Little did they know: I felt them press the scalpel into my head. Little did they know that they didn't pump up the anesthetics enough. Little did they know that I heard the pop of the blade piercing my skin. Little did they know that I had to bite my lip to keep from screaming. Who am I kidding? I can't make a sound, I'm stuck here. I understand what people are saying but I can't respond. 

My face was face down on a pillow with a hole so I could breathe. Great invention, I wonder who they suffocated in this torture chamber before they added the hole. I'm applauding if it's over twenty.

"Does she feel anything?" I heard Jace ask, his voice sounds far. 

Yes. 

"No," Valencia purred. I could hear the malice and ice in her voice. She wants me to feel. If she feels this much regret she must not know I'm conscious. 

"Aren't you going to shave her head?" 

"No," Valencia spat. I could feel her spit on my bare back. Eek. 

"Why not?"

"We are working with the spine for reasons I can't tell you so can you shut up?" Valencia yelled. 

Jace fell silent and I could hear heavy breathing. I want to call out to Jace not to make Valencia angry since I'm the one on the other side of the scalpel and I don't want an already angry Valencia to destroy a nerve. Why she's cutting the spine is a mystery to me. My damage is in the head. I think Jace is having the same train of thought since I see his black boots from the pillow head thing. I had to take a sharp breath so I don't cringe and don't give away that I'm conscious, Jace has blood covering his boots. 

"Valencia, please, don't kill her," Jace gently says, I watched his hand motion for her to drop the knife. I want to scream at them to just cut me open and how right now, I don't care that I'm going to die but if I survive I won't be crazy. 

I opened my mouth but nothing came out. It's an expected result, I wasn't suspected to make a full word the time I open my mouth. There's voice therapy for a reason. Not that a scalpel held to my neck is voice therapy. It's more like, "HELP ME."

"Jace, do you want her to be cured? Or not? If you somehow care about her, sit down and let me stop her visions."

It's been an hour. Blood is starting to seep through the floor boards. I tightly clenched my eyes shut and smelled the metallic smell of blood. Formidable. I remember Lindy singing that song to me, it's not like an lullaby but singing o me cause she felt like it.

Formidable, formidable

Tu étais formidable, j'étais fort minable

Nous étions formidables

Formidable

Tu étais formidable, j'étais fort minable

Nous étions formidables

And I watched and felt as Jace plunged that knife into Lindy taking all of her memories with her. Forever I will have nightmares of that. I will remember her estranged cry. I'll remember. 

I listened as Jace shuffled his feet but felt the hairs on my arm prickle. The blood is getting closer. It's not real. It's not real. It's real. Who am I kidding? My mind is real, every aspect!

"Stay strong, Cassie needs you," Valencia whispered as she gently touched my shoulder. No malice or pain in her voice, of course it sounded a little force but I appreciate her trying. 

I smiled, then winced as she plunged the blade into my neck. If the test earlier to test my blood was bad, this is worse. I can feel her hands going into my neck looking for something. The blood is getting dangerously close. 

"Clamps! Now!" I heard Valencia shriek. I'm going to die. Internal bleeding. 

I took a deep breath and felt the blood against my skin, the thick liquid caressed my face. My hair stuck to my face and I tightly clenched my eyes shut. 

"Three..." Three. "Two..." Two. "One!" I felt her gloved rubbery hand grab something and I heard the knife split something. I could hear. The blood is gone. I opened my eye and none of the sticky red liquid is on my skin. 

"Give me one of the monitors! Now!" Valencia commanded then leaned down to my ear and whispered, "You're a brave girl, now survive this. We have to install something. It's going to be okay." She gave my limp arm a tight squeeze and I winced. I'm in pain all over and it's pure misery. 

"H-how did- what happened?" Jace asked. 

I heard Valencia sighing and a smile on her voice as she announced proudly, "It was due to a blood clot in her neck. We got it out and that will help the visions but we're putting a monitor on her just in case."

"What are you doing now?"

A shiver went down me. There's a reason why my torso is bare on the table. They weren't just working on my neck. 

"I need to protect her."

I sucked in a sharp breath and heard the soft pop of the blade being inserted into my skin. Something hit my rib and I passed out. Too much blood lost...

----

I opened my eyes to the familiar white dilapidated room. Jace was asleep in the corner and I glanced out the window. A strange urge fell over me so I ran. I ran out to the window, I opened the hinges and jumped out with the whiteboard held in my fists. There's no turning back. Wow, I'm crazy even without the visions.