Desolation by J. B. Everett (read more books .txt) 📕

"Maybe nothing's going to happen" Nikki says, breaking the foreboding silence.

By the now, it is dark. The moon has risen in the sky, a full moon that bathes the beach in an eerie light. We all stand there on the sand, facing the dark, ominous jungle. Waiting. Waiting for something to happen.

And still, nothing has happened.

As much as I want to believe what Nikki said, I have a bad feeling that it is not true. They are not going to leave us alone. We didn't come back like they wanted us to, and I know that we are going to face the consequences.

A chill shivers down my spine as a gust of wind blows the air, whipping my hair in all direction. It has finally cooled off.

Ian shifts the gun in his hands, still pointing it at the jungle.

"It's strange how nothing has happened. They said that we had until sunset to come back or else something would happen. It's nighttime now" Tristan says quietly.

Even though no one has come, I have the strange, unsettling feeling that we are being watched. The hairs on the back of my neck are spiked up in apprehension. I look behind me, but there is nothing but the calm waves lapping up on the shore.

Then suddenly, I hear it.

A faint crack sounds from the jungle.

I immediately tense up, my heart beginning to pound in my chest. I try to remind myself that it could be nothing. It could be just animal. But something deep down inside of me tells me that it's not.

They're here.

Ian raises his gun, putting his finger on the trigger when we hear another crack, this time slightly louder. Still, no one has emerged from the jungle yet.

I want to run, but I physically cannot. I am rooted to the ground, frozen with pure fear.

Crack.

Then, my heart stops when I see people emerge from the dark depths of the jungle. People in long white lab coats, holding guns in their hands.

Pointed at us.

Then, bile rises in my throat when one man walks forward in front of the others.

Hal.

He walks forward, stopping about fifteen feet away from us.

"Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way" he says icily, breaking the deafening silence.

None of us reply. Instead, we all glare at him with hatred in our eyes. Hatred for the man who has imprisoned us here on this island.

"If we do this the easy way, no one will get hurt. All that I'm asking that you come with us" Hal says.

Still, no one moves or says anything. We continue to stare at fiercely.

"I promise, if you come with us, no one will get hurt" Hal says again.

Then Ian says,

"We're not coming back"

Hal eyes Ian, smiling his malicious smile.

He then asks,

"Where did you get the gun Ian?"

"It's none of your fucking business" Ian growls.

"I believe it is my business. Everything that happens on this island is" Hal says coldly.

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Ian glares at Hal, aiming the gun right at him.

"You're not going to shoot me Ian. I know that you won't" Hal says, taking another step towards us.

"Yes I will. If you take another step closer to us, I will fucking shoot you" Ian says.

I look up at Ian, shaking my head. He glances at me for a moment. No matter how much I hate Hal, Ian should not shoot him because if he does, they will kill him.

"Oh really? So if I take one more step towards you guys, you will actually shoot me Ian?" Hal asks, raising his eyebrows.

"Ian, don't..." I whisper to him.

Ian turns away from me and looks back at Hal, hatred and anger burning in his eyes.

"Yes" he growls.

Then, to my horror, Hal takes another slow step towards us.

"Ian, wait..." I scream.

But then, I am cut off by a earsplitting bang as Ian pulls the trigger.

The next few events that happen are utter chaos.

I watch in alarm as Hal yells out in agony, grabbing his leg as he falls to the ground. Ian has shot him square in the thigh.

"SHOOT THEM!" Hal screams.

Then, before I can do anything, the men behind him point their silver guns at us and pull the triggers.

But there is no loud bang. Instead there is only a small pop.

On instinct, I duck as silver darts fly through the air towards us.

Tranquilizer guns.

"RUN!" Ian screams, grabbing my hand and pulling me. We begin to run across the beach towards the jungle. I don't know how I am running right now because my legs feel like jelly, but somehow I do. More tranquilizer darts soar through the air right past us, but don't hit us.

I turn around to see some of the men chasing us. The others are running after Nikki, Dylan and Tristan, who are running in the other direction. Then, I watch in horror as Nikki suddenly jerks to a stop and slumps to the ground.

They got her.

"Ian, they're coming after us!" I shout, panic rising in my voice.

We begin to run faster, bursting into the jungle. With my heart thundering in my chest, we run through the dark jungle, twisting and turning around trees. Ian leads the way and I honestly don't know how we don't run straight into a tree. It is so dark that I can barely see him in front of me.

I can hear the men behind us, crashing their way through the underbrush. Small popping noises continue as the men keep shooting tranquilizer darts. Luckily, none of them have hit us yet.

Even though my legs and lungs are burning, I keep running, determined to stay with Ian. I don't think that I have ever ran this fast before, but the adrenaline coursing throughout my veins keeps me going.

Then suddenly, I crash into the back of Ian as he falls to the ground.

He has been shot.

Flooded with sheer terror, I kneel to the ground and roll Ian's body over. In the faint moonlight coming through the trees, I can see a silver dart lodged in his neck. He is knocked out cold.

I hear the men coming closer and closer, their footsteps getting louder and louder. We are absolutely doomed. Without thinking, I grab Ian's body and pull it behind a large tree just as the men arrive into the clearing. They stop, looking around and gasping for breath.

I stand behind the tree, my heart pounding in my throat. If I move a muscle, they will find me. I stand as still as possible, praying that they won't see Ian's body laying out across the ground.

"Where did they go?" one of the men asks breathlessly.

The other two men shrug.

"I think we lost them" another says.

I wait there, as still as statue, hoping that they will leave.

Then, my heart stops when one of them turns towards the tree, looking at the ground.

"What the hell is that?" the man asks curiously, pointing his finger towards Ian's body and walking closer.

Then, without thinking anything through, I begin to run, bolting away from the men.

Leaving Ian behind.

"There she is!" I hear one of them shout.

I run as fast as my legs can carry me, dodging past trees and underbrush through the darkness. I don't know how I keep going, but somehow I do. I hear one of the men chasing me, his footsteps coming closer and closer. Even though I am running fast, he is faster than I am and catching up quickly.

Tears suddenly begin to run down my face when the implications of what I just did kick in.

I left Ian behind.

I left him behind to get taken by them, while I selfishly ran away to save myself. I am a horrible person. The tears stream down my face as I keep running, with no clue as to where I am going.

Suddenly, I feel my feet trip over a root and I crash to the ground, my face slamming into the dirt. Before I can yell out in pain, I feel two large arms grab around me. I scream, trying to push the man off of me. But it is too late.

Before I can try to the fight the man off, I feel a sharp needle plunge into my neck.

Then, there is only darkness.

For a moment when I first wake up, I am actually pleasantly surprised.

First, I am not in a cage.

Second, I am in air-conditioning.

And third, I am on a bed.

But then this feeling subsides when the memories of what happened last night begin to creep back into my mind.

We have been captured by them.

I am laying down on a cot in a small, white walled room, similar to the one that I was in the first time I came down here. Bright fluorescent lights shine down the ceiling, immediately making my head begin to pound. I still feel lightheaded and disorientated, as if the tranquilizer dart is still in me. I touch my neck, feeling the spot where the dart was plunged into me. There is a small, swollen lump.

I sit up and jump when I see that I am not alone in the room. There, sitting on a bed across from me is Tristan.

He looks up at me and I can see that his eyes are red and puffy. We both look at each other for a few moments, hopelessness reflecting in both of our eyes.

I wonder why they put me in a room with only Tristan. That's when I remember.

Ian.

The memories flash back, staining my mind. I left him when he get shot. I left him for them to take.

A lump forms in my throat as tears threaten to spill out of my eyes. I try fight the tears back, but before I know it, tears begin to run down my face.

I am an absolute mess.

"Tessa..." Tristan murmurs, his blue eyes locked with mine.

Before I know it, I find myself sobbing in Tristan's arms. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me into a close hug. We stay there for what feels like an eternity. I cry into his shirt, soaking it with my tears.

"It's okay" Tristan whispers soothingly.

That might be the biggest lie that I have ever heard.

"Tristan, we've been captured by them. We're locked in this room and we don't where the others are. Nothing is okay" I sob, my voice trembling.

"Yes but at least we're still alive" Tristan says.

I don't know how he can manage