Breaking Their Hold

“They’ll kill him!” Melissa sobbed as Jimmy pulled her through the forest. The tears hadn’t stopped falling out of her green eyes since Pierre had been caught, and she doubted they would any time soon. Both Jimmy and Matt realized how distraught she was over this, and had known she wouldn’t move from her spot without being forced. Matt had carried her most of the distance they’d covered in the last four hours since they’d left Fullerton, but she was now on her feet again, reluctantly being pulled by Jimmy.

“They won’t, Mel.” He told her, his voice still soothing despite how worried she knew he was. He too thought that they’d never see Pierre again. When the Government or a local police force caught you, you never got away. You were their property forever, and they did with you what they wanted. But he knew Pierre, and he was a smart kid for how young he was. “He’s a sneaky little bastard.” He threw in some humor in an attempt to calm her down, or even make her crack a smile. For once, his joke only served to make Melissa feel even worse.

“Halt!” A voice called out to them, immediately causing Jimmy, Matt, and Melissa to freeze in their spots. Jimmy pulled her behind him, and Matt stood to her back so that she was sandwiched between them. She couldn’t see what was going on or who had called out to them, but she was sure that they’d been caught, too.

“Who are you?” Matt asked, his voice deep and angry-sounding. That could be a good thing for him to ask, Melissa thought to herself with a slight breath of false relief. If he was asking who had talked to them, he either couldn’t see the person or they weren’t dressed in official clothes.”

There was a shuffling sound in the trees before it stopped, and then Matt pressed up even tighter against her. The same voice that had told them to halt then spoke again. “Who I am is of no concern to you.” It said. The voice sounded feminine, suggesting to Melissa that it was another female. “Show me the face of the one in the middle.”

“You’re not fucking hurting her.” Jimmy spat at the voice angrily, tightening his hold on Melissa’s arms from in front of her. “What do you want with us?”

“Show me her face!” The voice hissed. A low growl of pain came from Matt, and Melissa began shaking. If he was in pain, it meant the person had hurt him. It meant that the person had a weapon.

“It…It’s okay, Matt, Jimmy.” She replied quietly, squeezing Jimmy’s hand back reassuringly as she decided to have faith in a God she wasn’t sure existed that if she let the person see her face nothing else would happen to Matt or Jimmy.

Matt stepped away from her a little, and she slowly moved so that she was standing beside Jimmy, his hand still clutching hers in an almost painful grasp. It was only then that Melissa saw the body the voice belonged to.

A woman was standing in front of them, dressed in a raggedy brown skirt and a white tank top that was stained with dirt and blood. Melissa could tell the woman had naturally pale skin the same as she did, but it too was covered with dirt. She couldn’t distinguish the natural color of the girl’s hair, but it appeared to be dark. She was holding a spear in her hand, and Melissa assumed that she had used it to hurt Matt. The girl’s eyes widened when she saw Melissa, and a loud gasp was emitted from her mouth.

“You’re the girl we’ve been waiting for.” The girl said, before rushing over from where she’d been standing. She surprised Melissa by enveloping her in a hug, causing her to stiffen.

“What do you mean, waiting for?” Jimmy asked, pulling Melissa in front of him again. The girl glowered up at him, and then turned a soft look to Melissa again before she spoke.

“She’s the girl who escaped from the Hospital. The one who’s going to end Erich Schlagger’s reign of terror.” She told Jimmy before pointing her spear at him. “I was told to make sure that when she got close to the village she made it safely. Nothing was said about the men with her, however.”

Melissa heard the open threat in the girl’s tone, and immediately held her hands out in front of Jimmy. If the girl saw her as a sort of hero, she could maybe stop her from hurting Jimmy or Matt. “If you hurt either of them…I won’t go.” She said, looking up at Jimmy. “Th-They’re with me.”

“They’re men.” The girl said, her tone obviously disgusted with that fact. “We only trust the ones they call Pierre and Jacobs.”

The name Jacobs sounded familiar to Melissa, but she couldn’t remember where she’d heard it before. She decided to ignore that for now, and her eyes began watering when she thought of Pierre again. “The police have Pierre.” She said to the girl quietly.

The girl smirked. “Of course they do. They always get him. Jacobs makes sure of it every time.” She chuckled before glowering at Jimmy and Matt, who were glaring back just as hardly. “If they come with you, they get tied.”

“Like fucking—” Matt started, before Melissa placed a hand on his upper arm, nodding her head. She had a feeling this girl could be trusted.

“It’s fine, Matt.” She said quietly. “But when we get to the village, they get untied. Is that alright? They won’t hurt you. They’ve been protecting me.”

“Men.” The girl rolled her eyes before pulling two pieces of rough-hewn rope from a pack on her side. She motioned for them to hold their arms out and they grudgingly obliged before she tied them as tightly as she could without cutting off circulation.

“Goddamn crazy woman.” Jimmy muttered under his breath, obviously not liking this new development. Melissa patted his back in a reassuring manner and leaned he head against his shoulder much to the girl’s dismay before she began walking.

“How far is the village from here?” Melissa asked her quietly as they walked. She had become a little calmer after the girl had said Pierre was used to getting caught. It meant that maybe he wouldn’t die after all; that maybe they’d see him again after all.

“An hour from here.” She told them, not turning her head as she walked ahead of them, watching to the side of her carefully. There was no distinguishable path that she was following, though she clearly knew where she was headed.

“Will we at least get some food when we get there? I’m starving.” Matt said quietly, earning another grunt from the girl.

“You will eat only if you supply it for yourself. It’s obvious you’ve never had to fend for yourself before. You get what you earn. Melissa will be the only one provided for. She’s our hero. She’s our chance at real freedom.”

With that being said, everything returned to silence. Melissa’s feet were killing her, but she couldn’t ask Matt or Jimmy to carry her to the village because of their hands. She wanted to ask the nameless girl to untie them, but she knew it would only get her angry.

-x-

When they reached the village, it was like nothing Melissa had ever seen. It was as different from Fullerton as night was from day. It looked as though it were a Native American teepee town, with the homes built out of animal hides and palm fronds, a single fire pit in the middle of the small area. No one lingered outside, and Melissa assumed that everyone was inside the teepee-like buildings.

The girl led them through the little village before they turned to the left, and they were in the forest again for only a few seconds before she began pulling a pile of branches and stones apart. Melissa was confused until she realized that the pile had been camouflaging the mouth of a large cave, which she led them inside. It was dark, though it appeared to be a cave that was used often because of the torches that had been crudely attached to the stone walls.

“The huts are for distraction.” The girl explained when she realized that they must be confused at this point. “This is where everyone stays. We’ve never been discovered here.”

“How is this cave this big?” Jimmy asked in awe as she continued leading them down the dark cave. Mel was just a little scared, and was holding on to Jimmy’s arm with her hands. He did his best to reassure her by leaning his head against hers whenever she got close enough.

“It used to be a passage through the mountains.” The girl told him, sounding annoyed at the fact that he hadn’t figured it out on his own. “The other end is covered by rocks that have fallen into its opening through the years, but nothing ever got to this end.”

“Mara’s back with outsiders!” A little voice exclaimed loudly, causing Mel to jump in fright. The girl in front of them chuckled, and leaned down to look at a little girl.

“They aren’t outsiders, Penelope. Or at least, the girl isn’t. She’s Melissa.”

The little girl’s eyes went wide, and she immediately went to stand in front of Melissa. “You’re gonna save us all! Mama said so!”

Melissa didn’t know how to respond, so she gave the little girl an awkward smile before she looked up again, this time freezing in her tracks, the color draining from her face.

Standing in front of her with a smile on his face and a torch in his hand was one of the Policemen she’d seen on the other side of Fullerton.

“Hello, Melissa Baker. My name is Astor Jacobs.” He smiled at her, offering her his hand. Instead of taking it, Melissa’s eyes rolled to the back of her head as she fainted.