Nobody's Boy
Chapter 7

Someone roughly shook me awake that night. I slowly opened my eyes and found Morgans face inches away from mine.

“Whaa?” I began to sink back into my dreams.

“Wake up!” She slapped me on my cheek. A red laser light was moving in a slow circle on her chest and she looked really scared.

I looked down and saw a light shining on my chest. It wavered for a few seconds and then a loud voice yelled from the trees.

“We have guns trained on every single one of you, and a captive we’ll happily shoot if you don’t cooperate.”

I looked around the clearing.

Jasmine.

“That’s right, lover boy!” The voice was mocking me now. “Your girlfriend will have a hole in her brain if you don’t do what we want.”

“And what’s that?” I asked.

“Guards, to keep that psychotic pig away from us.”

“You can’t protect yourself with your big guns?” Felicity scoffed. “The bacon too tough?”

A flashlight flickered on and shone at Jasmine. She was being held still by two burly men, a gun pressed against her temple. Her mouth was gagged shut and he3r eyes darted frantically around.

“Looks like she can’t reach through flesh, thank God.” In the dim light I could pick out the speaker. He smiled devilishly and took a few steps forwards. “We’ll shoot you and your darn friends if you don’t agree.”

“Wait, you’re guards from the compound.” I said.

“Yeah, we were… out and got warned not to come back. Unluckily the pigs out now so we’re no better off than the others were.”

I looked helplessly at my friends. They returned the look with icy glares.

“I’ll make a deal with you.” I offered.

“You’re in no positi-”

“Heal Rikki and we’ll come.” I interrupted.

The man walked up to Rikki and nudged him with his foot. He groaned and rolled over, a stream of saliva coming out of his mouth.

“Is it worth it? We can shoot him.” One of the other guards said.

“No, he’s valuable.” The leader nodded to two men. “Take him back to camp.”

“Yes, sir.” They came forwards and carried him unceremoniously into the woods.

I got in line with Felicity and Morgan and we followed the guards out into the darkness. They all turned on their flashlights, the beams dancing across the trees. I tried to make eye contact with Jasmine but she ignored me, marching stiffly forwards as the guard held her hands tightly behind her back.

“Can’t she go?” I asked.

“She’s the most dangerous one.” was the reply. I stopped for a second but the point of a gun probed my back and I jumped forwards, shooting a dirty look at the short man walking behind me. His skin glistened with sweat and he wiped his hand across his forehead.. It was humid and the air felt sticky.

It took a while to reach the camp. As we dodged animals, climbed over branches, and waded through small rivers I got a good look at the island. It wasn’t that big, but it was full. Escaping was almost impossible because we were surrounded by water, and there were no boats available.

Unless we built a raft.

I slid down a steep embankment, grabbing onto branches so I wouldn’t fall. At the bottom was another river. I jumped over and found myself in the camp.

There was a makeshift wall surrounding the camp made up of broken branches. Small tents and sleeping bags lay around the clearing, and a campfire was built in the middle. I thought back to yesterday when I saw the smoke. It must’ve been from here.

The guards began to spread out in the camp. Me, Morgan, Felicity, Jack and Jasmine stood in an awkward row while the leader inspected us. He seemed a little disappointed with how… small we were.

“You’re all delinquents, am I right?”

“Yeah…” Morgan seemed exasperated

“For ex-gangsters, abusers, and robbers you’re not much to look at.”

I was seething with anger. Morgan must’ve felt the same way because she stepped forwards.

“You’re the one who wanted us to come.” She snapped.

“Not sure it’ll do much good.” he mumbled, looking past her and at me.

“Oh, shut up. We’re a lot more than we seem.” Her eyes flashed with anger. “You wanted us to come save your butts, but I don’t know if I’m up for it.”

He pulled a pistol out of his pocket. “You sure?”

“You’re not worth saving from anything.” She gave him a shove. “Against us, you don’t stand a chance.”

He seemed slightly amused. “You remind me of my daughter.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, she was a stuck-up brat who thought she was too good for the world. Well guess what, you’re a nobody stuck on an island because you were a little murderer. No one cares for you now and no one ever will.”

Morgan screamed and leaped at him. He yelled in surprise as her weight pulled him to the ground. Her hands clawed at his face, leaving bloody scratches.

“Get. Off.” he huffed. She fell to the ground and he pulled out his gun.

“No!” me and felicity jumped forwards but he pulled the trigger.

There was a bang and Morgan fell to the ground, motionless.