Evie raised her hands in surrender, as Max and Connor aimed their guns at her and Cara. 'Did you think we really came out here for a walk down memory lane?' Hawk asked. 'That we'd find Private Fox and just jolly back to Volt like nothing had happened?' She asked. 'I know what happened at the Institute, I know what you really are,' she said.
'You're wrong,' Cara said.
Hawk looked surprised. 'You know?' She asked Evie. 'You've known that we've been living with mutants, and you did nothing about it?' She asked.
Cara looked at Evie. 'I was protecting my friend,' she said. 'She's not the enemy, you and Galen are and they're more human than you'll ever be.'
Evie didn't know what she should do. Her first instinct had always been to lie as she always had about her powers but there was something about seeing the two women in front of her that made her finally resist the truth about her she had always hidden.
'It's true,' Evie said. 'I've known for years, Jack and Evie have only been protecting me.'
'Traitor,' Hawk spat. 'You've served in my guard for all these years and you've been lying to everyone.'
'I haven't,' Evie protested. 'You know I was part of the advanced genetics program when I was in training, and that it's the reason why I was able to score so highly on the testing.'
'But you hid your true abilities from us,' Hawk said. 'You showed a glimpse of what you could do, rather than the full range of your abilities. Had you have done, we could have ended the war with the rebels years ago.'
'You don't want to end the war,' Evie said. 'The work we've been doing on finding a cure for the virus has failed because your government is the one who is engineering it.'
Evie could hear a jet flying in the distance, it couldn't be from headquarters and Evie knew they wouldn't be there to help them.
'Is that true?' Max asked.
'Soldier, you're commanded to maintain aim,' Hawk ordered.
'It's true,' Evie told him. 'The cure to the virus can't be found in a closed state that keeps out anything that threatens to attack them, it can only be found here, out in the places that you think aren’t worth inhabiting,' she said. Then a thought occurred to her and she looked back at Hawk. 'Which is why you came out here,' she said. 'You've not left the compound in decades until now. You came here to search for a cure for the mutation.'
Hawk aimed her gun higher and fired, a single bullet flew through the air towards Evie's forehead. Evie felt something take over her and felt the world around them slow. She waved her hand and the bullet shot away from her. She felt waves pulsate through her mind and pulled the gun away from Hawk's hands and into her own. Max and Connor maintained their aim and Evie sensed them about to fire, she flung their guns out of their hands and Cara grabbed the one that had been held by Max.
'Not so strong now without your weapons are you?' Evie asked.
'Evie?' Cara asked. 'You're not going to kill her are you?'
'She's killed people,' Evie said. 'Why shouldn't she suffer the same way they did?' Evie asked.
'Because she's dying,' Cara said and looked at Hawk. ‘You’ve contracted the virus, you're here to try and find a cure, or have someone close to you who you’re trying to find a cure for. It’s the only explanation.' Evie lowered the gun momentarily and Hawk took her moment to disarm it from her and in speed that could only be explained through advance genetic mutation.
Hawk fired and bullets tore through Cara.
As Evie turned in shock to her friend she heard a jet fly overhead.
As the bombs fell, the world went dark.
The room was quiet as Jack and Kit looked at the Dias that was now inactive. Kit looked over to Jack and the stunned expression told her everything she needed to know. 'You weren't expecting to hear that were you?' She asked.
'I had always known that Evie was different to the others,' he told her. 'But I could only guess as to why.'
'She's the key,' Kit repeated quietly. 'Is it even possible for one person to have the ability to stop the virus from spreading?'
'I don't know,' Jack admitted and put his head in his hands.
'When the virus first spread across the old world, it created abnormalities in people, disfigured them, harmed expectant mothers, people said any pregnant woman would give birth to a monster,' Kit told him.
Jack looked back up at her. 'The virus came from the Others,' he told her. 'They had invaded us twice before but it was the virus that hit us hardest.'
'And it didn't come to the country through the ships,' Kit said.
Jack looked at her surprised. 'They did,' he said. 'The news reported the attacks, they showed footage of the ships.'
Kit tried not to look at him with pity. 'It was staged,' she told him. 'As were the other invasions. We weren't invaded by the 'Others', by aliens, we were attacked by our own government who used aliens as a way to cover up their crime.'
'So how do you explain the powers you have?' Jack asked her. 'How do you explain mutants if it's not alien in origin?'
'Human experimentation with ancient DNA,' Kit said. Jack looked at her, half thinking she was trying to fool him, but her expression didn't change. 'Come with me,' she said.
Jack followed her out of the infirmary to the training arena. He looked round the room and saw training apparatus on the walls, guns swords and even a bow and arrow. 'Why do you need this?' He asked her as she led them over to the stairs.
'We might have powers but it doesn't hurt to know more than one way to defend ourselves,' Kit said.
They walked up the stairs and Jack followed her into her office. 'Cozy,' he said flatly when he saw the small room, the shelves of books and posters on the wall.
'Volt's history is different depending on who you talk to,' Kit told him. 'I grew up as a genetically enhanced human created from the labs, we were told that we were being bred to form part of an elite army, it was drilled into us how the Empire was the best nation on earth and anyone outside of our borders were our enemies. President Galen was our supreme leader and we were created to serve her and her government.'
Kit pulled open a drawer and Jack saw a variety of what looked like laser pointers. Kit took out one and aimed the light at the wall where a screen projected onto the wall. Jack saw child soldiers walking in formation around the Shard. They looked identical, short-cut hair, black fatigues and a motionless expression that was mirrored on each of them. Jack couldn't tell whether they were a girl or boy but knew that the Empire didn't care about gender. If you were able, you could fight for Galen. 'This is what they were showing people who they needed sponsors from to keep the facility funded. Galen made thousands believe that we were children who had been sacrificed by our parents to serve the new army.'
'I remember people wanting to provide support in droves,' Jack said. 'Guards came to our house to try and recruit Evie and me but my father was able to hold them off.'
'Not everyone was so lucky,' Kit said. 'For those of us who weren't natural born, the camps were home and we soon found places that Galen would rather no one knew about,' she said and the image on the wall changed. A dark tunnel appeared and Jack saw cell doors line the corridor, the dash am footage moved forward and stopped by one of the doors. There was growling from inside that grew louder. The window was lowered and a figure rushed at the opening. Jack saw red eyes looking back at them which staggered backwards and revealed a disfigured face. 'There are thousands of people like this in the depths of Volt,' Kit told him. 'These are the real mutants, people who were disfigured so badly by a virus that to believe it could be extra-terrestrial is foolish. Only human experimentation could cause something like this. Galen’s more than happy to let us believe that the Others are alien, it takes the focus away from what she’s actually doing.'
'What experimentation?' Jack asked.
'There are some horrors that thankfully even I don't know about,' Kit said. 'But I do know that it started with Galen's great-grandfather and she's not going to be the president who stops it.'
Jack was quiet
for a moment and Kit could see how everything he had believed was now being challenged. 'If Evie's blood is somehow the cure to all of this you can't tell her,' he said finally.
'Why not?' Kit asked, a mixture of surprise and anger in her voice.
'Because she'll want to sacrifice herself,' Jack said. 'She'll give up her own life if she thinks that she can save others but if there's no proof, I don't want her to know and risk herself unnecessarily.'
'And if we find proof?' Kit asked.
'Then I hope to God there's another answer,' Jack said. 'Because my sister can't die at the end of all this, she has to be the one who goes on.'
Kit felt humbled by Jack's devotion to his sister, the determination he had that no matter how many lies he had been fed, his care for Evie was the one thing that remained genuine. Kit felt something shift inside her at the thought and she turned off the laser pointer.
They heard footsteps racing up the stairs and a hurried knock on the door. Rook was on the other side looking out of breath.
'We have to go,' she said. 'There's been a strike in the City, Hawk was out there,' she said. 'And your sister was with her.'
***
When he saw her Jack almost fell. Evie's body lay in rubble and ash, as he surveyed the scene he saw Cara. He saw the blood and his heart sank. She was gone. He couldn't help her. He hurried to her and began to clear away the debris as Kit came over to help him.
She got to her first. She gently brushed away remnants of the building that had been blown up next to them and placed her fingers on her neck and waited. There was nothing. Kit closed her eyes, praying for something. Evie was still. Kit looked up at Jack and saw the fear in his eyes. 'I'm-' she started and Evie started coughing. Jack's fear turned to elation and Kit sat back amazed.
She was dead. She thought.
'Evie?' Jack asked looking down at her, placing his hands on her cheeks.
'Jack?' She asked weakly. 'Hawk, she's still here.'
'I'll secure the area,' Kit said and left them alone. Emotional reunions weren't her strong suit and she was glad for an excuse to leave.
'Let me help you get this off her,' Lil said and Jack saw the slab of concrete that was over Evie's legs. Canaan came over to help and after a strained attempt they finally managed to move it and free Evie.
'Can you walk?' Jack asked her.
Evie tried to move but her body was working against her. 'No,' she said, trying not to panic.
Jack scooped her up in her arms, surprised by how light she felt. 'I've got you,' he said. 'You're safe now.'
'Cara?' Evie asked.
She looked so small, like she was a little girl again. Jack couldn't think about what had happened moments before the rebels had attacked and what she had seen and he didn't know how to break the news to her that her best friend had been killed.
'Hawk shot her,' she said finally.
Jack's eyes darkened. 'We'll get justice for her,' he said. 'One way or another.'
Kit came back over to them. 'Hawk's not here,' she said.
'She must be,' Jack said.
Kit shook her head. 'There's no body, one of her guards is dead but she's gone.'
'How could she survive the rebel attack?' Lil asked.
Evie began to cough again and Kit went over to her. 'We need to get her to the medic ward,' she said. 'We'll worry about Hawk later.'
Jack carried Evie over to the truck, she was holding onto him tightly, not wanting to let go of the last person she had in the world.
Evie slept in the days that passed. She only woke when her bandages needed changing and when she needed to eat something but they allowed her to sleep through the pain, knowing that when she woke it would be too challenging to bare.
Kit was standing by her door when she came round. 'Who are you?' Evie asked her quietly, seeing her for the first time.
Kit walked into the room and sat next to her. 'I think you know,' she said.
Evie took a moment to look at her, the woman in front of her was un-mistakenly beautiful, and her long brown hair fell in loose curls down her back that shimmered against the deep wells of her eyes. She had a presence about her that was soft and welcoming. 'Katarina Valletta,' Evie said. 'I never thought I would ever get to meet you in person.'
'I didn't realize I was so popular,' Kit said, trying to be dismissive.
'Are you kidding?' Evie asked as she tried to sit up and Kit handed her a glass of water. 'You're a legend, the government have you as one of our most wanted criminals,’ she said and saw Kit avoid her gaze. ‘But to a select few you're highly thought of,' Evie added quickly.
Kit thought it strange to think of how others saw her. She had tried to keep herself hidden for most of her time away from Shard, until the army had started. She looked at Evie, she thought of what she and Jack had learnt about her and she wondered how she could be a cure for everything that Galen's presidency had created. But when she saw how small she looked in the bed, how weakened she had been made by grief and trauma, Kit knew that she could never share what she knew but she couldn't explain why. 'Then I have to ask you, do you work for Hawk and Galen, or are you like your brother?' Kit asked, trying to remain composed.
'Like Jack?' Evie asked.
'He told me who he really is,' Kit told her. 'And who you are.'
She saw the look of notable surprise on Evie's face. 'He's always kept it so secret from everyone,' Evie said. 'We've had to live in hiding for so long.' Evie was surprised by the change in her brother, the once strict soldier was changing. Was he becoming a rebel soldier, she wondered. ‘But I can’t keep lying, I don’t want my life to be so controlled all the time, I want to be free from Galen,' she told Kit in a whisper. ‘We were coming to find you, in the hope that you could help us.’
'You know the penalties for defecting from Galen's government?' Kit asked her.
Evie's mind flashed back to the moment Cara was shot. 'Yes,' she said quietly. 'That's why Hawk attacked us, because she knew that we were no longer loyal.'
Kit was quiet for a moment. 'I'm sorry about your friend,' she said. Evie nodded but was quiet, clearly upset. Kit went to her and knelt by the bed putting a hand over Evie's, the need to comfort her was strange, but one she found herself not wanting to fight it. It had been so long since she had allowed herself to indulge in human compassion it was almost like something was willing it out of her.
'We'll have our justice,' she said. 'When the time is right we'll track down Hawk and do what we can to change things. For now, you need to get better and grieve for your friend.'
Evie was surprised by Kit. After all of the things she had heard about the infamous Katarina Valletta, she had never expected kindness. She felt something shift inside her that she couldn't quite explain but her intuition was telling her she could trust the woman in front of her.
'Is Jack here?' Evie asked her.
'I'll go get him,' Kit said and went to leave the room, Evie suddenly surprised that she didn't want her to go. Jack came in moments later and went to hug her and as he did, her walls broke and she allowed herself to cry. For Cara, for the world they were now living in and because she didn't know what else to do.
Kit watched them for a moment, almost jealous of the relationship they had and mournful for the family bond she would never know. She shook the feeling away, and tried to ignore the emotion she had felt when comforting Evie. There was a job to be done, and she couldn't let feelings distract her.
That night Kit worked late at the bunker, she was looking through the drone footage trying to see how Hawk may have escaped. Rook had tracked Evie down quick enough so they could assemble their rescue crew but still hadn't gotten there ahead of the rebels. There was hours of footage to trawl through and while she tried to keep herself engaged she was bored. She went to check on Evie and Shep, Evie was sleeping and Kit allowed herself a moment to watch her. She couldn't deny the woman was attractive and that she had felt something when they spoke, but she found herself struggling.
S
he realized Shep was awake and watching her. 'How are you?' She asked him quietly.
'You don't have to hide it you know?' Shep told her.
'Hide what?' She asked, with a sinking feeling that she already knew what he was referring to.
'It's okay to feel,' he told her. 'It's okay to want something more than just a life of solitude.'
'I don't know what you're talking about,' Kit said defiantly. 'Do you need your bandages changing? More water?' She asked, desperate to change the subject.
Shep wasn't having any of it. 'You don't have to be alone in this world,' he told her. 'You can allow yourself to share it with someone.'
Kit lowered her eyes from him, memories of the day she was taken began to slip back into her conscious. 'I do have to be alone,' she said. 'I'm dangerous and can't risk losing someone else.'
Shep took her hand. 'You're not responsible for abandoning your father, you had no choice when you escaped,'
'But I could have gone back for him,' Kit said and avoided Shep's gaze as she remembered the night she escaped. She quickly shot away. 'The world that's been created since the invasion has been about protecting humans from people like me. How can I risk being with someone when they might get hurt?' She asked.
'Are you worried that you'll hurt someone else, or that you'll be hurt?' Shep asked her.
She didn't answer him, the man was annoyingly good at knowing her too well and she didn't want to admit even to him the truth about what kept her awake at night. 'I live alone,' she told him eventually. 'That's how it's always been and how I like it.'
Shep gave her a warm look. 'You're one of the most fearless people I know,' he told her. 'You've helped fight off the rebel soldiers, you've gone up against the Empire and escaped from Volt, but what's it all worth if you're not going to give yourself a chance at life?' He asked.
Kit was beginning to grow frustrated, she hated people telling her how she should live her life, more so, she hated it when they really did know best. 'So what are you saying?' She asked. 'That because I've met another woman who happens to be a mutant that we're automatically made for each other?' She asked.
Rogue (Convergence Series Book 1) Page 12
