Raging Sea (Undertow, #2)(35)

Last night I tried to be clever. I unbuttoned my shirt and slipped it off. It was filthy, with caked black blood on the back, and barf on the sleeve, but I knew it could block out the light. I draped it over my eyes and enjoyed the closest thing to darkness I’ve felt in . . . I no longer know how long I’ve been in here.

I heard a clang, and then the door opened and men stomped into my space. I was shy. I tried to hide myself, but they were on me before I could. One of the soldiers kicked me in the chest and the other snatched my shirt. A moment later they were gone. The pain spread in hot waves across my ribs, but the despair was more agonizing.

The light still shines, still watches, still ticks. I know it is part of Spangler’s plan. The mattress, the hole, the sleep deprivation, and even the rats are to torment me. He’s training me to be submissive. He’s turning me into a dog.



The door rattles. Now I jump up and prepare to get into the circle. I’ve gotten very fast at following their orders. This time, however, the door opens all the way. On the other side are three armed soldiers, two of whom have M-16s pointed right at my head. A third one is carrying a long pole with a noose attached to the end. It’s exactly like the ones they used on Bex and Arcade the last time I saw them. They’ve come to kill me. They’ve had it with my begging. They are pissed that I’ve been looking for their secret eyes. They know I want to murder the light bulb. I’m tempted to scurry back into the corner and push my mattress between them and me, but I put out my hands. I submit.

“Don’t move,” one of them barks. Suddenly the noose is around my throat, cutting off the air and my voice as they drag me to my feet. They lead me through the door and into the hallway, and I stumble along, panicked that I will trip and hang myself. The noose is unforgiving. It feels like it’s shredding skin and muscle. My lungs tighten. Spots float in my eyes.

Suddenly we’re through a door and in a room as wide and as high and long as an airplane hangar. The lights in here are so bright, I can barely see, but I can make out a maze of chain-link fences in every direction, forming tiny little cages barely big enough for a full-grown man to stand. I’m pushed along the path, passing each cage, and inside I see the contorted faces of people I used to know. They are all adults, men and women, all with broken spirits and sad eyes. I hear someone say my name, but the guards keep pushing me along, so I can’t stop. They shove me deeper into the labyrinth, finally tossing me into an empty cage of my own. They force me to my knees, and the noose comes off. Finally I can take a ragged, desperate breath.

“Turn around and face me,” one of the soldiers demands.

I do as I’m told, fully expecting to see his gun in my face, but instead I find him with his smartphone aimed right at me.

“Smile, freak,” he says, and then I hear a click.

“Get one with me,” the other soldier says, stepping into the shot. I can see he’s grinning as he gives the camera the thumbs-up sign. Everyone gets a picture with me as I stand shaking and bewildered.

“What is this place?” I ask.

“We call it the kennel,” one of the soldiers says.

“Looks good,” the cameraman says as he stares down at the phone. Then they lock the door and leave me alone.

“Let me out of here!” I whimper.

The soldiers ignore my plea, then turn and walk away.

“Lyric?” a voice crackles from the next cage.

I turn to my left and find a rag doll of a girl with dark rings around her eyes. Her skin is ashen and her lips chapped. Her fingers poke through the fence, eager for human contact.

“Do I know you?” I ask.

I kneel down so our faces are close, then nearly fall back when I recognize her.

“Bex!” I cry, “Where are they keeping you?”

She shrugs. “It’s a maze, and I can’t keep track of it. I’m in a cell by myself.”

“Me too.”

“This is the first time I’ve seen you here. We get an hour a day in the cages. I think it’s so they can clean our rooms,” Bex says. “Lyric, we all thought you were dead.”

“We?”

Bex gestures to the other cages. I peer into one and realize I’m looking at another familiar face. I don’t know his name, but I know he is married to a Sirena. I used to see him on the boardwalk when I was a kid. He liked flying kites. Yeah, I know him! In the next cage is another familiar face—Rochelle Lir! I call out to her, but she doesn’t respond. I ask her if she’s seen Terrance or Samuel, but she’s sleeping, I hope.

“Have you seen my mom and dad?”

“I’ve seen the Big Guy,” Bex whispers, as if talking saps her strength.

“He’s here?” I stand and study the cages for as far as I can see. I don’t see him, but they go on forever.

“Dad!”

A few people stir, but no one responds.

“Leonard Walker?” I shout.

There’s a long pause.

“Lyric?” the voice comes from the other side of the room and echoes off the ceiling. “Is that you, Lyric?”

“Dad?”

“Thank you, God!” he cheers.

“Mom?”

“They don’t keep the Alphas in here, honey,” he explains. “Are you okay?”