corner. She ran down and kept running down until she reached the end of the hill. Sydney bent over, putting her hands on her knees and gasped for air. She then noticed her clothes. She was wearing a different shirt. And her jeans had no rip in the knee. People were walking back and forth, and with what she felt like normal clothes, she blended into the crowd. Slowly she ran her hands through her hair and held her head up high, even smiled occasionally. Stopping at the street corner she looked at the sign. She didn't recognize it. Crap. She sat at a nearby bench, looking for a friendly face. A woman walked by. Sydney stopped her for directions. The woman pointed in the direction she was heading. Quickly thanking the woman, she took off.
She ran past a bank displaying the time. One forty seven. She continued to run til she had to stop at a signal and waited for the light to change. Suddenly Sydney looked back. Sark wasn't there. There weren't any men in black suits. She breathed a sigh of relief and crossed the street. She passed by an elderly couple as she ran. She had to keep running, she had to. Keep breathing. Run harder. Only one hour and forty minutes left.