Kiss of Darkness (Editing)

Kiss 18

I walked down the hallway, converse squeaking slightly with every step. I stopped in front of the elevators and waited. The seconds dragged on endlessly until the doors slid open. Calm music emanated from a speaker in the ceiling. Maybe it was being in an enclosed space, maybe it was just the nerves, but whatever it was, I wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. I threw myself out of the doors the moment they opened. Filling my lungs with air, I proceeded down the hallways.

Room 185.The heavy wooden door was closed, but I could hear voices on the other side. I knocked timidly, unsure of what to do next. “Come in!" A loud voice boomed. I slipped inside the room, shutting the door quietly behind me. "Are you Ms.Ebrey?" A man asked me from his desk. He was a heavy-set man, his hair just beginning to gray. I hesitated for a second, but he smiled kindly at me. "The new secretary? “I nodded quickly, relieved I wouldn’t have to make up an excuse.He asked me basic questions (and I answered with lies, naturally). Then he got up very suddenly.

 “I’ll be right back with your particulars." Mr.Womper said. He walked out of the office with a slam of the door. This was my chance. I quickly went around the desk and rifled through the drawers. I grabbed all the red files I could find. With an armful of  papers, I headed for the door,  then as luck would have it, gravity acted against me and I fell over the threshold of the door. The files flew from my hands and fluttered onto the floor. To my surprise, a man came rushing over. "Are you Ok?" He helped me up before collecting some of the files. His eyes slid over the files nonchalantly but suddenly his eyes froze. I followed his gaze to the last of the papers. In thick black ink, the word “classified” was printed across the top of the papers. He quickly finished gathering the papers and then looked at me critically. It was as if he was noticing my disheveled outfit for the first time. He slowly said, “You’re going to have to come with me.” Yeah, that wasn’t in the agenda. I snatched back the files and booked it down the hallway, flinging open the door to a storage room, leaving the guard who was yelling into a walkie-talkie.

Several guards stumbled  into the room after me. They shined flashlights all in between the boxes, looking for any trace of me. Suddenly, a loud scream echoed from down the hallway. The guards turned on their heels and quickly rushed back out into the hallway. After a minute or so, I gathered up the courage to run out. As soon as I step into the hallway, my nose and throat start to burn. A metallic, raw smell permeates the air. I look around for the source of it.

And then I see it. Splattered along the walls, on the floor, seeping from still-warm bodies. Blood is everywhere. I see the guards who were chasing me, they lie slumped against walls, clutching their stomachs or simply lying there. “Wha--?" ""Drop your weapon."

A voice tells me from behind my back.

I drop the gun and the files.

The voice sounds oddly familiar.....it sounds like a little girl.