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As expected, there were guards stationed out front, but since her privileges had been returned, they didn’t bat an eye that she went inside, swiping her ID to open the door.
So daring she was, in fact, that she didn’t even stop by her office, going straight to Rafaelo’s room and opening it with her spare key.
She was too caught up in her own mind to know what to expect—certainly she didn’t think much of his violent moods anymore. According to the schedule she’d learned by heart, he was administered the drug once every twelve hours. During the night he was under the influence and during the day he fought against the craving of the drug.
The only thing she’d managed to do to help him had been to sneak him more nutritious food, increase his liquid ration so that he was hydrated at all times and give him painkillers in case he agonized in that wretched state.
The moment she’d found out that he’d been placed on that drug, she’d tried her best to replace his dose with a placebo, but that had failed when she’d realized the doctors in charge were monitoring his vitals throughout the day, noting the spike of the drug and the effects of the withdrawal.
It had been worth a try, even though she’d known she was putting herself at risk of being found out. But in the end, it hadn’t helped at all.
Rafaelo was still on the drug, and with each day, his addiction grew stronger.
“I’m going to get you out of here”,she whispered to herself as she opened the door.
She knew that time was of the essence—the more days he spent on the drug, the harder it would be for him to wean himself off of it. Yet for all her hope that they’d be able to escape soon, she couldn’t seem to find the right moment. And to choose the wrong one… that would simply mean condemning both of them to an early grave.
She’d known from the beginning that she’d follow him anywhere—in this life or the next. But she rather liked living, so death was out of the question. After all, she hadn’t made it this far just to settle for an easy way out.
She was a fighter. And she would fight for their happiness.
Stepping inside the room, she shielded her eyes at the brightness that assaulted her.
The space was fully lit, the stark white of the walls making it seem even brighter.
As she closed the door behind her, hearing the lock click in place, she was once more overcome with the impulse to just take Raf with her and run away. But that would be a foolish decision. They would only make it a few miles and they would be shot down—of that she was sure.
There was also the issue of Lucero, who Noelle had no doubt would suffer the repercussions were she to try to escape impulsively. No, she needed to think things through, so that the three of them would get away with their lives intact.
As her eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room, she realized Raf was right in front of her, his features taut as he regarded her.
“You again,” he spat out, his words full of venom. “What are you doing here again?”
Her eyes widened in shock.
“You… remember?” she whispered.
“What do you mean I remember? Was I supposed to forget?” he snapped, coming closer.
Noelle took a step back, her heart racing.
This wasn’t going how she thought it would go. He wasn’t supposed to remember her, right? He was supposed to forget everything under the influence of the drug.
“How…” she uttered in confusion.
“You’ve come to taunt me again?” he demanded, prowling towards her with a predatory smile on his face. “Which role are you playing tonight? Noelle, or Lucero?” he asked mockingly.
“Raf…” Noelle wet her lips. “Stop.” She put her hand up. “Hear me out, please…” She added with uncertainty.
The alcoholic haze started to lift the more he advanced towards her. She backed away until her spine hit the door, her hand on the knob, as she struggled to plug the key in the keyhole.
“Scared?” he chuckled.
“No… I… Would you please just listen to me?” she mumbled nervously, her eyes roaming around the room as she thought about an escape plan.
Bad, bad, idea. She shouldn’t have come! He was far from harmless, and the look on his face told her as much. But more than anything, he wasn’t supposed to remember, damn it! He was supposed to be surprised at her presence, so that she might introduce herself carefully.
Yet as those thoughts churned inside her mind, she vaguely remembered reading an article about memory and the fact that it could be retrieved when the state matched the one when the memory had been stored.
