Chapter 8: Subterfuge

Nathan's POV

I got out under the bed and pretended to be innocent, I came up with a plan but it needs me to be deceiving. Pray my subterfuge will save my life in this hellhole.

"Andy! What's wrong? You look like hell." I scoffed and laughed.

"What's funny? You think you can escape here?" He asked furiously.

"What? No, I'm not trying to escape. I mean, my Mom was here. I asked her to get me some coffee." I said.

"You can't fool me. I kno—" I injected a ripper stick in his neck causing him to lose his lucid.

I put him to bed and waited for him to wake up. Whilst I'm waiting, I planned my pretention. Nobody can know that I'm trying to escape while deceiving them.

It has been two hours when Andy woke up, he can barely remember anything so I told him a different story.

"W-wait, AB Doctor tried to kill me? That seems to be impossible. Do not lie to me." He said.

"How I wish I was lying to you but I'm not. I'm dead serious now. I was under the bed and I saw him injected you a ripper stick." I said.

"Now do you really want to stay here?" I asked him which made him look at me.

"O-of course. These people are my family." He said.

"All right, then. I respect it, if only I get to be one of you." I said.

I know it sounds cliche but if I get to pretend, I need to be with them. To fool them into giving me the blueprint out of this hell hole.

"Maybe you can. I'm gonna talk to his wife, she's way more gentle than him." He said.

"Bro, if you don't mind. You can go now, this is my room." I said.

He went out of my room back to his. I need a plan to also kill him for trying to— Oh my God, kill. I-i remember it all. What happened before I got here.

I-i killed a girl, to save Sheena. But I was too late because when I got out of the room, the blade of the guillotine already cut her head off.

I am the worst person ever. What happened to me? I need to see my Mom. Ask her the real thing because apparently I've been here for almost three weeks.

I saw my Mom walking towards my room so I immediately lay on the bed to pretend. She's a doctor but I don't know why isn't she my Doctor.

"Hi, Mom. Where have you been?" I asked in a groggy tone.

"I went home to get you some clothes. Why? Are you hurting?" She asked me.

"Yes, Mom. My chest, it feels complicated. I can't breathe properly." I said which is sorta true.

"Why? What's wrong, you want me to call the doctor?" She asked again but I shook my head eagerly.

"I want to transfer to a different hospital." I said directly and pretended like my chest hurts.

"Hey, N-nate? Nate, come on breathe. You're okay, sweetheart, breathe with me." She said so I followed her.

Several hours later, I just noticed that we were now in her car. We're in the middle of the woods which makes my theory correct. We're underground, inside a bunker to be specific but it's bigger.

"Sleep, Nate. I know you're tired from your chest pain." She said and mischievously smiled. It gave me the chills run down my spine. So I closed my eyes, but before I could even pretend to be asleep, I smelled something strong. A perfume, used to put a person to sleep. Mom, what are you doing?

I lost my lucid. Hours later I noticed that the car stopped. The perfume wears off, and I am now lucid at everything. It's dark, still we're in the middle of the woods.

"Good. You're awake, because right now we should be heading our way down." Mom said but before I could even walk, she held my arms tightly.

I punched her face so hard only to find out that she's not my Mom. It was some girl wearing some prosthetics and deceiving me.

"Who are you!?" I asked.

"If I tell you, you should be dead. No one can know who I am." I punched her face again straight. Not hard, just enough to put her on the ground. I choke her in between my biceps and my forearm so she could sleep.

"Your subterfuge can't fool me." I said and then drove away her car.

The establishment are unfamiliar, I don't have my phone with me. Seems like I am in a different city. I don't know what this place is. But one thing is for sure, I am not safe here.

I stopped by a gas station to get the car fueled, I asked the manager what is this place.

"This is Cecile. A city 20km away from La Riz." She said.

20 kilometers, I don't think my fuel is gonna be enough for that drive. But no one is going to save me. I drive and drive and drive until I saw something. A sign saying "Welcome to La Riz." but unfortunately my fuel is close to empty. I am still too far from our house.

The car get stuck because I ran out of gas. So I walk, from where I stopped is close to the library. It's almost midnight so I don't think if it's still open.

To where the library is, there's a post standing near it. There are posters of missing person. And that missing person was me. Mom and Dad are willing to give a 200 thousand for ransom, maybe because they taught I was kidnapped. 200 thousand is good for the library renovation.

Here comes my subterfuge again, pray it will help this library in its financial ruin.

I slashed my arms and smashed my face with a rock. I stumbled in mud so it would look like I was really kidnapped, which some sort of true.

I am close to my weakest point and it's almost for in the morning. This is the time where the librarian is going to work. I lie there for five minutes until I saw her, coming over to her work. She was shocked when she saw me, at my weakest point. Wounded and dirty, torn shirt apart. She called my parents whom is worried about me.

"I wasn't tortured, I did this to myself okay but take the money for I know it will help you or this library with its financial ruin. Don't ruin my subterfuge, and thank you."

She was still in a state of shock, I can't blame her. I was missing for three weeks. And she saw me, outside of the library, at my weakest point.

Minutes later, I saw my parents. So many dramas, I won't tell you guys about it.

"Mom, can we go home? I am so tired, and in pain." I said.

"Yes. Tell us what happened to you later, will you?"

This pretention has been way going too long. Its tiring.