Taken

by Sarah Jayne Harry

  “This was your idea, wasn’t it?” a voice from outside my cell asks. I look up to find Damien crouched down in front of me. “I can tell it was. Everyone else has been here too long to think of something like that.” he smirks then, “I’m just glad I got to kill some of you.” he grins, and at that I snap. That’s it.

  I frown then lunge forward. The movement takes him by surprise and I manage to get a hold of his shirt through the bars, I bring my hand back with as much speed as I can muster and I watch as his face smashes against the bars. I grin as I hear a crunch and blood falls from his nose.

  "YOU FUCKING BITCH!" he screams. He unlocks my cell then and strides towards me. I don't bother to move. What's the point? I cry out in pain as his fist comes into contact with my cheek, he then pulls me to my feet and is holding his fist back to strike again, but then something in his eyes change and I can see the lust behind them.

  I'm confused for a second and then his lips are on mine, I try to get free but he holds my head between his hands and pushes me against the wall. His hands desperately slide across my body as his tongue tries to snake its way into my mouth.

  "DAMIEN!" a voice shouts from behind him, then he's pulled off of me. "What the fuck are you doing? You know you're not supposed to touch them." another guard, Clarke, I think his name is, holds him back. Damien's eyes are still on me.

  I fall to the ground and spit away the taste of him, that's when I remember the wound on my stomach. Thankfully the stitches are intact, it just hurts. I watch as he's pulled away and out of the room. I vow that when this is all over. I will kill him. Even if I have to die along with him.

  The next day, Dante comes down and stands outside my cell. For a minute I wonder why he's here, then I remember Laura's escape stories, He is in charge, and we must obey. He's here to punish me.

  With a sick smile, he opens my door and drags me to the middle of the room. Without a word, he pulls out a gun and shoots me in the left shoulder. I scream out in pain and clutch my arm as the blood pours out of the wound. Tears fall as the pain radiates. Dante tells the guard to take me to the infirmary to get me patched up and then he leaves.

  Later that night, I am back in my cell with a bandaged shoulder, and no hope that we will ever get out of here.

  Escape really is impossible.

  ✽✽✽

  Months go by and everything is silent. Each day, someone comes in and gives us food, other than that, we are alone. There are no guards in the room and the door is always locked.

  I have been here for around four months, I think, and my hope of being rescued has fully diminished. No more men come in and look at us and there are no new girls that have been taken from their families either, we aren't allowed to shower anymore and moods stay gloomy.

  The wound on my stomach has healed, leaving a large pink scar in its place. My shoulder has almost healed as well, I still have to wear a sling and I have to see the nurse everyday to take some tablets so I don’t get any infection.

  A few days later and we get told we are moving locations. It’s probably to keep the police from finding us.

  The guards are busy clearing everything up, so they don't notice when a small object flies into the room through the open window, it circles the cells before flying out again. The girls and I look at each other for a minute, confusion written on our faces.

  Two days later and moving day has arrived. As we sit and wait for the guards to come and get us, I talk quietly to Laura.

  "I have this feeling." she tells me, "I think something is going to happen."

  "We'll be fine." I say, trying to reassure her, she's working herself up, worrying about things out of our control.

  "Alright, ladies." a voice yells out. I look up and see it's Damien, following him is Scarface and a few others guards. He eyes me before putting a box he's holding on a chair and motions for the others to grab what's inside. Rope restraints. What is it with these people and the rope?

  "Now, put your hands through one of the bars." he yells at us. The guards go around the cells and tie the rope around each of our wrists.

  BOOM!

  A loud explosion comes from somewhere upstairs, causing the ground to shake. Damien and another guard go out to investigate, the guards continue to tie our wrists together.

  Shortly after they leave, the door is blown open and thick smoke snakes its way inside. Out of the smoke, emerge men in black tactile uniforms, they are all carrying very large guns.

  Screams fill the room as we scramble to the back of our cells. The men shout at the guards and point their guns at them. Another man grabs the keys and starts unlocking the cells. Shouts from the girls make my blood run cold and my body starts to shake. Who are they?

  When my door opens, a man steps in and kneels in front of me. "It's OK, we are here to help, you're safe now." he tells me.

  I lift my head and look at him, I notice on his uniform that there is some kind of official looking badge. Could they really be here to rescue us?

  Slowly, I put my good hand into his outstretched one and he gently pulls me to my feet. Once my wrists are free, I find Laura outside her cell with some of the other girls. I make my way over to them and find them whispering excitedly about being free.

  We stay connected, holding on to each other’s hands, as we are taken out of the room, up the stairs and out of the building.

  Outside, the sun burns my eyes and I quickly put a hand up to shield myself. I notice a lot of the guards and, presumably, others who worked for Dante, getting handcuffed and put into the back of police vans, I can’t help but notice that Dante isn't among them. Neither is Damien.

  A large bus waits for us on the dirt road and as we all climb aboard, a woman dressed sharply steps inside. She tells us she's from the NCA, the National Crime Agency, and we are all being taken to London until we can find our families. It's only when the bus starts to move that it finally starts to hit.

  I'm going home.

  No, we are going home.

  CHAPTER 14

  The journey is long. I finally found out where we were being kept, just west of Lyon, France. From there, we travelled to Paris by bus, making our way to a train station.

  At the moment, we are on the Eurostar back to London. The train has been cleared of all passengers, leaving just us and a few dozen police officers.

  Outside of the train is dark as we travel underwater, lights overhead cast a bright glow over the tables and chairs that line the carriages.

  We have been travelling for just over an hour and I start to get restless. I stand up and walk along the carriage. Some of the girls are sleeping, some are reading magazines and newspapers, while the rest are chatting happily among themselves. For some of us, including myself, this is the first time on a long-distance train and are full of nerves.

  "You OK?" Laura calls over from her seat a few rows back.

  I smile as I sit down in the empty seat opposite her and sigh, "Yeah. I guess. I just can’t sit still. I'm nervous."

  "To go home?" She asks.

  "It's silly. I know I was only gone four months."

  "It's not silly." she squeezes my hand gently and smiles, "It's normal to feel that way. Every one of us here today are worried about seeing our families again. Some of the girls who have been here so long are worried their families have moved on." I couldn’t imagine feeling like that, not knowing if your family have put you to rest or not, I feel kind of selfish for complaining when I have only been away from mine for a few months, that’s nothing compared to the few girls who have been with Dante for over a year.

  I nod my head and smile, grateful to have her here to talk to. I stay and we talk for a little bit longer before I have to move again.

  After a while, I grab a magazine that is on one of the tables and sit down, flicking through the pages. It’s a copy of the latest issue of Fate & Fortune magazine. The October 2018 issue. The magazine is available in stores a month in advance, so even though it’s only September, it’s full of spo
oky Halloween stories.

  It is my favourite magazine to read, with stories about supernatural occurrences and uncovering age-old mysteries about worldwide disappearances and crimes, there is always something exciting to learn about the afterlife and other worldly planes. I sit down on the closest seat and read through the articles.

  Another hour and a half later and we are pulling into the station at London. The platform is packed with people and as we walk, officers have to clear a path for us as we walk out onto the busy street. In front of the station is another bus. We all pile on, ignoring the looks and whispers from the crowd, and then we're off to our final destination.

  Along the way, I look out the window as we travel along the roads of central London. The sky threatens to open up and rain down on us, the streets are crowded with people as they go about shopping and cars slowly drive along the busy road. It's my first time seeing London and I feel a bit overwhelmed but I hope I can still experience London for myself one day, it has been a dream of mine to travel the world.

  ✽✽✽

  We pull into a large, white stone building. No sign in sight to suggest what building it is but by the armed officers standing guard, one can probably guess it's a high government agency building.

  We get taken up some stairs and into a large doctors’ style room on the third floor, a group of men and women in white coats stand before us. We are told we need to have some tests done to make sure we are healthy before we get to go home. We wait patiently while we are poked and prodded and stabbed with needles. Blood is taken, swabs are given and some of us have private testing for the more personal tests. I take a little extra time seeing the doctors as they have to check my shoulder and make sure it was treated properly.

  Some time later, we taken up another flight of stairs and into another room, this time a conference room it looks like, with plain white walls and a light floor. A large U-shaped table sits in the centre and a whiteboard has been pushed into a corner. We all sit down and wait for someone to come in, talking quietly among ourselves.

  30 minutes later and two women come in, the first is wearing a black trouser suit and has a briefcase with her, the second is wearing a black pencil skirt and a white blouse and carries a clipboard. They are followed by a man with a food cart, a kitchen worker, I presume from his white apron and checked trousers. He goes around and makes us some hot drinks as well as giving us some biscuits. We also get some clean clothes, a pair of joggers and a plain T-shirt.

  "Hello everybody." the first woman says, her voice is soft and sweet, "My name is Joanne, this is Maggie, we are here to take some details from you so we can start the process of contacting your families." her smile looks forced, like she wishes she could be elsewhere right now and her eyes look tired, I wonder how long it has been since she last slept.

  Joanne and Maggie go around the table and asks for our names, ages and how long we were with Dante.

  As the girls take turns giving their details, I look out of the window until it’s my turn and zone out. It’s a beautiful day and I wonder how long it will take for my parents to arrive.

  "What's your name hun?" a voice asks me. I look and see Maggie, who's smiling at me, patiently waiting for my answer.

  "Tayla Robinson." I tell her and she writes my name on her board.

  "OK, how old are you?"

  "I’m 16 and I was there for around four months." when she's satisfied with my answers she moves on to the next person.

  After all our names are taken, we learn that we were found because someone who works at the boat terminal I was at recognised my photo when it came on the news one day, I don't know why it took four months for them to report it, I'm just glad they did. Now that the police had a rough location, they just had to pinpoint exactly where we were, which wasn't hard to do once they knew what to look for.

  Later on, we go to the cafeteria and get some lunch. The room, very much like a school cafeteria, has tables placed around the room and food stations over to one side. We have the option of having a cold sandwich or a hot meal. I chose a hot meal. After looking through my options I settle on a piece of chicken breast, vegetables, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding and gravy. It's one of my favourite meals. I find a table with Laura and a few other girls join us. We sit quietly and enjoy the first good meal we have had in a long time.

  For the rest of the day, we spend time in the leisure room. A room full of books, a TV with the latest DVDs, a stereo with CDs and more.

  I immediately go to the bookcase which is lined with classic novels and some younger books. I look until I find one I like and I hit the jackpot. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. My absolute favourite book of all time. I get comfy on the plush sofa and open the pages. All around me girls watch TV or listen to music. I don't move for hours, happy to get lost in another world.

  At the end of day, we are told some people are working on contacting our families and that they will start arriving sometime tomorrow afternoon, we are offered a hotel to sleep in but we don't want to leave each other so the table is removed and sleeping bags are brought in and we all sleep inside that room, together.

  "I can't believe we are actually free." Samantha says during the night.

  "It feels like a dream." comes from Becky.

  I smile as they all talk about what they are going to do when they get home. Shower, sleep, shop and eat. Sounds good to me.

  I toss and turn until I get comfy and then slowly, my body relaxes and sleep soon takes over.

  CHAPTER 15

  The next day, we are eating breakfast in the cafeteria, a simple, full English breakfast, with bacon, eggs, sausages, beans, toast and a cup of tea or coffee or some orange juice. Afterwards, we each get a shower and get dressed in jeans and a t-shirt that are provided for us, as well as new bras and underwear, socks and shoes. Parents are due to start arriving in a couple of hours and we are hyper with excitement, yet full of nerves.

  After we are dressed and with some time to kill, we are allowed some time outside in the large garden that sits at the back of the building. I look around in awe as I step outside and into the fresh air.

  Dotted around the outer area, are trees of different colours, there are red trees, orange trees, green and pink. In the middle of the garden is a small clearing, flowers cover the ground in an array of colours. Bushes form a separate area where there are sun loungers and a few picnic benches.

  Some of the girls, myself included, go to the sun loungers. Laying back, we soak up the sun we haven't seen in months. Some of the girls run around on the grass and some sit at the tables and enjoy the time.

  An hour later and we are back in the same room as yesterday and we are watching the seconds on the clock tick by slowly. Any minute now and that door will open and parents will flood inside.

  I start to feel nervous, when the door slowly opens. In they come. The girls scream and cry when they spot their loved ones. I watch the smiles on the faces and feel the force of the hugs. I can’t help but notice the girls whose families aren’t here. I know it takes a while to find people and I pray that they are all found soon.

  I look around, trying to spot my mum or dad, it takes a few rounds until I find them, at the very back of the crowd. I wave my arms and shout.

  "MUM! DAD!" I shout, their heads swing in my direction and my heart swells at the emotions on their faces.

  "Tayla!" I laugh as they elbow their way through the crowd with force.

  When they finally reach me, their arms tangle themselves around my body as they pull me in close to them. I ignore the pain that shoots through my shoulder and hug them back. I can feel their bodies shaking from their cries.

  "Oh, Tayla." Mum says, "I'm so sorry."

  "Mum, why are you sorry? This wasn’t your fault." I go in for another hug, while Dad's hand rubs circles onto my back.

  "Sweetheart, are you OK? What did they do to you?" Dad asks as he takes in my black eye and my sling.

  "It's OK, Dad." I smile, "I'm OK now." we stay e
mbraced for a few more minutes.

  "Let's go home." Mum says and we start to make our way to the door.

  "WAIT!" I pull away from them and look around, when I find Laura, I run over to her and trap her into a hug which she returns instantly. Then I feel the force as the other girls come crashing in for a hug as well. I laugh as it turns into one large group hug. I look around at all their faces, cheeks stained with tears but eyes full of happiness stare back at me. We wish each other the absolute best and farewells since we know we may probably never see each other again, and then we go back to our families, who I notice are standing together, watching us with their own tears slowly forming.

  "OK. Let's go home." I tell my parents and then we're out the door.

  I sit with my nose and forehead pressed up against the window, I watch the world go by like it’s my first time seeing it. I watch the buildings go by and try to picture the people inside, families who are sitting down to dinner, or workers going about their business. I watch the trees fly by in a blur, and for a minute, my mind goes back to the forest, where four of my new friends were killed. I shake away the thoughts and lean back, the chill from the window seeps into my skin.

  ✽✽✽

  The taxi we are in slowly comes to a stop outside our house. I look out of the window and tears flow down my face as I take in the scene before me.

  Standing in our small garden is a group of neighbours and a few friends from school. Standing at the front of the crowd though, is Karen. I all but jump out the car and race over to her, flinging my arms around her shoulders, soon, we’re both crying.

  "Tayla." she says, pulling back so she can look at me, "I am so sorry." I am ready to tell her that it wasn’t her fault, but before I can, she continues. "If only I hadn't made you come over that night or if I'd walked you half way, maybe this wouldn't have happened." she starts crying again and I pull her back into a hug.