T?o?r?t?u?r?e?

+ 19

I didn't have the energy to wipe my mouth off, grabbing onto the latch placed next to a mini door. I yanked it open with all of the strength I had left, staring down at empty blackness. Couldn't I be chopped up in this thing?

I looked around me. The roof was full of dark grey structures in the dead of night. Any one of those could lead right where I needed it to.

I could only hope Cameron was finding easier success with the tunnel, if she had even went at all.

I let my legs hang before I decided I would crawl down. At least I'd die trying to save my mom and Cielo.

The A/C cut on, and although it was loud, it became very clear to me that this was the workman's ladder dropout and not the actual A/C.

I kept feeling my way down the stairs, the darkness closing in. It felt like my eyes were closed even though they were open. Something cool and wet slid down the railing and I realized that it was from me.

"I can't bleed out now," I whispered, my throat dry.

I finally felt solid floor. I felt around along the floor to make sure there weren't any more stairs. I pulled out my phone, remembering it as my cell buzzed from a 抖阴社区 notification. I cut on the flashlight, seeing almost sixteen doors similar to the latch door on the outside in front of me.

It led to different places of the facility, but only one was marked "Open Area". I could only hope it meant where our house was built. I took another piss break, unfortunately for whoever was near a vent, in one of the openings. I crawled through the latched door and crawled through the crew tunnel. Thank goodness for people who fix air conditioner's or I would have been trying to wiggle my fat ass through an air vent.

I reached a conjunction, unmarked and really hot. The A/C was still loud, but I could tell I was straying away from the actual unit. I decided on left and found myself staring down at the two story Cielo and Mom had grown to love through three large slits in the tunnel.

About ten men were around the house's front, guns trained to the ground with proud expressions. The curtains were drawn, but I could only imagine that more waited inside.

I can't save them.

I took a break, leaning against the metal walls and ripping off some of my shirt. I tied up my arm, moving slowly as I felt fatigue worm it's way into my body like a drug.

I turned back to the slits, watching the house.

If Cameron was already here, someway, somehow, would I be messing up a plan she already had?

What if she already had them and nobody even knew?

I licked my cracked lips, turning up my nose as I remembered the puke on them. It's my job to save my fam. I care about them. I kept crawling, trying to blink away my exhaustion and ignore the blurriness at the edges of my vision- sometimes darkness if I moved too fast.

"Cielo," I mumbled, "my sky."

I repeated that to myself, even as my sweaty palms started to stick to the surface I crawled on, and my back screamed in pain.

"Cielo...my sky."

I glanced to my right again as another set of slits appeared in the long tunnel. I guess they were there for oxygen purposes. I was almost to the backside of the house, where no soldiers stood outside of it.

Almost there, my love, I thought in my head.

"Cielo...my sky."

"Orders from the bosses!" I heard someone shout out, down below.