Desolation, J. B. Everett [reading a book txt] 📗

I just kept walking. Then, I saw someone shining a flashlight at me from across the jungle. I should of stopped and realized it was one of them, but instead I walked towards them. And the next thing I knew, my hands were tied behind my back and a blindfold was put over my eyes. I tried to fight him off, but he was too strong" Ian explains solemnly.

I am silent for a moment, thinking.

"I don't know who the fuck these people are or what they're doing to us" Ian says, bitterness in his tone

"They're called the Blair Institute" I say suddenly.

"The what?" Dylan says, sitting up.

I look at Dylan, then back to Ian, who is staring at me.

"These people, they are from the Blair Institute" I say.

"What the fuck is that?" Dylan asks.

"I don't know, but it was painted on the side of the boat that they captured us on. And I saw it embroidered on their lab coats in a memory that I had" I explain.

Ian raises his eyebrows at me.

"You had another memory?" he says.

"Yeah, but it was a really short one" I say quickly.

"You had a memory? We can't remember anything!" Dylan exclaims.

"Look, I barely remember anything at all except my name. Except I've been having a few flashbacks come back to me. They come randomly, and I don't know what they are, but I think that they are bits and pieces of my memory back to me" I say.

"What happened in this one?" Ian asks me.

"It was just like the first one I had. I was laying on a hospital bed, with this bright light shining over me. And then this doctor, one of these people, leaned over me. That's when I saw it, embroidered on the shoulder of his lab coat; The Blair Institute. He told me, just like those men just told us, to remember that this is all for the greater good. And then..." Chapter Seventeen

I stare down into the black abyss, my stomach churning. The thought of going back down there makes me nauseous.

The man gruffly unties the rope around my wrists, then pushes me towards the edge of the hatch. He shines the flashlight down into the tunnel, right onto the rusted ladder.

'Go down" he says coarsely

I swallow hard, looking down into the blackness.

"Now" he demands.

Reluctantly, I kneel down then slowly begin to climb down the ladder, descending into the gloom. The man stands above, shining his flashlight down on me. My entire body is trembling, and often my sweaty palms keep slipping on the rungs of the ladder. Finally, my feet hit the ground. After wiping my palms onto my shirt, I look up at the man, who is about thirty feet above me.

"Go inside. They are waiting for you" he shouts down.

Fear pulsates throughout my entire body as I turn around, facing the large steel door built into the earth. I reach one of my shaking hands out and twist the door handle. Slowly, the door creaks open and I am once again blinded by the white, fluorescent hallway. I walk inside, closing the door behind me. My nose is immediately greeted by the sharp, pungent odor of antiseptics.

I stand there for a moment, unsure what to do. The silence of the hallway is unnerving, making the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. I back up against the metal door, my heart racing. Then, I jump when someone rounds the corner into the hallway.

Hal.

He looks at me, his blue eyes piercing into mine. I recoil back even further, sickened to see him again. He then begin to walk towards me slowly, his arms crossed across his chest. His pale lips break into an unpleasant smile that sends shivers down my spine.

"Hello Tessa, what a pleasure it is to see you again" he says icily, his false smile still plastered on his face.

I glare at him, trying not to let fear show on my face.

"You are probably wondering why just you are down here right now" he says, stopping right in front of me.

I continue to glare at him, thinking about how bad I want to kick him in the shins as well.

"You are down here Tessa because we have been listening to you. And we heard something you said that was quite...unusual"

I immediately know what he is going to say.

"You have had some memories, is that right?" Hal asks.

I don't respond.

"Now Tessa, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. So I'll ask again, you have had a few memories, is that right?" Hal says chillingly.

"Yes" I say curtly.

He nods, eyeing me.

"Well that's quite peculiar" he says.

"And what are you going to do about it?" I ask, crossing my arms.

"We are going to stop it" he says sharply.

My blood runs cold.

"H...H...How?" I ask, fear spreading across my face.

"Just a short, quick procedure. So short that you'll barely feel a thing. And if you cooperate, you will be released back to your cage" Hal says.

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I shake my head, backing up as far as I can away from this vile man. My heart pounds, and I suddenly feel extremely light-headed.

"Tessa, it will be short, quick and only hurt for a second" Hal says.

"Why do you need to wipe my memories away?" I ask, my voice trembling.

Hal looks looks at me, raising his eyebrows.

"You really don't think I'm going to tell you that, do you?"

"And if I refuse?" I say daringly.

He grins again, a wicked, crooked grin.

"If you refuse, something quite unpleasant will occur. Far worse than the procedure"

"If I do this procedure, I want you to let us all out of the cages" I say, trying to sound as defiant as possible.

Hal laughs coldly.

"No can do. But if you do this, I will send you back to your cage, unharmed and healthy" he says.

"Fine" I say,

I have no choice.

"Good. Now follow me" he says.

He turns around and begins walking down the hallway. I reluctantly follow him, my head spinning as I wonder what they are going to do to me.

We turn the corner and begin walking down the hall with the doors.  Finally, we stop in front of a door with a sign that says, "CRANIAL OPERATIONS"

Panic rises up inside of me. "CRANIAL OPERATIONS" does not sound pleasant at all.

What have I gotten myself into.

Hal opens the door, revealing a small room similar to the one I was in a few days ago. Except this room contains a large CAT scan machine in the center of the room. I feel dizzy wonder how the hell they have a CAT scan machine underground on an island. And I feel even dizzier when I realize that I am going to be put inside of that machine.

A man is already inside the room, standing by the machine and wearing a white lab coat and mask. He looks up at us.

"She's ready" Hal says, pushing me into the room.

The man nods and Hal closes the door behind me. There's no turning back now.

My heart thuds in my chest as the man motions for me to come over. I take slow, wobbling steps, the feeling gone throughout my limbs.

"Lay down" the man says, his voice muffled through the surgical mask covering his face.

I climb up onto the table and lay down on my back, my entire body quaking with fear. Bright fluorescent lights shine down from above, making me squint. The man leans over me, placing a clear mask over my mouth. 

"Now stay still, and this will be over very soon" the man says.

He walks away and presses a button. The machine immediately turns on, making a loud humming noise. He presses another button and I feel the table I am laying on begin to move slowly into the machine. I grip the sides of the table, my eyes widening with fear. The humming gets louder and louder as I enter the machine until it is unbearable. It screams, blasting my ears and vibrating my entire body. I want to scream and run, but I am completely trapped.

Then, just when I think that I cannot take it anymore, a gas sprays through my mask. I breathe in and the next thing that I know is blackness.


When I wake up, my head is pounding. I open my eyes and for a few moments, my vision is blurred. But when it refocuses, I see that I am staring up at the white ceiling. I sit up, dazed and disorientated. Then, I am knocked out of my haze when I see Hal, standing across the room, staring at me.

"See? That wasn't that bad, right?" he says, smiling.

I close my eyes, trying to remember what happened. The last thing that I remember is going into the machine, then blackness.

"What did you do to me?" I say, my voice shaking.

He steps forward, coming towards me, that unpleasant smile still wiped across his face.

"I'm afraid I cannot tell you Tessa. But now you are free to go" Hal says.

"Yeah, free to go back to being trapped in a cage" I say, rolling my eyes at him.

He nods, holding his hand out to help me down from the table. Disgusted, I jump down from the table myself, refusing to touch him. When I hit the ground, I instantly feel unsteady and wobble slightly. My vision fades out for a moment, then returns.

Hal opens the door and I follow him out. The man who took me here stands in the hallway, waiting.

"Escort her back to her cage" Hal says to him.

The man nods, then grabs me by the arm, pulling me down the hallway. Every step I take sends pulsating throbs of pain in my head. We finally arrive at the steel door and the man opens it, pushing me into the darkness.

I begin to climb the ladder, the man right behind me. My weak body can barely climb; every movement makes my entire body ache. When we reach the top I use all of my remaining strength to push the hatch door open. I climb out onto the ground, and the man immediately grabs me before I have the chance to even try to run.

We begin walking back towards the cages. It is still nighttime, and the moon shines bright in the night sky, illuminating our path. Finally, we reach the clearing where the cages are. The man brings me up to my cage, unlocks the door then pushes me inside. I collapse onto the floor, my entire body giving out. I hear the click of a lock, then the footsteps of the man walking away.

"Tessa?" I hear Ian's voice call out.

"Yeah?" I reply, my voice weak.

"What happened? Are you okay?" he asks me.

Suddenly, I begin to cry. Tears cascade down my face uncontrollably.

Ian rushes forward to the front of his cage, grabbing the bars and looking at me.

"Tess..." he whispers.

I continue to cry. Everything is just so messed up right now, and my head is still spinning.

"What did they do to you?" he asks.

I