A lick and a promise... pt3

The soup was consumed slowly at first until her hands grew more steady. She finished the bowl and set it aside, wiping a few drops from her lips with the back of her bent finger. Tully sighed, watching the man as he slept on the bed, she'd seen his eyes slip closed and though he 'rested' his expression wasn't a peaceful one. Her hand almost reached out to stroke his cheek again but she stopped herself and slowly eased from the bed. He brought in a shirt and she found a bowl of water and a towel that he'd used to clean her up before she assumed by the looks of it.

Going to the mirror now, she used the towel to clean up the fresh blood and looked at what she assumed would be a permanent scar across her throat. "Marked.. that's putting it mildly. Well there goes my super model dreams." She spoke quietly to herself in a sarcstic tone, not even thinking about the fact that she was speaking out loud. She didn't have friends or family, she'd been alone for at least four years and she talked to herself to keep from going insane in her isolation and with the silence. "I kind of like it.. better than what they did to you in the labs now ain't it Tul, ole girl.. This job was supposed to be the one Tul.. the last one and you'd have enough to get that pesky chip out of your head. You sure you want to do that now hmm? Maybe you're like him.. " She stopped speaking and stared at herself in the mirror. "It's still better than this cage I can't get out of.."

She dropped the towel by the bowl and reached to pull on the shirt he'd brought her. She sat on the edge of the bed, her back to the man as she stared at the wall, trying to figure out what to do. "Could have killed me, probably should have.. why didn't he?" She was whispering to herself again, her hands running back into her hair. The tone of her voice varried back and forth as if it were two people talking to one another within her, but there was just her.

"Because maybe he thinks you're worth keeping." The voice was muttered from thin sleep. He'd heard most of what she said but he was too deep to really answer her. "It'll fade. Can't leave yet."

"Worth keeping?" Her head tipped to the side as if she was pondering this thought and she slowly eased down and turned so she was laying on her back next to him. She was tired herself, the soup had helped but she was nowhere near full strength, of course she wasn't sure what her true full strength was. "Can't leave, yet?" She sighed, her eyes closing as her hand drifted over to rest on his arm.

"The chip. We know some people," he muttered again, pulling himself awake enough to talk to her as he felt her weight shift the bed. He stayed still though he watched her. "How long have you had it?"

"The chip.." She sighed, the back of her knuckles brushing over his arm gently. "Long time.. mm my tether, my inhibitor.. my cage even though I escaped." Her other hand rested lightly on her stomach. "Ten years..more than.. maybe fifteen." Her voice was softly murmured as she thought back to things she could barely remember. "I think it keeps me from remembering.. before it was there. Going to get rid of it. There's a guy.. just one more job and I'd have enough."