CHAPTER 19

The figure landed heavily before us, and we sat drenched in silence. He cocked his head and slid both hands in his pockets before proceeding to stare us down with a lofty smile. Alex’s elevated blood pressure stood evident by the protruding veins that took up residence in his forehead. He glanced at me from the left in an attempt to feed off my reactions. I squinted in annoyance, sighed, and then relaxed back in my chair.

“So, how long have you guys been onto me?" Voicing my words in a lucid tone, I smiled knowingly.

“Hmm, let’s see," he smiled. “We have had our suspicions since the moment you walked in here?"

My brows arched with confusion as I looked up at him for further clarification. He rolled his eyes in a girlish manner then exclaimed, “Shower rescue…"

“I see," I chuckled. The burden of our discovery filled my lungs like poisonous smog, slowly turning them green. There’s no way out of this toxic mess of a plan. The plan’s been compromised several times over, and there’s only ever one way out… improvise!

“Cut to the chase. What do you want?"

“You know what we want!" Raymond smirked.

What followed was another round of dead silence. I pulled my water closer, then scratched the container with my thumb before placing it on my lips and taking a sip. Alex was quieter than still waters. His heavy breathing was far more vulgar than any other sound that presided over our little standoff. It was time to make a decision, but even before parting my lips to speak, it was evident that there was only one choice available.

“Under one condition…"

PRESENT TIME

The air was lifeless, frailer than a barren wasteland. For about a minute, we studied each other’s physical appearance to judge strength, looked for any special markings that might be a clue to one’s identity, and were wary of any slight movements of a potential threat. The twins turned to each other in silence to secretly communicate, then quickly swung their heads back around to me. And with a tone of demand, Jason spoke to me, looking utterly unamused.

“Who the hell are you?" He dropped his right arm from its prior folded position.

“Hey, I asked you a question!" His voice rose with a greater stint of anger. They’re going to attack! He’s running a distraction while Todd’s studying me, clearly looking for a window of opportunity or a blind spot. I need a plan of defense. In about 30 seconds, I might be in for a world of pain. This dude punched through a fricking wall!

“The name’s Nick." I firmly stated. My response took them by surprise as they were clearly not expecting me to actually say anything.

“You mind telling us what the hell you’re doing here?" Jason continued. “You clearly ain’t a prison worker."

“Well," I chuckled, “And you’re clearly not guards."

Whoosh Cling And just as suspected, he came at me! Swinging for my neck from the left with his right arm, he almost had me. I anticipated his attack and reached for the scanner that was at a 40-degree angle from my left. It managed to block the hit from making an impact, but it still knocked me a few inches back.

“Listen, Nick, is it?" Jason haughtily stepped forward. “Let’s not play games here. You’re clearly a spy sent to foil our plans. You obviously know who we are or what we’re here to do."

In the most terrifyingly calm disposition ever, he began to remove the skin from his arm to unveil its true metallic structure. “So why don’t you make this easier on yourself." Todd joined, “We need to take this pod and get the hell out of here before this place blows."

So, I was right! There is a bomb!

“Now, you’re going to be dead either way. So you can either let us walk out of here or wait a day or so to meet your maker, your choice."

My body stiffened, and the muscles in my face tightened. I knew my odds were slim, but I refused to back down. Now, more than ever, I need answers. And if this pod is the only way to escape the prison, I’m sure as hell not going to let them have it.

“As I said, I cannot let you do that."