Eden

by C J Singh

  “You know Tate?”

  “Of him.” I coughed. “Eden mentioned him to me before.” His eyes watched me a moment before accepting my answer.

  “Tate was too old, yes too old. Nearly five. He wouldn’t have understood since he couldn’t go home at night. A baby was much easier, yes much easier.”

  I closed my eyes. This information will break her, break Tate as well. I hated having information that I couldn’t let her know. I didn’t want secrets from her, but I didn’t have much of a choice at this point.

  “You never tried to do it again? After Eden?”

  “Oh, I did. Two men.”

  I startled. Hopefully, he didn’t catch my reaction to that news.

  Without looking at me, he continued. “They survived like Eden, but disappeared in the bombing along with Eden’s parents, along with fifty or so citizens. I have tried after that, but none have turned out the same. No, no, never the same. I’m not sure why my new subjects are different. They are alive, but... not like you or Eden. No, no, not like you. They are savages. Very, very, savage.”

  Memories of the feral, grey-skinned scourges made my skin crawl. “What do you mean you still make them?”

  “Look, Jace, you have to understand that everything I have done, I have done since my mistake of creating that wretched virus, is with the human race’s best interest involved. Yes, yes, the best interest.”

  I stood and growled. “Just answer the question, Dr. Hahn!”

  “After Eden... disappeared, Zane was obsessed with replicating her outcome. First, we used the orphans of all the people killed in the bombing, now... he uses delinquents or orphans if there are any, homeless, or people who break the law.”

  Memories of the night I broke into the labs to rescue my friend’s sister hit me. Kids in cages, needles in their arms. I let out a snarl and Dr. Hahn flinched.

  “Where are they now?” My voice echoed against the stone walls. “Are they dead?”

  “No, no, they are... ” He was shaking, from fear or regret I don’t know, but he took a moment to gather himself before continuing. “They are in the woods. In the woods.”

  My stomach almost dropped out of me. “Scourges.”

  “I’m sorry?”

  Limping to the bars, I leaned on them. “Scourges. It’s what we named the creatures. I believe they are the creatures you created. Grey skin, one gold eye, wild, and violent.”

  Blood drained from his cheeks, and he swallowed hard. “You mean they survived?”

  “Of course, they survived! What did you think, they would just lie down and die?”

  He shook his head and stood. “I don’t know... I don’t know...” He pushed both hands through his white hair making it messier than usual. “I guess I didn’t really think about what would happen to them, but I didn’t think they would survive long. No, not survive.”

  I let out a derisive laugh. “Oh, well, they sure did. I’m sure Zane will be happy to know he has a little army of wild scourge children in the woods.”

  He looked at me again, dropping his hands. “Zane doesn’t know.”

  “I’m sorry, what?”

  “When they didn’t turn out like Eden, he told me to... dispose of them, but... but I couldn’t. I couldn’t after everything we’ve done. Not in good conscience. How could I just kill children? No, no, no killing children.” Tears welled in his eyes, and I watched him, wondering if he had children that he lost.

  “Oh, that’s perfect.” I limped back to my chair and sat. “Just perfect.” We sat silent for a moment before I asked him quietly. “Why are you telling me all this?”

  Leaning forward, he rested his elbows on his knees and said, “Because there is so much you don’t know. You think you do, but you don’t, you don’t.’”

  I shook my head. “No, I may not know everything, but I do know that Zane is a psychopath, and I’ll kill him for what he’s done.” I paused, examining him before continuing. “And you? Well, you may think you were doing what you thought was right, but you still made many... sketchy choices that have killed a lot of people, and still do.”

  “I did it for—”

  “I know what you say you did it for, but if you want me to trust you, this probably wasn’t the best story to tell me.” My head spun with all the information he just gave me. He stood to leave, his face dropped and his lips were moving like he was talking to himself, but I heard nothing. He was almost out the door when I called to him. “Just tell me one more thing. Does my father, David, does he know all this?”

  Dr. Hahn didn’t say anything, but the distinct single nod pumped so much blood to my head I felt it may explode.

  “Of course, he does,” I said quietly before letting out a snarl, sending Dr. Hahn scurrying away.

  Chapter 58

  Tristan

  I don’t know what’s worse, not being able to go talk to Eden or not being able to hear all the conversations that involved her. All I heard in my small room was the hum of the lights above. Eden was different, very different. She spent most of her days in her makeshift den but came out a few times to stretch and eat. Every now and then, I got her to look over at me, but it wasn’t the same. She didn’t have that sweet, fun sparkle she had growing up. The hole in my heart from Ellie’s death was starting to rip larger at the thought that I would never be able to spend time with the Eden I knew and loved.

  Eden hadn’t left her den yet today, and I ached to see her. After my morning workout, LaRae arrived with Eden’s plate of food. Before she passed my room, I knocked on the window and motioned for her to come to me. She looked over at Eden’s cage where Eden’s head poked out from her den watching her plate of food, before quickly coming to my door.

  She typed in the code and unlocked the door. “What?”

  “Let me bring it to her.”

  “What? That’s not a good idea.”

  “No. It will be fine. She won’t hurt me.” I shrugged off her concern.

  We both turned at the knocking from Eden’s window. She was crouched as she watched us. Looking at LaRae, she gave her a small nod. Could she hear us?

  “All right then. Come on. But no talk of this to anyone.”

  I nodded and followed her to Eden’s door. She handed me the plate of sausage and maple syrup; the smell filled my nose and my stomach growled. Scott was in charge of my meals, but he was always conveniently late.

  “There you go.” She opened the door, moving to the side to let me in. “Just know, I won’t shoot her if you piss her off. You’re on her turf now. Understand?”

  “Understood.” I passed her, stepping into Eden’s room, facing her. She stood only feet from me as the door clicked behind me.

  She grabbed the plate of food and started shoving sausages into her mouth. My stomach growled again, and she paused, giving me a quick side glance, but instead of offering me one, she crouched and curled over her plate, finishing it all off. That’s not Eden; Ellie always taught us to be generous.

  When all the sausage was gone, she slid her fingers through the remaining syrup and licked them. She didn’t look up at me until her plate looked as if there was no food on it, and she slid it across the floor toward the door. It just missed the side of my foot where I stood and waited. Our eyes met, and she didn’t smile the way she used to when she saw me. She just turned and retreated to her den. I hesitated until she poked her head out and looked at me. “Well, come on then.”

  Shaking my head, I pulled in a deep breath, dropped to my knees, and entered her den. I blinked quickly until my eyes adjusted to the darkness. She was scooted all the way back to the far corner, a pillow at her back and a blanket crumpled around her. I moved to sit next to her with my back against the metal wall. No one spoke as she ran her eyes over my face, up into my hair, then down over my body. My throat restricted at the undivided attention, unsure of what she wanted. />
  “How are you?” she finally asked.

  “Good.” I cleared my throat. “Good.”

  She smiled and reached one of her claws out, gently trailing it along my arm. I shivered and pulled it from her reach, and she giggled.

  “Scared?”

  “No.” It was the truth. I wasn’t scared of her, but a little... unnerved maybe. I had seen her claws from a distance, but to see them up close was hard. Her hands once delicate were now... well, I don’t know how to describe them, but they definitely weren’t delicate anymore.

  “Do you remember the last night we had at the cabin before... all this happened?” she asked.

  I nodded, smiling at the card game Tate and I played, betting blueberries, then fighting with them. Eden and Ellie in their usual position on the couch, chatting quietly as Ellie brushed Eden’s thick, long hair, the apricot gold shining in the firelight.

  “I miss her.”

  I looked over at her at the sadness in her voice to see her holding the small silver butterfly necklace Ellie had given her. She had never taken it off. Maybe there was some of the old Eden in there still. “Me too.” My throat was full and I swallowed down the lump.

  “Do you think they will come for us?”

  “No.” She didn’t seem surprised by my words. “I think they know it’s too risky. If we are going to get out, we have to do it from in here.”

  She moved her hand and rested it on my shoulder, taking one of my blond curls on her finger and twirled it. “I miss him.”

  Any other person would think she was talking about Tate or maybe even Old Bob, but I knew she was thinking of Ash. “I’m sure he misses you too.”

  She smiled, lost in the memory of her and her furry friend as she moved her claws through my curls. A tingle moved throughout my body, and I rubbed my head along my shoulders. She gave me a knowing smile.

  “I miss Jace.” My stomach dropped at the name, and I ground my teeth. “I know you don’t like him, but he’s not a bad guy. He cares for me and has taken care of me.”

  “I should have been the one to do that.”

  Dropping her hand, she tilted her head, leaning forward. “You had your time, Tristan. Growing up you were always there. More than Tate even. If I got hurt, you came running. When I was mad, you were the one to talk reason into me. I love you for that, but... it’s Jace’s time now.”

  “What happened to him?”

  She sat back. “He became too much for them to handle, so they moved him.”

  “Too much to handle? What did he do?”

  “Broke through the glass to get to me.”

  I blinked at her passive face. “He broke through the glass.” She nodded. “Can you... break through the glass?” She nodded again and I leaned forward. “Then why haven’t you? We can get out of here!”

  She smiled. “It’s not that easy.”

  “What?”

  “I can’t just leave all these humans. They are weak. They need me.”

  Staring at her, I laughed. “You can’t be serious.” She just smiled back at me, never leaving my eyes. “Eden. Look what they did to you! They do this to innocent people, but those people aren’t as lucky as you; they don’t survive. None of them do.”

  “And that is why I can’t leave. They need me to help them. Plus, I won’t leave without Jace.”

  “Jace.” I hissed out his name and set my head against the wall.

  I felt her eyes roaming my face. “It almost broke me when I thought you were dead, but he kept me here. He always brought me back from my grief. And whatever they did to me... whatever this is. It’s saved me. I’m better than I was before. Surer of myself.”

  “You would have become this way with age, Eden.”

  “Maybe. But that’s not an option now, so we’ll just have to deal with this.” She reached her finger out and started playing with my curls again. “I love you, Tristan. I always have and always will, but as a... brother.”

  When she used that word, the pain wasn’t there like it had been the first time. I don’t know if it was the changes with her or maybe I have just come to terms with the idea. “I will always love you too. I will always try and protect you.”

  Her laugh reminded me of a cat we found as kids. We called him Mr. Tickler because his whiskers would tickle us when he rubbed on our legs. “I have a feeling I will be the one to protect you from now on.”

  I smiled. “Maybe.” We sat in silence and I remembered Dr. Hahn’s request. “Eden, what did you do to Jace?”

  Her hand pulled away so fast I felt some strands of hair pluck from my scalp. “So that’s why you’re here.”

  “No, but they just thought maybe you would tell me. It’s important.”

  She moved her face closer to mine. All the playfulness and peace gone. “I have already told them what I did, but their human brains are keeping them from seeing logic.”

  “What? What did you tell them?”

  “It doesn’t matter. They aren’t listening, so I’ll just... wait until they do.”

  “Eden.”

  She stretched. “I’m very tired, Tristan. Maybe we can have this conversation another time?”

  I watched her curl up in the rumpled blanket with her back to me. She was done and no matter how much I pushed she wouldn’t talk. “Yeah. Sure.” I crawled out of her den and to the door where LaRae waited nervously.

  “I was getting nervous. You probably shouldn’t have gone in there.”

  Ignoring her, I dragged my feet back to my room. The hole in my heart was officially larger, and I have never wished so hard in my life to be able to go back to a time where it was whole.

  Chapter 59

  Eden

  I was just finishing my morning stretches when Scott barged through the door of the lab bringing the smell of bacon and coffee with him. LaRae hadn’t been in to give me breakfast yet, so my belly growled, and I licked my lips in anticipation of what it may be. I told her no more oatmeal, that I needed meat. Beef or pork, I didn’t care, but no more of the bland grains. She had been bringing me sausages with maple syrup lately, and it was divine.

  “Let’s go, Eden!” Scott rapped on the glass door. “Zane wants you in the gym pronto.”

  Defiantly, I sat and slowly turned my gaze to him. “I haven’t eaten yet.”

  “You can eat after. Come on, walk to the door.” He held up a pair of metal cuffs, and I cocked my head.

  “What do you expect to do with those?”

  “Put them on you. What else?” He smirked.

  Blinking at him, I rose fluidly. “Not a chance. I think I’ll go back to bed. Let me know when LaRae shows up with my food.” I walked to the entrance of my den when Scott rapped on the door again.

  “If you go in there, I’ll shoot you.” He dangled the tranquilizer gun in front of the door.

  I groaned inwardly at the familiar sight. After Jace’s show and my previous outbursts, everyone that’s near me carried one. Just in case I got “out of hand.” What they don’t know is, I’m much faster and could take it from their hands before they could pull the trigger. I held my head high knowing I could leave whenever I pleased, but right now, I wanted to be here.

  “Sure. Try it.” I entered my den.

  I heard him scoff, but the smell of maple and sausage pulled me back out of my den. LaRae had arrived with my breakfast.

  Moving faster than I usually did, I met her at the door with a large grin. “Sausage?”

  She chuckled. “And maple syrup. I remembered your request from before.”

  Keeping my eyes on the plate, I quickly took it from her the second she poked it through the cracked door. I had one whole sausage chewed and swallowed before I made it to my corner and crouched.

  “Ugh, she eats like an animal,” Scott said.

  Looking up at him, I snarled
; a small piece of meat flew from my mouth almost making it to the glass, but it landed on the tiled floor. I made a reminder to lap that up later before turning back to my plate.

  “Leave her be,” LaRae said to him.

  “She’s supposed to be in the gym now.”

  Halfway through the plate, I looked up at him. “I said I would go after I had my breakfast! Stop your crying and grow some pants!”

  He shot me an angry look, but I ignored him, going back to my food. I slathered a spicy sausage in the sticky sweet maple syrup and popped it in my mouth. My eyes closed at the beautiful pleasures dancing on my tongue.

  Scott and LaRae waited patiently for me to finish my food and drink a whole lot of water. When I was ready, I stood by the door and knocked. Scott turned to me, and I held out my hands for the cuffs and winked. “Just because you were so patient.”

  He took a nervous step toward the door, then hesitated. “If you try anything I—”

  “Will shoot you with the tranquilizer. Yes, yes I know.”

  He unlocked the door and put on the cuffs with no argument from me. As he checked to make sure they were locked tight, he hesitated at the sight of my claws, so I wiggled my fingers to give him a better look. “Nice, right? They are getting a little long, though. I may need to file them down some. What do you think?” I slid one along his forearm. “Yeah, I probably could cut skin pretty easily.”

  His face went white, and he swallowed hard. “Let’s go.” He pulled me toward the hall.

  “Touchy, touchy.”

  Scott led me down the hallway. LaRae trailed behind. As we passed other labs, all eyes stopped to watch me. I gave as many people as I could a toothy grin, relishing the looks of horror that appeared on some of their faces. Some, surprisingly, showed curiosity and some... pity. I rumbled at being pitied. It’s me who pities all of them when I decide to let loose.

  We made it to the end of the long hallway, and Scott opened two glass doors that lead to a large open room. There was a black concrete track that curled the perimeter and blue mats in the middle. Zane waited for me on the mats with a large group of guards.