CHAPTER 10

Lauren MacLeish laid in the fetal position on the hard damp floor and cried herself into a semi sleep. She woke with a start when she heard the door open. She heard the familiar whispers starting and footsteps coming down the stairs.

Lauren attempted to stand up but her legs would not support her.

“What did I do? What are you talking about? I didn’t kill anyone!”

She fell down and started crying again. A short time later she heard heavy footsteps on the stairs. The door opened and the whispers stopped. Something was different. She felt someone beside her. When she reached out to touch whoever was there a hand lazily pushed her hand away. Lauren instinctively got on all fours and felt her way around. She found something soft and pliable. She felt around some more and touched a nose and a mouth. Then she felt hair. It was long like her own and smelled like fresh flowers. Lauren kept touching the body until it began to respond.

“Wake up” Lauren kept repeating. She said it a little louder each time as she was shaking the person beside her.

“What do you want? Who are you? Where am I?” The person screamed and tried to move away from Lauren.

“My name is Lauren and I have been here for 2 days. What is your name?”

“I can’t see!” Lauren heard.

“Did you hear me? I don’t have a lot of time. My name is Lauren and I have been here 2 days. What is your name?”

“Kristen, I’m Kristen. Where am I?” She screamed and began to cry.

“Kristen, I am sorry. I don’t know where we are. All I know is that there was a girl here before me and another girl before her. They don’t come back. Not long after they’re taken away someone comes down and whispers to us about how much time we have left until we will be killed.”

“What?” Kristen screamed.

“Shhhh” Lauren tried to calm Kristen but she was so beside herself that Lauren was unsuccessful.

“Just try to sleep, it helps” Lauren told Kristen. The two girls lay beside each other trying to slow their tears and rest for what they were sure was their upcoming fates.

When the door opened, Lauren tried to stand up but still could not. Kristen started to cry. Lauren tried to hush Kristen but was grabbed by the Whisperer instead. She was tugged roughly up the stairs and then pushed through the door before it closed.

The Whisperer asked Lauren “Do you repent?”

“I have nothing to repent for,” Lauren bravely yelled to the Whisperer.

The Whisperer proceeded to sit Lauren down on the hard table, strap her in and pushed her back onto the long sharp razors that were embedded into the bed of the table. Lauren let out a scream when the razors pierced through her skin. The Whisperer moved to the back of the table and pulled on Lauren’s hair so it could be cut and then shaved off. Lauren was vaguely aware of what was happening as shock had set in.

“Do you repent?” The Whisperer asked again.

“I don’t know why I need to repent.” Lauren spoke in broken breath.

The Whisperer moved away from Lauren and then in a quick movement stabbed a syringe into Lauren’s neck to release the Ketamine. Before she knew what was happening Lauren saw the Whisperer coming closer with a sewing needle and black thread. Lauren had no idea what the Whisperer was doing. She looked up and noticed the Whisperer was wearing a mask. She could only see the brown eyes of the person who was tormenting her this way. Lauren did not understand what was happening until she tried to talk. The Whisperer had sewn her mouth shut. She had lost sight of the Whisperer while she was attempting to speak. Then before Lauren could attempt to do anything about it, the Whisperer had reappeared. The last thing she saw was her own reflection in the mirror that the Whisperer had placed in front of her. She was horrified to see how her mouth had been sewn shut. Then she saw a sharp knife cut her across her neck deeply from her right ear to her left. She watched her own last breaths happen before her, her eyes betraying her and the life running out of her.

The Whisperer took great pleasure in the work that was done. When the mask came off, the clean up began. Nothing was more pleasurable for the Whisperer than cleaning up after a kill. Well, almost. The kill itself was good also.

The Whisperer’s thoughts turned to Alicia. He wondered how much she had remembered about her time in captivity. But she repented and according to the law of the Lord, she had been free to go.