Until Time Stands Still (14 page)

            “So you want to turn her into a lab rat?” Mykel asked. “She would rather die.”

            “Oh I highly doubt that, Sir.” Another doctor spoke up. “The latest blood work tells us your wife is pregnant. The breeding program is proving to be a success!”

            “I suppose you all think that’s great news.” Mykel said. “But right now, that’s the worst possible thing you could have said to me.” He stood and left the room.

            Graham got up and followed after him. 

            “Graham, she hates me already. She’s just going to hate me even more for tricking her into getting pregnant. She’s gonna feel like I trapped her.”

            “Look man, you haven’t seen what I’ve seen. That woman loves you. She wouldn’t get so pissed at you if she didn’t care about you.”

            “I never wanted to be a part of this damn program in the first place!” He growled.

            “I know.” He said walking with him. “Where are you going?”

            “Gear room.” He said. “I’m going to go get her and bring her home. She won’t survive out there on her own…especially with a baby. She doesn’t even know about the baby yet. What if she gets hurt? She’s out there alone and she has no idea how dangerous it is. I have to bring her back.” He shook his head. “How the hell did she knock out the guard anyway?”

Graham went to his locker and began to strap on his weapons. “She’s smart, man. Never underestimate a pissed off and determined woman. She’ll be just fine until we get to her.”

            Isabelle was woken instantly by voices outside her makeshift shelter. Someone was laughing. She poked her head out and gasped. Surrounding her tent were several very dirty, scruffy looking men.

            “Hey, there sugar.” One of them crooned, kneeling down beside her. “You gonna come out of there any time soon?” He grinned wide. He was missing half his front teeth and the few that were left looked rotted out.

            “Who are you?” She narrowed her eyes at him.

            “Names Barrett.” He said. “Come on out of there.”

            She really didn’t want to, but inside her shelter, she was totally helpless, especially if he decided to crawl inside it with her. If she came out, maybe she could run for it, if she needed too. She sighed. “Move back.” He grinned widely and moved out of her way. She crawled out and stood up. There were seven of them surrounding her shelter.

            “So what you doin’ all the way out here?” One of them asked.

            “None of your business.” She said smoothly.

            “No need to get snippy.” Barrett said, chuckling.

            “There’s no need to be bothering me.” She said, narrowing her eyes.

            “Oh, we aren’t bothering you…yet.” Another man with dirty blonde hair sneered.

            “Easy now, Gus.” Barrett said. “No need to scare the lady.”

            She glared at the men. “Look guys, I’ve had a really rotten couple of weeks and I’m in no mood to deal with more bullshit. Please leave me alone.”

            “Where you headed, lady?” Someone called out. She turned to glance at him. He was very tall, with a bushy red beard and curly red hair. His ice blue eyes were cold, and empty. She suppressed a shiver.

            “I’m headed into town.” She said.

            “We can take you.” Barrett offered. “It’s not safe for a lady out here, all alone.” Several of the men chuckled, as if sharing a private joke.

            She felt safer alone than she did surrounded by strange men. She regretted not bringing the pistol she found in Mykel’s closet. She knelt down and grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder. “I’d rather go alone. Please, move aside and let me pass.” She said firmly.

            “And what if we don’t?” The red haired man said, coming up behind her. She elbowed him in the solar plexus as hard as she could. He slumped to the ground, gasping for air.

            “You bitch!” One of the men made a move to grab her and she shrieked and ran, trying to shove her way past Barrett. He caught the end of her long braided hair and pulled hard. Her head snapped back and she fell against the man.

            “That was a mistake, Missy.” He hissed. He put a long knife at her throat and she instantly stilled under the sharp blade. “Keep fighting us, and you’ll only get yourself scarred up.”

            “She’s pretty, Barrett. Leave her that way.” A dark haired man spoke up. “We can trade her for a years’ worth of rations for all of us at the auction house. Someone will want to break that bitch in real good, until she ain’t got no fight left.”

            Isabelle’s stomach heaved and she blanched, all the blood draining from her face. Tears pooled in her eyes, but to her credit, she didn’t give them the satisfaction of crying.

One man held her and the other tied her hands behind her back. Another placed a rope around her neck. They tore through her bag, taking everything useful, and left the rest of her clothes scattered on the ground. Laughing, they took turns leading her by the neck like cattle, into the town.

            She didn’t say a word as they walked, having learned from her first experience as a captive. She didn’t want to be beaten, or raped by these men. She knew it was likely to happen anyway, but she was hoping that she could put it off as long as possible. Long enough for Mykel to find her. She knew without a doubt he would come for her, no matter what hateful things she said to him. He always found a way to saved her. The best thing she could do was find a way to leave a trail for him to follow. She knew he would track her to the shelter and see her clothes. He’d surely see the tracks they all made, but she wanted to be sure. As they walked, she dug her nails into the palm of her hand, trying to make herself bleed. She hoped that even a few drops here or there would be enough to tell him where she was headed.

            They entered the gates of the city near midday sometime. She knew because the sun beat down on her and she was starting to get a nasty sunburn. Most of the men had leathery red skin from being outdoors too long. She was almost grateful when they came to the old rundown warehouse. One of the men rapped on the door in an obvious code. Someone opened it from the inside. She was shoved inside. It took several seconds for her eyes to adjust to the darkness after being in the bright light most of the day.

            Once her eyes adjusted she looked around. There were boxes and crates everywhere. In the center of the room, was a long table. Several men were sitting around it playing cards.

            “We found a new one. Feisty too.” Barrett said.

            A hugely obese man stood up and walked over to the group. Several of the men stood out of the way as he made his way to her. He was a black man with a buzz cut and tattoos all over his arms, neck and head. His eyes glittered a dark chocolate, almost black.

She stared up at him silently, trying not to show her fear.

            “You aren’t from around here, are you girly?” The man asked. “Where you from?”

            “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” She said quietly.

            He grabbed her chin and forced her mouth open. He pulled her lip up and inspected her teeth. He seemed satisfied and stepped back from her, walking around her. She turned her head to watch him. He took out a large knife and sawed at the rope binding her hands. When they came loose, blood flowed to her hands and fingers, causing her to wince. The pins and needles started immediately.

            “Strip.” The man commanded. There were cheers from the men around the room. There had to be at least thirty of them. Her face flushed crimson.

            “No.” She said hotly, her face burning in embarrassment.

            “If you don’t, I’ll tell the boys to strip you. You don’t want that, do you?”

            She scowled, and shook her head.

            The man backhanded her hard enough to make her neck pop, but she braced herself and managed to stay on her feet. “I said, strip!” He shouted, spitting in her face as he spoke.

            She shook with rage, and began to strip, her face burning in embarrassment. A small trickle of blood oozed down her chin from her split lip. When she was down to her bra and panties the man walked around her again, lifted her breasts in his hands, and inspected every inch of her skin.

            “She’ll do just fine.” He finally said. “Take her to the others.” He told Barrett. He turned his back on her and walked back to his poker game. Barrett tied her hands again, this time not as tightly, and led her, still almost naked, to another room in the warehouse. There was a narrow isle in between large cages that lined the walls. Isabelle was shocked to see people, instead of animals in them. There were several women huddled in the corners, or covered in thin blankets. Some were totally nude, others with torn dresses. Some had old faded bruises. All of them looked broken, sad, and resigned to their fate.

            She was shoved into a cage and the door locked. On the floor was a small square of a blanket that was really no bigger than a bath towel. She picked it up and saw it was filthy. She shook it out and wrapped it around herself anyway, thankful to be covered in anything at all. She gasped when the men who brought her there turned out the lights, plunging the room of cages into utter darkness.

            She carefully walked around the cage, shaking the sides.

            “Quiet.” Someone hissed. “If you make noise, or cause trouble, someone else gets beat for it.”

            “What is this place?” She asked.

            “The Auction.” Another woman whispered.

            “They auction people?” She asked shocked. “For what?”

            Someone snorted. “Girl, don’t you know anything?”

            “I’m not from here.” She said.

            “These men capture women, and auction them for goods. Food. Water. Smokes, Alcohol, Drugs, Sex…whatever they want.” The first woman said. “What happens to you after, is up to whoever buys you. Women are like cattle here. The men mostly just want to breed us. The government issued an incentive to produce as many children as possible within the next twenty years. The man with the most children will be awarded twenty years’ worth of water, food rations and supplies for each member of his family.”