Chapter 13

The phone ringing unanswered downstairs interrupted Nell's frantic and unsuccessful search for the drug. For the past two hours she had covered and uncovered every conceivable hiding place with no luck. Now, she scurried down the long stairway and into the den to answer the phone before the party on the other side of the line had a chance to hang up.

"Hello, Brookdale Lodge," she panted, trying to catch her breath.

"Hello," replied a mild masculine voice. "This is George Colby, is Thea there?"

"Oh... Mr. Colby," Nell answered, a slight nervous tremor in her voice. "No sir, she's not. Took her niece away on a trip, but don't know exactly where..."

"That's strange," he said. "She was supposed to call me several days ago. I'm in Brookdale now, and Lisa's boyfriend, Mark is here with me... he's quite anxious to hear how Lisa is getting along. Do you suppose I could talk to Dr. Quinn?"

"Why... y-yes sir... Hold on. He's down in the lab, and I'll have to go get him."

Nell pushed the hold button and made her way quickly down to the lab, a mixture of panic and confusion ringing in her ears. She knew Dr. Quinn would not want Colby or anyone else snooping around Brookdale right now, and would leave it up to him to elaborate on the lie she had started to cover Thea's and Lisa's strange disappearance.

The lab door was locked, so she used a master key to let herself in and made her way to the back of the room. She was startled to hear strange animal grunts and moans coming from the animal section and tiptoed with caution to investigate what could possibly be going on.

The lewd scene that met her eyes as she peered around the corner, took her breath away. Ugly, hairy nude masculine bodies were ripping and screwing away at the two helpless females from every possible angle, with their large red pricks attacking the sensual points of their body, as she stood riveted to the spot and opened her mouth in a silent scream of protest, but she remained unnoticed, and the wild orgy continued undisturbed.

She ducked back around the corner and away from their view, leaning against the wall to catch her breath. Her hands twitched in nervous spasms and huge tears brimmed at the corners of her eyes as the shock gradually subsided in her body. She had to think of some way to rescue Lisa and to destroy Dr. Quinn, for she hated him so much now that her own welfare no longer mattered. Her mind raced with thoughts of a possible solution, but soon she realized in despair that she would not be able to successfully help Lisa escape without the aid of others.

By the time she had reached the den she knew what she would have to do, there was no other choice. She picked up the receiver with trembling hands, and paused a moment to regain some semblance of composure, then pressed down on the flashing hold button. "M-Mr. Colby?"

"Yes Nell," he answered with a note of concern in his voice. "Is something wrong, you sound upset

"I-It's about Lisa and Thea. I have to talk to you, but not here."

"What do you mean?" he asked, with growing astonishment. "Is something wrong? What is it Nell?"

"I-I can meet you in half an hour at the Brookdale Steakhouse. P- Please don't argue... I can't talk now."

Nell steered Dr. Quinn's limousine into the graveled parking lot just as George Colby was getting out of his car. He was with a young handsome boy and when they saw her pull up, they both rushed over to the car to meet her.

"Now what's this all about," George Colby demanded. Has something happened to Lisa or Thea?"

"Let's go inside," Nell said. The hot sun burned at her eyes, still swollen from crying, and she knew she would have to have a stiff drink to gather up the courage to tell the tale of horror and of what she had just witnessed.

George Colby ordered a round of drinks and waited patiently for Nell to begin, while the boy, Mark, sat nervously on the edge of his seat, silently observing her with anxious anticipation. When the drinks were served, Nell grabbed her glass and gulped down the burning liquid as if it were ice water, then, in a low voice, began the story at the beginning, starting with the experiments. She knew that if she did not ten them all of the facts, they would never believe the horrible incidents that were now taking place at Brookdale.

As she spoke, she could see the expression on their faces change from shocked disbelief to anger, and when she got to the part about Lisa entrapped in the cage, Mark suddenly shoved his chair away from the table and ran for the door. Colby hurried after him, and finally caught up with him in the parking lot.

"Wait, Mark," he commanded. The situation was so grave that he didn't want Mark involved at all, if possible. He was too upset to be of any use. He moved in front of Mark, blocking his way to the door of the car.

"Get out of my way," Mark shouted, his eyes burning with rage.

"Not until you calm down. You're not going to be of any help the way you are now."

"We have to get her out right now," Mark said, shoving him aside. "Just how can you be so calm... Don't you care what's happening to Lisa?"

Colby grabbed his arm and spoke in a cold determined voice. "I care... about both of them. But I won't be able to help them with you storming in there and tearing up the place. You could get them both killed!"

Mark slumped reluctantly against the car, realizing that Colby was light. "What can I do," he asked in a low voice.

"Here's a dime. Call the Chief of Police... His name is Garrison, I've known him for a long time. Tell him, briefly what's going on, and to meet us with some of his men at the entrance gate to the Lodge. I'll have Nell go ahead and unlock the gate, and we'll be ready for them by the time they get there." He paused, seeing that Mark was on the verge of tears. "Try to keep a cool head, Mark... with any luck, we'll have them out of that mad-house in no time."

Colby went back into the bar, and brought another drink over to the table where Nell was still waiting, nervously sucking on the ice at the bottom of her drained glass. He set the new drink down in front of her and pulled a memo pad from his coat pocket, placing it on the table in front of her.

"Alright, Nell, I want you to sketch me a rough layout of the grounds around Brookdale Lodge... and the interior of the lab. And while you're at it, tell me the rest of the story before the boy gets back... we've got little time to loose.

The young intern stepped quietly into Room 104 and nodded to the nurse on duty, then studied the chart attached to the foot of the bed. His eyes expertly scanned the cold medical facts that were listed on the paper giving him the current status of the patient's condition. When he had finished, he set down the chart and studied the young girl sleeping on the bed before him. The chart bad no special blocks or spaces to list the personal tragedy caused by unthinkable tortures and degradation that the girl had most probably gone through, he thought. He remembered when they had brought her in through Emergency Receiving less than a week before, and the shock and anger that he felt when examining her body in the Emergency Room. At that time the girl had been semi-conscious and physically battered to a whisper of life, but now after his treatment of prolonged sedation and undisturbed rest, a faint tinge of color had slowly returned to her cheeks, and her breathing appeared to be normal.