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Chapter 27
Shay
My eyes crack open and the light from the hole in the roof makes me shy away. Only, I have nowhere to hide my eyes. My hands are tied behind my back tightly; I can feel the bind digging into my flesh. And to top it off, I’m tied down to a mattress; I can’t move anything other than my head. I fight against my restraints, but it’s no good. I need to pick my battles wisely, and this isn’t one of them.
A sudden noise from my side makes me lift my head. The pain rushes through my head and shoulders. There are three men armed with guns. I blink a few times to try to clear my vision. I think I’m dreaming at first, but I see Josh, pacing up and down like a brainwashed soldier. His posture is ramrod straight. His gun is poised against his shoulder. His vision is pointed straight ahead. He looks thinner and unlike the man I left behind, but it is him.
“Josh!” I cry out. He’s alive.
He doesn’t look at me. He doesn’t even acknowledge that I spoke to him. He’s not the man that saved me all those months ago.
“Josh. Please. Look at me. It’s me, Shay. You saved me. Remember. You’re my commander. My friend.” Tears roll down my cheeks freely.
He carries on pacing up and down, a few feet behind the other soldier. It’s like they’re following a pattern.
“I saw your mom and dad this morning.” He stumbles; I’m reaching him. “They’re missing you, Josh. Your mom and dad are distraught. Please, listen to me.”
Josh stops dead and the soldier behind him bumps into his back. Josh takes a step out of line to allow the other two soldiers to carry on with their pacing.
“Josh.” I sob.
Josh looks down at me on the mattress. His eyes are glassy, his cheeks gaunt. He’s like a shadow of the man I once knew.
“What have they done to you?”
He doesn’t say a word. He just looks at me like I’m nothing. Like I’m something he wiped off the bottom of his shoe.
“Are you okay?”
He blinks quickly and stands up straighter. “I’m not one of you anymore. The day you left me there was the day you gave up any right knowing about how I am.”
“I didn’t leave you, Josh. I was getting help. Clay was coming back for you. We never once gave up finding you. Your parents haven’t given up either. Please, you must believe me. You’ve got it wrong. You’re not one of them, Josh. You’re one of our team. You saved my life. Without you, I would have been dead.”
“Maybe it would have been better if you died. If we both died.”
“No.” I gasp. “What has happened to you, soldier? We never give up.”
He steps back into line with his soldiers and continues to march up and down.
“Damn you, Josh. You’ve let them get under your skin. You’ll always be one of us. You can’t just walk away. We never give up!” I yell, which takes more effort than I care to admit.
I watch him walk up and down, never losing step. He’s like a controlled doll. A puppet. Someone is pulling his strings. I will take great pleasure in ripping the bastard’s throat out like some rabid dog. Some people don’t deserve to have a life, and these fuckers causing such pain and destruction are high on that list.
“I’m going to save you, Josh,” I say quietly through the tears.
Please, Clay. Come find us.
