Dead Awakenings (35 page)

“I’m fine, but how did you get Kale to track my scent?”

Luca put her down, flicked out his knife, and cut her ropes.

All around them fighting ensued. Kale had latched on to a Feeder male who’d lunged for Cami. The Feeder wailed in pain as Kale tore into his flesh. Cami attacked, and the man fell to the ground in terror. Victor was still sparring with Damien. A gash on Damien’s head was in serious need of some stitches. Raze had entered the room and took down another Feeder, who tore into Raze’s flesh with bare teeth. A quick twist of the neck and the Feeder fell down in a heap.

“We got some help,” Luca said. “There was only one person who could control him.” But before Luca could finish, Tristan ran into the fray, a gun in his hand. He was dirty and his shirt was ripped. He found the nearest Feeder and shot. Evaine had never seen Tristan fight before. Before she knew it a Feeder grabbed Tristan from behind. Tristan dropped the gun and flipped the Feeder on the ground banging his head into concrete until he stopped moving. Tristan locked eyes with Evaine and smiled. Running to her he hugged her tight. Kale jumped up on her, licking her face with delight. The fighting was over. Victor had overpowered Damien, who now sat defeated. The other Feeders were either unconscious or dead. Cami rushed up, wrapping Evaine in a hug. Victor joined them, as did Aron and Nate, who were just entering the door.

Kale jumped on Evaine and licked her face again. She hugged the giant dog. “My big baby, did you find me? Yes, you did, yes you did. Who’s my good boy?” Then she turned to Tristan. “Tristan you—” But she stopped short. He wasn’t looking at her, he was looking behind her. Staring, not speaking, not moving. She turned and recognition hit her. There, huddled together were the doctor and Lisette. Evaine remembered it clearly now. An old wedding photo on the mantle of Tristan’s grandparent’s home—that’s where she had seen the doctor before.

The doctor lifted her chin and stood up straight, an air of defiance about her. Lisette peered around her mother’s waist. Evaine took Tristan’s hand. He looked down at her as if he didn’t recognize her for a moment. He nodded and let go of her hand and walked toward the doctor.

“Mother?”

The doctor cleared her throat. “Hello, Tristan.”

“Mary?”

“Hello, big brother. But I go by my middle name, Lisette, now. Mary was such a common name. I like Gammy’s name much better, don’t you?”

“I…I don’t understand. You’re both dead.”

“No, Lisette is dead, like Evaine. I am very much alive.”

“But who…who did this to you?”

“Mother did,” Lisette said. “Mother saved us, Daddy and me.”

“Lisette, hush.” Mrs. Atwater gave her a sharp look.

“Dad’s like you too? But…you both died in a plane crash. And Mary, uh…Lisette died from a seizure.”

“No, Lisette didn’t die. She went into a coma. Got stuck inside her head and couldn’t get out. In the crash, your father was injured, but I brought him back with a new drug we had been working on. A drug to help Lisette.”

Tristan stared from Lisette to his mother and back again. “You’re all better.”

“I’m normal now, yes, but I wouldn’t say I am better. Mother hasn’t yet been able to make me better than normal,” Lisette said testily.

“Wait,” Tristan said. “You said Dad came back. Where is he? Where’s Dad?”

“Daddy’s mind came back, but his body is still asleep, like mine used to be. Now he can only communicate telepathically. That’s how Mother’s been able to continue the work. She’s trying to figure out how to fix him now.”

Tristan looked at his mother. “I don’t understand.”

Evaine went to his side, horrified at what he was finding out. He looked down at her for support and she took his hand again.

Finally Nate spoke. “We cannot allow this to continue. It’s gone too far. Think of all the lives you have destroyed.”

“We haven’t destroyed anything. Think of what we have created. Look at what you can all do.” Lisette shoved her mother’s hands away. “Don’t you realize the great gifts you have been given? All of you have an ability now that makes you more than any human on earth. You could do anything if you wanted. Make whole governments change, make people do better, be better. You could punish those who do wrong. The world is yours for the taking. Why should we hide in the shadows? Under the ground in these retched tunnels. We could change the world. We could be gods!”

Nate brought his hand to his forehead. “Save people? Lisette, this testing is destroying people. Look at your brother. Look at what this has done to him. He lost you, your mother, your father, and now the love of his life. Is that what you consider saving people?”

“Tristan, I didn’t know about Evaine,” his mother pleaded. “I had no idea that she had any attachments at all. I never would have allowed her to be accepted into the trials had I known. All these years I have been trying to protect my family. Your sister, your father, and you. I wanted us to be together again, someday. I’d hoped that if I could fix your father that we would be able to come get you and be together as a family.”

Tristan shook his head slowly. “You are both insane.”

“I am
not
insane,” Lisette screamed. “Don’t you
ever
say that to me. I am not crazy. I am trying to be more. I want Daddy to be more. And I want to fix this screwed up, brutal world.”

“But look at all the brutality you have created. Right here.” Nate pointed to the dead bodies scattered around. “These are needless deaths. And they kill humans as well, without conscience, without remorse. You’re using humans as guinea pigs. Sometimes, yes, you do make us more, but more times than not you change regular happy humans into killing, feeding machines. That is brutal.” Nate shook his head. “I am sorry about your father, Tristan, but this must end.”

“Agreed.” Tristan did not take his eyes off his mother. Evaine could hear a hard edge in his voice. A maturity had crept into him in the last few hours.

“Tristan, think, honey. Think about us all being together as a family. Lisette is all better now; think of all we could do now that we couldn’t before. We wouldn’t be restrained by her limitations anymore. All we need is to figure out what Dr. Perry did to Evaine and then we can synthesize it and give it to your father and he’ll be fine.” Mrs. Atwater took a step toward him.

“No.” Tristan’s eyes looked angry. “Something’s wrong with you, Mother. Can you not see what you have been doing? You killed people; you ruined their lives. You ruined
my
life.” Tristan covered his face with his hands. “I wish I didn’t know any of this. I wish you really were dead.”

“How can you say that? You don’t mean it. Just let me finish my work and fix Daddy. Then you’ll see. You’ll forgive me. Let me take Evaine and figure out what Dr. Perry did, and then we can be together.” She took a step forward, but Tristan pushed Evaine behind him and Luca was by Tristan’s side in a flash. A low hiss escaped Lisette’s lips at the sight.

“It’s over, Mother. You both need to go with Nate now. I’m sure he can help you better than I can.”

“I’m not going anywhere!” Lisette screamed and ran out from behind her mother, a gun in her hand. Tristan’s gaze went to the floor where he had dropped his gun earlier in the struggle.

Damien got up. On his feet, he knocked Victor over. He ran toward Lisette. The gun fired wildly. The first shot was aimed at Tristan. Evaine pushed it to the ceiling. The next was toward Luca. Again Evaine pushed it off. Luca grabbed Evaine around the waist and tackled her to the floor, his body covering her. Evaine barely even noticed the movement as she listened for the sound of the bullets, pushing them away from people.

In a lull, Evaine pulled on the gun; it flew from the little girl’s grasp and clattered across the room. Lisette howled and rushed Evaine, but in an instant Damien had her in his arms and threw back a carpet on the wall. A door was behind it. He ran through as everyone got up.

Victor ripped the carpet from the wall and banged on the barred door, yelling every obscenity Evaine could imagine. Evaine surveyed the damage. Aron knelt at the doctor’s side. Blood seeped onto the cement from a wound to her head. Tristan knelt by her, pushing at her hair. The doctor’s vacant eyes stared at Evaine accusingly. In her wild shooting spree, Lisette had shot her mother. Tristan’s mom was dead.

All eyes stared at the dead woman. Glancing around Evaine saw glowing eyes everywhere she looked. Cami cradled her shoulder where she had hit the floor. She stared at the doctor and licked her lips. Evaine swallowed. This was bad.

“Victor.” Cami’s gaze never left the dead woman. “Victor, get me out!”

Victor looked from the doctor to Cami, scooped her into his arms, and strode quickly from the room.

Everyone else took Cami’s cue and left the scene equally as fast. When everyone was gone, Evaine looked up at Luca. His eyes scanned her face. She smiled.

“What?” he asked.

“I can feel you again. You were gone in my head for so long and it was so quiet.”

Luca pulled her to her feet. Her eyes rested on a large lump by the bookcase. Pushing Luca away she rushed to her dog. She pressed her ear to his warm chest she heard his heart beating.

“He’s alive.” At the sound of her voice Kale opened his heavy lids. Evaine choked out a sob of relief. “Who’s my good boy? Who’s mama’s big protector?” She stroked his head. Kale’s thwacking tail echoed through the room. He rolled over and sat up, using his entire tongue to clean her face.

“That is so gross.” Luca scrunched up his face.

“Jealous.” Evaine laughed.

“Maybe.”

Evaine reached up and hugged him. Over his shoulder, she saw that Tristan held his mother’s lifeless body. Evaine licked her lips. He needed her. She got to her feet and walked to him. She put her arm around his shoulders and knelt down next to him. They sat that way for a long time. Tristan stroked her hair. Silent tears dripped down. Evaine wished there was more she could do for him. The sound of footsteps broke the silence. Nate glanced toward Tristan, and then he turned away from the scene.

“Damien’s gone. The girl too.” Nate kept his voice low. “There are about thirty Feeders left. The rest are dead. We need to get out of here. Raze and Kade are staying behind with Ronan. They’re grabbing all the computers and then setting everything alight.”

“Evaine, you have to make him get up.”
Luca moved to the far side of the room, his body tense.

She nodded her head slightly.

“We need to get out of here.” She touched Tristan’s shoulder gently.

Tristan reached out with his hand and closed his mother’s eyes. A pool of blood had begun to congeal on the floor, soaking Tristan’s pants. The smell surged through Evaine’s senses, calling her to action.

“Tristan, we need to go now. We can’t stay here. Nate’s going to set this place on fire.” Her statement seemed to jar him.

“I have to find Dad.”

Nate joined them. His eyes glowed brightly, restraint etched across his face. “He’s been taken by your sister and Damien. Shandy saw them carry him out of the tunnels. She tried to follow, but she lost them. I’m sorry.”

Tristan’s gaze travelled back to his mother. “I need to take her with me.”

Nate gave Evaine a sharp shake of his head before walking away.

Evaine knew if Tristan took his mother’s body, he wouldn’t make it to the surface. Too many hungry Deaders. She tried to think fast. “But how would you explain her, and what would you do with her body?”

“I just can’t leave her here.”

“You have to. It’s the only way. Come on, we have to go.” She pulled on his arm. It was like trying to lift a newborn elephant off the ground. She gave him a mental tug, and he got to his feet shakily; his mother’s body slumped onto the floor. Taking Tristan by the arm Evaine led him out of the room. Luca followed closely behind them, holding Kale’s leash.

The dark tunnels smelled of wet, moldy clothes, old garbage, a gym locker room, and blood. Bodies of dead Feeders littered the hallways. The group took a left at a T and came to a large, rusty metal door. Nate’s posture tensed as the group approached. Keeping his eyes straight ahead he stepped through. The hairs on Evaine’s neck prickled and her stomach churned. Victor grimaced. Pulling Cami closer he shielded her eyes. Tristan put his arm around her shoulder and was about to pull her through when Luca grabbed him.

“Cover her eyes. She hasn’t seen this and there’s no reason she should.”

Tristan nodded.

“No, why? What’s in this room?” Evaine looked from one to the other.

“Nothing,” Luca said before Tristan could speak. “Nothing you need to see.”

“It’s the arena,” she said numbly.

“You could say that,” Tristan said. “Luca’s right, you shouldn’t see this.” Pulling her close he wrapped his large arm around her head and pulled her face to his chest.

She stepped into the room and the smell was the first thing that hit her. The decay, the putrid stench of death. There were various layers, from new and recent death all the way to weeks and months old. She could smell everything; it made her want to vomit. She heaved and covered her nose, pressing herself closer to Tristan’s side. It didn’t help. Tristan held her tighter, walking quickly. She struck something with her foot and tripped. Tristan put his arm out to stop her from falling but in doing so he let go of her. Instinctively she opened her eyes to see. She wished she hadn’t as soon as she did it. She had tripped over an arm. It was laying not that far from a half-eaten teenager. His eyes stared at her wide and cloudy, his mouth in an eternal scream. Most of his torso was gone, his rib cage ripped open. His lower half lay inside the arena.
Evaine tried to scramble away, but landed in a pile of mangled bodies. Old people, young people, heavy people, and thin people. The Feeders hadn’t discriminated. Some bodies were as fresh as that day. A large wall-to-wall chain-link cage stood to her right. Mangled, tortured, and broken bodies lay in a heap at the side of the room. The cage floor was strewn with small body parts and blood. A dead Feeder lay rotting in a corner. A large strong arm reached out and jerked her upward, pinning her to an equally hard chest, as a cry escaped her lips. Luca soothed her and stroked her hair.