Shadows in the Night

I was curled up in my small cage. I heard a strange sound and tried to recognize it, but
failed. It was a clinking sound. Like metal hitting metal. It was then I realized I was shivering.
It caused the clinking sound by the metal cage shaking hitting the hard ground. It solved the
mystery but not my problem. I was still open to the freezing air with no protection, besides my
thin dark blue sweater. Seriously, it was like 20 degrees in here!

How long would I be trapped in this isolated box? Long enough for me to go insane?
Long enough for me to freeze to death? Long enough for me to die? I shiver ran down my
spine, but it wasn’t from the dramatic weather.

I was so tired. I wanted to sleep. Would that be okay? I wasn’t sure but I knew it would
pass the time.

My eyes drooped shut and I huddled together, in an attempt to keep warm. As I lay
there, I began thinking about the teenager who I saw earlier. Why had he been in here? Was
it really just to see the new “thing” his father had caught? From his stuttering and nervous
voice I thought he was lying. Or he might have been scared of his dad. I know I would be if I
was him.

I wonder what the man in Nikes wants from me? Why had he taken me? To scare
me? Well that worked.

My stomach growled, filling the dark silent room. I hadn’t even known that hunger
dwelled within me. I also realized that my throat hurt even worse now. I felt sick and I wasn’t
sure if it was just from being scared out of my wits.

“H-Hello?”

I recognized the voice immediately. I let out a sigh of relief overcome with happiness. It
was Jessica’s voice.

“Jessie!” I tried to yell but my voice came out quiet and raspy. It felt unbearable to evan
say a word, but I had to talk with Jess. No matter what. She sounded only a few cages away
from me.

“Alex!” she exclaimed. “What’s going on? I’m scared.”

I still couldn’t see a thing in this dark room, but I was glad to have Jess for company.

“I’m so sorry this happened.” My words flowed out painfully. “It’s all my fault.” I coughed
and that hurt too.

“No way,” she reassured. “It’s not your fault.

I coughed again and tried to control my voice.

“Alex, are you okay? You don’t sound too good?”

“I’m fine. Don’t worry. We have bigger things to worry about.” It wasn’t necessarily a lie.
We really did have larger problems we had to face.

Then the room fell silent. I could tell Jess was thinking about something.

“J-” I began but was cut off.

“Alex.” Her voice shook with terror and wonder.

“What is it?”

“There’s other cages in here.”

I saw them when the light shone in this darkness when the man in Nikes came in here.
There were cages everywhere. How Jessica knew there were cages in here was a mystery.

“How do you know that-” I began but she cut through again.

“Because there surrounding me. I-I.”

“It’s okay. There probably empty. Or filled with supplies or something like that.”

“No Alex.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I think its a human.” she said with worry now tied in her voice.

“Your just scaring yourself. Don’t think about it.”

“But- but it’s-well- I-”

“What?” I asked growing more frustrated.

“I can hear it breathing.”