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Delia Jennings tried to effect the vacant stare the other prisoners acquired after only two days in captivity. According to her watch it was now the fourth morning since the presidential election and her third day in custody. Three days since her arrest, three days since she had been able to change clothes, three days since she had been able to feed her pet goldfish. She hoped someone else would feed Bilbo and Frodo, then she bit her lip to keep from laughing. As if the care of her goldfish was her greatest concern!
It was now three days since she left the post-election party sponsored by the political science department to find two Volunteers arresting her roommate Susan.
"What's going on here?" Delia demanded.
The pair, a man and a woman, ignored her. The man finished sifting the contents of Susan's desk drawer and moved to her book bag. He dumped the contents out onto the bed as the woman roughly put magnetic handcuffs around Susan's wrists.
"What is going on here?" She repeated.
The male Volunteer threw the empty book bag to the ground and stared at her owlishly. "Ms. Antonelli is being taken in for questioning."
"Questioning? What for?"
"We have reason to believe she has information concerning Resistance activities on this campus." He informed her curtly; his hawk brown eyes scrutinized her reaction.
Delia's gaze darted to Susan. Her friend's face was chalky and she could not quite control her trembling. Already Delia could see reddish marks on her wrists and wondered just how tight those handcuffs were. She had never seen that type of handcuffs in anything but movies or on the news.
"If she is just being taken in for questioning, why is she restrained like that?"
"Standard procedure," The woman answered gruffly.
The brown-eyed Volunteer walked over to Delia's desk and picked up a framed photograph. "Your family?" He asked casually.
"Yes."
He set the picture down and approached Delia. When they were a foot apart and she could feel his breath skirt her face, he smiled coldly at her. "I'm sure you realize this state of emergency is for your own protection."
Delia tried to speak but her no words came forth and she felt as though an icy hand had griped her heart. Finally she nodded her head slowly.
"I'm glad we understand one another. I'd hate to discover that the cancer of resistance has spread further."
Delia leaned against the cell wall and blinked back tears at the memory of Susan being led away to the shuttle parked on the football field. She learned later that the Volunteers were taking prisoners to an ID portal station and returning for more.
"Like cargo." She muttered. No one paid much attention to her remark, everyone here seemed to mutter at some point or other.
"What did you get picked up for?" A young man with a shock of ink black hair asked her. She guessed he was new because she could not remember seeing him before, but people came and went. Delia suspected that the Volunteers shuffled people around to keep them disoriented and alone.
"Keep your voice down and don't look at me directly. They move people around when they notice them talking to each other." Delia warned in a low tone.
"Okay." The man adjusted his position so he was facing her profile and steepled his hands.
"They took my friend, Susan Antonelli, and I made the mistake of asking too many questions about her. You?"
"I ran a news and information site that questioned Taelon honestly," he said. "The Volunteers showed up on my doorstep and that was that."
"My name is Delia."
"Ryan."
"Nice to meet you Ryan, but the circumstances..."
"Could be better, I know."
Delia ducked her head to conceal her smile. Just then she saw three armed Volunteers approach the cell entrance. They reminded her of black scarab beattles, and she was surprised to recognize the brown-eyed Volunteer who had threatened her when Susan was arrested. He saw the shock of recognition on her face and grinned.
"Ms. Jennings," he drawled. "Please come with me."
"Good luck." Ryan whispered as she rose.
"Hurry it up." Another Volunteer barked.
Delia exited the cell and watched the virtual glass barrier shimmer back into place. It reminded her of a soap bubble and under different circumstances she could have found it fascinating.
The Volunteers switched on the magnetic handcuffs and her wrists pulled together with a soft click. Then the brown-eyed Volunteer grabbed her by the arm and pulled her down the corridor.
"You should have listened to my warning, Ms. Jennings." He said. "Or based on our previous aquaintance should I call you Delia?"
Delia swallowed hard and said nothing.
He smiled again displaying small glistening white teeth. "I'm sure that you will become more talkative once we've had a chance to become better acquainted."