“It’s unfortunate that the Ramsey line tends to be so defiant. There can only be one leader and that position is firmly in place.” Hayes makes a dramatic moment shouting a command, and another Hybrid appears from the side the building with a hooded prisoner. It’s a man, but not Cole. Not Davis. The body too small. Definitely not made for battle. “I hate that it’s come to this, but I need you to cooperate, Alexandra, and I suspect this is the only way.”
The hood is ripped off the prisoner’s head, revealing my father’s confused and terrified face. I scan his person for injuries but only find he looks exhausted and scared.
“Dad,” I call, attempting to move toward him but the soldiers hold me back. “Are you okay?”
He nods and his glasses slip down his nose. “Just do what they say, sweetheart.”
I don’t like the sound of that idea at all. Not one bit.
“Let’s go,” Hayes directs, and we’re dragged to our feet. The fighting moves closer and he picks up the pace. Sweat clings to the back of his shirt and he looks to the sky every time another round of gunfire occurs. We pass the side of the building, past the hidden entrance to the bunker below, and head to the front office.
“You’re taking us to Chloe?” I ask.
“No,” he says, spinning on his heel. “You’re going to call your men off. Tell them to back down before they breach the fence.”
“I’m not going to do that. I can’t.” I squirm against the grip of the Hybrid holding me and he clamps down on my shoulder, painfully. “Back off, asshole,” I say.
Jude bucks away from his captor. “Leave her alone.”
The Hybrid slaps me across the face with the back of his hand so hard I reel. The Hybrid leers, his breath near my neck and says, “Give me a reason. I’ll call it an accident.”
“Shut up,” Hayes says, dragging Wyatt, who seems to be unconscious. I wonder how many Hybrids they had to use to subdue him. “You’ll do it, Alexandra. We will not lose this base.”
Clarity rings in my head and I realize we must be winning outside the fence. Hayes must be afraid and it’s not just of me. He has orders to hold the Center. Orders from higher above and he’s terrified of the consequences if he fails.
We’re nearing the office when I hear a whimper behind me. I look back and find the soldier guarding Paul on the ground and him twisting his wrists in a way that snaps the plastic ties binding his hands.
In a blink there’s a gun in Paul’s hands, aimed at the next closest Hybrid and he jabs him in the head with the butt of the gun. The soldier falls to the ground in a thud, blood oozing from his ear. Hayes turns and fires at Paul, who ducks and moves with incredible speed.
“Get him!” Hayes screams and the Hybrids follow on instinct, leaving us unguarded. I’m stunned in my spot, watching one man, my friend, fight six Hybrids without breaking a sweat. He takes two down with the gun, shooting them before they can aim their weapons. Paul dives to the ground, lifting a knife off the Hybrid’s hip and using it to slash the tendons behind both of their knees.
I cringe as the men scream in pain, writhing on the grassy lawn. The grass grows slick with blood and their cries are muffled by the approaching battle. Explosives rattle the fence and building around us. Singularly focused, Paul races to me and cuts the binds off my wrist. He does the same for Jude, who lunges for an abandoned weapon by one of the dead Hybrid’s bodies.
He shoots another in the chest and we watch, stunned, as he crumbles to the ground. “Get her gun,” he says, shoving me toward the body. I lunge for the weapon and pop it against my shoulder.
“I got it,” I say, trying to keep up with his speed.
Armed and ready, we find Paul face to face with Hayes who clutches my father’s small body to his chest, using his body as a shield. The black nozzle of a gun presses into his temple. Wyatt lays unmoving on the ground.
“I’ll kill him,” Hayes says, eyeing Paul. “Don’t you take another step.”
Paul’s eyes dart around, calculating the odds, but I grab his arm before he can act. I face Hayes. “He’s one of the brightest minds we have left! He created the vaccine! Do you really think my sister will approve of you killing her father?” I ask, finding the whole thing incomprehensible.
Hayes glances at my father and it’s the only clue I need. I blurt out, “She doesn’t, does she? You took him on your own?” I actually laugh. A real laugh. “God, you’re so screwed.”
Hayes wavers, dropping the gun an inch, but it’s all we need. Paul dives for the man and I lunge for my father, but another force comes into play. Wyatt bursts to life from his spot on the ground. He wasn’t dying—just biding his time. Before I can reach my father, Wyatt pulls him to safety, away from the ensuing fight between Hayes and Paul.
Paul struggles with Hayes, who is strong by human measures. I watched him in that cage, I know what he can do, but Paul’s amped up system is not the same as a mere infected. He’s triple that, because of his ability to control his own impulses and aggression, and it only takes a moment for him to get Hayes on his back, wrists tight in Paul’s vice-like grip.
“What are you?” Hayes asks, frowning at the man holding him down.
“One of the options in the Director’s future,” Paul replies. “Whether she knows it or not.”
I push the sweaty hair out of my eyes and level my gun at his head.
“Why didn’t she give you the Hybrid vaccine?” I ask, curiosity getting the best of me.
He spits on the ground. “She was testing both of us,” he says, looking at Wyatt, who is once again unconscious lying on the ground with my father nearby. “She wanted him but was unsure if he was loyal. She knew he had sympathies for you but wasn’t sure how much. My job was to bring him in and capture you. I did both and my reward is supposed to be the EVI-2.”