Botanicaust (39 page)

Perhaps Tula was right. She did belong here, in an artificial environment, among people who accepted her green skin. The Old Order would condemn her on sight. God was protecting her. She could not come with him, but she had provided the means to save Josef. Perhaps that was God
’
s intent all along. He had to trust in God
’
s plan.

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, he finished the drawing of Tula.

In an exhausted, tear-induced doze, Tula thought she heard a soft knock on the door. If Levi came to see her now, she would break. The knock sounded again, two tiny taps. She wiped her eyes on the bedcovers and rose. Shoulders back, she prepared herself to be cold, firm. She opened the door.
“
Michael,
”
she said in a rush of air.
“
What are you doing here?
”

He pointed a thick finger to her tear stained cheek then looked quickly away.

That did it. A single, heart wrenching shudder and she broke.
“
I have to stay.
”
She felt a hand pat her on the shoulder in an awkward attempt at comfort. Pulling herself together, she smiled through her tears and took his hand in hers.
“
I
’
m sorry. I don
’
t mean to make you worry.
”

He gave a sigh that spoke of compassion far better than words would have.

“
You are a good friend, Michael. I
’
m glad I have you here since I
’
m going to be staying. Are you here to give me a tour? Maybe get me a little light?
”

She
’
d been without sunlight over twenty-four hours, and the low blood sugar from lack of sun made her feel a bit woozy. Or maybe it was the crying. She liked to believe it was lack of sunlight. Dr. Kaneka said they had a solution to her photosynthetic needs, and she assumed that meant whatever light source they used in the hydroponics section.

Michael
’
s face fell and he dropped her hand. His brows drew together in a pained look.

“
Your father said you
’
d had Haldanian guests before. Maybe you could show me where they stayed?
”

Michael glanced down both sides of the hall and then nodded. He shambled out of the doorframe, looking behind to make sure Tula followed. After many forks and turns, the lighting grew sparse until they reached a metal door. The placard read
“
Phytogenics.
”
He paused with his hand on the knob, and looked at her as if asking if this was what she really wanted. She smiled in reassurance.

He bent to use the key card on the lanyard around his neck and stepped inside. They were in the lab he
’
d brought her to that first day when he
’
d carried her away from the crazy woman. Michael pulled on a radiation suit from the far wall, and she remembered the Fosselites
’
aversion to sunlight. Apparently, they had to protect themselves from the hydroponic lights, as well.

Once he was dressed, he offered her a suit.

She waved it away.
“
I
’
ll be okay.
”

He shook his head and pushed the suit closer.

After a moment of hesitation, Tula acquiesced and struggled into it, although she was longing for some photosynthesis. Wearing heavy clothing was unfamiliar, and she felt trapped as she moved toward the door behind Michael.

The first door led into a tiny antechamber with a second door directly across the way. As he opened the second door, intense light speared the room. She
flinched,
closing her eyes before she realized the suit and visor shielded her. With light this bright, she
’
d only need a couple hours or less exposure a day to fulfill her blood sugar needs.

Michael stepped into the room and waited on the other side of the door. She peered around the corner, expecting frills of foliage. Instead, six gurneys lined up like in a triage unit, each flanked by a beeping monitor and several IV stands. Above the beds, huge halogen reflectors beamed light directly onto the patients strapped to the beds.

Green skinned patients.

Haldanians.

“
What
…
”
Confusion cluttered her mind. On stiff legs, she approached the nearest bed and looked into the ravaged face of a dark haired woman.
“
Greta.
”
The name came to her lips without thinking. This was a woman who
’
d reverted six months ago. Not one of Tula
’
s, but she remembered the euthanization orders.

Frantic, she moved to the next bed, and the next. Two of the beds held a pair of twins she
’
d converted over a year ago.
One of her most heartbreaking failures.
Vitus had warned her twins were impossible, because each twin would always remind the other of her past. But Tula had been determined to save them. After seven months of stealing excess food, attempts to escape, and episodes of violence against fellow students, the twins were sent to euthanization. Or so Tula had believed.

She turned to Michael, who watched from the door.
“
How did they get here?
”
Her voice echoed off the visor of her suit.

He shrugged, the fit of his suit a bit too small to allow his shoulders to fully rise.

“
I know these girls. All these people are supposed to be dead.
”
Inside the confines of her helmet, she struggled for air. But she couldn
’
t risk removing the protective clothing.
“
What are they doing here?
”
She turned to a boy with a mane of golden hair who reminded her of Levi when he
’
d first arrived at the Protectorate.

Following the line of the IV, she saw the familiar telomerase setup. Behind the boy
’
s ear, another line snaked across the gurney to terminate at a valve. Bending closer to the boy
’
s head, Tula discovered the line led to a brain shunt. What had Dr. Kaneka said about Haldanian steroids? Something about the blood brain barrier. Were these
“
test subjects?
”
She jerked upright and spun to face Michael, the suit hampering her movement.

“
Is this what
’
s in store for me?
”

Michael didn
’
t meet her eyes as he shrugged once again.

“
I need to get out of here.
”
She hurried out into the lab, her stomach roiling. The protein drink they
’
d provided at lunch felt like poison in her system. Once out of the light, she ripped off her hood and gulped huge draughts of air. Recirculated air. She was trapped inside a mountain. Trapped inside the stiff fabric of the radiation suit. Every crease in her skin dripped with nervous perspiration. As she struggled to free herself from the grasp of the suit, she heard voices from the hall.

“
…
VP
shunt
until the infection clears.
”
The door opened and Dr. Kaneka froze, his blood-curdled eyes wide as he assessed the scene. Another man stood behind him, his mouth hanging open.

“
Michael?
”
Dr. Kaneka asked. Then he sighed.
“
Tula.
”
He shook his head.
“
I really wish you hadn
’
t seen any of that.
”

Levi tossed and turned in bed, his excessive movement continually triggering the automatic lights in the ceiling. Sitting up, he pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes. He needed rest if he was to make good time tomorrow. But hurt and anger circled his brain like a pair of turkey buzzards. Why would God let him love her, then take her away? Just like He
’
d taken Sarah. Was everyone Levi loved to be ripped from his life?

The clock on the bed table read 3:12. He could only assume that meant AM. The sun would rise in a few hours. Bleary eyed, he looked around the sparse room. Resting in the chair, the new carrying pack Dr. Kaneka had provided sat upright and ready to go. Stuffed in the bottom, the blanket, robe, and sheer lab coat would be his only warmth for the journey.
And his only memories of Tula.
The water bottles rested in a jumble on top, filled from the tap in Levi
’
s bathroom. The remaining first aid items had their own exterior pocket, and the cannibal knife had another. He hoped the stiff fabric was sturdy enough to resist the blade
’
s edge. Everything fit nicely, with a padded, interior pouch specifically for the beacon.

He clambered out of bed. If he could not sleep, he might as well get on with saving Josef. The slipper shoes the Fosselites had given him would not last long on his journey home, but he was happy for their protection for the time being. He dressed, downed a long drink of water from the tap, and shouldered the pack.

Before opening the door, he looked around the room one last time to be sure he had everything. The gamma pad lay on the bedside table, and he was tempted to take it. But he
’
d not been invited to keep it. The sketches of Tula would be in there somewhere, even though he thought he
’
d erased them. Like the ones he
’
d erased with the Blattvolk. It didn
’
t matter. Let them think what they would.

He opened the door and stepped outside to be confronted by the man in the red tunic from the library. The man didn
’
t even pretend to smile this time. He put the flat of his hand against Levi
’
s chest.
“
Stay.
”

“
I
’
m ready to be on my way. To go.
”
Levi jostled the pack on his back for emphasis. He didn
’
t like the man touching him.

The man looked between the pack and Levi, a frown on his face. He held up a finger and lifted his forearm to his mouth to speak a few words. A band around his wrist spouted Dr. Kaneka
’
s sleep-thick voice in return.

With a flick of his other hand, the man indicated for Levi to follow. He strode ahead, and Levi forced his feet to keep up. Now that he was actually leaving, his legs didn
’
t want to cooperate. He
’
d been unconscious when they carried him to his room, and he had no bearings for where the outer door might be. He tried to keep track of the placards next to the doors along the way.

As they passed open double doors, he heard crying. The red-tunic guard didn
’
t halt to glance inside, but Levi couldn
’
t help himself.