Sam and Emma get turned around in the dark, and end up in the security area for the lock down wing.
Sam glanced at the clock. It was 11:25. "I didn't know it was so late. We went to the pool around ten fifteen. I guess it took us longer to walk the weight room than I thought."
"It's darker than a bat's ass in there. How did you do it?"
Sam chuckled, holding up his cellphone.
Gordon grinned. "Innovative. Ah, here's Raleigh."
"You two had me scared to death!" Raleigh kept his voice low, but it was tight with worry. "Where have you been?"
Sam gave him a 30 second rundown. As he spoke, more people arrived. Several uniformed guards came up from inside the lock down wing. Along with them, an emergency medical team. One guard took over the booth as Gordon joined Raleigh. They went to a panel and unlocked a Lucite covering. Inside, there were two key slots. Their keys turned right and the lights clicked on in the weight room. They were visible through a small glass panel.
Another thing was visible through the panel. Sam angled himself so Emma wouldn't see the grisly sight inside. A man lay in the middle of the floor, head bashed in. He wore a white lab coat, like one of the doctors, but Sam couldn't see his face. It wouldn't have mattered much, the blows had obscured more of it. He moved a little, so Sam knew he wasn't dead, but there was blood everywhere.
Sam led Emma to the chair and made her sit. There were security cameras on the screens. Most of them showed empty halls and a bustling nurses station. The screens flickered, showing the exterior. Floodlights illuminated the outside of the building. Suddenly, a row of police lights scurried up the circular driveway, stopping at the front door. An ambulance followed. A gurney came out a few minutes later, EMTs and nurses in close attendance. The ambulance took off with its lights flashing, winding down the driveway to the road beyond.
Sam watched all this in silence. Emma stared at the floor, paying no attention to all the commotion. People walked in and out of the hallway, watched closely by the guard on duty. He made no effort to speak to Sam and Emma, so they didn't speak to him.
Thirty minutes later, Raleigh came back. He motioned to the two teens. The guard let them out, locking the door once more. Raleigh led them through two locked doors, which the guard opened for them by remote, and into the familiar corridor outside Dr. Stewart's office. Here, he rounded on them, furious.
"What the hell were you up to?"
Emma's eyes riveted on Sam. Her face went pale. He knew she was going to throw up or faint.
"Can we get Emma out of here? She's gonna hurl. I'll tell you everything once she's settled. " He lifted the limp girl and carried her to the kitchen with Raleigh behind him.
A glass of gingerale clutched in her hands, Emma sat at the dining room table. Her eyes were wide and distant. She said nothing and barely responded even to a direct question.
Raleigh and Robbie sat across the table from Sam and Emma. Dr. Stewart came in a few minutes later, looking harassed and afraid. A plain cloths police officer accompanied her. He was a tall, Asian man who introduced himself as Detective Frank Tan.
"Now we're all here," Dr. Stewart said as she sat. "What happened?"
Sam cleared his throat and took a sip of Emma's drink.
"Emma came up to see me after the party. I was feeling sorry for myself. So she ran off and I chased her. We were playing around. The door to the pool was open and we went inside."
"It couldn't have been," Raleigh said angrily. "I locked it myself at nine fifteen."
"It was open," Sam insisted. "We sat by the pool a little while, enjoying the quiet. Then we heard angry voices. It sounded like two men. We couldn't make out their words—at least I couldn't. We decided it was time to leave. We didn't want to get in trouble. But someone came out of the weight room. We hid in the shadows."
"Did you see his face?" Dr. Stewart asked gently.
The detective glanced at her. He obviously wanted to ask the questions. She wiggled her fingers at him and focused on Sam once more.
©2020 Dellani Oakes
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