Chapter 19

Dirt crunched under Holly’s shoes as she made her way down the passage. Eventually, she stepped out onto cement flooring and into a fairly large room with doors on each side and a table in the middle of it. No windows were present and she reminded herself that they stood underground.

She glanced around for the lieutenant, but didn’t see him. She noted another closed door on the other side of the room and wondered where it led.

“Hey,” he said, stepping out of one of the rooms and shutting the door behind him. He needed to bend his head down so he wouldn’t smack it on the door frame. “I thought I heard you coming. Here’s some clothes for you.”

He set them down on the table. “If you’d like to take a shower before you change, you can do that as well.”

She glanced down at the dried blood on her legs and felt like ripping off her skin. “Yes, I’d appreciate a shower.”

He nodded and pointed to the last door on the left-hand side. “You can go right in there. I’ll get something for us to eat.”

She nodded and walked across the room to the door he’d indicated. Opening it, she found a small bathroom, complete with a metal shower and a toilet. As she locked the door and undressed, she thought of all the times she’d been in the bunker and wondered what stood beyond the padlocked gate. It felt strange, yet exhilarating, to finally know. The bunker proved to be fully functional, a place where a group of people could live while the world outside burned. If the world ever did get that bad, it wouldn’t be the average Joe who would receive a coveted bed in one of these things. No, it would be the politicians and high-ranking military personnel who lit the match in the first place.

She sighed as she stepped into the shower and twisted the knob all the way over to the hot side. After a moment, she realized the water seemed to be as hot as it would get. The lukewarm spray chilled her, but it still felt good as it cascaded down her body. She used the shampoo and tried to calm her mind. When she unloaded her problems to the lieutenant, she needed to sound like a sane person, not a crazy lunatic. She needed to tell him the facts and pray he could help her.

Stepping out of the shower, she opened a tall, thin cabinet and found a towel. After drying off, she hung the towel on the back of the door and then slipped on her clothes. Picking up her bloodstained bra, she couldn’t even try to put it on, so she dropped it back onto the floor. The military green t-shirt hugged her chest a bit tightly, and she pulled on it to stretch it out. The camouflage pants felt a bit loose around the waist and were too long, but they’d work. She ran her fingers through her hair and met her gaze in the steel mirror. Her blue eyes were wide, and light purple circles hung underneath them. Her skin seemed paler than it had been, except for the bruise forming on her cheek. Touching it, she found it only slightly tender.

She gripped the sides of the sink and took a deep breath.

“You need to focus,” she whispered. “That lieu out there may be your only hope of not spending any time in jail.”

She nodded and pushed back her shoulders, resolve settling in. Even though she’d love nothing more than to curl up on the floor and go back to sleep, the lieutenant had been kind to her, and he deserved some answers as to why he found her on the floor at the entrance of the bunker covered in blood and tears.