Inhuman Page 6

  Was I an alien? Was I some gross mutation?

  A mutant. The thought made me nauseous.

  Maybe Meyers was right. Maybe I was just a freak. A freak of nature.

  How fragile the balance of one’s humanity is. What is the line anyways? What makes someone human versus inhuman? Don’t feelings count? A soul? Didn’t I too, have a soul buried deep within me? A consciousness?

  Why did my blood, or my DNA, something so insignificant, get to decide whether or not I was human? How fickle the human race was to accept me as one of their own at face value, but reject me at a microscopic level. How flimsy the standard of human rights become when they are scrutinized at a genetic level.

  Can this get any worse?

  Chapter 8

  Hot droplets kissed every inch of my skin and rolled over my body as though caressing me. Cascading through my hair and running off my shoulders, the water hugged me at every contour like an appreciative lover. Steam rose and hovered in the air around me, cocooning me in a blanket made of mist. Raising my chin to greet the oncoming waterfall of warmth, I allowed a small and grateful smile to grace my lips.

  The highlight of my day…a shower. The one place where an unbiased element nurtured me without a judgmental stare or awkward gaze.

  Walking down the hall behind the armed guard, taking me to and from my daily bathing, I received nothing but sideways glances or avoidance from passing agents and workers. It was like being a leper of society without any visual proof of illness.

  Drying off and dressing myself in the standard white jumpsuit issued to me after my clothes had ‘mysteriously’ been cut off, I was led back to my room.

  Breakfast was always waiting for me when I returned. Day after day, the routine was the same—until today.

  Agent Evans was standing in the middle of my cell when I returned. His face looked pale and he seemed agitated. I couldn’t help but notice the worried frown on his face.

  “Is something wrong?” I asked, suddenly concerned for my own welfare. Briefly, my mind wandered to Agent Meyers and his assaults, hoping that maybe he’d been caught and Agent Evans was going to put a stop to it.

  “Wrong?” He sighed as he shifted his weight from one foot to another. “I don’t know if I’d call it wrong.”

  I sure hoped he didn’t mean that what Agent Meyers was doing to me was okay! My hands clenched into fists as I glared at him. Suppressed anger began to flood to the surface of my body. I could feel myself becoming volatile. I envisioned lunging at Agent Evans and tearing at his throat like a wild animal would after being caged and unfed for months.

  A knock at the door invaded my deranged fantasy.

  “Excuse me.” Agent Evans mumbled as he quickly walked to the door. The door cracked open slightly, I couldn’t see who was on the other side, but Agent Evans had a very quiet conversation with that person.

  Wishing I had better hearing, I tilted my head in their general direction. I focused all my attention to my ears in hopes of catching anything, even just a word, a sentence, something, but I couldn’t make anything out.

  Apparently these people were good at secrecy. I wasn’t surprised. I had determined long ago that they were part of a secret government sect, but it didn’t take a genius to figure that out.

  “Okay, yup, okay.” Agent Evans finished his mysterious conversation with the unknown person on the other side of my cell door. Turning his attention to me, I stood with a defensive stance. My arms folded across my middle, I gave him my best ‘what the hell do you want’ glare.

  “Yes, well, someone will come for you shortly.” Avoiding my abrasive expression, he looked past me at the wall.

  “Come for me? Why?”

  Walking quickly toward the door, he knocked to signal the guard to let him out. For a moment I thought he wasn’t going to answer me, but at the last second, he turned and gave me an unreadable expression. “We need to do another test.” And with that, he walked out.

  Sitting down beside my uneaten breakfast, my stomach lurched at the thought of food.

  Test? What kind of test? How painful will this one be? Curling up in the fetal position, I wondered what these jerks had in store for me now.

  ***

  “Pee into this.” The lab assistant (whom I recognized as the asshole who’d taken a chunk of scalp from my head a couple months earlier) insisted as he handed me a little plastic cup.

  Two armed guards had led me to a bathroom near what appeared to be the lab and then left me alone with the lab assistant. Hovering in the doorway, I gave him a cold glare.

  Is he just going to stand there and watch me?

  “Go ahead.” He stated, crossing his arms.

  Out of all the torturous tests and inhumane acts, this had to be one of the most demeaning. Unzipping my white jumpsuit and pulling it down to my knees, I sat upon the cold, white plastic seat. Thankfully my long hair fell over my face and acted like a black satin curtain, blocking the gawking attendant from my view.

  Holding the little cup between my legs, I waited for my bladder to release. There’s nothing more difficult than trying to relax an embarrassed muscle.

  Finally, after what felt like forever, I managed to let my fluids go. Catching it in the little cup, I fought back the tears of humiliation as I handed him the warm liquid.

  With his hands outstretched to obtain the sample, I intentionally tipped the cup and spilled some urine on his hands. I grinned with satisfaction under my veil of hair.

  Pulling his hand back with a disgusted grunt, he stormed away to the lab. Giggling for the first time in months, I pulled on my jumpsuit and zipped it up.

  Noticing for the first time since I’d arrived; I was out of the cell and unsupervised. Without a guard watching my every move, it was suddenly strange to walk around without an armed chaperone.

  For a moment, I just stood in the bathroom doorway and just observed my surroundings. I could see the lab technician studying my urine sample. He was sucking it up with a little eyedropper and dribbling it on some slides and papers.

  The lab looked like any I’d seen at a hospital; centrifuges, shelves filled with boxes labeled ‘gloves’ and ‘syringes’, and vials of blood standing upright in little plastic trays.

  I haven’t had a blood test in weeks. Whose blood is that?

  I guess it was a little naïve of me to think that I was their only specimen, but I wondered if there were any more like me.

  Tip-toeing away from the bathroom, my bare feet made quiet patting noises as my skin made contact with the white tile floor. Staying close to one wall, I moved down a secluded hallway. Fluorescent lights buzzed monotonously above me and reflected a blinding iridescence off the polished floor.

  The hallway was long and wide with no identifying signs or pictures, just stark and bland.

  Every so often I’d come across a closed door, not unlike the one on my own cell. I wondered if I should open one and have a look. Maybe there was someone just like me in there, afraid and alone.

  Placing my hand on one of the door handles, I contemplated whether or not I should.

  What if there’s a crazy person in there?

  Seemed rather likely in this place. I’d only been here for a couple months and I’d already danced with the prince of insanity.

  No happy endings in this place, I’m sure.

  With my hand still on the door handle, I decided to take a chance.

  Why not, got nothing to lose.

  Holding the latch down with my thumb, I yanked the white door wide open.

  “Oh my god!” The words fell from my lips as I searched for something to hold the door open with. Scanning the small room, I discovered a tray of empty food near the sink. Grabbing it without losing my grasp on the door, I wedged the tray between the frame and the self-closing door.

  After securing my escape route, I rushed to the side of the restrained occupant. “Let me get you out of this!”

  Ripping off the Velcro straps, I had an unpleasant flashback of Mey
ers and his disgusting antics. Pushing the disturbing thoughts to the back of my mind, I focused all my energy on the task at hand.

  After freeing all four limbs, the patient sat up on the cot. “Are you alright?”

  “Yes, thank you.” Ocean blue eyes stared back at me with deep gratitude as she massaged her swollen wrists. Stroking her shoulder-length blonde hair maternally, I surmised she couldn’t be much more than eight years old.

  “What’s your name sweetheart?” I asked, seating myself beside her on the cot.

  “Jessica.” She replied, her tiny voice hovering between shy and afraid.

  “I’m Cassia.” I thrust my hand toward her eagerly. Moving her petite hand slowly towards me, she accepted my gesture. Feeling her warm little hand in mine nearly made me jump with joy. I felt like it had been years since I’d been touched gently by another human being.

  “Why on earth do they have you here? You’re just a little girl!” I felt a lump form in my throat as my imagination flew in all directions. All I hoped was that she hadn’t had to endure the torturous tests and inhumanities that I’d lived through so far.

  Uncertainty clouded her young expression as she searched my face with suspicion. I could understand her reluctance to trust strangers; this place quickly teaches a person that no one should be trusted.

  Smiling at her, I hoped that I could gain her trust. Frankly, I was just ecstatic to have some normal company again. Apparently deciding to confide in me, she spoke quietly as though telling me her darkest secrets.

  “I’m…’mune to everything.” Confused, I frowned as I tried to decipher what she meant. Thankfully, she chattered on while she reached up and began braiding a section of my long black hair.

  “When I was in my mommy’s tummy, she had a bad disease called…” She pursed her little lips and scrunched up her face as she tried to recall. “AID.”

  “AIDS?” I offered, my heart sinking as I foreshadowed her mother’s fate.

  “Yup. But I didn’t get it.”

  My brow knitted together again. I’d heard of babies being born free of AIDS when their mother’s had it. It didn’t totally explain why they’d consider her immune to ‘everything’.

  Jessica continued to tell her short life story.

  “Daddy told me that the doctors tested me a lot…to see why I was…’mune.”

  “Immune.” I corrected her softly.

  “Immune. He said they looked at my blood and it was…different.” My heart literally stopped. I could feel it pause as I held my breath, waiting for the next sentence.

  Was she…like me? Maybe I wasn’t the only one. I didn’t know whether to feel elated for myself or pity for her.

  “Different?” My voice was but a whisper as I urged her to continue.

  “Yah. The doctors said that I couldn’t catch a cold, or the flu or even something called cancer.”

  Knowing my own medical history and lack of illnesses, this young girl seemed to be molding herself into my own life story.

  “Jessica, I’m going to ask you something very strange, but it’s very important that I know, okay?”

  Her big blue eyes turned serious as she stopped playing with my hair and stared up at my face.

  “Do you have a birthmark…right here?” I touched my pointer finger to the center of my chest. I’m sure my heart was pounding so hard that I could feel it banging against my finger.

  This could be the moment, the moment where I discovered I wasn’t truly an anomaly in this cruel and cold world.

  That maybe, just maybe, I wasn’t alone.

  Jessica opened her mouth to tell me the one thing I desired to know—whether or not she was like me. An alien among humans. An oddity in the world of the normal.

  “I…” She uttered but was abruptly cut off by a man yelling just outside the door.

  “Find her!” A male’s angry voice emanated from the hallway.

  “Uh oh.” My heart began pounding under my ribcage as I wondered what they would do to me if they discovered me wandering about their secret facility.

  “We have to get out of here.” I said in a hushed voice as I clutched Jessica by both shoulders and looked her directly in the eyes. Her eyes wide with fright, she nodded and we both got off her bed and walked carefully towards the door.

  “Check every room!” The deep voice hollered.

  Sliding my fingers between the door and frame, I bent over to remove the tray from its position. Cautious to be silent, I gently lay the tray on the floor and pushed it about two feet away from me.

  Jessica whimpered lightly beside me as we heard several of the men in black run by, their dress shoes tapping on the polished hallway floor.

  I’d never been a woman of faith, but I wasn’t above praying, especially at this moment. “Please, please help us.” I whispered just under my breath.

  Ironically, within seconds of my impromptu appeal, one of the men shouted. “Check the north hallway!”

  The frantic rapping of shoes faded into the distance. An eerie silence enveloped the hallway.

  My pulse was racing so hard I could hear my blood rushing behind my eardrums. Carefully, I opened the door just a crack. Pressing my right eye against the sliver between the frame and the door, I scanned the hallway for movement. Satisfied that the hall was clear, I turned and offered Jessica my hand.

  “Ready?” She nodded with obvious trepidation as I moved the door open slowly. Poking my head out, I looked back and forth down the hall quickly. Keeping Jessica safely behind me, we moved out from her room. Unsure as to which way to go, I paused for a breathless moment.

  Which way?

  Our survival could depend on just this one choice. Taking a deep breath, I chose to go to the left. Pulling Jessica out from the room with me, we moved forward into an uncertain fate.

  The sound of our bare feet lightly slapping against the tile floor resonated throughout the hallway. Turning my head sharply, I glanced behind us to see if there was anyone there who might have seen us. Paranoia and fear intermingled in my system, making me feel nauseous.

  Jessica followed along behind me; I could hear her attempting to control her breathing, fighting the panic, just like me. Stealthily, we moved through the long hallway until we came to an intersection. Pressing my back up against the wall, I motioned for Jessica to copy me. Complying a little too quickly, she practically slammed her back to the wall.

  Giving her a compassionate look, I took her hand and gave it a squeeze.

  Taking a deep breath, I prepared myself to peek around the corner. I could hear voices in the distance but couldn’t determine which direction they were coming from. Slowly, I turned my body and slid myself toward the corner. My right eye scanned the area. Seeing no one down either hall, I grabbed Jessica’s hand and led her across the intersection.

  Row after row of white doors, just like the ones Jessica and I had been held in.

  Do each of these have a prisoner? My heart was heavy just thinking of all the stolen souls that could be trapped within these walls.

  Constantly checking behind us, we jogged silently down the hallway. Narrowing my eyes to focus, I could see a door at the very end of the corridor—a metal door.

  Quickening our pace, I could almost taste freedom. With Jessica huffing and puffing behind me, we finally reached it. Placing my hand on the cool metallic surface, tears welled in my eyes as I read the sign above it. Backlit with a hot red light, the letters leapt out at me as though screaming the words of my salvation.

  EXIT.

  Pushing the silver bar in the center of the door, I winced as the hinges squeaked in protest. Praying that there wasn’t an alarm that would scream as soon as I opened it, I sucked in a deep breath before I pushed.

  “Hey!” I heard the sound of angry men yelling and running up behind us. Jessica screamed and pulled on the back of my jumpsuit. Turning my head sharply, I saw five agents in black sprinting for our location.

  Agent Meyers was in the lead.

  Making
eye contact with him, I saw fury behind his eyes. Giving him a defiant glare, I shoved my shoulder into the door as hard as I could. A piercing pain shot down my arm as the big metal door flung wide open.

  Air. Sunshine. Wind.

  All the elements which I’d been deprived of for so long rushed to greet me.

  I didn’t care what happened at this point. I didn’t care if I died anymore. Feeling the rays of the sun kiss my face for the first time in months was heaven enough.

  My maternal instincts, however, kicked in with another scream from Jessica. Bolting from the facility, I pulled Jessica along as I ran across an asphalt-covered yard. Littered with army vehicles, I surmised we were trapped on some kind of military base. Sprinting for the edge of the pavement, my eyes darted left and right as they searched for a way out.

  Corralled by an electric fence, sharp barbs snarled from their perch atop the metallic latticework. Beyond the fence lie acre upon acre and mile after mile of grassland. Even if we’d managed to escape the enclosure, we’d have to run for days to find civilization.

  Tired and frustrated, I stopped running. Jessica looked up at me with confusion as I suddenly came to a halt.

  There was nowhere to go.

  The five agents that had been chasing us had grown to over a dozen as they surrounded us. Falling to my knees, I covered my face with my hands and wept. Jessica hugged me hard. Realizing I didn’t get the answer to my question earlier, I looked up and grabbed her by the shoulders.

  “Jessica! Quick! Do you have a birthmark here?!” I pointed to my chest. The agents rushed in, forming a circle of black around us.

  Jessica cried openly as one of the agents picked her up and whisked her away. Reaching her little hand for me, she screamed the answer. “No! Cassia! I don’t!”

  A familiar sensation of cold loneliness overwhelmed me. Watching them take the little girl back into the building, the numbness of alienation swept over me.

  Alone.

  I barely noticed as Agent Meyers took a step towards me. Lifting my face to him, I glowered at him like a feral cat that had been cornered. Raising his right hand and balling it into a fist, he brought it down across my cheek. Shock jarred my senses as a sharp pain ripped through my jaw. My head bounced off the pavement as I hit the ground. Crying, I coughed and spit blood out of my mouth. The stun of his strike made my head spin as I struggled to lift myself off the ground.