Darn Stupid Brother You Are by Mairee

Chapter 30

(Angel's POV)

I couldn't stop thinking about it.

The door. The warning. Dr. Nixon's face was pale, and she was shaking. Why did she suddenly change? Why was she willing to help us get out of the center now? Did something happen with Dr. Joe? Or was she just playing us? How did she even know we were in the lounge?

Everything spun in my head, and it felt like I was trapped in a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.

My body moved on autopilot, and I walked down the hall to my dorm room. The flickering lights cast shadows that felt too long and twisted. I didn't even realize where I was going until I stopped in front of our room.

I knocked once, then twice. My heart pounded.

I wonder why I was knocking but I was thinking of ten different things at the same time, so I didn't even know what my body was doing.

The door creaked open, and there she was. Cylan. Her face was blank, as always. But there was something in her eyes, something curious. "Why are you so up late?" she asked, and her voice was low, barely above a whisper.

I stepped inside quickly. The air in the room felt thick and heavy.

"I need to talk to you," I said, and I closed the door behind me. The other girls were asleep.

Cylan crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. "About?"

I took a deep breath and tried to keep my voice steady. "The noises in the West Wing."

Her eyes flickered for just a second, then she looked away like she didn't care. But I knew she did.

"I've heard them," she said, and her voice was flat.

I knew it.

"And?" I pushed and stepped closer. "What do you think they are?"

She shrugged, and her gaze still avoided mine. "Does it matter?"

"Yes," I said, more forceful than I meant to. "It matters."

Cylan finally looked at me, and there was something dark in her eyes, something haunted. "What are you trying to say, Angel?"

"I want to find out," I whispered, and the words tumbled out before I could stop them. "I want to know what's going on in this place."

She watched me, and her expression stayed unreadable. I couldn't tell if she was considering it or if she thought I was insane.

Just a quiet acceptance, like she had already resigned herself to that fate. "Maybe," I said, and my voice got softer. "But I have to

Don't you care about what they did to her? We might find some leads or answers there." Cylan stayed silent,

if we get caught, this

feeling both relief and fear

We waited until midnight.

creak of the old building settling and the soft rustling of fabric as Cylan and I pulled

at her, my heart pounding.

nodded, and her face set

first glanced at the girls, all sleeping obliviously, before

the last, like the air was thick with secrets. My nerves were on edge, and every shadow made me jump. But we

in front of the

down my spine as I reached for the handle, and my fingers trembled. This wasn't my first time but it was still unnerving. This

me, her face unreadable, but I saw

about Dr. Nixon's warning. Maybe....or maybe not...whatever. I was

door open, and the hinges creaked loudly in the silence. My heart leaped

But no one came.

the shadows looked long and menacing. The air smelled sterile, like

shouldn't be there, that we were trespassing in a place where we didn't belong. "This place is creepy as hell," Cylan muttered

as my throat was

and the sound of our breathing was the only noise in the heavy silence. Doors lined the

came from somewhere ahead

hear that?" I whispered and stopped in

her eyes narrowed. "What

didn't answer because I didn't

at the end of the hall. The door was slightly open and a faint light spilled out into the hallway. My heart

with medical equipment. Machines I didn't recognize beeped softly and their screens showed numbers and graphs I couldn't understand. But that wasn't what made me freeze. It

piled high on a desk

trembled as I reached for the nearest one. My name

My blood ran cold.

the hell?" I whispered and

My medical history. My daily routines.

I felt sick.

murmured faintly. "They've been watching us this whole

the

A loud clang came from somewhere

My heart stopped.

Cylan hissed

longer now and darker. Every corner felt like a trap. We were almost to the exit when I heard it. The sound of heavy

and my heart