22. Found

"You know?! That's impossible! I saw them brain-wash you! How.... What do you mean?" I stammer in shock, and quickly transfer it to the tablet.

"Well..." She rubs her forehead thoughtfully..."It's more like... I remember. And... I believe you.... Ah, I'm so confused" She bends over and covers her face with her hands.

"Wait!" She whispers and sits up straight. "I saw you! I saw you in the vent! That's why! That's why I'm starting to remember, now!" Her eyes dart around madly and her mouth twitches. I reach up and place a hand on her shoulder. She jumps with a gasp, and tumbles over backward. I am just glad she didn't scream.

"You SAW me?" I choke... One of them might have seen me!

"Well, yeah. But I don't remember what happened aft-" The color drains from her face, her hands quiver, her eyes stay trained on the ceiling. I kneel beside her, confused and scared. Tears start to flow from the corners of her eyes and I see her mouth a single word, 'Help'.

I don't know what to do! She can't hear or see me, and no one else around here can... well, except for people who want to capture me.

Kayla's body falls still. Unnaturally still. I grasp her shoulders tightly and shake her. She doesn't wake up. I scoop up the tablet and scroll through the few apps. I lay it down by her head, press a button, and a loud alarm sounds.

She jolts awake and I shut off the alarm.

"You... You were right!" She says in a voice that makes me shiver. "This?" She glances around "All this, is... and experiment! A test! And..." She places her head in her hands again, "It's too much... Too much!" Kayla looks up.

"By the way..." Kayla's face displays stark fear and confusion. "What are you doing here? I thought you were dead! I dragged you out to the field myself!"

After some discussion Kayla launched into detail about everything that she had done and seen since we parted ways, then I returned her in a full explanation, though mine was definitely not as interesting as hers.

Kayla springs to her feet! "OH NO!"

"What?" I ask, worried at her expression, then remembering, I write it to her.

"I- I was supposed to be taking inventory! And I'm known as the 'fastest inventorian'! (She rolls her eyes slightly) I've been sitting here for.. Oh! I have to go!" She darts away.

I froze. Should I follow her? She jumps back, a half smile on her face. "Whoops. I kinda need that touch pad."

I smile, draw a smiley face then write Okay, but delete this page and meet me back here later. These halls are swarming with guards and they can see me, so I've got to stay hidden.

Kayla didn't seem to understand, but she also didn't seem to care. "Hey... I know where you can hide."

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I fidget and squirm, but there's really no comfortable way to hide in a metal barrel that used to contain paint. I cough the fumes, hold back a cough, then choke even worse. Tears fill my eyes, but I strain  to not make noise. A loud thump bangs on the barrel I am hiding in. I reach up to grab the lip and open it. Wow, Kayla really is fast at that!

"I can't believe this! Where could that boy be? Mr. Buxton is going to kill us!"

I try to shrink in my barrel. My heart instantly racing.

"Well, we could just say we made it up to protect ourselves. Say we were the ones fooling with the project."


"Mm hm.... And that would get us, let's see, how much farther from death? He would still kill us! TWICE!"  The guard whispered angrily.

"Well, I don't hear you giving any suggestions!"

A second passed. My barrel rattled.

"What are you doing? a voice asked.

"Creating a solution!" I tumble on my side and thump to the ground. The barrel rolls and a few people shout in alarm. I come to a sudden and harsh stop. I breath with relief.

A large thud clangs on the side of the barrel. Another hit rings painfully in my hears. I can feel myself break through something. I guess a wall. Other barrels crash against me. Dozens of voices shout, I hear people rushing around. I continue to roll, crashing through two more walls. Dents in the barrel stick painfully into my shoulders and legs.

I crash into something and stop. A shaking reverberates through me, into all of the barrels. I throw my fist at the lip and squeeze out. I shove barrels aside and scramble up through a mountain of them. I close my eyes and breath in the paint-fume-free air.

"YOU!!!!!!" Someone screams. I open my eyes to see a female guard pointing straight at me. "You are him! You're the boy who's been messing with the project. Now you go destroying the building????"

Though her voice rings in rage, her face glows with the delight. No doubt, because she was the one to have the luck to find me. I spin on my heels and stumble. My lungs collapse as my chest smashes into the edge of a barrel. I jump up, gasping for air. Two sharp pains pierce my back and a current of electricity explodes through me. I see the white side of a barrel as I tumble, face first to the ground.