Chapter 34 Owen's Chase

Chapter 34 Owen's Chase
Nyla POV 

"Are we really leaving?" I whispered and my voice sounded strange in the cold morning air and Dr. Voss did not answer but kept walking, guiding the wheelchair, and Zane moved beside us, steadying himself through sheer will, every muscle fighting against exhaustion and I whispered, "We have to keep moving, almost there, almost free," and the road stretched ahead, half a mile, dark and empty, the sky beginning to lighten at the eastern edge, and I could hear nothing except the scraping of the wheelchair wheels and our own breathing and I said, "Just ninety minutes, we have ninety minutes before they know, before they come looking."

At the junction Dr. Voss stopped and pulled a phone from her coat pocket, a basic model and she made a call and it lasted forty seconds and I watched her lips move and then she hung up and whispered, "Someone is coming, we have to be off the road before daylight, stay close and move with me," and I whispered back, "Do we know who is coming?" and she shook her head slightly, "Not yet, the road is the priority, questions can wait."

We moved into the tree line beside the road and waited, cold pressing against us and my mother did not speak but her eyes tracked everything, every movement of leaves, every shift in light, every glance between us and I crouched beside her wheelchair and held her hand and whispered, "It’s okay, we are moving, we are safe, stay with me, do not panic," and she looked at me with those eyes that had not spoken in years and she said my name, just my name, and I gripped her hand tighter and did not respond, because nothing I could say would be adequate and I whispered instead, "Yes, yes, I am here, I will not let you go, we are together, we move together."

Twenty minutes later a vehicle arrived, plain panel van, driven by a man I did not know and he looked at Dr. Voss and nodded and opened the back without a word and I whispered, "This is it, this is happening, almost there, keep steady," and inside were blankets, water, a first aid kit, and a folded note with an address and Dr. Voss read the address and told the driver and then we began loading the wheelchair and Zane collapsed against the side panel, not a stumble, full loss of function, and I caught him, feeling his weight, feeling his body hot and trembling and I whispered, "Zane, stay with me, hold on, breathe, just a little longer, don’t give in now, we are almost free."

Dr. Voss was beside him in seconds, checking his vitals and muttering, "We have to stabilize him or he will not make it through the day, keep him calm, stay with him, he cannot overheat, we have to work fast," and I whispered, "We can do this, we have to, we cannot let him go now, almost there, almost free."

They got him into the van, doors closed, and the vehicle moved and I sat on the floor beside him, back against the wall, holding his hand and watching Dr. Voss work over him with the first aid kit and I whispered, "Just stay calm, breathe, we are moving, the facility is behind us, we are alive, we are almost there, hold on."

Through the small rear window the facility lights were still on, still running, still containing everyone who was not in this vehicle and I whispered, "Owen is still inside, he is still there, he has no idea we are gone, we are escaping him, but he is still there, I cannot forget that, I cannot feel safe yet," and my mother turned her head slightly and I whispered to her, "We are safe for now, do not worry, just breathe, we move together, we are alive, it will be okay."

Dr. Voss muttered, "We have forty minutes until the address, we keep him stable, no sudden movements, steady, calm, every motion counts," and I whispered, "I will stay with him, I will not let him go, we are moving, almost free, almost safe, do not panic, stay calm," and my mother’s eyes followed our hands and I whispered, "You are safe, we are moving, we are leaving everything behind, you do not have to remember it all yet, just stay with us, breathe."

The van moved down the road, engine quiet, tires humming over the asphalt and I whispered, "We are alive, almost free, every second counts, every step, every motion, keep steady, do not let go, we move together, stay calm, stay with us," and Zane groaned softly and I whispered, "I know it hurts, I know you are hot, I know it is too much, but stay with me, we are alive, we are moving, we are together, hold on."

Dr. Voss looked at me and whispered, "He will make it if we stay calm and steady, you must hold him, reassure him, speak, keep his mind on the moment, not the facility, not Owen, only us, only movement, only survival," and I whispered back, "Yes, we are here, we are moving, almost free, stay with me, stay with us, we are alive, we survive together."

I looked out the window at the facility, still lit, still silent, and whispered, "It is still there, Owen is still inside, we escaped but he remains, he has no idea we are gone yet, but we have to remember he is there, the world is not safe yet, do not relax, do not forget, move, move, stay alive," and my mother’s hand tightened in mine and I whispered, "Do not worry, we move, we are together, we are almost free, breathe, trust me."

Dr. Voss worked methodically over Zane, and I whispered to her, "How long until we reach the address?" and she muttered, "Forty minutes, if we maintain this pace, keep him calm, do not rush, every movement exact, almost there, almost free," and I whispered back, "Yes, we are almost there, we survive together, stay with us, keep steady, hold on."

My mother turned her eyes on me again and whispered, just a sound, not words, but her awareness, and I whispered back, "I am here, I am holding you, we are moving, we are free for now, every step, every breath, we survive together, do not let go."

Zane murmured, "It hurts too much," and I whispered back, "I know, I know it hurts, stay with me, stay alive, we are almost there, we are moving, hold on, breathe, we survive together, do not give in now."

Dr. Voss muttered, "Keep your hands on him, do not let go, steady, calm, every motion counts, almost there, almost safe," and I whispered back, "Yes, almost there, every step, every second, we are alive, we move together, hold on, do not falter, stay with us."

Through the rear window the facility shrank into the distance, lights blinking off one by one, doors locked behind us and I whispered, "We left it behind but it is not gone, Owen is still inside, he is still there, we survived, yes, but the fight is not over, we move, we survive together, every second counts, almost free," and my mother’s hand squeezed mine and I whispered, "Stay with us, breathe, you are alive, we are moving, we are together, do not panic, do not give up."

Dr. Voss looked at me and whispered, "Keep talking to him, Nyla, do not let his mind drift to the facility, to Owen, to anything outside this van, speak, guide, reassure, we survive together," and I whispered, "Yes, we are alive, almost free, stay with us, every motion counts, every second counts, we survive together, hold on, do not look back."

Zane groaned again and whispered, "I can’t do this," and I gripped his hand tighter and whispered back, "You can do this, we are almost there, we survive together, breathe, every step counts, every second, stay with me, do not give up, we are moving, we are alive."

Dr. Voss muttered softly, "We are almost there, steady, calm, precise, every motion counts, survive, survive, survive," and I whispered, "Yes, survive, we move together, almost free, hold on, stay alive, every step, every second, do not falter, stay with us."

I looked at my mother and whispered, "We are here, we are moving, stay with us, breathe, every motion counts, we survive together, hold on, almost free, do not let go," and she squeezed my hand in response, awareness clear in her eyes, and I whispered, "Yes, stay alive, we are moving, almost free, we survive together."