Page 184 of Brainwashed

Curiosity spikes inside me, concern thickening in my chest while I watch Lem. He’s getting farther and farther out. The sky above us is darkening.

Lightning strikes and I jump, the thunder so strong it rumbles the ground beneath me.

Scrambling to my feet, I scream, “Lem! Come back in! It’s too dangerous!”

Winds are whipping around me, hail falling fast, slapping my skin. My heart is flying beneath my ribcage, fear gripping my spine.

I can’t see Lem…

I can’t make him out.

Where is he?!

“Lem!” I cry into the gray abyss.

The storm is swallowing us up…

And I can’t see.

Flinging upright, my eyes open wide as I look around frantically. My pulse is pounding in my ears and I’m sweating. It takes a moment for me to remember where I am, but then I recognize it as Lem’s office.

Oh, right. We fell asleep in here.

Slapping my hand over my heart, I wince because there are still wounds healing there.Jesus, that dream was crazy. I close my eyes and take a deep breath, calming myself down. Then I reopen them, reaching for my glasses on the table. I put them on, and my panic reappears.

Lem isn’t here.

My blinking becomes rapid as I slink off the couch, peering around the room. Everything is exactly how it was when I fell asleep. The empty Chinese food containers are on the table… But his work phone isn’t there.

Maybe he just went to the bathroom.

I tell myself that’s all it is. That he just needed to handle some business real quick, and he’ll be back in a few minutes. But the more minutes pass, the uneasier I grow, until I’m pacing around the office on the verge of a meltdown.

I decide to open the office door, peering out into the hall. It’s quiet, as usual. I don’t see or hear anyone. Part of me knows I should just stay in Lem’s office and wait for him to get back… But the other part of me is nervous. It’s already been hours, and I just can’t sit in here anymore. So I step out into the hallway.

Walking as quietly as possible, my head flings back and forth on the lookout for anyone. I know I’m not supposed to be wandering around alone. That much is obvious. But I need to find Lem. I need to make sure he’s okay. I’m… worried. There’s a sort of sick feeling rumbling in my gut like nausea, and I know it won’t go away until I see him.

I follow the long halls toward the showers, figuring I’ll check in there first—any doors I can open without a key. But just before I reach the last one, it swings open in front of my face.

“Oh… hello.” Dr. Templeton’s thin lips curve into a sinister smirk.

I back up slowly.Crap.

He steps closer to me, another man coming in behind him, tall with dark, slicked-back hair and olive skin. He’s stone-faced and serious, following Templeton as that asshole inches toward me.

I keep backing up.

“We were just looking for you,” Templeton says calmly, pulling a walkie off of his belt. “I found him. East Wing corridor B5, right before the showers.”

Someone on the other end says,ten-four, and they keep coming for me, slowly, as if I’m a trapped animal who might lash out. It’s pretty accurate.

“Back the fuck off, Templeton,” I growl. “I’ll go to my cell. It’s fine.”

“We have other plans,” he says.

My spine stiffens with fear. I don’t know who this new guy is, but his presence is worrying me.Why is he here? And where the fuck is Lem??

My back connects with the door, and I quickly reach behind myself, whipping it open and darting through. I’m prepared to run as fast as I can back to Lem’s office, but when I turn, I come face to face with Claude and one of the other, bigger orderlies, Bruce.