Breaking Point Read Online Free Page A

apart. Brianna was pulled off, still swinging her arms and looking fierce. She didn’t look hurt, but the other girl had a bloody nose.
    I tried to make eye contact with her, and I yelled her name, but she was still struggling to free herself. Her arms were pinned behind her back by the woman counselor, and when I saw the handcuffs snapped on her wrists, I realized that these were not just youth counselors. These were trained corrections workers. I yelled Brianna’s name again, but she wasn’t looking my way.
    Both girls were led out of the dining hall, and soon after, so was everyone else. We were confined to our rooms for the night. When Chris came in, I asked him about Brianna.
    â€œShe’s in isolation,” he said. “So is the other girl. Five days. That’s the rule.”
    â€œJust like Walkerton,” I said.
    â€œNot exactly. But we have to impose discipline.” Chris studied me. “You like this girl, right?”
    I thought it was better not to say too much. After all, we had plans, Brianna and I. Plans to get the hell out of here.
    â€œNo,” I said. “Just curious. I was starting to think of this as more like summer camp than prison.”
    â€œThink of it as summer camp with a few serious rules.”
    â€œRight.”
    That night, I thought of my own time in isolation at Walkerton. My first time, I had no idea how hard it was to be truly, truly alone, locked in a room with nothing but the stupid crazy thoughts going through your head. I hated every minute of it. I screamed out loud sometimes. I banged on the door. I got really antsy and thought I was losing my mind. And then I even cried. Cried like a baby. Isolation was tough. It was mean what it did to you. It’s not exactly like torture. You have no control. You have nothing. Nothing but yourself.
    And in my case, I’m not always that fond of my own company.
    I could imagine what this was doing to Brianna.
    So I played it cool. Went to bed, waited for everyone to be asleep, and then I got up and put my clothes on.
    I really didn’t know how they worked security here. Sometimes it seemed pretty slack. Other times you could see they could be serious. We all had been chosen to come here because it was believed we wouldn’t run. None of us wanted to get shipped to Walkerton, and we knew if we screwed up, we’d be there in a flash and we’d have a longer stay.
    But I really needed to find Brianna and see if she was okay. I scrambled low across the floor and out into the dimly lit hallway. One of the women counselors seemed to be on duty at a desk near the front door—the only way out of here. But she was watching a little portable tv and I think she had earphones in her ears. I guessed that Brianna was still somewhere in the building. I turned and headed to the farthest end of the hall.
    At the last doorway, I stopped, crouched low and listened. Nothing. I tried the handle. Locked, of course. “Brianna,” I whispered. Nothing. Then a little louder.
    â€œCameron?” I heard her voice coming from a door across the hall.
    I slid across the floor and put my ear close to it. “You okay?” I asked.
    â€œI hate this. I can’t handle being alone. Get me out.”
    I knew that if I did, I’d get caught. There was no way I could break open the door. Then we’d both be in isolation. “I can’t.”
    â€œBut I need you,” she said. I heard the panic in her voice.
    â€œYou’ll get through this,” I said. “Think about something else. Think about us. Think about your plan. We’ll do it.” I said this with conviction, even though I was having more than second thoughts. After seeing Brianna in a fight, I knew that this could be one mean, tough girl. Was that really the person I wanted to hitch myself to?
    â€œWe have to get out of here. Now,” she said.
    If I knew one thing, I knew that now was not the time. “No. You