Sitting on the small cot bed, I sat with my back against the wall and my knees drawn up. It's been an hour and the young man who was now looking after me had yet to come back with food. Staring at the grey wall, I watched as a small slither of water ran down a crack high up near the roof. With the silence of just my consciousness, the gravity of my situation was bearing down at me. The air smelled stale and I felt like I could hardly breathe.
Looking from the wall, I paid closer attention to detail. My feet and floor are slightly greasy and the sheets in which I were now sitting on, have yellow stains and marks of an unknown nature. There's black spots forming on the corners of the roof and the sound of dripping water filled my ears. This room was no better than the trucks – filthy.
Snapping my attention from the blandness of it all, I listened as the cell door creaked open "Here" said the man who claimed to be looking after me. Coming over with a silver steel tray, I peered up from my position on the bed to see what it held. Wrinkling my nose, I found it to be a piece of stale bread, mashed pea's, a cup of water and a strip of some sort of dry looking meat. Lowering the tray down, he sat it on the bed "you need to eat. You're getting thin" spoke the man, while looking me up and down.
Gesturing with a nod to the tray, I asked "How can anyone eat that?" It was absolutely repulsing. It looked to be days old and I could see a small dot of grey mould forming on the bread.
Letting out a huff, I could see he was already annoyed at me. Even when I had a good reason to be arguing "Be grateful for what you have. I was lucky to get you this much. There will be days when you get less"
"Grateful? Dogs from my hometown wouldn't eat it. And neither will I" Pushing the tray away from me for emphasis. I looked away from the young man to stare, again, at the same grey wall.
"Amelia. You must eat…if you don't, you will starve and die" he said picking up the tray and holding it out to me. If I didn't have a hunch as to why he was so adamant about getting me to eat, then I would have thought that he might have cared. But I knew that wasn't the case. He was only doing this because his neck was most likely on the line if I did in fact, die "…how do you except to save your mother and brother, if you don't eat to save yourself?"
Narrowing my eyes, the question had gotten my attention and not in a good way "What do you know about my mother and brother?" I asked, sneering every word. Toying me with such information wasn't going to make the situation any better.
"I know that they are safe…and that you will see them again" he said wiggling the tray in his hands "…but only if you eat" looking over his face, I didn't know if he was lying or not. What choice did I have? The man I had only just met offered me information on my family. If there was any chance. Anything at all. I was going to believe it was true. What kind of person would I be – daughter and sister – if I didn't?
Gently taking the tray from his hands, he nodded before turning around to leave "Wait!" I called again. I wanted to know something. Stopping, the young man turned around "What's your name?"
Pausing with his hand on the door, he turned around to face me with his brown eyes "…Erik"
Placing the tray on the end of the bed, I put a hand against my stomach. After not eating anything for two days and then gorging down the food that had been given to me, my stomach was starting to churn. I felt like I was going to be sick. Letting out a breath of air, I sat up on the edge of the bed with my feet on the ground. Slightly rocking in a comforting motion back and forth, I tried to sway the sickly feeling.
Breathing in through my nose and out of my mouth, it gradually started to fade away and I was slowly feeling better "…- outside" voiced a whisper outside my door. Looking up, it swung wide open. Walking in, Erik stood before me while two guards stayed outside waiting "Get up…you need to go for your check-up" reaching down, he wrapped his fingers around my arm and hauled me from the bed. Giving me a nudge forward, we made our way down the tunnels again. The guards trailing not far behind us.
The whole way down, I hadn't seen a single girl. Not one. All the people that I did see where either Scientist or Doctors of some description. Some were old, others where young, like Erik. It was all so confusing. Why did they bring us here? What are they going to do to me? Feeling his warm hand on my shoulder, Erik guided me into a separate room on the side. It looked like a medical room, like one of the ones me and my brother would go in to town for if we were sick "Sit down" instructed Erik, pointing to the white gurney that stood in the middle of the room. Hopping up onto the bed, I sat with my hands resting on the edge and my feet dangling over the side.
"Where are you going?" I asked hurriedly while watching him walk away. Was he leaving me? All alone.
"Doctor Gregov will be here shortly" spoke Erik, giving me an eye of 'remember what I told you'. Closing the door behind him, he left without another word alongside the guards. Waiting in the quiet, I was once again alone with my thoughts. Peering around the room, I could see several metal cupboards filled with who-knows-what. Posted on the walls, were simple eye tests and diagrams of the human anatomy. Mini sculptures sat on wooden shelves nailed to the walls, and a tray compiled of various instruments lay not far in front of me.
Opening the door, Gregov walked in along with a man I had never seen. Slightly shorter and wider than Gregov, the mystery man wore a tailored grey suit, lab coat and glasses affront his dark blue eyes. With little to no hair, the man gave me a sly smirk of a smile "This is patient three zero ten" spoke the shorter man, his eyes roaming over my thinly covered body. Feeling uncomfortable with his gaze, I squirmed while looking down.
"Yes, Doctor Zola. This is Amelia. Erik is looking after her" added Gregov. You could see by the subtle submissive tone and stature, that this 'Zola' is the one in charge. I wanted to snicker, not a few hours ago Gregov marched around with his head held high.
"Good" smiled Zola, nodding his head "he's a very promising pupil of mine. She's in good hands then" walking toward me, the man stood taller as I sat down "Look at me little girl. I want to see your face" putting a finger under my chin, he lifted my head to meet his eerie eyes "how old is she?"
"Sixteen" answered Gregov, picking up a chart from the bench lining the wall under the shelves.
"Healthy I presume" Zola mumbled more to himself than anyone in the room. Gripping my lower jaw tight, he forced my mouth open wide "you have all your teeth. Very good" feeling with his meaty hands up and down my arms, he squeezed "skinny little thing aren't you" Looking me over once again, he turned my head this way and that. When letting go, I had come to an assumption he was happy with whatever he had seen "I want the medical files when you're done testing her. If everything is in order, we will continue"
Watching Gregov nod, Zola looked me over once again before leaving the room "it seems you'll live another day after all little dove" wincing on the inside, I didn't like the name he had given me. Looking away from Gregov, I headed Erik's warning. I couldn't help think though; what did he mean 'live another day'? What had happened to the rest? Where they killing them? Feeling my heart clench, the little girl Meredith's face, flashed into my vision. I hope she is alright. I pray she survives "hold out your arm" instructed Gregov, while turning around and wheeling the trolley of instruments closer to us. Doing as he says, I held out my left arm. Coming back toward me, he wrapped a rubber band of some sort above the crease of my elbow. Tapping away, he pressed with his fingers before reaching next to him and grabbing a thick needle.
"What are you doing?!" I screeched, pulling my limb away from the sharp object. I knew that Doctor, Zola had said something about medical records, but I hated needles. They were painful and gruelling. Not to mention the bruise I would always get afterwards.
"Give me your arm girl" sneering at me with a glare, he forcefully gripped my appendage and yanked it toward him. Not having time to argue, he stuck the needle into my vain and proceeded to draw blood. Wincing, he drew several vials before pulling away and unlatching the rubber band "now lay down" slowly picking up my feet, Gregov had turned to the trolley. Gently laying down on the gurney, I watched from the side as he turned back to me.
Lifting up my dress, he didn't care about my modesty or the fact that I had nothing else under it "Stop it" I spluttered out, trying to wack his hands away.
"Do that again" he said, pointing to my hands and making a snipping motion with his fingers "and I'll cut them off…" Scrunching the fabric to just underneath my breast, he pulled his hands back down and started to poke and prod at my abdomen. Looking away, I stared up to the roof and light fixture; trying to take my mind off of it "you're a beautiful young girl" he stated, looking at me "you haven't been doing grown up things now have you?" feeling my throat go dry, I shook my head. This topic of conversation was unsettling to say the least. Of course, a year or two before all this had happened. When I had first started to bleed, my mother had tried to educate me on 'grown up things'. She had said that 'I ought to know' since I was now a women. Letting a tear slip, I couldn't hold it back anymore "bend your legs"
Doing as he said, I angled both of my legs into an upright position. Walking to the end of the gurney, he reached up and grabbed me by the hips. Dragging me down so he could get closer, he spread them so that he could see. What exactly it was that he was looking for, I didn't know, and nor did I want to. All that I knew, was he was very close. Reaching over to the trolley, he picked up something I couldn't quite make out. Jumping, I let out a yelp as he inserted it into my vagina for a few seconds and then pulled it out "Well. You weren't lying. That's very good…one of your other friends. The red head. She lied to me…" he said, putting the instrument back on the trolley. Leaning over the gurney he pulled me up right by my arms "do you want to know what happened? What happens to girls like her?" shaking my head, I squirmed in his tight grip as he hadn't let go "…she no longer has a tongue…fingers…teeth…she doesn't even have her head" closing my eyes, I could feel another tear slip down my cheek "but don't worry" he said cheering up from the seriousness. Patting my knee, he lifted me up off the gurney to stand on the floor "little doves like you don't have to fret" pinching my nose in-between his fingers, he wiggled it in a childish manner. Hearing the door open, I turned my head to see it was Erik. I was safe "now off you go" Gregov said shewing me with his hands. Quickly but discreetly I walked over to Erik.
I need to get out of here. I need to get out now.