Emma

  Rose is so nice...sometimes I dream that she's my mommy and the other man is my daddy.  We're sitting under a tree having a picnic.  I look up at the bright sin, feeling the warmth on my skin.  I look at all the bright flowers around us and hear the buzzing of bees, birds in the trees, animals crashing through the bushes.  Mommy offers me a little sandwich shaped like a triangle, they're my favorite. 

  I giggle at daddy.  He's tickling mommy and she's squealing with laughter and attempting to fend off his hands but failing.  "I'll help you mommy!"  I set down my plate and rush over to daddy, jumping on his back. 

  "Hey! That's cheating!  You two are ganging up on me!"  He stands up and swings me around in circles.

  "Faster faster!"

  We are having so much fun that we don't notice the sky growing darker until the rain begins to fall.  Wind whips my wavy blonde hair around my face.  Daddy sets me down on the ground, and mommy comes and stands next to us. 

Crack!

  Lightning strikes the tree that only moments ago we were happily having a picnic under.  Flames start eating up the limbs, one by one.  There's a loud crack and then the entire tree is falling towards us.  I pull at mommy and daddy's hands but they stand staring up at the tree, transfixed.  I squeeze my eyes shut and then I wake up.

  My dreams are always like this, but only recently they've had Rose in them.  I bet her boyfriend is just as nice as she is.  The bad man keeps him in in his workshop.  All the men who come here go in there.  Most don't come out...only in bags.  Something is different though.  Rose' s boyfriend is still alive, I saw him being drug to another room yesterday.  I think he was asleep.  Men never go to multiple rooms though, just the workshop. 

  Ever since Rose got here he's been nicer.  He doesn't yell at me as much, and I'm by myself more.  When no one is looking I can sneak around easier.  At night I hear the bad man talking to himself when he thinks no one is listening.  Mama taught me to read and write.  She said I had to know if I ever wanted to escape.  The bad man is smart, but not that smart.

  My clock says 0630...time to get up.  Rolling out of bed I stretch and yawn.  As bad as he is, he's really not so bad after a while.  I have a bed, a closet with clothes, and a stuffed owl named Toby.  Today I pick out an sweatshirt that was mama's.  It's too big so I can wear it as a dress.  I'm not very tall so everything fits. 

  When I'm done I run a broken brush through my hair and walk down the hall to the kitchen. I don't really like breakfast but mama told me I had to eat it.  I push a chair over to the counter and climb up, grabbing a piece of bread and a banana. They dont have to be cooked.  I eat the inside part of the bread, leaving the crusts, and stick them in my pocket.  Rose' s boyfriend must be hungry.  He hasn't eaten yet.

Finishing the last of my light breakfast, I make my way down the basement door.  From what I know, we don't live around anyone else.  I've only looked outside the windows upstairs a couple times, usually they're kept covered.  He's paranoid someone might see me and get suspicious. 

  Upstairs there are three bedrooms: mine, his, and one we don't use.  There's also a kitchen, a bathroom, a sitting room, and an office which is always locked.  The basement is much bigger.  It mostly consists of a bunch of hallways, designed to get people lost if they escaped.  That's what mama told me.  She made me memorize my way around.  There are five small rooms that hold people, the bad room, a bathroom, and a room to wash clothes or blankets. 

   On Thursday the man goes out and he doesn't come back until dark.  I know where he keeps the keys that lock the doors down there.  As long as I'm back upstairs by the time he gets back I'll be fine.  It's Thursday today so I've got some time before I need to be back upstairs.
 

Oliver

  Knock knock knock

  I swear I hear knocking.  Rolling over I look at the door in the corner.  "Who's there?"  Maybe I'm hallucinating from blood loss.  My legs have stopped bleeding I think, now they just ache.  Now I really know I'm hallucinating.  There's a little girl standing in my room.  She quietly walked across the room until she was standing in front of me.  If she hadn't have moved I might've  thought she was a ghost.  Age wise I would say she was 5 or 6, with long wavy blonde hair, and large blue waif like eyes.  At first I didn't notice, but she seemed to only be wearing an oversized navy blue sweatshirt.  Odd attire for a child.

  "Are you Rose's boyfriend?  She whispered. 

  "Who?"

  She cocked her head to the side.  "You know...rose?  Long red hair."

  How does little girl know Brogan?  "Oh, you mean Brogan, my fiance.  Have you seen her?  Please tell me she's okay."

  The little girl nodded.  "She's okay.  He likes her.  What's a fiance?"

  Her genuine curiosity and innocence made my heart melt.  "It means that hopefully when we get out of here we'll get married and she will be my wife." 

  At the sound of marriage her small face lit up.  "Wow I've never seen one before.  Can I see?  Rose...I mean Brogan...is pretty and nice."  For a moment she seemed like a normal little girl without a care in the world, not a little girl who just happened to be stuck in a nightmare.

  "What's your name, sweetheart?  You don't live here do you?"

  The joy that had previously made her face come alive vanished  completely, pulling her back into herself.  "Emma..." she said softly. 

  "Emma, I'm Oliver.  Do you live here?"  I repeated.

  She nodded ever so slightly.  As if remembering something she spoke up, "I brought you these.  I know the man hasn't given you anything."  Emma stuck her hand into the front pocket on her hoodie and pulled out a handful of bread crusts. 

  It was such a small gesture, and I don't even like bread crusts, but I was so thankful to this little child for risking so much for me, a complete stranger.  "Thank you, Emma.  You're such a caring and thoughtful little girl."

  She smiled and sat down next to me.  "Mama told me to always be nice to others."

  I tore off a piece and put it in my mouth, savoring each bite.  "Where is she, your mama?" 

  "The basement."

  Hmm, why isn't she watching her daughter?  And why are they here with this psycho?  I pray he isn't her father.

  "Is he your daddy, Emma?  You called him 'The Man'."

  She looked scared and confused at my question.  "...I don't know?  Mommy didn't say...and I've always been here."  Silent tears started to run down her cheeks. 

  Oh, the poor child.  The thought of him being her father made my blood boil.  I made my decision, she's coming with Brogan and I when we escape.