If It Kills Me

by Jason D. Morrow

  I can see it in his eyes. He’s pondering the truths in their statements while they muse about killing greyskins. I had Connor on my side. I had him with me. Now, I’m not so sure. Now there are seeds of doubt sprouting in his mind. He probably didn’t trust Aaron that much anyway. I know he never really trusted Evelyn. I wish there was a way to tell him that what he is doing is right. I wish I could talk to him through this ability of mine that lets me secretly be near him.

  I watch a little longer, waiting to see if anything else will be said about the matter, but there is nothing. The three of them eventually decide to go into the base ruins at first light after getting some sleep. With this declaration, I open my eyes. Aaron is still shuffling around, getting the cart ready until he finally pulls out a cot and settles down.

  What if it’s true? What if he and Evelyn are playing me somehow? I suppose there is no way to be sure. If that were the case, then I would have enemies on both sides. Jeremiah is no friend. I’ve seen his greed. I know he is evil. It’s the ones that are closest to me that I can’t be one hundred percent sure about which is disheartening. All I know is that I’ve got Jake and Grandma to think about. They are the ones that I can trust. They are what all of this has been about as far as I’m concerned.

  A few breaths later, I can feel my eyes getting heavy. This time I’m not drifting off to secretly watch over anyone else. Now it is time to sleep, and hope that nightmares don’t overtake me.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  THE UNIVERSITY CAMPUS was the prettiest she had ever seen. In part, that is why Willow had chosen it in the first place. She had scholarships to study at just about any university of her choice, but she chose this one. The dogwood trees were blossoming and the birds of spring were singing their gratefulness to the warm, April sun.

  Willow was in her second year and already showing herself to be quite a promising student. Even after just a few of her basic classes, one of her teachers, Professor Adams, had noticed her talent and already taken her under his wing. His field of study was microbiology, something Willow wouldn’t have thought she would be interested in since she had always been more absorbed in astronomy. But there was something about Professor Adams that drew her toward the field. Naturally, she found the first course to be simple. He always had a way of making the students see how the science worked. He taught as if each cell in the body was made to be a single individual, living for a particular purpose. He had made her believe that each student possessed the potential to help save the world from all its darkness. He was truly inspiring. There were few that wouldn’t try to follow in his footsteps.

  Today would be the fifth, maybe sixth time she had been called to him for a meeting, but this one was different. Usually he would have her come to his office. It started by talking about her grades. Then she kept asking questions and they started meeting on a regular basis to talk about science and her future at the university. But today he wasn’t asking her to his office. He was asking her to coffee.

  Willow’s best friend, Jessi, was more than anxious for her to go. She thought Professor Adams was charming and that if he had asked Jessi to coffee, she would have already been dolled up and waiting for him. Although, since she was eight months pregnant, she never expected such an invitation.

  Willow looked down at Jessi’s protruding belly. “How has little Evie been?”

  Jessi rolled her eyes, placing a hand on her stomach. “Moving way too much. She keeps me up at night.”

  Willow looked up at her with a thoughtful smile, wishing the deadbeat father were around to help take care of Jessi. Willow had, in a way, taken that role in helping Jessi as much as she could. She looked up to the young mother — going to school, avoiding talks of a future with a child in her home and no income.

  “But we’re not talking about me,” Jessi said, noticing Willow’s avoidance. “You are going to meet with him.”

  “Don’t you think it’s a little weird?” Willow asked as the two of them walked across the campus quad, books in hand.

  “Well, of course it’s not normal, but that’s what makes it exciting!” Jessi answered, almost with a bounce in her step.

  “I respect him a lot,” Willow continued, “I just don’t feel right about going with him to have coffee. Sounds more like a date than a meeting.”

  “And what if it is?”

  “I don’t want to be known as that girl,” Willow said. “It’s a quick way for him to get fired, and for me to get a bad reputation.”

  “Not for coffee.”

  “Yes, but coffee turns into dinner, dinner turns into ‘why don’t you come over to my place,’ and from there it turns into Professor Adams getting fired and me with a terrible reputation.”

  “It’s just coffee,” Jessi said again. “He probably doesn’t even think of it like you do. He’s probably just going to talk to you about your scores or more of all that science stuff.”

  Willow sighed and looked off into the distance, stopping their walk for a brief moment, deep in thought.

  “You know you’re going,” Jessi said.

  “I know,” Willow admitted, though she still didn’t think it was a good idea.

  “You never know,” Jessi continued, “he might even be offering you something that could change your life. Maybe set you up for grad school.”

  “Or maybe he wants me to come over to his place,” Willow said through the side of her mouth.

  “Well, he’s handsome. And I think he probably has more class than that anyway.” Jessi placed a soft hand on Willow’s shoulder. “You’re over-thinking this. Just go and enjoy yourself. When are you supposed to meet him?”

  “Tonight.”

  “Then tonight, have a wonderful conversation, enjoy your cup of coffee, and let me know all the details when you get back to the apartment.”

  Willow smiled at this. Jessi had been a good friend since the first day of their freshmen year. Willow had never been much of a social bug, but Jessi brought her out of her shell. Through late night chats about boys, to parties that may have gotten a little too out of hand, Willow had found a good friend. Jessi was someone that Willow would keep in contact with for the rest of her life.

  Willow spent the better part of the evening reading through her homework in the library, though she wasn’t really able to concentrate. Looking up at the clock, Willow realized she had only about ten minutes to get to the other side of the campus to the coffee shop on time. She knew that he had a low tolerance for tardiness in his classes, so she didn’t want to risk being late for this.

  A brisk walk got her to the coffee shop with two minutes to spare. Through the window she could see the professor sitting in a corner waiting patiently. She couldn’t help but admire his good looks. He had a strong jaw and broad shoulders. His blue eyes always made his stare enticing, even in the classroom. His hair was a dark brown but for small amounts of grey at his temples that only added to his charm. At maybe forty years old, Professor Adams would be a catch for any woman. Willow just didn’t think that was the case for a college-aged girl.

  She felt so awkward walking into the coffee shop, but Professor Adams welcomed her with a warm smile. Standing up, he motioned her toward the counter.

  “Get anything you like,” he said, “I’m buying.”

  “That’s generous of you,” Willow said.

  “College students don’t have the money to be wasting it on coffee.” His grin was infectious and Willow couldn’t help but smile at him.

  She ordered the cheapest drink on the menu. Professor Adams scolded her for trying to save him money and told her to get something she would really enjoy, but Willow refused. In fact, a straight black coffee is what Willow preferred.

  Sitting down at the table, warm drinks between them, neither of them spoke for at least twenty seconds. Willow couldn’t help but feel awkward. Part of her wanted to just blurt out that there was no way she could be in a relationship with a professor. Another part of her just wanted to ask where all of this was going. B
ut she held her tongue.

  “We’re almost finished with the semester,” Professor Adams finally said. “You are still making straight A’s?”

  “They haven’t changed since last week when we met in your office,” Willow said.

  Professor Adams grinned at this. “No, I suppose they haven’t.”

  Willow took a sip of coffee. It burned her tongue a little, but the distraction was welcome.

  “Willow, I asked you to coffee because I want to talk to you about something.”

  She felt her insides drop. This was it. He was about to express his feelings for her. What if he wanted her to accept his feelings and return them? If she didn’t, would he hurt her college career by giving her a bad grade? Would he do everything in his power to make her fail?

  “Okay,” Willow said.

  “You’re a bright student,” he continued. “Honestly, I’ve become rather fond of you. Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I find you different from any of the other students.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’re smarter. You have a curiosity that is unmatched. You ask questions in class that most professors wouldn’t think to ask.”

  He stopped talking for a moment, looking down at the cup resting between his hands as though he was choosing his words carefully.

  “I’m looking for an apprentice of sorts. Someone who can follow after me in what I’m doing.”

  “You have plenty of lab assistants, Professor, I don’t think I have the time…”

  “I don’t mean a lab assistant,” he interrupted. “I mean someone who could start working with me now while they are in school. When school is finished, you could stay on with me on one of my research projects.”

  “Microbiology isn’t really my focus,” Willow said. “Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy your class and I’m learning a lot, but I just don’t think I’m the one you’re looking for.”

  “Do you know what I do outside of teaching?” Professor Adams asked.

  “Research?”

  “Yes,” he said. “Specifically cures for various illnesses. In order to create cures, sometimes you also have to create strains of viruses in order to better understand what you’re dealing with.”

  Willow waited a moment in silence for him to continue. She couldn’t know why he was telling her all this. This whole night had been completely turned around. She had gone from thoughts of romance to questions about devoting her entire professional life to one of his projects.

  “I’ve come across a particularly deadly virus,” he said. “It’s something that I’m not sure would be entirely legal to work with, just to be honest with you.”

  Willow didn’t say anything to this. She could feel her heart beginning to pound harder and faster. Part of her was excited about the mystery presented to her, but another part of her felt a sense of danger in his words. What exactly did Professor Adams want her to do?

  “Most people don’t know that I’m also a big history buff, particularly in the field of archeology,” he continued. “That’s what I studied for a long time. On one of my digs I came across something very intriguing.”

  “I thought you were going to talk about viruses,” Willow said.

  “I know, I’m sorry,” he said with a smile. “What I have to say is all over the place, but I hope you’ll hear me out.”

  “I haven’t left yet,” she said.

  He smiled again, looking into his cup. “Years ago, I came across some writings that spoke of extra terrestrials that visited Earth. Of course, the writings didn’t refer to them as extra terrestrials, but that’s what it came down to. These beings were much like we humans except they possessed extraordinary powers. Each of them could move things with their minds, move at super speeds, had the strength of machines. They could look into the future. They could read people’s minds. They could communicate from great distances with only a thought.”

  “Super humans,” Willow said.

  “Yes. Better than that, they had powers to heal. And better than healing powers, all of them possessed the power of long life.”

  “Are you saying they were immortal?”

  “There was never a record of any dying of natural causes,” he said. “Eventually these people mated with humans. But the offspring didn’t possess the same power as their parents from the stars. At least, not all of them. Most had some powers; others had none at all. And for some reason that I never found, these aliens left Earth, never to return.” He held up a finger, not even looking at Willow now. “But I believe their bloodlines still live on.”

  Willow shook her head at this. “What kind of writings? Where did you find them?"

  “They came up in different forms all over the world,” Professor Adams answered. “Scrolls. Stone paintings. You name it.”

  “So, you believe what was written?” Willow asked.

  Professor Adams looked at her with eyebrows lowered. “Of course. These were not written as fictional texts.”

  “Forgive my skepticism, but why haven’t we ever heard of these people?”

  Professor Adams sat forward. “Because of skeptics like you. In the realm of historians, people know about these texts, but say they point to gods or mythical beings such as Zeus or Hercules. The Greeks and Romans didn’t simply create gods out of thin air. I believe these countless stories of people with god-like powers were based on true events. There are plenty of well-known texts that said gods mated with humans, but they are counted as legend. But these were not gods at all. They were an advanced race from another galaxy.”

  “So what makes you think they’re real? Why do you say the bloodlines still live?”

  “Research.”

  Willow waited for the rest of the answer.

  “For the past ten years, apart from creating viruses for research, I’ve done nothing else but study abnormal physical behaviors in people across the globe. You can always find psychics, people with abnormal strength, weird stuff. Some of these are legitimate. Some of these people live with their powers as if it were normal.”

  “And I repeat, how come we never hear of these people?”

  “They are few and far between. Also, most of them don’t want to be found and many other people don’t want to believe they exist. It’s too crazy for the average person to accept. But the other answer is that you do hear about these people. Often times it’s after some great tragedy. People able to lift heavy objects to save their loved ones. People who were able to hold their breath for a long time because they were trapped under water.”

  “I don’t buy it,” Willow said. Of course everything inside of her was curious about what he said. Part of her wanted all of this to be true, but it couldn’t be. It was nothing but pure fiction. Where was his proof?

  “I didn’t think you would take my word for it,” he said. “I came prepared for the fact that you wouldn’t. That’s why I want to show you something.”

  Willow stared deep into Professor Adams’ eyes, unsure of what he was about to say or do, unsure if she even wanted to know. What he was claiming was bizarre.

  “I’ve got a subject.”

  “You know one?”

  “I’ve got one,” he repeated. “He’s a man, but he is a Starborn.”

  “Starborn?” Willow asked.

  “Oh, sorry. That’s the name that I’ve given them. Starborn. People born of the stars so to speak. Descendants of these otherworldly people.”

  “And what is his magnificent power?” she asked sarcastically.

  “Life,” Professor Adams said softly. “This man looks no older than sixty years, but he is about two hundred years old.”

  “There’s no way that’s true,” Willow said.

  “But it is. When I was told about him, I didn’t believe it either. But science can prove an age, and through tests I found that he is around two hundred years old.”

  The look on Willow’s face made Professor Adams smile. She wasn’t convinced.

  “I could tell by a process
called methylation,” he said. “It’s a chemical alteration in our DNA. All I need is a saliva sample to be able to study a person’s genome and determine an age within five years. The man is about two hundred.”

  Willow sat in silence for a moment, wondering how any of this could be true. What reason would Professor Adams have to tell her a lie? Why would he make all of this up?

  “When you say that you have one, you mean you kidnapped him?” Willow asked.

  Professor Adams’ eyebrows furrowed sharply. “Of course not. He came willingly after I talked to him. He understands that his life can lead to long lives for millions of others.”

  “So, that’s what you’re working on? Immortality?”

  “This Starborn could be the key to long life for all of us, Willow. A person that can resist all diseases. A person that never gets sick. A person that can only be killed by outside physical means.”

  “And you’re going to kill him?”

  “I’m going to test him,” he said. He looked around to see if anyone was listening. “I don’t feel safe here. I mean, I don’t think we should talk of this anymore. Come to my lab with me. I will show you.”

  Willow knew she had to. She knew she couldn’t pass up this opportunity, but she also knew this was the kind of stuff that landed people in prison for a long time. Even if the man that Professor Adams had in his lab wanted to die, that didn’t mean it was right. But if the professor did find the key to long life and made it available to people, would it matter? Wouldn’t people glaze over the details of how they gained immortality and just accept it willingly?

  Willow stood from the table as Professor Adams did the same. “I will go and see what you are talking about. That doesn’t mean I’m willing to work with you on this, but you’ve got me curious.”