Chapter 4 Four

The alien returned sometime later with a tray of something called mesantine. But Casina defiantly refused it and flung the tray and its contents across the room, so the food splattered against the wall and door after he left. "How do I know it's not poisoned!" she shouted after him, not caring what he thought of her behavior.

Furious at another hopeless situation, she flounced back to the bed. Laying on it, she crossed her arms in a huff, stewing over her captivity. But, too upset to relax, she got up and began pacing. At one point, when she chanced too close to the door, she was startled when it opened of its own accord. She tiptoed to the doorway, to peer out, fully expecting someone to be guarding her. When she realized no one was, she was quick to make an escape, chiding herself for not checking the door sooner.

Grinning at her discovery, she dashed down the corridor, seeking a way of escape, although she was still terrified.

She did fine for awhile. But every so often she would hear voices that sent her scurrying in another direction. She had no interest in attracting attention from any other aliens on board. She had no clue what they might do to her if they caught her snooping about.

She soon found what looked like an elevator. This, too, opened automatically, so she stepped inside to play with the controls, glad no one was in it. The strange markings on the panel gave evidence of her alien abduction, and it was with some apprehension that she pressed a few buttons. She had no idea where her daring might lead her, but what choice did she have? She only knew that if she wanted to get off the ship, she would have to seek the landing bay for smaller vessels, if there were any. Of course, she was going only by what she had learned from Hollywood movies and television shows. She just hoped she was right.

When the door whisked open, she slowly peeked her head out. She knew God was with her still because the corridor was free of life. Hurrying from the elevator, she made her way along the wide, metal-colored hallway, stopping at each intersection for signs of movement. When she turned down one hallway, she halted in surprise. Before her were two huge, red doors. She groaned because they reminded her of the fairy tales she had often shared with her brother. Jimmy had loved tales of giants and dragons.

But the doors also impressed upon her how lost and alone she was. She choked back a sob, overcome by emotion.

Until the aliens had arrived, she had resigned herself to spending her entire life at St. Christi's, alone and forgotten. After her parents' tragic deaths in a car accident, she had thought that that would be the worst for her. But nothing had prepared her for life with the Zacks where she had been forced into servitude and practically starved. Had it not been for a schoolmate, Jenny Tompkins, and her family, she didn't think she could have survived it. When Casina and Jimmy planned an escape from the Zacks, even that plan was thwarted. Jimmy had fallen into Norman's evil hands, and she...she had been discarded like an old lost shoe. Sent to a place where she would be locked away from society...forever.

Groaning as nightmarish memories raged through her brain, she stepped toward the doors, surprised at how easily they whisked open at her entrance. Only when the deafening gong began to sound did she know she had made a mistake.

The lights brightened instantly at her presence. Turning, with hands covering her ears, she backed away from the door, uncertain whether to hide or flee through it. Why she didn't run, she wasn't sure. Curiosity perhaps. Either way, she wasn't prepared for what was behind her.