Fragments Gallery
Trapped
Her eyes were wide with fear as she huddled under the desk trying to make sense of the situation. All she knew was that she had woken up in a plainly furnished grey room tucked neatly into a white and blue sheeted bed, with no knowledge of how she had gotten there or memory of her past life. After she had overheard voices outside discussing how they were to "keep her in the dark this time" she had surprised the guard outside the door and escaped out into the facility. That was several hours ago. Now she was on the run with no memory other than her escape. Well one other memory stuck in her mind, she remembered a name; Maria. This she assumed was her name, but she had no way to be sure.
Blood pounded in her ears and she frantically struggled to stifle her heavy breathing as three people ran by the desk; she could see their clean black shoes flash in and out of sight as their owners ran between the desks filling the room. The shoes passed out of sight but she held her breath until the sounds of their running faded away.
What was happening? The one question followed her where ever she went, but searching her memory provided no answers.
After several deep breaths she cautiously begins to climb out from under the desk. A voice speaking softly from somewhere behind the desk drew her up short and sent her diving, quietly, back under the solid wood.
"Why haven't you found her yet Carl?" spoke a soft commanding voice.
"We are looking, Mrs. Marok," responded a stately, colder voice, "She is proving to be quite skilled at eluding detection, let alone capture."
Maria pressed her cheek against the soft carpet and tried to see the pair in charge between the desks, tables and chairs cluttering the room. She was rewarded with a brief glimpse of a pair of feet, adorned by the common footwear of the facility, at the far end of the room.
"That's not good enough Carl," Said the woman dryly yet firmly, "She is a threat. We need her recaptured or eliminated."
"Of course, we already have guards stationed at the entrances, but we think…" The man's voice faded as the speakers left the room.
Maria remained frozen even after the voices had faded. The other woman's last words echoed in her ears and filled her thoughts. They needed her recaptured or eliminated.
Uh oh.
It was several minutes before Maria could gather herself enough to roll out from under the desk and begin to move once more. Time seemed to fly by as she rushed through the facility searching for a way out. Occasionally she had to find cover as a group of searchers rushed by but for the most part she was alone. She thought the building was immense and endless and her suspicion of this was only strengthened by how infrequently the searchers rushed by.
After a time she came across a narrow hallway lined with mirrors, at its end was a neon exit sign. Beneath it the door stood ajar.
This seemed too easy. The door was just ahead of her and unguarded but she couldn't help but to think that this was too simple, could she really just walk out of here or was this a trap? It didn't help that the hallway seemed familiar. After a quick look around, to ensure she was still alone, she stared into a mirror as she thought on her choice. Back out of the mirror stared her own dark eyes, her walnut heart shaped face framed by black hair. Her lips narrowed in thought and then released as she made a choice.
Hesitantly Maria walked down the hall; reaching the door without incident she cautiously poked her head into the room. The room was plain, simply furnished, but the grey walls had sunlight painted across them. The light was coming from around a corner in the room. Hope filled her, was it possible that she was in an entryway? Entering the room and turning the corner she found the source of the light. A narrow locked window set in the wall above a white and blue sheeted bed. She was back where she had started.
As she realized this she heard the door slam behind her and a key turn in the lock. She'd somehow got turned around and now she was locked in. Somehow they’d known she would end up back around the room so they’d planted the fake sign. How had they known?
In the end it didn’t matter, she was trapped in the room. Again.