The Escape 2

Grandpa Matt sat facing his computer system in his room at the motel, the room was dimly lit, the only source of light in the room was the white fluorescent bulb above his head. The window blinds were up so he could see the pitch blackness of the night properly, the night was cold outside and a feeling of doom and danger seemed to hang in the air, he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. They had left their apartment at Lion's boulevard and rented a three bedroom flat with fake names at a motel at King Arthur's avenue. It wasn't much but at least it gave them a little sense of security, they had also become more sensitive about their surroundings and the people around them.  

On the computer screen were three names with a tiny portrait beside each name. 

Mr Liam Tennyson

Thirty nine years old

Single

Computer engineer at Graylon city computer center. 

Mr Michael Gordon

Fifty eight years old

Single

CEO Graylon city movie agency. 

Mr Tam Lamar

Forty years old

Divorcee

Janitor at Graylon city high school.

All of Grandpa Matt's investigations had narrowed down to these three names. He had taken into account their contact with the missing girls as each of the men there had shady backgrounds and had come in contact with at least nine out of the twenty two girls that had gone missing in the city.  

"Where are you? Where are you?" Grandpa Matt asked no one in particular as he stared at the computer screen.

Meanwhile, in the living room of the rented flat where they stayed 

       "Mommy look!, It's a dragon!" A little boy shouted. The mother looked up and screamed, 

"Denise, get out of there!" 

Her screams didn't seem to have any effect on the bewildered boy who stood rooted to the spot as the dragon bathed him in smoke and red hot flames. 

"No!, Denise, no!"

The mother screamed as tears streaked down her face. 

The smoke from the dragon's breath cleared and she saw a tall muscular man in a bright red superhero suit that covered her son with his flame resistant cape that protected him from the flames of the dragon. 

"Do not fear, I, the hero am here to save the day!"

"You seem to love watching cartoons" 

Fiona's voice startled Steve since he was so engrossed in the cartoon that he didn't notice when she walked in. 

"It's late, why aren't you asleep already?"

He asked as he looked over to where she stood at the door. 

"I couldn't sleep", 

she replied,

she looked pretty comical in Steve's over sized green pajamas, he had given it to her since she had nothing to wear for the night. She had decided to spend the night there with them since her investigation session with Grandpa Matt finished late. 

Standing there without make up, she still looked as pretty as ever, Steve couldn't help but let his gaze linger on her full rounded lips, and her alluring curves that stubbornly displayed itself at the edges of the oversized clothes she wore. 

"What are you staring at?"

She barked aggressively when she noticed him staring and he quickly turned his attention back to the television. 

She sat down on one of the empty chairs and stared at him, he was totally oblivious of her gaze as he had already been captivated by the cartoon on TV. Looking at him curled up on the couch with eyes on the TV in the living room's bright white light, Fiona realized that Steve was a pretty good looking young man, he was tall with a light brown tanned skin, he had jet black hair and amber eyes and his jaw was square, cleanly shaven and manly, she could almost perceive his manly scent from across the room. She imagined how she would feel if she laid her head on his chest. 

'God, what am I thinking?'

She thought to herself as she quickly averted her gaze from his muscular chest. After some moments of awkward silence, Fiona asked, 

"Do you think she's alright?" 

"Huh?"

His gaze left the TV and he looked at her again 

"I said do you think she's alright?", There was so much sadness in her voice that Steve replied softly, 

"She'll be fine, I'm sure grandpa's doing all he can to find her, just have faith, okay?" 

He finished with a reassuring smile and turned back to the TV. 

'Is it just me or does he look better when he smiles?'

***

That night, all the girls that were held captive in that room took their positions around the door waiting for the sound of bolts and clicks from the door. Looking at their faces, Nora seemed to infer that everyone was playing out the possibility of KK's idea in their heads, it was pretty hard to see clearly in the dark but nevertheless she could still make out the expressions on their faces, even the air around seemed to vibrate with the feeling of determination, fear, confidence and doubt.

She turned her head to look at Phoebe, who also was at her position but with a distant and terrified but confident look on her face, when she noticed that Phoebe was also looking at her, she smiled and turned away to face the door. 

"During our bathroom breaks, I noticed that the three hallways that led to this door here had wide entrances with no doors on them, I also noticed that there were no guards stationed there, the only men i have noticed are the ones who attend to us here...

These doorless passages are our escape routes, once we get out of this door, everyone choose your route and run for your lives. It's a risky move but it's better than doing nothing, if anyone manages to get out, call the authorities here immediately to arrest these people. I know that some of you may be wondering how we're going to get out of these doors, here with me are forks and spoons , just enough to go round for all of us, we're going to overwhelm them with our numbers and our weapons and get the hell out of here before that ball of light appears, in other words, we have to be very fast with it. I know it's risky but it's for the best, I'm not forcing anyone but if you feel like you're not ready to do this, you can stay behind." 

KK's escape lecture played out in Nora's thoughts as she steeled her resolve to escape from their bondage. She looked round again at all the girls in the room who were ready to risk their lives for this escape. 

"…..I'm not forcing anyone but if you feel like you're not ready to do this, you can stay behind." 

'KK's last statement must've instilled supernatural courage in us for us to attempt to go through with such an absurd plan like this'

Nora shook her head softly and smiled. 

Suddenly, there was a noise on the door, bolts turned and locks clicked and they all shrunk back into the darkness, as the men walked in, KK gave a war cry to boost their confidence and took the lead by stabbing the first armed man on the left side of his neck, the other girls took actions and began shrieking and stabbing in the dark. Not long after, they had completely overwhelmed and trounced the six men who came into the room. 

"Let's move girls, the ball of light is starting to appear!" 

KK screamed at them as she jumped over the bodies and ran into the hallway that ran perpendicular to the door of the room they were held captive. 

Nora looked back and true to KK's words, the ball of light was starting to appear but suddenly a very nasty feeling climbed up her guts like what they were about to do was very dangerous. 

"No!, It's too late to turn back, I've already come this far, forward ever, backward never" 

Nora told herself and jumped over the bodies and took the hallway to the left, she figured that most of the girls had followed KK's route so it would be a problem if all of them were caught at once.

She put her nose in the air and ran with all the strength her legs could muster, she heard the sound of running footsteps behind her and she turned only to see Phoebe running behind her too, she managed a smile on her strained face and faced forward, the hallway made a sharp bend to the right so Nora slowed down and pressed herself to the wall then raised a hand to Phoebe as a gesture for her to follow suit. Phoebe understood the gesture and both of them huddled together close to the bend, 

"Hey"

Phoebe said breathlessly to Nora 

"Hi"

Nora also replied in between her pants of breath. 

"I think I should tell you this now" Phoebe said with her eyes down 

"Tell me what?"

Nora looked at Phoebe and chuckled at her expression, she looked like a high school girl who was about to make a confession to her crush.