Page 87 of Into the Abyss
Placing her hands on the floor, she pushedherself up. “Come here.”
She walked to the front bars and turnedexpectantly back to me. Every muscle in my body felt like they’dbeen run over by a truck, but I gritted my teeth and rose.Shuffling forward, I drew on the strength of the Chosen bond as Iwilled myself to heal faster with every pain-filled step.
Amalia was still alive, I would know if shewere dead, but where was she and what were they doing to her? WhileI remained a walking bruise, I would never be able to get out ofhere and to her.
Stopping at the bars, I slid my arms throughthem and craned my head to look for the other cells Wren mentioned.The movement made me wince, but I spotted the cells diagonallyacross from Wren’s. Their doors were open, and no one was inside asWren had said.
A solid wall was ten feet across the hallwayfrom me, and judging by the near perfect condition of everything, Isuspected we were in the third-story section of the ruins.
“It’s starting again,” Wren murmured.
I turned my attention forward as thesandstone walls of the hallway faded to white ones. The sudden beepof a machine sounded in the distance and chairs materializedagainst the wall as blue swinging doors replaced the bars of theother cells.
It took me a minute to realize the hallwayhad been replaced with one of the humans’ hospitals. People inwhite lab coats, carrying charts or pushing wheelchairs, rushedback and forth. They scurried around as they barked orders at eachother while shouting for medical supplies.
Other people walked around as if in a daze,their hands to their heads or with bandages swathed around theirarms. The details were vivid enough that the fluorescent lightsabove gleamed off the white floor and sneakers squeaked on thetile.
The set of blue swinging doors burst open,and a gurney wheeled into the hall. A man pushed the gurney while awoman straddled the patient lying on it. She used her hands to pumphis chest up and down; when they got closer, I realized the womanwas Wren. Sweat dripped from her forehead, and her pretty face wasscrunched with determination as she worked on the man.
“Originally, I felt the man’s chest beneathmy hands and was a part of it, but once I realized it wasn’t real,I was relegated to the cell,” Wren explained.
“Yet you continue to be in the scene,” Imurmured.
“I think part of the fun for them is makingme watch over and over again.”
“Watch what?”
“You’ll see.”
The scene shifted to reveal Wren standingoutside a door marked operating room. Another young woman and twomen about her age stood with her. Wren’s blue scrubs were replacedwith a pair of jeans and a blue sweater.
When the door swung open, a doctor emergedto let Wren know the patient would live. She smiled and politelythanked him, but when the doctor went back through the doors, shelet out a cry of joy. One of the men enveloped her in a hug, liftedher off her feet, and swung her around. Then, they kissed.
In the cell beside me, Wren cringed andbowed her head.
“Who is he?” I inquired.
“I don’t know,” she said, “but apparently inthat world, he’s my boyfriend or something.”
The man set her down and kissed her again.“We have to go out and celebrate!” he declared.
“I can’t,” Wren replied. “I have to meet myparents for dinner.”
“After dinner?”
“After dinner,” she promised.
Then, the scene shifted again to reveal Wrensitting in a restaurant with her napkin on her lap. She had aforkful of food lifted halfway to her mouth, but she ignored it asshe eagerly regaled the couple sitting across from her with thedetails of her day.
Gray tinged the couple’s hair and wrinkleslined their eyes and mouths. Judging by their similar features toWren and the love in their eyes, these were the parents she’d toldher boyfriend about. Parents who, in this world, had been killedwhen the gateway opened.
“And then the doctor came out and said he’sgoing to live!” Wren gushed before shoving her spaghetti into hermouth.
“That’s fantastic,” her mother said.
Her father rested his hand on Wren’s. “We’reso proud of you.”
Beside me, I scented Wren’s tears, but Ididn’t look at her. She would hate it if I saw her cry.
