The Corded Saga

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  “Break into Central and get a mother and child out.” It was better to just lay it out there with Denver. He didn’t do well when you beat around the bush. I suspected he understood, but he liked to pretend he didn’t.

  “Break a mother and child out of Central?” Denver asked in a monotone voice.

  “Yes. You in?”

  “You are more out of your mind than I am.” Denver shook his head.

  “Maybe I am, but I’ll pay you 50k.”

  “50k?” Denver appeared to mull it over. “You realize this is insanity and nearly impossible?”

  “Nearly, but not completely.”

  He paced barefoot across the wooden floor. “Ok. It’s crazy, but I might have a plan.”

  “A plan?” I raised an eyebrow.

  “Give me a few days. I’ll get in touch with Jarrett.” He nodded in the direction of the door.

  “Good.” I wasn’t asking anymore questions. If he was at least considering the deal, I was luckier than I expected.

  He unlocked the six padlocks and opened the door.

  I took the hint and headed out. Denver was a head case, but he was also my only hope.

  I waited at the station trying to get rid of the gnawing feeling in my gut that something was wrong. It had hit me the moment I left Denver’s, and I couldn’t shake it. Cell service had been down for years, but I’d never longed for it more. I needed to get through to Jarrett. I had to know that Kayla was okay.

  The train finally arrived, and I pushed through the crowd. There was no way I was waiting until the next. The train moved impossibly slow through the stations until the train stopped.

  “All passengers must exit. All passengers must exit.” An announcement blared through a loud speaker. The doors opened and passengers started to spill out. I moved along with the crowd. The train wasn’t going to move, so I’d have to wait for another.

  “No train service west of here,” a man said loudly. “It’s all shut down because Sray’s on fire.”

  Sray. I found the man who was talking. “What did you just say?”

  “No train service going west. Sray Club is on fire, and they can’t put it out.”

  “Where did you hear this?”

  “I just came from the central terminal. They made an announcement looking for anyone with experience putting out fires. The fire department shut its doors two years ago, and now we’re suffering the consequences.”

  I turned away toward the west. It was five miles back at least, but I had no other choice. My club was on fire, and it had my Kayla in it.

  I shed my jacket and started to run. I pushed myself harder than ever in my life. I dodged the traffic of the streets and continued, running through the blockades the closer I got to the club.

  “Sir, stop!” Someone shouted, but I ignored them. I had to get back to Sray, and I refused to let anyone get in my way.

  I kept running. Smoke and flames filled the sky, and I tried not to breath it in as I neared the club. I dodged several men with water hoses attempting to control the blaze and ran into the only ground level entrance to the building.

  “Stop!” Someone grabbed the back of my shirt. I shrugged them off and smashed through the front door into the lobby.

  The smoke was so thick I couldn’t see. I went down to my knees and crawled toward the security office. The door was closed, and I hoped that meant the fire and smoke hadn’t spread that far. It might give me a chance to find a weapon. Whoever started the fire might have been hanging around. I wasn’t taking the chance of anyone keeping Kayla away from me. I tried not to breathe as I searched for my key before standing. I coughed as I found the lock and stepped inside.

  There was less smoke inside, and I hurried over to the desk unlocking the top drawer.

  “You’re too late.” I jumped aside as someone attempted to hit me over the head from behind. The metal pole instead struck loudly against the concrete floor.

  I whirled around, still barely able to see through the smoke, but I was already certain of who was there.

  “Greer, you are a fool.” I could feel the anger rising inside, but I had no time to deal with him.

  He attempted to swing the pole across my side, but I caught it in mid-air and yanked the pole out of his hands. I tossed the pole aside, and it clanked to the ground.

  He coughed as the smoke got thicker. “It’s all gone. It’s over.” He laughed.

  I crashed my fist against his jaw before he could even react. I landed hard against the ground. “You did this?”

  “The fire wasn’t part of the original plan, but I can’t say I mind it,” He choked out. “We got most of the girls out. They’re getting settled into their new home.” My heart just about stopped beating. “The Reine says thank you by the way. I’m looking forward to joining them.”

  I grabbed Greer by his collar. “The Reine?” Greer brought in the Reine? He was even crazier than I thought.

  He laughed. “They’ll find her too.”

  I flung him across the room and against the wall.

  I kicked him repeatedly out of anger until his words finally set in. Find her too. I needed to get the other girls, but right now I had to find Kayla. I kicked Greer one more time to be certain he wouldn’t be getting up anytime soon. I wasn’t worried about killing him because the fire and smoke would do that for me. I opened the drawer, momentarily dejected when I noticed the stash of weapons was gone. I unlocked the safe next and found the cash untouched. I was going to need it once I found Kayla.

  I had no time to worry about the lack of weapons. I stuffed the cash in my pockets and shirt before I crawled back into the lobby and found the entrance to the hidden staircase. I pulled myself up, unlocked the door, and wrenched it open. I locked it behind me before hurrying down the first flight of stairs. There was water everywhere, and I waded through it as I moved deeper and deeper underground. The doors had done their job, keeping out the smoke I was sure had penetrated the rest of the building. I reached the bottom and unlocked another door. I tried not to worry that the door was locked. She might still be there. Jarrett would have brought her here. He would have done anything to get her out.

  The tunnel was silent as I walked along in the darkness. There was no light, and I hoped that Jarrett had brought a light with him.

  My heart nearly beat out of my chest as I continued, hoping that Jarrett had made it this far. I couldn’t lose her. I refused to lose her.

  I continued down the dark tunnel, struggling to stay calm. I refused to give up hope. I heard the sound of heavy breathing and slowed down. “Kayla? Jarrett?” I didn’t want to risk tipping off any Reine who got into the tunnel, but I had to know if she was there.

  “Mason,” Kayla’s soft voice called from nearby. “Mason.”

  I hurried over to the sound of her voice and found her on the ground. “Kayla.” I pulled her into my arms, needing to hold her. To feel that she alive. “Where’s Jarrett?”

  “I made him go back for the girls. Did he get to them in time?” She sounded so young, so innocent. I held her close.

  “Not all of them.” I couldn’t lie to her. I didn’t want to.

  She gasped. “What happened? I don’t understand. One second we were working, and then there were sirens and Jarrett was pulling me to the stairs.”

  “Greer brought in the Reine, and the club is on fire. We have to keep moving farther away. The building is going to collapse.”

  “Addison…” She whispered her friend’s name.

  “Jarrett may have her. We don’t know for sure.”

  “We need to get them all.”

  “We will.” I made another promise I was going to struggle to keep, but it was one I made when I’d Corded each of the girls. I’d promised them protection, and I’d let them all down. But I would keep my word somehow.

  “Quinn? Bailey? Did you find out anything?” She held onto me.

  “It may be possible, but it’s going to take time.” And with the fall of Sray things had gotten even
more complicated.

  She slid her hand into mine. “Let’s get out of here. We won’t be able to get anyone if we’re dead.”

  I pulled her even closer. I soaked up the feel of her in my arms. “We’re going to save your sister and niece, but we’re on our own now.”

  “Your club.” She stilled in my arms. “You must be so angry at me. You know Greer did this because of me.”

  “I don’t care about the club. I care about the people—I hope they made it out, and we will save the girls. But I am not mad. None of this was your fault. You have to stop feeling guilty. Greer didn’t do this because of you. He did it because of me. If he couldn’t run the club himself he didn’t want it to exist.”

  She rested her head on my shoulder. “You think we can do this?”

  “We don’t have a choice.” I stood and helped her to her feet.

  “I love you.” She put her hand over my heart. “Thank you.”

  “What are you thanking me for?”

  “Coming for me here. I’m not sure I’d have ever made my way out.”

  I clasped her hand in mind. “I will always come back for you, Kayla. You have more than my heart. You have all of me. But you could have made it yourself. You are so strong. You’re stronger than I am.”

  “Let’s go.” She turned and tugged on my hand. “We have no time to waste.”

  “I want to make one more promise.”

  “Another?” She kept her hand firmly tucked in mine.

  “That you’ll never be alone. You shouldn’t have been alone today.”

  “Don’t blame Jarrett. He did the right thing.”

  “You made him, didn’t you?” It wasn’t really a question.

  “Yes. Just because our world has gone crazy doesn’t give us an excuse to stop caring about others and doing the right thing.”

  I stopped and pulled her close. I didn’t think, I acted, crushing my lips into hers. I needed to taste her. I needed to remind myself happiness existed. I had Kayla. We would survive, and one day I’d give her everything she deserved. For now all we could do was survive.

  Quinn

  I wasn’t weak. I wasn’t afraid. I wouldn’t give up. I repeated those affirmations over and over until I believed them deep down in my soul. My reason for living was Bailey, and I refused to let her down. She would make it out of Central and have a chance at a real life even if I died ensuring it. Kayla was out there somewhere. I felt it in every grain of my being, and I would get Bailey to her. Both of them would survive.

  Over the weeks I had learned tricks to deal with the pain and the testing. I could close off my mind, separate myself completely from my body. I’d only learned so I could teach Bailey. I had her transport her mind to a field full of butterflies. For myself I focused on darkness. It was the only thing that seemed remotely real anymore.

  I held onto the edges of darkness when I first heard my name.

  “Quinn.”

  It was easy to ignore at first, but eventually my alternative dark world disappeared, and I opened my eyes. “Dr. Morton.”

  “I am sorry I had to hurt you.” His eyes were kind, but I’d stopped caring about that. Kind eyes didn’t mean a kind person. They meant guilt.

  “No you aren’t.” I usually didn’t argue with him. Of all the doctors, he was the one who seemed to enjoy the torture least.

  “I am, Quinn. I wish you would believe me. I am only doing this to help humanity.” He took a step closer to my hospital bed.

  “No you aren’t. We both know that’s a lie.” In the beginning, I’d actually believed it, believed him. I’d taken all their claims seriously, but quickly I learned the truth.

  “Quinn.” Dr. Morton leaned over me. He was wearing a long white lab coat that nearly reached the floor. “Please. This is all for the greater good.”

  “I don’t appreciate lies, Dr. Morton. If you are done torturing me, please leave.” He wasn’t going to help me. People don’t just suddenly change without reason. My reason was Bailey—and I would never forget that.

  He rubbed the stubble on his chin. He had a very young face, but I knew he had to be in his mid-to-late twenties. “This is all about Bailey. I understand. I assure you we are doing everything we can to minimize the pain for her.”

  I grabbed his wrist without thinking. “Minimize the pain? She’s a little girl. Why should she be in any pain?”

  “We are afraid of what anesthetics would do. They might counteract the process, and—”

  I released his wrist. “I’m not talking about drugs, Dr. Morton. I’m talking about leaving her be. She’s a child.”

  “She’s more than just a child. She’s extraordinarily rare.” He glanced down at his wrist as if checking to see if I’d left a mark.

  “And rare means she deserves this life full of torture?”

  “Of course not. But one day she’ll understand.”

  I released his wrist. “No. She will never understand. She will never understand what you are doing to her.”

  “Do you want humans to go extinct?” His eyes held a different expression now. They were cold.

  “No. I want my daughter to live.” I closed my eyes, signaling the end of the conversation.

  “This won’t last forever.”

  “Every day is forever.” I kept my eyes closed. I refused to let another tear fall from my eyes in front of the so-called doctors that ran Central.

  “I’ll bring Bailey in to see you.”

  “Good.”

  “Rest up, Quinn.” He put his hand on my cheek.

  I kept my eyes closed and said nothing.

  I waited until I heard the door close before opening my eyes and allowing myself a few seconds to grieve for another day of childhood my daughter had lost.

  Kayla

  I woke up with a start. The dream had been so vivid, so real, and the moisture from the tears running down my face was still present.

  “What’s wrong?” Mason sat up beside me in our makeshift bed.

  “A bad dream.”

  “The same one again?” He brushed hair away from my face. “The one about your sister?”

  “Yes.” I nodded. “It has to mean something.”

  “You are worried about her—the dreams might just be—”

  “Stop. I don’t want to hear that argument again.” I understood his need to comfort me, but I knew the dream meant something. I could not ignore the message.

  “You didn’t let me finish. I was going to add maybe it is more since you keep having the same one.”

  “Thank you.” It had only been a few weeks since we had left the club, but it might as well have been years. I could barely remember the days we’d spent there together. I was now completely focused on finding a way into Central to rescue Quinn and Bailey. I didn’t want to wait. I had no patience, but Mason insisted, and I knew he was right. After the fire at the club, security was higher than ever. We needed to wait until the panic died down. I’d given in, accepted his words, but my dreams were becoming more and more frequent and waiting more difficult. I still hadn’t told Mason about the new dreams I was having. The ones about a poisonous gas and lots of water. “Have we waited long enough?”

  He gazed at me in the dim moonlight. “I’m not sure any amount of time will be long enough, but the hysteria should have died down.”

  “Then it’s time to go.” Any semblance of sleep disappeared.

  “Soon, but only if you swear to stay hidden. I’m not losing you.”

  “I could go with you. I can wear a disguise.”

  He shook his head. “It’s too risky.”

  “What do I do if you don’t come back?” I didn’t want to say it out loud, but I had to. “How long should I wait?”

  “I will come back.” His expression lacked the confidence of his words.

  “We need a backup plan.” I could pretend all I wanted, but sitting back and waiting on Mason was not a viable option for me.

  He pulled me back into him. I loved the feel
of his strong chest behind me, but I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to get too used to a comfort I might not be able to rely on. I trusted Mason with everything I had, but I didn’t trust the rest of the world. I also didn’t trust myself. I loved him and would do anything for him, but I wouldn’t put my own happiness above Bailey’s. She deserved a future, and I would do everything in my power to ensure it.

  “You are only saying that because you want to come. I understand, but it’s too dangerous.”

  “But it’s also dangerous for you to leave me. What if someone is watching us?” I played on his own fears.

  “You like making this hard on me.”

  “That’s not true, and you know it.”

  “Do I?” He ran a hand down my arm.

  “You don’t want to leave me behind. It would save so much time if I went with you.”

  “And how do you plan to disguise yourself? You’d have to do a far better job than you’ve done in the past. I’m not just letting you walk in with me.”

  “We can talk about this in the morning.” I pulled away.

  He held on to me tighter. “Wait. You are giving in that easily?” Skepticism dripped from his voice.

  “I’m too tired to argue with you.” His hold told me everything I needed to know. He was never going to willingly let go of me, even if it was the right thing to do. He held me because he cared, but doing something for the right reasons didn’t necessarily make it right.

  “You are never too tired to argue.”

  “It’s the dream. It takes every ounce of energy I have.”

  That did the trick. He loosened his hold and helped me lie back down. “We will rescue them. I promise.” He kissed my cheek.

  I said nothing. Instead I snuggled into his chest. I would enjoy a few hours of comfort with him by my side because they would likely be my last.

  Mason would never forgive me, but that didn’t mean I made a mistake.

  Quinn and Bailey needed me, and that fact took precedence over anything else. Mason would never allow me to truly risk myself on their behalf. He would always put my safety first.