The Girl Who Broke Free (Death Fields 5)

“Cole,” she says. “To be honest, I was a little alarmed when I first saw him running down the sidewalk. A chill ran down my spine. I thought we were under attack but then I saw you in his arms.” She brushes a stray hair off my forehead. “It’s the first time I’d seen him since we got here. Or you, for that matter. They do a thorough job of keeping us all separated.”

“Cole brought me here?” I ask, not understanding. He’d been the one to do this to me. To knock me unconscious.

“He was frantic—well, I assume that was the emotion. With the Mutts it can be hard to tell, you know. The adrenaline mixed with the impulse control makes reading their emotions a challenge. But he brought you straight to me, like he knew I was up here.”

Jane rambles on about cerebral cortexes and frontal lobes, she mentions my concussion, but I can’t figure out how and why Cole got me out of the security office. The whole thing makes my head hurt worse than it already does and Jane finally stops. “I’m sorry. I work all by myself now. I never see anyone. It’s weird having someone to talk to.”

I flex my fingers as she links hers with them. “I understand. I’ve been lonely too.”

She looks to the side, toward the door and whispers, “What are we going to do?”

“We’ll figure it out,” I say, feeling stronger than I have in months.

“Rest.” She pops a pill in my mouth and gives me another sip of water. The medicine goes down quickly and I relax into the pillow. She’s right. I need to rest. I need to preserve my energy, because now that I’m out of that room there’s no way in hell I’m going back.

Chapter Four

I’m given four days to recover. Jane says that Hybrid officials have come by while I’m asleep to check my wounds and get a status update. The good news is that my injury is bad enough to warrant recuperation. The bad news is that on the final day, I’m a slobbering mess. I don’t want to go back to being alone again.

I sleep through most of our time together but on the last day I wake up early to the smell of pork and eggs. I shift up as much as possible, my hands are still bound. “Is that bacon and eggs?”

“Yes.” She smiles and holds up a piece of greasy, reddish meat.

“How did you manage that?” My stomach rumbles in delight.

“I helped the kitchen deal with some vermin issues. My chemistry degree is coming more in handy than I ever would have suspected. They repaid me with bacon.”

That’s the thing about my sister. She didn’t become the ‘The Director’ of PharmaCorp by chance. She’s good at her job. Not just a brilliant scientist, but she has a touch of the right kind of leadership that inspires people, even while those of us close to her are aware of her flaws.

She places a piece of bacon in my mouth and I savor the salty taste. I’m fed like an invalid, which I’m not, I’m just a prisoner. Tiny things like keeping me bound or forcing me to rely on others is just another trick Chloe uses to keep me off balance. I know it’s an attempt to break my spirit, but despite the pain and injury, I’m rejuvenated just by being with my sister.

“It’s Monday,” she says. “The day they have their weekly briefings. The entire army goes to the gymnasium to listen to Chloe speak.”

“How do you know this?”

“I was invited once to explain the project I’m working on. It’s a two-fold process. Chloe likes to show the soldiers what happens to traitors as well as keep them confident that I’m still around working for the army.”

“What are you working on?” That’s the loaded question I’ve been too afraid or too tired to ask over the last few days. Not because I don’t trust my sister. I think she learned her lesson creating the world-altering E-TR virus in the first place. In her own twisted

way, she meant to take down the bad guys and better society. I’m afraid because Jane’s science is too good. She’s shown what can happen when it’s in the wrong hands.

“As you know, with Dad’s help, I created the original vaccine to the E-TR virus after society fell. The original, which worked well in its limited role as a military bio-weapon, resulted in creating an uncontrollable epidemic infecting an enormous number of the population. The infected, or ‘Eaters’ as the media dubbed them, succumbed to a parasite that entered the brain and triggered high levels of aggression, adrenaline, and rage. Empathy and impulse control were completely erased. The parasite also ignited a ravenous urge to spread the virus, and the quickest, easiest way was and is through oral transmission—or simply biting.”

I nod, not sure why we need to go over every step, but it’s nice to hear her voice so I don’t argue.

“I developed the working vaccine, EVI-1, which allowed uninfected persons to survive infection from a bite. But I saw something in the original virus that piqued my interest. I was sure I was on the right path—I just needed to refine my technique and the science behind it. The virus worked at removing much of the dangerous population from society but it went too far. I needed a combat unit to clear the Eaters so we could live peacefully. That’s when I created the EVI-2 injections.”

“Which are less vaccine but more biological manipulation that turned out badly,” I say, barely able to restrain myself.

“Yes, you’re right. I was prideful and believed I had the solution to global terrorism. I thought I had the answer to fixing what I messed up.” She looks at me with more shame than I thought she could muster. “I was wrong on both counts. The first EVI-2 injection was given to Chloe. It was a slight variation on the original virus, eliminating the need for cannibalism. It allowed for intelligent thought, enhanced abilities, and most importantly a controllable psyche. I thought she would be the first lieutenant in my growing army. Instead, due to my lack of understanding of the cravings, Chloe didn’t have the need to spread the virus. She had the need to spread her control and vision via an army with or without me.”

I’d come to reason with Jane and get her to stop the development of her Hybrid army when Chloe initiated a coup. Jane and I escaped, along with three other soldiers, but that didn’t stop Chloe from pushing forward. First she traveled south, building up her Hybrid army all the way to the sea. There she encountered General Erwin and his army of survivors, many members of the rebellion I started before I headed north. I have no idea what happened to Erwin or my friend Paul, but with Chloe here I’m not hopeful.

Paul was our first signal that something good could come from my sister’s bio manipulations. He was kept as a guinea pig for Jane’s early vaccine trials, half dead when we found him. Ultimately, though, he survived and not only regained his health, but the cocktail he’d been fed gave him enhanced strength and skills without the crazy that went along with it. Paul falls into a third category, a Mutt. He’s immune to Eater bites, is crazy fast and strong, but also maintained his empathy and humanity. Only one other person that we know of is a Mutt.

Cole.

Cole took the second vaccine on purpose. He knew and understood the outcome but felt it was the only way to fight Chloe. Unfortunately, his twin sister’s torture and abuse has pushed his humanity to the brink.