Her & Him: Till death do us apart

Chapter One

The alarms had been screaming for so long that Crying Child could no longer remember what silence sounded like.

Their shrill cries bounced off the metal walls, echoing through the facility like wounded animals. Red emergency lights flashed overhead, staining everything in a bloody glow. Every few seconds the lights would flicker, plunging the hallways into darkness before returning once more.

CC hated the dark.

She hated the red lights.

She hated the alarms.

She hated this place.

The rabbit clutched tightly against her chest had once been white. Now its fur was worn thin and gray from years of being dragged through hallways, sleeping beside her on cold nights, and being squeezed whenever the fear became too much.

Especially now.

People rushed past her.

Boots slammed against the floor.

Voices shouted over one another.

Doors opened and closed.

Someone screamed.

CC flinched.

Her fingers tightened around the rabbit.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

Even by facility standards.

A loud crash echoed somewhere in the distance.

The floor trembled beneath her feet.

Dust drifted from the ceiling.

Several adults nearby immediately changed direction and began running.

Running.

Not walking.

Not hurrying.

Running.

That frightened her more than the alarms ever could.

Adults weren't supposed to run.

Adults were supposed to know what was happening.

Adults were supposed to be in control.

These adults looked terrified.

A sharp crackle burst from the speakers overhead.

Static hissed.

Then a voice spoke.

"Attention all personnel."

The speaker cut out for a moment.

More static.

Then:

"Containment breach detected."

The hallway erupted into chaos.

People who had been walking broke into full sprints.

Someone dropped a stack of papers.

Another abandoned an entire cart of equipment.

CC watched it happen with wide eyes.

Containment breach.

She didn't know exactly what that meant.

But she knew enough.

Something had escaped.

Something dangerous.

The facility had always been full of things people didn't talk about.

Locked rooms.

Guarded hallways.

Doors nobody was allowed to open.

Subjects nobody was allowed to see.

CC had learned long ago that asking questions only caused trouble.

Another announcement followed.

"All remaining subjects are to be secured immediately."

CC froze.

Subjects.

Not children.

Never children.

Subjects.

The word twisted her stomach.

She hated that word.

It made her feel less like a person.

Like she was an object someone had forgotten to throw away.

A second voice joined the announcement.

"All personnel are authorized to use emergency retrieval procedures."

Retrieval.

Another word she hated.

The rabbit trembled in her hands.

Or maybe she was the one trembling.

A hand suddenly landed on her shoulder.

CC nearly jumped out of her skin.

She spun around.

A woman crouched beside her.

The woman wore a facility uniform.

CC recognized her face.

Not well.

Just enough.

The woman forced a smile.

"There you are."

CC took a small step backward.

"We've been looking everywhere for you."

The woman's voice sounded calm.

Too calm.

Like she was trying very hard not to sound frightened.

Behind her, people continued racing through the corridor.

Something crashed in the distance.

The woman glanced toward the sound.

Only for a second.

But CC noticed.

She looked scared.

Everyone looked scared.

"Come on," the woman said gently, extending a hand. "We need to get you somewhere safe."

Safe.

CC almost laughed.

Nothing in this building was safe.

Not the rooms.

Not the tests.

Not the needles.

Not the endless questions.

Not the locked doors.

Not the way adults watched her like she was some strange animal.

Safe.

The woman reached forward.

CC took another step back.

The smile faltered.

"Please."

Another step.

"CC."

Another.

The woman sighed.

"Don't make this difficult."

The rabbit's button eye stared back at her.

For years she had obeyed.

For years she had stayed.

For years she had listened.

And what had it gotten her?

Cold walls.

Locked doors.

Fear.

A deafening crash exploded somewhere behind the woman.

Everyone in the hallway turned.

For a single moment, nobody was looking at her.

Nobody.

CC ran.

The woman shouted.

"Wait!"

CC didn't.

She sprinted down the corridor.

The rabbit bounced against her chest.

Her lungs burned almost immediately.

She wasn't used to running.

Not like this.

Not for this long.

But she kept going.

She had to.

Footsteps followed.

People shouted.

Someone called her name.

She ignored them.

Another announcement echoed through the facility.

The words blurred together beneath the alarms.

The red lights flashed overhead.

Everything felt unreal.

Like a nightmare.

A nightmare she couldn't wake up from.

Then she saw it.

At the end of the corridor.

A door.

Not just any door.

An exit.

Sunlight spilled through the narrow window.

Real sunlight.

Not fluorescent lights.

Not artificial ceilings.

Sunlight.

Hope surged through her chest.

CC ran faster.

The exit grew closer.

Closer.

Closer—

A guard stepped into her path.

Her heart stopped.

No.

No no no.

Not now.

The guard looked exhausted.

Sweat covered his forehead.

He opened his mouth.

Probably to tell her to stop.

He never got the chance.

A violent impact shook the entire building.

The hallway lurched.

The guard stumbled sideways.

Lights exploded overhead.

Glass shattered.

People screamed.

The exit doors flew open.

Fresh air rushed inside.

CC didn't hesitate.

She slipped past the guard and burst outside.

The world exploded into color.

Blue sky.

Green trees.

Sunlight.

Wind.

For a moment she nearly stopped running.

She had forgotten what it felt like.

The forest stretched endlessly before her.

Beautiful.

Wild.

Free.

Behind her came shouting.

The facility had already noticed she was gone.

They were coming.

Of course they were.

They always came.

CC tightened her grip on the rabbit.

Then she ran.

Past the fence.

Past the warning signs.

Past the last piece of civilization.

Straight into the waiting forest.

And for the first time in her life, nobody knew where she was.

CHAPTER 2 COMING SOON!!