by Jill Cooper
The officer scowled and put her wrist to her forehead. “You do feel a little warm. I think we should examine you to make sure you haven’t caught an infection somehow. Come down to the lab and we’ll get you checked out.”
“Oh,” Jenna said with delay. “Well, I don’t think that is really necessary.”
She scowled, but covered it up quickly. “It’s not your place to second guess us, Jenna. It’ll be quick, I promise. I’m sure you’re tired.”
Jenna agreed with wide eyes and followed the officer out into the hall and up a flight of stairs to the laboratories. The room was large and it was divided with a curtain. She was taken over to a bed and instructed to lie down.
Jenna did and kept her head still as they checked the heartbeat of the baby.
“Still strong.” The officer said. “Good thing.” She smiled again and Jenna fantasized about ripping it off her face. “Wait here and I’ll get one of the doctors to do an examination.”
“Thanks.” Jenna said, following her with her eyes before she rolled her eyes and gave a sneer. She closed her eyes and drifted back to sleep when crying woke her up.
Jenna pushed herself up and glanced at the curtain that separated the room. She hadn’t noticed it before, but there was a silhouette curled up on the other side. Could it be?
She gave a quick look around before hopping out of bed and yanking the curtain back. It was her. Wendy was curled up on her side, her body shaking violently as she cried, but that wasn’t all that was wrong with her. Jenna didn’t know what was going on with her, but knew she needed help. Serious medical help.
“Wendy?” Jenna whispered and leaned over, stroking the girl’s hair back. There was globs of snot coming out of her nose and her face was red from the crying. She held her palms against her cheeks in an effort to stabilize her shaking. Crazy as it was, what was happening to Wendy reminded Jenna of the seizures she had as a kid.
She spoke in a firm, but gentle voice. “This is Officer Jenna Morgan. Wendy, I need you to focus.”
Wendy’s eyes suddenly followed hers and when they locked, Jenna watched consciousness awoke in them. Whatever was wrong with the girl, Wendy was with her, but for how long, Jenna didn’t know. There was no time to lose. Jenna didn’t know when the next time would be she could get in the same room with her.
The girl’s hand shook as she lifted it and pushed back Jenna’s hair. Her eyes focused on it. “Red hair.” Wendy smiled. “I knew you’d have red hair.”
“Do you remember meeting me before, Wendy?”
She shook her head no, but then her face scrunched up and she started to cry. She nodded yes. “The night my baby died. I met you then.” She wailed a painful sob.
Jenna didn’t think about keeping her secret. She couldn’t keep a mom in pain, no matter what it would mean for her future. Right then she needed Wendy to focus, to get strength, and the only way to do that was to tell her.
“You’re son isn’t dead. I’ve been hiding him. We named him Travis after your father.”
Wendy’s eyes widened and hope flooded into them. She spoke in a rushed, panicked whisper. “I need to see him. I need to get to him. Please. Please. Where is he?” She hissed, grabbing at Jenna’s shirt.
“First we need to get out of here. I need you to cooperate. Can you do what I ask you?”
Wendy nodded. “I don’t want to stay here any longer. Please. I want my baby.”
Jenna helped her sit up and then removed all the cords and IVs from her arm. Wendy didn’t gasp when the needles were pulled out and Jenna could see the girl’s arms were bruised and badly beat up from the never ending injections. The bastards. Jenna was going to see that they paid, as soon as they were able to get out of there.
Jenna slipped her arm around Wendy’s waist and helped her off the bed. Wendy wobbled, her knees giving out on her. Jenna grunted and hoisted her up, dragging her over to the wall. “Stay here.” Wendy’s back rested against it for support and Jenna could see her eyes beginning to close.
“Hey!” Jenna said sharply and slapped her cheeks. “Stay with me, Wendy. For your baby. You have to focus on me, do you understand?”
Wendy sucked on her bottom lip. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.” Jenna wanted to take her under her wing and protect her forever, but now wasn’t the time to baby her. After they were out, after she found Dirk…
Jenna peered out the window and saw a guard standing watch. She opened the door a crack. “Help, Wendy’s crashing! We’re going to lose her!”
The guard moved fast. Jenna put her back against the wall and when the guard was inside, glancing at the empty beds, Jenna slammed the door shut.
“What the hell?” He asked as he turned around.
Jenna sprang into action, jumping on top of him. Her legs wrapped around his waist and her arm went around his neck. Every muscle in her body contracted, squeezed. His handsHe reached around to grab at her hair, her skin, anything. His voice gurgled and he fell to his knees before falling flat on his chest.
“Sorry, pal, but you had it coming.” Jenna grabbed the gun from his pocket and released the safety. Peering out into the hall, she saw the coast was clear and there was a stairwell going up just at the end of it. If she missed her guess, that would lead to the upper level. If they could get out onto the street, maybe they could find a business. A phone. Get them both some help before anyone realized they were missing.
“Come on, Wendy.” Jenna grabbed her hand and Wendy jolted. She hadn’t been asleep, but hadn’t been awake either. She prayed it was just drugs and not something else. Something worse.
They were going to answer for what they did to her. Whatever it was.
Jenna snuck out into the hall, keeping Wendy close by. She tugged on her hand whenever Wendy needed to move forward and the girl followed her. Jenna threw a glance back and saw no one was coming. They made a run for it into the stairwell.
“We go up.”
Wendy shook her head, her eyes squeezed tight. “I can’t.”
“You can.” Jenna whispered. “Of course you can. You gave birth in a diner, you can do anything you set your mind to, Hon. You gave your baby to my mother so she would get him to safety. You scarified yourself for him. Where is that bravery? That strength now?”
“It just hurts…hurts so bad.” Wendy whimpered.
“It does. Of course it does. That’s how they control you, but we can’t be controlled. I won’t let it happen. We are stronger than them. You hear me?” Jenna’s eyes were alive with passion. The same passion New Haven tried to snuff out.
Wendy groaned and clutched herself. Jenna’s eyes followed and saw the crotch of her pajama bottoms were bright red with blood. “I can’t…” She started to fall forward and Jenna caught her.
She put Wendy’s head on her chest and helped her go up the stairs, one at a time.
“Come on. Just a few more.” Jenna never was much for patience or compassion, but seeing Wendy like that, a new type of love was born into her. She didn’t know if it was because she had just dreamt of her dead daughter, or if it was because Wendy was Travis’ daughter, but all Jenna wanted to do was protect her and see to it she received medical attention for whatever it was that ailed her.
At the top of the stairs, they came to a hatch door.
A hatch door? So they were truly underground.
Jenna set Wendy against the wall, slumped over and then lifted the hatch far enough to glance around. What she saw stilled her heart. They weren’t in a building or even a street.
They were beneath a New Haven. What she saw was a busy downtown street full of glistenings riding bikes and going for long walks.
“Oh, damn it.” Jenna muttered. How the hell was she going to get herself out of this?
Footsteps charged up the steps behind them. Jenna spun on her heel and pulled the revolver from her pants and aimed it.
Wendy moaned, her head leaned back and eyes rolling into the back of her head. “
Jenna…”
She gritted her teeth, not sure what the right thing was to do. “Freeze!” She screamed as several armed officers came into view. They all had their guns drawn.
“You better rethink that, Morgan.” One of the officers said. “She needs serious medical attention, now. Before she losses too much blood.”
Jenna’s eyes shifted back to Wendy as she collapsed to the floor, her straggly brown hair covering her face. There had to be something she could do. The wheels of her mind raced, Jenna searched for a way out, but she couldn’t come up with one.
This was crazy. There was always a way out. Always.
“Drop your weapon or we drop you. Simple math shouldn’t be too big of a problem for a glistening who can fake a reconditioning.”
The voice was none other than Carl Spector, walking past his officers. Jenna’s hand quivered. She tensed her muscles to steady her gun. “Here I thought you were different. Here I thought you weren’t going to make the same mistakes as Alistar.”
Carl lifted his hand and slowly put it on her gun, forcing it down. She could have taken him hostage, shot him and escaped, but Jenna didn’t. Why the hell didn’t she?
Behind Carl a technician rushed to Wendy’s side. “I am different than Alistair. I’m not trying to contain the glistenings, I’m trying to heal them. That’s why you, your baby and Wendy are so important. And why you aren’t leaving here.”
He took the gun from Jenna’s hand and hot tears stung her eyes. She remained still as the officers charged up the steps and twisted her hands behind her back. They kicked her behind her knees and she dropped to a thud to the ground. Handcuffs were used to secure her.
“This isn’t the Jenna Morgan I know.” Carl gave her a twisted smile. “Allowing herself to be captured?”
“I’m not leaving here without Wendy.” Jenna said with defiance.
“Or,” Carl crouched down to make eye contact, “you’re more conditioned than you’ll admit.”
“Impossible.” Jenna gritted her teeth.
“Now we just have to finish the job.” Carl snapped his fingers and they hoisted her up, leading her back down the stairs and Jenna was welcomed back into her prison.
Chapter Thirty Jenna
Jenna was strapped down to a harness chair. Her head forced back thanks to a chin strap into the donut shaped head rest. She tried not to think about what was coming next. What was happening, but it was impossible.
Impossible.
The technicians worked behind her. They gave her pain medicine and numbed the base of her skull. She could feel the grating of the metal against her skull, but it didn’t hurt. It should have hurt, but it didn’t.
But emotionally. Physically. Everything hurt. In her mind, Jenna tried to keep pictures of Dirk and baby Travis in her forefront. Maybe if she did, she wouldn’t forget them. Maybe if she did, she wouldn’t forget who she was. She could keep on fighting and never stop until she managed to escape.
She blinked back tears as Carl entered the room. He took off his jacket and laid it against a cabinet before taking a seat beside her. His hand patted her thigh. “I never believed you were fully reconditioned, but I had to let you think I did. I had to see for myself what you would do. And it was admirable. Admirable.”
“But,” he said slowly, letting the words hang out there, “if you want what is best for this country, which is falling apart out there, then you’ll willingly go along with the experiments. You’ll let me have you, your baby, and Wendy.”
Jenna snorted.
“We’ve made real progress with gene therapy. Replacing glistening genes with humans. But, so far all of the test subjects have died or stopped growing. But you’re a half glistening and your child will be even less. If we can study your structure and his…we’ll know how to fix this. And maybe cure all glistenings. All of them. No more war. No more bubble communities. It’ll be just like another sickness. Just like asking for a baby to be born with blond hair.”
“Sounds great except for the being held against our will. It’s been a year since you’ve been holding Wendy and I have to say she isn’t holding up that well.”
“True.” Carl admitted. “But she was the first.”
“The first?” Jenna asked.
“The first human to receive glistening DNA and not have it rejected. Sure, we have a few side effects…”
Jenna leaned her head back and sighed. “You mother fucking bastard. She’s just a kid. A kid!”
“Now we’re working on eradicating it from her and we have some hang-ups, but with your baby, once we get to study it, we’ll see things we don’t now. We’ll be able to save her.”
“I’ll die first!” Jenna gritted her teeth.
Carl sighed. “I was afraid you’d feel that way. Final offer, Jenna, agree to this or I’ll have no choice. Don’t force my hand.”
Jenna spat in his face. “Go to hell.”
Carl wiped his eyes with a cloth. “You’ve made your decision and I can’t let you go. It was nice knowing you, Officer Morgan. I have nothing but respect for your work, but…not everyone can win all the time.”
He gave a nod to the technicians and left the room, the door slamming behind him. Jenna tried to turn to glance at the door, couldn’t see it as the technicians were all around her.
They began drilling at the back of her head, installing some device while others put a metal tube around her neck. Jenna closed her eyes and refused to look. Refused to acknowledge what was happening.
“Jenna.”
Her eyes flew open at the sound of a familiar voice. She saw Jameson standing over her, blowing her a kiss.
Jenna gripped the handrails as the drill turned back on and she could feel it grating against her flesh and bone. “I will kill you, Jameson.”
He winked. “I’ll like to see you try, Honey.”
Her eyes flew open and her back arched. The plug from the harness was attached to the base of her skull, right into her brain. Jenna’s head reared back, pain surged and the harness glowed green as it activated and her brain was flooded with chemicals unlike anything Jenna had ever experienced before.
A single tear trickled down her cheek. In Jenna’s mind she was kissing Dirk on their wedding day, a happy bundle of baby in her arms.
“Dirk,” Jenna cracked, “please…”
Chapter Thirty-One Washington DC
Washington DC
Radio Control Tower
“We have several planes moving into restricted airspace over the capitol. Move to intercept while I talk them down.”
Harry leaned forward into his microphone. “Unidentified aircraft, alter your course to the coordinates I’m sending to your computer systems. You’re in breach of restricted airspace. Fighter jets are moving to intercept. Alter your course or you will be shot down.”
He sighed, wiped the spit from his face and watched the ticking radar. The planes were continuing on their trajectory right toward the White House. Meanwhile their fighter jets were edging closer to their location. If things didn’t change soon, the president was going to wake up to a lot of debris on his front lawn. Like the capitol didn’t have enough problems on their hands.
Harry signaled them again and spoke the same message verbatim. Carol slapped his shoulder and leaned over to peer at his radar display. “What are those?”
He put his headset down on his console. There were blip like dots traveling with the planes. So many of them they were clustered together and muting the signals from the planes. If the radar was functioning, there were hundreds if not thousands of objects in flight headed toward the White House.
“Must be a glitch in the system…” He muttered and rubbed his sleeve against the screen.
The only thing that changed were the blips separated from the planes as they traveled with precision in an attack formation toward the fighter jets.
Harry lifted the plastic case over the phone that was wired directly to the White House. He lifted it to his ear and before he spoke he w
atched the radar flicker.. When it came back, the fighter jets were nowhere to be seen.
His voice was muted, drawn out. He couldn’t believe the words he spoke. “The White House is under attack. Move the president.”
****
Diane Chow was an ambitious professional at a prestigious law firm in the heart of DC which meant she put in long hours, ate food out of containers, and had little time for relationships. Other than a quick booty call from Bruce Smith at the State House, she had little patience for all the hoopla a relationship brought.
But when he asked to spend the night, since it was late, Diane broke her golden rule. What the hell, it was the weekend after all. And after the bombing outside of Congress, it made her a little clingy. Diane was sure, she could be forgiven for such behavior and in a week, she’d go back to being who she was. For now, she enjoyed having a warm body beside her in bed and everything that went along with it.
In the washroom, Diane adjusted her round bosom in her black lace bra. She splashed cool water on her face, streaking her long black hair back against her back. Dabbing her cleavage with perfume, she sauntered back into the bedroom where Bruce was sleeping.
His hands were tucked behind his head and his mouth was parted in a small snore. The sheet was draped across his lower abs, exposing his defined pecks. They weren’t the best she had ever seen, but definitely weren’t the worst.
Bruce’s chin was dimpled and it was one of his most charming features. Diane bit her lip and climbed up, straddling him between her thighs. She slapped his pecks and leaned in for a kiss. He moaned, already fully awake, Diane could tell from the shifting of his sheet. He grabbed her ass and pushed her up.
Diane laughed, her mouth open, and slipped her tongue inside his hungry mouth. His arms came around her and held her tight.
“It’s still the middle of the night.” Bruce cooed in her ear.
“Maybe I couldn’t wait any longer.” She gripped her fingernails against his pecks. “C’mon, I thought you were always saying you didn’t need coffee to get you going.”
