Perfect (Rewrite)

Chapter Twenty One

The anger burned bright in Chloe; she couldn't even bear to stay in her room. She quietly walked down the stairs and sat at the kitchen table. It was five a.m., somehow she had managed to sleep through dinner and almost all throughout the night. Chloe figured it wouldn't have been long before someone else would join her; then she would have to answer questions. Why did she get up so early? Did she sleep good? Did she have a nightmare? Did she miss your family? But Chloe wouldn't answer any of them, she couldn't. They didn't even know her and she didn't know them; Chloe wanted it to stay that way. Getting close to these new people was her biggest mistake. It wouldn't last, it couldn't.

Chloe cleared her mind as she stared at the kitchen cabinets, waiting for the time to pass. By the time five thirty arrived, she moved to the living room and laid down on the couch. Her eyes shut and then sleep consumed her, but she didn't dream. She wouldn't let herself dream, not even for a second. She didn't want to know anything more about her past, all it did was hurt her. It ruined everything Chloe thought she knew about her parents, it proved they weren't the people they pretended to be. They weren't as perfect as they made themselves out to be.

"Chloe, wake up," He said as he shook her. Chloe opened her eyes and found Jacob was standing over her, so she pushed his arms off of her and rolled onto her other side. Jacob shook her again until she sat up and stared at the wall next to the TV screen. He sat beside her and leaned back with his legs spread open wide. Chloe rubbed her eyes and then looked over to the kitchen. Melanie, Margaret, and David were all sitting at the table eating breakfast. How long had she been asleep? It couldn't have been much longer than an hour at the most. Or had it been longer? Time always slipped away during sleep.

"What time is it?' Chloe asked, regretting her own question, she awaited an answer she knew would come from Jacob.

"Its nine thirty," Jacob replied; then he left her side and went upstairs. Chloe laid back down and stared at the TV, waiting for the others to finish their breakfast and join her in the living room. She didn't have the appetite for a morning meal this day. Melanie was the first one done, and Chloe sat back up to give her room on the couch. After she sat down, Melanie glanced back to the camera in the corner and then started a conversation with Chloe.

"We need to speak with you," Melanie told her, and then she stood up and walked back into the kitchen. Melanie sat down in her usual spot, she looked back to Chloe and gestured for her to come too.

Chloe entered the kitchen and sat down in her chair. David started the discussion, "We need to find out why you're still here."

"What do you mean?" Chloe asked with a look of disgust on her face. It almost sounded like David din't want her around anymore, but Chloe wouldn't blame him if he felt that way. What happened to Rachel was her fault; she wasn't ever coming back. She probably meant more to them than Chloe ever would.

"No one ever comes back," Margaret answered. "There have only been three other people in this house that we know of, and once they left, they never returned."

"We want to know why he sent you back here," David chipped in. He folded the newspaper in his hands and dropped it on the floor, not caring where it ended up. Chloe almost wanted to watch it flutter to the ground, but she kept her eyes forward, intertwining among them all.

"Shouldn't we wait until later to discuss this?" Chloe asked, glancing between the three of them. They all stared back as if she was stupid.

"It was his idea," Melanie answered as her eyes moved down to the table. She traced the lines with her gaze and listened as the others continued.

"Ok then," Chloe said; she folded her arms and set them on the table. "Then lets figure this out."

"Melanie said that you met him," David said as he too folded his arms. "Who is he?"

"I don't know," Chloe answered. "He was wearing a mask, the same as the other guards. He gave me my first strike while I was away."

"Right," David replied with a nod; he collected his thoughts., and then said, "Do you think that you might be able to reach him again?"

"What do you mean?" Chloe asked.

"Nothing," David answered. "We'll talk about it later." He flicked his eyes to the fridge and Chloe turned to see what he was motioning towards. This was the first time she had noticed the camera attached to the fridge door, glued to a magnet, holding on tight, watching their every move. It wasn't even cleverly hidden, yet it had blended in so casually. Only someone who knew there was a camera in the room would've ever suspected it to be such a malicious contraption.

Chloe met Melanie's gaze; she nodded towards the stairs. They both stood up and climbed the steps, entered the bedroom at the end of the hall and sat on the bed. A moment of silence passed, Chloe checked under the bed and then said, "I knew it."

"What?" Melanie asked, leaning over the side of the bed, her head hanging and her hair falling to see the empty space under the boxspring.

Chloe opened the closet and grabbed the pink shoe box; then she sat it down on the bed and said, "Jacob's been in my room."