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It’s all I’ve ever known. But now, I feel lost in oblivion, a place where no one can understand me. My words mean nothing if they don’t come from sound.
I sigh.
Graham stuffs toilet paper into the box and says, “Use this if you have to go.”
Thanks, I sign.
He smiles. “You’re welcome. If that’s what you said.”
Yes, but I guess he doesn’t need to know sign language to understand the basics of language.
Then again, I didn’t thank him to be kind. I thanked him sarcastically. At least, in my head.
“I might be keeping you in here, but that doesn’t mean I’m a monster. I’ll take good care of you.”
Good care? Right.
I point at the guy in the cage next to me.
What about him?
Graham briefly glances at him before turning his head back to me. “Don’t worry about him.”
I don’t understand any of this.
“Now eat. Sleep.”
When he turns around, I knock on the glass again.
I mouth the word, “Please,” and use my hands to mimic opening a book.
A tentative smile forms on his lips. “You want … a book?”
I nod. Anything. I don’t want to ask for big things. I don’t need a TV. I don’t need games or any of the flashy things. Something small is enough. It’s all I can ask for without him getting pissed. And a book is all I need to escape, if only just for a little while.
“Well, since you asked so nicely,” he says, and then he turns around and walks off again.
I wonder if he’ll come back.
I quickly grab the plate of food and gobble down the tortillas. It’s something. Any food is welcome at this point. I fill my belly with water that I filled a plastic cup with using the small faucet and then put it all back into the box again.
After a few minutes, Graham is back again, his hands behind his back. When he’s near my prison, he holds up a book I don’t recognize. Captive and Free. And the smile on his face seems to indicate he genuinely thinks this is a good surprise.
“For you.” He winks and places it in the box. I reach inside.
He doesn’t pull back. Instead, he grabs my wrist.
I try to jerk myself free, but he’s much stronger than I am.
“Make no mistake, girl. This isn’t a gift. This is a transaction.”
My brows drop, not liking where this is going.
He looks me dead in the eyes. “Things work a little bit differently here. If you behave, you get good things. If you don’t behave, I’ll take the good things away again,” he growls. “Got it?”
I nod.
“Good.” He releases my wrist, and I immediately pull back, not giving a shit about grabbing the book.
I sit down on my bed, too scared to even come close to him right now.
He cocks his head and grins. “You’re a good girl. Exactly what I was hoping for. He picked well.”
Picked well? Who did? What’s he talking about?
When he turns around, I’m almost tempted to bang on the glass again, but at this point, I’m not sure I could deal with more of these surprise touches. Because his hand around my wrist felt like a snake wrapping itself around my arm so it could bite into my veins.
I’m still shivering from the encounter.
And I can still feel his grip.
See his stain on my arm.
I wipe it off, again and again, but it won’t work.
Defeated, I stare at my cell and the book luring me in from the box where it lies. It only takes me thirty minutes to give up. Thirty minutes for the promise of a world beyond this one to seduce me.
So I get up from my bed and pull the book from the box, caving in to my only desire.
To escape.
Chapter Five
Accompanying Song: “Miss Sloane Solo” by Max Richter
Cage
She paces around her cell with an angry gaze. Her nostrils flare every time she glances at me. I wonder what she’s thinking. She hasn’t spoken to me yet. Can she even talk?
She seems absorbed in her thoughts, and I don’t want to disturb her, but I don’t have much else to do in this place. She’s got her book even though she’s only read a few pages. But me? I’ve only got myself … and the bars in the corner that I use for exercise.
That’s all I can ever do. Exercise. Focus on the next time I’m going to need that added strength. I always have to figure out a way to get stronger. That’s why I get more food than her because he wants me to be strong and powerful.
But it’s not fair. I think she should get as much as I do, or at least more than she gets now.
She must be hungry half the time, looking at how small her portions are. I wish I could give her some of mine.
