The Oasis Page 7
A few heads turned as the walked through. A few men headed in their direction and Lena had her first verbal interaction with the others. Since her own captor had remained silent, she hadn’t thought any of the others were capable of normal communication.
“Heh, what’cha got there?” A tall man approached them. Her captor growled aggressively. Lena froze, crossing her arms over her chest protectively. She still only wore her bra and somehow this man’s unwanted attention was far worse than what she had seen before. The man’s head pivoted unnaturally, cracking the bones in his neck. “Heh?” He reached out to touch her hair. She backed up quickly, bumping into the wall of a cubicle. Someone rustled on the other side. The creature continued to advance towards her, hand reaching out as if he wanted to grab her again.
She shrieked when she was grabbed from behind by whoever she had disturbed when she hit the cubicle wall. Scrambling to break free from the man’s grasp, she watched as his face pressed close to hers and he began whispering things she couldn’t understand. As her attacker reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her from the other man’s grasp, he yelled at her. “Beware of the free man. Beware.”
Shuddering at his message, but grateful to be out of his grasp, she latched onto her captor. Although he had beaten her head until she bled, he had not, so far, tried to kill her. There was no telling what these other men might try to do to her. The shrill of laughter followed them as her captor dragged her to another set of stairs on the opposite wall. She had never been so grateful to be away from anyone as she was now. The laughter that followed frightened her and reminded her of the sanity that was now lost.
Following the path up the stairs, her captor pulled her towards a door that was covered in blood, handprints smeared across the wood. She swallowed and began to think she should have taken her chances with the men down below. When he opened the door, she was astounded by the vision before her. These were cells created out of old materials. Each cell held a captive. Some were beaten so badly they sat motionless, while others paced nervously. A few men, with the same build as her captor, stood as if they were guarding prisoners. Her heart sank when they stopped in front of an empty cell. She was about to become a prisoner to the worst kind of people.
Lena was shoved into a cell, the door shutting behind her. It seemed like at one point this room had been some kind of office. Everything was removed except a chair in the corner. The south wall was a window, filthy with only God knew what, but she was still able to see outside. Somewhere out there, she prayed that Jasper was looking for her.
* * * * *
Jasper observed his surroundings closely, but couldn’t tell whether Lena was still alive or not. Logically, everything he knew about these people told him to just abandon the whole idea of rescuing her and head to California. She was most likely dead anyways. The old Jasper, the man who had been trained in how to kill a man ten times over, was basing this whole operation on hope. There was something about Lena that woke him up. He yearned for her and wanted to be near her. Everything he had been taught, everything he’d taught himself when everything had gone to hell rebelled against her. She woke in him a whole new man. He wanted a new life with her, something that didn’t involve solely surviving day to day.
Maybe that was why he had taken her with him. He saw something on that farm that he envied. In all the chaos, in this nightmare that they lived, she had created a paradise. She proved that humanity and civility could survive in this living hell.
Growling quietly, he saw the camp ahead of him. Through his training, he knew that the nighttime was when the others were most active, sleeping long into the day. It took every ounce of his strength not to run into the camp with guns firing. He suspected they had her in there, but so far he hadn’t heard any cries that sounded like hers. Instead he had seen groups huddling around fires and men fighting other men. Nothing out of the ordinary, if this camp from hell was anything like others he had seen.
Crouching low, he stealthily made his way deeper into the city. Somewhere he was going to find her. Dead or alive. He shook his head; he couldn’t think like that. She was alive and he was going to find her. No matter what. Passing through the streets, he grabbed a coat off the ground that smelled like death. He wrapped it around his shoulders and did his best to imitate the people around him. The one thing he had going for him was that as long as he stayed away from the bigger, more aggressive ones, he wasn’t likely to be noticed.
Shuffling down the street, he saw some of the larger ones in front of an old office building and instantly he knew that was where she was being held. He smiled to himself; he knew she was alive. Unfortunately, though, he also knew that this wasn’t merely some random collection of miscreants; there was something greater at work here and he feared he already knew what her fate was going to be.
* * * * *
“Let me out of here!” Lena shouted, pounding her fists on the walls of her cell. She hadn’t been alone long before she’d heard screaming. The thing that caught her attention was that the screams clearly came from a woman. Her heart ached with the fear of the unknown.
The sun began to rise, warming her cell. She had been in there all night without any interaction with her captor or anyone else. Lying down on a blanket on the floor, she tried to forget how she had gotten into this mess. Jasper’s face flashed before her eyes and she confessed to herself that she missed him.
Hearing the door handle jiggle, she quickly sat up, unsure of what she was about to face. A person wrapped in rags was pushed into the room along with a bottle of water and two small bags of chips. Her stomach growled and she watched the other person closely as the door shut behind her. They both sat, motionless. The other person hunched over and held the rags she wore closer. She was petite and had no shoes on. Her body was filthy, like many of the others, and the clothes she wore covered her head. In fact, the woman’s feet were the only thing Lena could make out.
Quietly, Lena stood up and grabbed one of the chip bags and water bottles and handed them to the woman. Flinching away quickly, the girl backed away from Lena.
“It’s okay,” Lena whispered, unsure if the woman could even understand her. “I’m not going to hurt you.” The woman continued to hunch away from her. Lena set the food on the floor in front of her before she sat back on her makeshift mat. She opened her own chips and ate them hungrily. They were already ground to almost a powder, but she was so hungry the cheese-flavored chips tasted better than any steak. When she finished, she looked over at the other woman and noticed that she was watching Lena. Her eyes were clear now. Their gray hue seemed darkened by all the suffering she had been put through.
The woman leaned forward and grabbed the water, gulping it down quietly. As she went to open the chips, the cover fell off her head, revealing what must have once been beautiful red hair. Now, the hue had dimmed to a burnt color that reminded Lena of rust. It was dirty, as was most of the woman’s body, but hung long down her back. She avoided making eye contact with Lena, but Lena was sure the woman watched her when she thought Lena wasn’t looking.
Lena laughed quietly. “You know, you’re the first woman I’ve seen in a while and I don’t even know if you can understand me.” Sighing, she brought her knees to her chest and watched the light bounce off the glass window. It was no doubt going to be a long day. She resigned herself to rest, thinking that the likelihood of being disturbed further seemed low. She didn’t know a lot about being kidnapped or about survival tactics, but it seemed like a good idea to rest now while she had the chance.
Her eyelids were already heavy when she lay down. “Please don’t attack me in my sleep,” she whispered to the other woman who was still staring at Lena. Lena laughed a little as she saw the woman’s eyes widen in shock. Lena didn’t know whether she was surprised that she was going to sleep or that she had made such a humane request of her. It didn’t matter. Lena’s thoughts returned to Jasper as she slipped out of consciousness.
Chapter Seven
The door to Lena’s cell came crashing open. Her eyes opened as more water was thrown into the room along with some other prepackaged food. Her stomach growled as she dove for the food. The other woman ate hers silently, although now she openly stared at Lena.
Licking her fingers clean, Lena noticed that the sun was already close to setting. She had been asleep most of the day. To her comfort the woman had neither attacked her nor moved from her position. They continued to stare at each other until Lena couldn’t help but break the silence.
“I’m Lena,” she sighed. She didn’t expect the woman to answer. Most of the others didn’t seem to talk much, if at all.
The woman looked at her, almost as if she was afraid to answer. After a few moments of silence, she looked behind her, as if checking whether anyone was coming. “My name is Rachel.” Her voice was harsh but clearer than Lena had expected.
“You’re n-normal,” Lena observed, shaken. Rachel didn’t answer. Her face looked as though she’d expected Lena to have noticed that already. “I’m sorry, I mean you’re not infected.”
“Neither are you,” Rachel said, attempting a weak smile. Lena thought that under the hideous clothes she wore and the years’ worth of grime that covered her body, Rachel at one time had been a beautiful woman. Now, her face had been battered enough that it seemed she wore a permanent scowl on her face. Her eyes had lost their passion; Lena didn’t need to have known her before she was captured to know that when she was younger she’d had brilliant eyes. Now that Rachel looked directly at her, Lena was able to examine her face. She had scars running across her lips and a deep gash running from her temple down to her neck. Rachel’s ears were covered by her long hair, but Lena saw glimpses of the damage that had been done to them from prolonged beatings. The most damaged thing seemed to be her spirit. Rachel’s candid response to Lena’s observations had shown that at one point Rachel had been a coy and humorous woman, but now her spunk was missing. The laugh lines around her eyes had been traded in for bruises.
Both women sat in silence, letting the impact of what they had just discovered sink in. Lena hadn’t seen another woman in so long, not to mention someone who wasn’t infected. She had never expected to find someone like Rachel in a place like this. It only confirmed her worst fears.
Lena cleared her throat. She wanted to know so much more. “How long have you been here?”
Rachel finished the water in her bottle and stood. As she crossed the room, her limp was clearly evident. Her feet were bare and covered with blood, dirt and God only knew what else. She stood silently a few moments, watching the sunset, before she responded. “I don’t know.” Placing her hand on the window she sighed. “Longer than I want remember.”
Lena cringed. “How did you get here?”
“I was captured. I was heading west when they attacked me.” Rachel hesitated before she continued. “After they caught me, they brought me here.”
Lena was instantly fascinated with the idea of other survivors. Since the world had ended, she hadn’t seen any other normal people. Jasper was the first of them who had made contact with her. It was too dangerous to assume that because someone looked normal that they were. The idea that this woman had survived was mind-boggling.
A bigger question plagued Lena as she listened to Rachel and she couldn’t help but ask. “Is there no way to escape?”
Rachel’s face paled and she started laughing. Her laugh was hysterical and ethereal. Lena knew what this laugh meant. They had broken her. Rachel would never be the same again. Nothing would ever be the same for her. God only knew how long she had been trapped in this tower. No one should ever be tortured the way that Rachel had been. Months, maybe even years, of rape, beatings and living in near starvation. There was no telling how much sanity she had left.
Allowing her laughter to die down, Rachel sat down directly in front of Lena. That haunted look came into her eyes again as she grabbed Lena’s hand into her own. “Beware of the free man,” Rachel whispered. Lena gasped. She had been warned of him by that man in the hall.
Before she could ask any more questions the door opened again. The sun had fully set and activity had started up outside. She could hear the sounds of the people in the streets as they began what seemed to be their typical fights and shouting.
The man who stepped into the room was her captor. Lena recognized him: short hair, chiseled features and muscular body. Something about this man seemed familiar but she couldn’t remember why. He grabbed her arm aggressively and yanked her off the floor away from Rachel. Rachel remained still, emotionless. She let go of Lena’s hand and turned back towards the window. The way she stroked it made Lena feel as if she would do anything to be free again. No matter what happened, she would never forget the look on Rachel’s face. She looked so lost.
As she was pulled out of the room, Lena looked back at Rachel one last time. Praying silently, she hoped to see her again.
Her captor didn’t pause as he dragged her out the door. Lena couldn’t help but see the sneer he gave to Rachel as he shut the door behind them.
He grabbed Lena’s hair and pulled when she hesitated. Screaming in pain, she kicked her legs out as he dragged her through the corridor. She tried to get her feet under her, but his strength and speed didn’t give her a chance to put herself right. Since the setting of the sun, the rooms were as dark as they’d been the night before. He dragged her up another flight of stairs and onto a floor that appeared almost empty. All of the old cubicles had been pulled out and the desks, chairs and anything else that had once been in the office were now gone.
At the far end of the room, surrounded by people, was a man. At first, Lena suspected that it was a pile of dead bodies surrounding him, but then she realized they were alive but engaged in some form of worship. Three women were tied to the walls and their eyes followed her. Their motionlessness encouraged Lena to think that, like Rachel, they were unaffected by whatever virus had affected the others.
Lena’s eyes focused on the man at the front of the room. He stared at her, seemingly mesmerized. His face was cleanly shaven and he wore few clothes. His chest was bare and whenever one of the worshippers got close to him they reached out to touch him. Lena gagged. He was some kind of god to them.
He wore a pair of jeans and sat on an old love seat that was stained and soiled from what looked like years of horrible acts. She didn’t move, only studied his actions. He drank what looked like a beer and ate something that had apparently been laid out for him. When one of the worshippers got too close to him, he kicked them. Lena noted that his face didn’t change. She could see no compassion for these people. He was in complete control over what he was doing.
“Welcome,” he said loudly as she looked around wondering who he was talking to. It felt ridiculous that he should welcome her into such a scene. Some of his worshippers turned towards her and sneered.
“Uck!” She retched unintentionally when one of them began to masturbate as he looked at her.
Looking back to the door she had been brought through, she saw her captor among a small group of men standing against the walls. They were equally as big as her captor, and had that familiar blank stare. They sneered when she made eye contact with them, pleading quietly for some glimmer of sanity. This whole situation seemed almost impossible. She had never imagined anything like this could have happened to her, let alone meeting someone like this. Suddenly, the leader stood and everyone got quiet in the room.
“You think they don’t know better than to even consider helping you?” he shouted down to her. Stepping over the worshippers, he made his way towards her. Passing the women tied against the wall, he stroked the cheek of a younger woman who whimpered when he touched her. He nodded so slightly that if Lena wasn’t studying him so intensely she would have missed the action. His nod brought forth one of the warriors against the wall.
“No, no! Please, no!” The woman he had touched began screaming. The warrior picked her up by the ropes that trapped her hands and
dragged her from the room. Lena wanted to call out to her, do something to protect her, but as the leader approached her she found herself screaming on the inside only. He got within a few feet of her and crouched down to her level. She could smell some kind of strong cologne coming off him and wondered why he would wear it at all.
His face came within inches of hers and she struggled to keep eye contact with him. Her heart raced as he reached out to touch her hair. It was still caked in blood and he placed his hand against her temple where she had been tossed onto the bathroom sink.
“I know you heard me,” he said, pressing his finger into the cut, making her head start to pound. “I said ‘Welcome.’” He gave a final thrust before removing his hand and stepping away.
When her vision cleared she noticed that the worshippers were watching his every move. Every eye in the room had been on her, waiting for her response. When her vision cleared she wiped away the tears that ran down her face. “Hello,” she whispered. The leader’s back was to her, but she saw his shoulder drop. He walked back towards the worshippers and picked one of them up by the arm. The man was scrawny and young. He quivered when the leader touched him. The leader whispered something to him that Lena couldn’t hear. The other turned towards her and began circling her. He looked at her body and smelled her hair. She saw his eyes twitching back and forth as he examined her. His body twitched and he blinked rapidly when their eyes met.