Peter walks ahead of me, leading us out of the house. He nods to Laurie when we pass him on the front lawn. I ask Peter why Laurie is always outside the bungalow.
"He's my guard," that's all he says.
He doesn't tie me up as James did and doesn't beat me up, which is nice. But he still asks me to follow him out of my will. I should be running away! I have the opportunity now. Peter is several steps away from me, walking fast with his long legs. I can slow down, and when he's gone from my view, I can run and hide in the bushes for a while before I can finally find a way out. But I need to find out the way back to the stream! I left my backpack there, it's almost dark, and from the driving, at least it is probably 40 miles from here. Do I have any other choice? I start to slow, and Peter still has not noticed.
When Peter turns left, I return in the opposite direction and start running. My wounded leg is burning, but I ignore it. I spot a hill ahead of me, and I climb up with the help of my hands. I dig my nails into the ground to help my balance as I crawl up the hill. I catch my breath before I start running down the curve. I know it's stupid, but I have to run through the camp to get out. It's the only opportunity I have to find the exit. I was almost at the edge of the first bungalow when someone suddenly showed up out of nowhere in front of me. I can't stop my legs! I was about to run around the person, but he grabbed my waist to a stop.
His strong arms catch my body. I struggle under his grip, trying to let myself free.
"I told you I wouldn't push you unless you made me!" Peter says from above me. Shit, how the fuck is he here already? Is there a shortcut or something?
I look up at him. His face is so red, and sweat drips down from his forehead. Did he run after me? He must be fast!
"Let me go!" I yell at him, kicking my legs in the air. But it's no use! Peter is too strong for me. Several people are staring at me with disgust in their eyes. What's wrong with them? I didn't do anything!
Peter squeezes his arms around my waist and my chest even tighter. I finally stop kicking, but I manage to scratch his arms. I can feel his cold blood inside my fingernails. I can't breathe! He will break my ribs, and I feel dizzy from the lack of oxygen.
"Stop struggling! I'm not going to think twice about killing you right here, right now!" he says in my ear with his authoritative tone. When Obel's authority power takes over, his voice will make everyone listens. If this is a pack of wolves, Peter must have been the Alpha. That shouldn't affect a Rebel, but my brain obeys him because I still have Obel blood somewhere in my veins. I finally stop struggling because I can't fight the force of his power.
"I want you to follow me without making any more scenes and be a good girl. You know I won't hesitate to kill you, Ava!" Chills crawl down my spine when he says my name. I should've just gone with Chloe instead of my real name.
"Understood?" he growls in my ear.
I nod weakly.
"Be a good Rebel or Obel, whichever you want to right now." Peter starts to loosen his grip on me and pull me away from the crowds forming around us.
What did he mean by that?
***
We enter another bungalow deeper inside the forest, far from the camp. The place is not as pretty and as cozy as Peter's. It's more like an old haunted house. Three muscular men and two (also firm) women are circling the house. I bet they're the guard of this creepy house just like Laurie, but he looks smaller than any of them. They all bow their heads to Peter, and I see pity in one of the women's eyes. I don't need your pity if you kill me later, bitch!
Peter unlocks a vast wooden door that leads to the basement. Two other muscular men guard each side of the door. They also bow their heads to Peter, but none notice my existence. When the door is finally opened, absolute darkness welcomes us. My legs start to weaken under me.
"Light, please!" Peter shouts into the dark. A minute later, I could see an orange-ish light coming from downstairs, but nobody was there. First, the light illuminates the bottom of the stairs, but it creeps up so fast until it is fully bright, showing the stairs that will lead me to the end of my life. One hell of a dramatic entrance before you die, though.
There are so many stairs, and it's still dark down there. Cold sweat starts to form on my forehead. Great! Whenever I get scared, my blood will turn into a cold-blooded Obel. I need my Rebel adrenaline to give me some strength! Don't they know Obels have dangerously low blood pressure?
Peter grabs my arm again and leads me down the stairway to hell. When we reach the bottom, I must adjust my sight in the dark. We turn right as soon as we start to walk again. We walk in a long corridor with windowless doors on either side. At the end of the hall, there is an unguarded massive metal door. Peter takes the set of keys from his waist and unlocks the door.
Behind the metal the door is a spacious room with cells. Even though it's not as dark as the corridor, it's still creepy. There are three guards in here, circling the room.
When Peter approaches the guards to talk, I take this opportunity to count the cells. There are three on my right, three across the room, and three on my left. The only empty cell is on my right side, and it is the closest to the door. The other cells are occupied by three people each. They all look horrible! Bruised and wounded with dried blood covers most of their clothes. They all seem exhausted and powerless. These people are all Rebels. I don't know them because their faces are all beaten up. Why are these Obels hurt them? What did these Rebels ever do to them?
Why don't they fight or scream? They all look defeated! Like they all have given up on life. Most of them are lying on the floor, and I hope they're not dead yet. There's one female, probably only a year older than me, and her hands are gripping the bars tightly. She's been staring right at me. My heart stops beating when I realize she's naked. There are bruises all over her body, bite marks covering her breasts and neck, and fresh cuts with blood gushing on either side of her thighs.
What did they do to her? Dried blood covers her swollen face until there's no clear skin left showing. I hear her whimpering like she is in a lot of pain. One of the guards must have heard her too, "shut up!".
I am startled by his loud voice.
Peter turns his face to me and then to the girl in the cell. "Why is she still here? I told you to finish her three days ago!" his voice is controlled with authority.
Another cold wave streams down my spine.
"I'm sorry, Pete! We were having too much fun with her..." One of the guards says.
What the hell did they fucking do to this poor girl? I clench my hands into fists. My legs become tense, demanding I lunge at him.
"We will do it tonight," one guard that is closest to me says.
I run at him and punch his neck with my tightened fist. I swear, one more good punch, and I'll break it and kill him!
"WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO HER, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!?" I growl at him as he collapses to the ground.
His mouth is gaping, trying to grasp for air. Hot angry tears streamed down my cheeks as I curled my hand tighter.
Before I can jump back to that motherfucker on the ground, the other two guards are suddenly on each side of me. They grab my hands, and I struggle to break free.
"You bitch!" The fallen guard is already on his feet, swinging a ball of fists at my head, and everything goes black and silent.