Once he’s finished securing my arms behind my back, he shoves me forward and we walk into the cave. It goes deeper than I thought and we walk for at least five minutes. Eventually we both have to duck until we reach what I assume is the centre.
The tunnel opens up into a large roundish room. It’s lit by four blazing torches. The ceiling is dripping with long, icicle-shaped rock formations that hang perilously above me, seemingly poised to break off and impale someone at the subtlest movement.
Another agent stands in the middle of the chamber. A thinner, darker version of my current escort. I identify him as the man who apprehended me in the barn.
Directly at his feet, sitting on the ground, I see Zen. His hands are also tied behind his back. Nasty cuts and bruises mar his beautiful face and his left cheek is caked in dried blood.
Emotion overtakes me and I try to run to him but I’m forced to a halt when a short middle-aged man with light blond hair, icy blue eyes and smooth tanned skin emerges from the shadows and places a Modifier inches away from Zen’s temple.
‘Hello, Sera,’ he says, in a deep, unnerving voice that I recognize from the phone call and my nightmares.
‘Alixter,’ I breathe.
‘So you do remember me,’ he says, looking pleased. ‘Do you know what this is?’ He gives the Modifier a small flick.
I nod.
‘Good,’ he says icily. ‘Then you won’t come any closer. Because I have it programmed to a setting I like to call scramble. One zap from this and he won’t be of much use to you any more.’
I get the point and back away. ‘What did you do to him?’ I ask, my voice shaking as I take in his assortment of injuries.
Zen lifts his head and our eyes meet for the first time. I see so much pain in his face but still he manages to flash me that exquisite uneven smile that I love so much.
Alixter shrugs and takes a few steps towards me. ‘Nothing time won’t heal. And a little antiseptic.’ He motions to the ground behind me. ‘Why don’t you take a seat?’
I drop to my knees and lean back against the rock wall. It feels cool on my sweat-stained shirt.
Alixter nods to the agent who led me in here. ‘Search her,’ he commands.
As the scar-faced man ominously stalks his way over to me, I squeeze the locket in my hand, wishing I had thrown it over the edge when I had the chance.
Now, it appears, Zen’s gift – just like me – will end up in the hands of Diotech.
He grips me by the elbow and starts to yank me back up. I say a sad, silent goodbye to the locket and everything it stood for – eternal love, freedom, escape – and slowly let it slide from my fingers. It makes a soft clank against the stony surface and I pray it will go unnoticed.
The guard reaches into all of my pockets, removing my borrowed cellphone. Zen watches carefully from across the room, his eyes registering panic. He thinks I might still have the drive.
But at least I was smart enough to leave that behind with Maxxer.
When the guard comes up empty-handed, I see Zen relax somewhat.
‘She’s clean,’ he announces to Alixter. ‘Just the cellphone.’ Then he pushes me down to the ground.
‘Gentle,’ Alixter reproaches silkily. ‘Don’t damage the merchandise.’ Then he grins cunningly at me. ‘And I wouldn’t try to break free if I was you. I know exactly how strong you are. And those chains are customized to your specifications. Just out of your reach.’
I glare back at him. The sight of him makes me tremble with fear, but I try not to let it show. ‘I have no intention of escaping,’ I tell him. ‘I came here to fulfill my end of the agreement.’
‘Ah yes,’ Alixter replies sinuously. ‘Our agreement. Of course. But you must understand, it’s hard to trust you, given your –’ he wheels his hand around in a slow circle – ‘well . . . history of insubordination.’
He glances from me to Zen and then back again. ‘Tell me,’ he says, ‘where were you two planning to go? Because I know it wasn’t here.’
‘Don’t tell him,’ Zen urges me, his voice strained and raspy.
I remain quiet. But not on Zen’s orders. There’s no way I’m telling this man anything.
Alixter studies the two of us again. ‘Such solidarity,’ he muses. ‘Right to the end.’ He exhales a long, drawn-out sigh. ‘No matter. Once we get you back to the lab, we’ll be able to find all the information we need.’ He taps his forehead.
I can feel the three receptors still attached to my head. No doubt, once I get back, they’ll use them – or something similar – to dig out all the memories they want. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if they reset my mind completely. Back to square one.
After I’ve come so far.
The thought makes me shudder.
‘And then,’ Alixter goes on, ‘maybe we can figure out how to fix this little weakness you seem to have.’ He gestures to Zen, who’s so frail and battered he’s barely able to sit up. ‘It was something we definitely didn’t anticipate.’
Alixter pinches his chin between his thumb and forefinger. ‘You see, when we set out to create you – a perfect genetic specimen with speed, strength, brainpower, beauty, immunity to disease – we honestly didn’t expect you to have many human characteristics. In fact, we purposefully programmed you to be docile and obedient. With all the brain and gene modifications we made, our research indicated that you’d behave much like a robot. A willing servant. Incapable of insubordination or feeling much emotion. And certainly incapable of falling in love.’
He says the word as though it physically sickens him.
‘But clearly something in our calculations was amiss, because here we are.’ He spreads his arms out wide and chuckles sinisterly. ‘It became most obvious that you weren’t what we expected you to be when you fled the compound. And then ran from my agents. Instead of coming willingly. That’s when I knew that apprehending you was going to be a bit more complicated than I had originally hoped.’
He starts to pace, keeping a close eye on me the whole time. ‘I should have realized the truth sooner though. You had a certain zealous spirit about you right from the start. A rebellious streak. I suppose that’s why Rio always called you Seraphina – meaning “fery one” – instead of the name we gave you.’
As revolting as Alixter’s words are, I still find a peculiar satisfaction in hearing them. At least I had a rebellious streak. At least I fought.
‘Of course it wasn’t really a name,’ he muses. ‘It was just an abbreviation for the sequence of DNA that finally took. You see, we had several failed attempts before you came along. But sequence E, recombination A was the successful one. S:E/R:A. But like I said, no one really expected you to need a name, given your anticipated nature. But once it was discovered that you were, in fact, quite human, we figured Sera was as good a name as any.’
He stops pacing long enough to run his fingers through his silky white-blond hair.
‘Looking back,’ he continues, ‘we really should have used our resources to create an adult. Then maybe I wouldn’t be in this predicament. Teenagers can be so irresponsible. So reckless and misguided. All because they think they’re in love.’
His voice suddenly takes on a high-pitched singsongy quality and once again I hear the disgust he infuses in the word.
He stops pacing and approaches me, bending down and coming close enough to my face that I can smell his breath. It nearly makes me gag.
‘We chose sixteen because it’s such a perfect age,’ he says, his voice smooth like glass. He reaches out and hooks a strand of my hair around his finger. ‘When a human being – especially a woman – is most healthy, visibly striking and physically fit.’ He leans in and inhales the scent of my hair, breathing deeply before letting it fall limp against my shoulder.
‘But clearly it was a mistake.’ Repulsion seeps back into his voice as he rises to his feet. ‘A mistake we’ll be certain to remedy as soon as possible. This time we’ll have to make sure you don’t have the ability to t
hink for yourself.’
I hear a soft noise from the opening of the tunnel and my eyes dart in that direction. Is there someone else here?
‘Sera, just run!’ Zen screams, taking advantage of the lull in the conversation. It’s obvious he’s using every ounce of depleted energy he has left. ‘Forget about me.’
‘I’m sorry,’ I say, looking to him and trying to convey exactly how I feel about him with a single glance. ‘I can’t.’
Alixter seems to find humour in this exchange. He smiles contentedly. ‘You see, this is what I’m talking about,’ he explains. ‘Despite every modification we made to your DNA to ensure you would be suspicious of strangers, you still continued to fall for him time and time again, trusting him so blindly, going against every instinct that warned you not to.’ He clucks his tongue against the roof of his mouth. ‘Free will is simply not your strong suit, Sera. Math and science and languages, that’s where you’re exceptional, but making wise, sensible choices based on reason and logic? Not so much. It’s quite the dichotomy.’
He looks at Zen and plasters an artificial frown on his face. ‘Unfortunately he’s right though. You really should save yourself. I mean, don’t get me wrong. I’m very fond of Lyzender. His mother is an integral part of my team. But you –’ he points to me with both hands, a look of pride flashing across his face – ‘you are worth trillions of dollars. There’s simply no comparison.’
I hear another sound from the cave opening. And this time, it would seem, Alixter hears it too, because he glances up and a sly smile spreads across his lips.
‘Rio,’ he states, sounding pleased. ‘How delightful of you to join us. Welcome to our little party.’
My head jerks up and I see Rio stepping into the cavern, clutching a shiny black gun in his hand. It’s pointed directly at Alixter’s head.
The dark-skinned agent standing near Zen reacts, readying himself to charge.
‘I wouldn’t,’ Rio warns, with a wave of his hand.
Alixter calls off the agent with a nod, and he withdraws.
‘Sera,’ Alixter says formally, ‘you remember my business partner, Dr Havin Rio.’
‘Hand her over,’ Rio demands. His voice is grave and unyielding. A stark contrast to the way he spoke to me.
Alixter chuckles at this. ‘Oh, Rio. Always the idealist. Now why on earth would I do that?’
Rio takes a step forward, brandishing the gun. ‘Because I’ll kill you if you don’t.’
Alixter teeters his head from side to side, seemingly considering the validity of this threat. ‘You do appear to have the advantage here,’ he admits nonchalantly, gesturing to the wide gap between him and Rio. ‘After all, we both know the Modifier –’ he hoists up the black device in his hand – ‘only works upon direct contact, whereas that –’ he nods to the gun – ‘can be used across distances.’
Rio stays silent, but it’s fairly clear this was his exact strategy.
‘Which means I could try to deactivate you, but I’d be dead before I could even reach you.’ Alixter clucks his tongue again. ‘Hmmm. Quite the dilemma we have on our hands here.’
‘There’s no dilemma,’ Rio states evenly. ‘Put down the Modifier, hand her over to me, and no one gets hurt.’
Alixter raises his eyebrows and shrugs before finally conceding and placing the device on the ground by his feet.
‘Good. Now tell your goon over there to release her,’ Rio encourages.
Alixter inhales pensively. ‘I could do that, yes,’ he allows. ‘However, I should note there is one advantage I have over you.’
Rio’s eyes narrow. ‘And what would that be?’
‘Your foolish need to protect her,’ Alixter says matter-of-factly. Then, in a blur, he reaches behind him into his waistband and produces a gun of his own. He extends his arm, aiming the gun straight at me, causing Zen to moan in agony and Rio’s stony facade to crumble.
‘Alixter, don’t,’ he pleads, the former menace in his voice suddenly gone.
I cower further back against the rock wall, trying to tuck my face to my chest.
‘Funny how life works,’ Alixter observes callously. ‘We confiscated this gun when we apprehended Lyzender.’ He chuckles. ‘I find it so ironic that he would be the one to help me in the end.’
A look of pure hatred flashes over Zen’s face.
Alixter looks at the weapon in his hands, examining it with great curiosity. ‘Huh,’ he muses. ‘I always thought these things were so outdated. So archaic. Not to mention absurdly heavy.’ He screws his mouth to the side. ‘It’s no wonder they stopped making them fifty years ago.’
‘Alixter,’ Rio warns, ‘you don’t want to do this. Think of the people you have to answer to. She’s worth too much to you.’
Alixter smiles. ‘This is true, but she’s clearly worth more to you.’ He lowers the gun a few inches and takes aim at my left leg. ‘I can repair any surface damage I cause and she’ll be as good as new. But would you really be able to stand seeing her in that much pain? Having an entire limb blown off can’t be comfortable.’
‘Wise choice.’ Alixter motions to the dark-skinned agent, who sprints across the cavern, scoops up the abandoned gun and grabs Rio by the arm, jamming a knee into his stomach. Rio groans and doubles over.
‘Please don’t hurt him,’ I whimper, tears springing to my eyes.
But no one seems to be listening to me. The guard leads Rio over to Alixter, kicking at the backs of his legs until they give out and he falls to his knees.
Alixter sighs and tucks Zen’s gun back into the waistband of his pants. ‘I’m sorry, Rio. But after this, I don’t think we can be business partners any more. I question your loyalty.’
Rio doesn’t respond. He bites his lip, seemingly in an effort to hold back another cry of pain.
‘We started Diotech together,’ Alixter explains wistfully, addressing me. ‘We had such high hopes and so many aspirations. I had the business background but he was the genius and brains behind the whole operation. The most brilliant scientist of his day, there’s no doubt about that. But I’m afraid, dear Rio –’ he peers down at him with a look of longing – ‘that you went a little soft during our biggest and most important experiment to date.’ Alixter nods his head ambiguously in my direction. ‘You broke the cardinal rule of science: never ever become attached to your test subject.’
I study Rio’s body language. His shoulders are slouched forward, his head hangs low. If it wasn’t for the bright red beard, I would say he looked like a scared little boy.
‘He put his emotions before his science,’ Alixter continues, looking at me again. ‘When it was discovered that you weren’t exactly what we anticipated, that you were more humanlike than any of us expected, I suggested you be repaired right away. There was just too much at stake to allow you to have a mind of your own. To form thoughts and opinions and escape plans. A few tweaks here and there and we could have easily avoided all of this. But Rio convinced me that the procedure was unnecessary. That you could be controlled with daily memory modifications. He became so fond of you, so protective, that at one point he even tried to convince me to release you, if you can believe it.’ He huffs. ‘It was almost as if he really did believe he was your father.’
I shoot a glance at Zen. He meets my eye and offers me an apologetic shake of his head.
‘Well,’ Alixter says with a small grunt of repugnance, ‘we can’t have trillions of dollars’ worth of research and scientific advancement – not to mention trillions more in potential profits – resting in the hands of a softy, can we?’
Rio lifts his head again. His eyes – where I once saw kindness and genuine remorse – now appear tired and conquered. ‘Seraphina,’ he says weakly, ‘I hope you’ll find it in your heart to forgive me.’
Then, for a brief moment, an unmistakable intensity blooms across his weary face and he stares at me with such pointed determination I find myself leaning forward slightly, being pulled into his sudden renewed willpower.
/>
His gaze flickers down to my neckline briefly before returning to meet my eyes. And then he says it again. This time with an almost disconcerting conviction. ‘I hope you’ll find it in your heart to forgive me.’
I’m so overwhelmed by his message and its strange delivery that I barely notice Alixter handing his Modifier over to the agent who’s holding Rio. And by the time I do notice, it’s too late.
‘NOOOOO!’ I attempt to stumble forward but the other agent moves fast, thrusting me back with his leg. Everything seems to be moving in some kind of slow motion. The dark-skinned agent’s hand extends, the tip of the Modifier makes contact with Rio’s cheek and his entire body starts to convulse. It writhes violently as the electricity is shot into his brain and travels down the length of his body.
He falls hard to the ground, his bones making a horrific cracking sound upon impact.
Then the twitching stops and everything is silent.
45
OPEN
I stare, aghast, at Rio’s lifeless figure. His eyes are closed but his face is frozen in a state of sheer terror.
I know he’s not dead. He can’t be. I’ve seen the Modifier in action several times now. It doesn’t kill you. It only shuts down your brain for a few minutes, maybe a couple of hours at most.
But then again, never in the handful of times I’ve witnessed that device being used on another human being, did I see it elicit a reaction like that. His body shook so hard and so cruelly I thought he was going to explode.
‘Is he . . .’ I try to speak but I’m sobbing so hard now I can barely get the words out. ‘Is he dead?’
Alixter seems completely unfazed by any of this. ‘Trust me, he’s better off,’ is all he says.
‘Now, back to our little arrangement,’ he continues. ‘I’m a man of my word, so as soon as you and I are safely back on the Diotech compound, I’ll send notice and my agent will release Zen.’ His lips tug into a scowl. ‘Of course, you do understand that we can’t allow him to continue to transesse. He’d only come back to Diotech and try to kidnap you again. So I’m afraid, before we release him, we’re going to have to disable his gene. He will be forced to remain here, in this time period, but I assure you he’ll be unharmed.’