Beyond The Walls (NOW ON AMAZON!!!)

A Bunker

Hadley closed her eyes as warm water poured on her face in a steady, strong stream. The shower head was a massive square in the ceiling – a cloud raining deliciously warm water over her. Slathering the thick, aromatic, citrus scented gel all over her body was heavenly. Hadley had thought that The Lodge's shower had been quite luxurious, but nothing at The Lodge had been nearly as luxurious as this. The shower walls were smooth grey granite, with an accent wall of grey slate bricks, the floor was large squares of grey ceramic tiles, the floor to ceiling sliding glass doors as clear and as ornate as crystal, beautifully reflecting the bright spotlights studding the ceiling, and it was larger than her cubicle back at the Compound.

And that was just the shower stall.

The rest of the bathroom was similarly ostentatious, if not more. The large, square grey ceramic tiles extended out of the shower stall to the rest of the bathroom. When she was done, Hadley's feet sank into a deep, fluffy white shower mat outside the cubicle that soaked up the beads of water rolling off her body. She grabbed one of the soft, heated black towels laid out for her. Wiping the water off was like being wrapped in a warm, soft cloud. She sighed at the opulence.

There was a full-length mirror on the left wall, just outside the shower. Hadley stopped and stared at her reflection. Despite everything she'd gone through, and in large part because of her new blood, her pregnancy was progressing perfectly. Her skin was flawless, glowing. Her little bump had grown quite a bit too. She smiled at the reflection. Smiled at the thought of her baby growing up to enjoy this extreme lavishness. It was difficult to believe that any of this was real.

She put on the fresh scented, soft, baby blue, cotton underwear laid out next to where the towels were. The underwear fit snug and comfortable. So did the perfectly pressed, blue button-down shirt and pair of fitting black jeans that flawlessly accounted for her growing belly. She felt amazing. Clean. Fresh. And she smelt fantastic. Her bare feet hugged the rich hardwood floors as she walked through the space, searching for him.

Barret Fisher.

Her father.

Hadley was still trying to wrap her head around the concept.

Barret Fisher was a head taller than her, had skin darker than hers, a square jaw, slightly wide nose and stern mouth, wide shoulders, that same odd, flattened chest that plagued every man, a head full of silver hair and a full beard of the same colour. His gaze was intense as he studied Hadley. It was difficult to ignore the man's distinct eyes. Bright blue eyes. A perfect copy of the pair that had looked back at Hadley in the mirror all her life. He smiled wide then looked away, back to a sizzling pan on one of the kitchen burners.

So far, the perks of having a father didn't seem so bad. She'd found him in the kitchen, and this room was as massive and as outrageous as every other room in this place.

This palace.

"Where is Kade? Where are my friends?" Hadley asked. "You promised I would get to see them."

"Did you enjoy the shower?" Barret Fisher looked up again from the frying pan. "I see the clothes fit well."

"You didn't answer my questions."

"All in good time, Hadley," he replied, gently placing a few sizzling fried eggs onto a plate, and handing it to her. "Why don't you have something to eat, first."

Hadley accepted the plate and then followed Barret Fisher's gaze to the table in the dining room adjacent to the kitchen. She almost dropped the plate of eggs at the sight of the spread on that table. The table was easily twelve feet long and filled to the brim with food. Hadley had never seen so much food put out all at once. Not even at Trisca's camp or at The Lodge.