*** 4 – The Plan & The Escape ***

If mealtimes were to be used to judge time, Liz had been in the holding cell about 4 days when Blake came to her with a complete plan. In those four days, she had made sure to eat the food that was put in front of her, to conserve as much of her strength as she could. She encouraged Gustav and Angelique to do the same, and it seemed as though they were listening to the newcomer.

Liz had watched silently as each of the other three were taken for their tests each day. On her second day in there, she had tried fighting one of the guards that took Angelique, and she had a lovely black eye to show for it. She learned to stay quiet after that, mainly to not rouse suspicion of any escape attempts that were in the works. Her fellow captives always came back with a dazed look on their faces, and she made sure to hug them and comfort them as they realized what had happened each time.

But for some reason they hadn't come for her yet. Perhaps they were just biding their time, trying to find some things out about her past before they brought her out for testing. Either way, she was thankful, and spent her time alone in a meditative state, gathering all her energy together and trying to channel it without exhausting herself. She would need this ability if they were to escape. While she meditated, she was often visited by the swirling gray eyes of the stranger from the school park. Liz had been angry at first at him for scaring her into the rain and school, but quickly came to realize that his eyes, along with the eyes of his two friends, had never scared her but only confused her. She quickly came to the conclusion that he had nothing to do with this, and often let thoughts of him drift through her mind, giving her strength.

On her fourth day in captivity, Blake had sat next to her after the other two were taken for testing. It was then that he leaned over and whispered in her ear on single word.

"Tomorrow."

She looked up at his both with determination and trepidation. What could happen in the span of a day to get them out of this cell? He pulled her into a hug and began to relay the plan. The people holding them had gotten to the point where they thought Blake to be completely harmless, and were taking fewer precautions with him over the past month. As such, he had been able to really check the place out without being caught. Blake had discovered a set of switches that locked down the entire building, including the room they were in. Every time they took him for his testing, he saw them flick a certain switch, presumably to their holding room. The panel was on a wall near a door that was less than 50 feet from where they were currently residing. He described its location to Liz, and she was able to deduce that it was a switch on the wall near the gymnasium, and that they were in a classroom on the opposite side of the hall, next to the old library.

From the switch, there were three possible exits: one on the opposite end of the gym, one door on the same side of the hall as the gym, about 40 or 50 feet further than the gym from where they were, and a final exit at the complete end of the hall, maybe 25 feet beyond the second exit. There were only two classrooms between the switch and the door, which meant that there were two potential danger areas. Together they deduced that the second of those two rooms must be the testing area, which made the third exit fairly unlikely. Also, with the interior of the gym being so unknown, the safest exit was the second door. This would point them in a westerly direction, facing a few homes and a small, run-down strip mall. To their north would be more homes, and a construction site, which would be good for hiding temporarily.

The plan came together fairly easily once the location of everything was determined. Blake would be taken for testing as usual, and with their captors not keeping him under such tight security he would be able to knock out the one or two that were taking him. He would then flip the switch to their room to let out Liz. He'd take care of anyone who tried to take them on, and as she passed the gym, she'd hit the rest of the switches and they'd escape through the decided door. There were about a million things that could go wrong but between Blake's intel and Liz's strength, they could pull this off fairly quickly.

The decision to split up was made very easily. These people would expect them to stay together because of their proximity within the complex. They had a better chance of escaping completely if they split up. It was also decided that they would take Angelique and Gustav out of the complex if they wanted to. They would talk about it when they got back. Liz had a number of friends in the neighbourhood, and gave Blake detailed directions on how to get to their houses. He, Angelique and Gustav could stay with them until they were strong enough to strike out on their own, as they were all very trustworthy and would help them as they had helped Liz in the past.

But Angelique and Gustav didn't return from their tests that day, nor did they return for dinner that night. Blake and Liz were officially worried, as this was what happened to Blake just before he got moved to a new cell. Neither of them wanted to leave them behind, but this was the only chance they had. Blake had overheard a few of the guards talking about starting Liz's own testing within the next couple of days, and they wanted to make their stand while she was still at full strength.

The next morning, Liz woke earlier than normal. Blake still slept in his cot on the other side of the room, but it was the empty beds that worried Liz the most. She was terribly worried for Angelique and Gustav. They had been so caring towards her when she arrived at the facility and she didn't want them to suffer if she and Blake were successful in escaping.

She was pulled from her thoughts by Blake rising from his bed, and shaking his head to clear the cobwebs in his brain. Liz couldn't figure him out. Here he was, having been in the facility for four months, and he had more conviction and resolve than someone like Gustav who had been there a fraction of the time. It was incredibly unlikely, but she was extremely thankful for him. She would have lost all hope if he hadn't been there.

Suddenly, the door opened to reveal a pair of burly gentlemen. Liz looked at Blake with a frightened expression, yet he regarded her calmly. He let his gaze linger on her for a few seconds longer before rising to walk over to the door. Liz tried to calm herself, and forced herself to stay in her spot on her bed. Blake turned to look at her once more as he walked through the door. He gave her a subtle wink and a quick smile, and stepped through the door with the two men. As soon as the door shut behind them, Liz was on her feet and at the room's entrance. She pressed her ear to the door and waited for Blake's signal. There was a loud click in her ear, and she understood that the doors had been locked up. As she listened intently, she heard the subtle sounds of a struggle, and knew that Blake was trying to take down his guards. She heard a loud series of thuds, and then another loud click.

That was it. She grabbed the door handle and threw it open. Taking a quick glance to her left to ensure that no one was there, she bolted to the right and to Blake. He had started his run to their exit, and was keeping watch for anyone who could make trouble for them.

Liz jumped over the two men that had escorted Blake from the room, and nearly ran into the wall with the panel. She flicked all the switches on the panel, and took off as fast as she could towards Blake. He was taking on a guard that had come out of the testing room, and overpowered him fairly quickly, his weakened appearance obviously hiding his strength. Passing him in the hallway, she threw open the door with her shoulder, and he followed her out into the bright sunlight.