Chapter 2 Waking in the Black Unknown

Waking in the Black Unknown

Hailey woke up with a cough. Her thoughts are jumbled like the writing attempts of a toddler. Slowly, everything came to her, sending her into a fit of panic. It was dark so she felt around with her hands. The floor was metallic, undulated and cold. Now on her knees, her arms flailed about in search of Aaron. She felt the warmth of his breath before her fingers felt his nose. Her relief lasted for a moment. Then she punched him.

“Wake up!” she demanded. It took another punch to get him up. Unlike her, he wasn’t startled. He took the dark in and squinted in an effort to make out shapes.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“That’s what I am trying to figure out.”

“Well make it fast.” He knew she was trying to be bold and fearless when all she wanted to do was scream, curl into a ball and wish everything was fine. Hailey became snappy whenever things didn’t make sense to her and fear seemed to be the only emotion she could wield. He had seen her act like this multiple times; the first time was at camp and her reaction scared him a little. But this time was different. He had no guarantee that things would be fine. He did not know what to say or do to make her calm. His mouth opened, the words formed but refused to come out. They did not feel right. Instead of yelling the frustration building up inside him, he pulled her close and felt the ripple go through her. She was shaking like a leaf.

“We will figure this out, Hailey.”

"We will?" Her words were wrapped in palpable unbelief. It took everything within him to not snap at her. There was movement outside. First, it was footsteps–Aaron counted – three, no, four men were walking. The crunching sound suggested there was gravel outside. Then they heard the sound of swinging doors and the hollow sound of commands.

“What is happening outside?”

“We will find out soon enough.”

The steps were now close. A bright stream of daylight rushed into the darkness as they heard the movement of a latch.

“Move out!” came the command. “Move out immediately!”

They were both startled for more than a second but tried to obey the voice. Staggering they made for the direction of the voice and light. Hands roughly grabbed them and pulled them from the container. Their faces hit the gravel and they coughed blood. Hailey screamed in pain while Aaron retched and poured out the content of his belly. His eyes were still getting used to the blinding light.

“Get on your feet!” came another order. Aaron managed to look at the owner of the voice. The man was dressed in military camouflage and combat boots. He was at 6 foot 5 inches based on his estimation and did not look like someone you should mess with.

“Did I not say to get up?” He made a move to kick Hailey but Aaron flew between his boots. The kick pushed him hard into her as he groaned in agony. She wanted to scream but wasn’t sure if that would get him another kick or something worse. The questions in her mind were growing and the people around her were making it more complicated. One thing was sure; everything would not be fine. They were kidnapped and their kidnappers did not look like they cared for their lives. So what did they want? It would be easier to solve this puzzle if she knew what they wanted. Were they slave traders? Sex predators?

She noticed that they were not the only kidnapped people. There were groups of about 10-15 people – she wasn’t sure how many there were because her brain refused to focus. And the panic button in her brain was sending a migraine signal to her nerves. Mountains surrounded them and they seemed to be in some sort of valley. There were deserted shacks and buildings reminiscent of a western. They both finally managed to stand on their feet. Aaron leaned a little on her for support. She was grateful he wasn’t too heavy; her collapse would have been the next event to occur. Her neck twitched and everything else ached.

The man in front of them placed two fingers on the comms attached to his left ear.

Looking over at the other three keeping the other groups inline, he said, "He says we don't need the injured." The men took out their pistols and shot three people from the group. It happened so swiftly none of them believed it had happened. The sound resounded through the mountains and sent birds flying and squawking every which way. It drowned out the screams of the kidnapped and the laughter of their oppressors. Hailey's jaw hung open and tears pumped through her reddened eyes. She felt the trickle of hope that was building in her muscle dissipate. What just happened stole every ounce of life she had and her knees buckled beneath her. The last thing she heard was Aaron's voice; he was calling out her name, pleading that she stay with him. He muttered something about a concussion. What does that even mean? Her brain gave no response. Her mind was blank. Aaron, her boyfriend, was distraught. She felt his voice reach for her through the darkness but the fingers of her consciousness were too lazy to reach out. Her eyes closed. She convinced herself it would be a short nap and when she woke up everything would be fine. Her thoughts roamed in search of a resting place.