Page 75 of Heart’s Prisoner

There was silence on the other end.

"Jacob? Do you understand? There is a–"

"I know, Lana. I know about the parasite. And as of right now orders are to stand by."

Lana froze, her hand tightening around the phone. "What do you mean?"

"We can't move in on the base. Just...stay hidden for now," he said.

Lana's hand shook. "You're not coming?"

There was a shifting sound and a cough. "Our orders are to wait. For security and safety purposes."

"If you don't come then we are just sitting here waiting to die!" Lana snapped.

"As I said, Galger and his team are on the job..."

"They care only about taking out the assets. By the time they get through to them everyone could be infected," Lana stated. "Listen, Jacob, I have seen the parasite at work, I know the signs. Just now they let an infected into the city sector with a few hundred people. If you don't warn them he will spread it to the others."

Jacob didn't speak for a long moment until he said, "Galger and his men will be taking care of that too. He called me and told me about the situation. I'm afraid we can't take any risks with regards to this parasite."

Lana felt her heart drop. "What are you saying?" she breathed.

"They have orders to take out any who...pose a threat."

"But they don't know who has it and who doesn't! How can they know which..." Lana paused. "They aren't going to check. They are just going to take out any they come across."

"I'm sorry, Lana."

Lana wished she could jump through the phone and throttle him. "There is a way to know! People can be spared!"

"If they deem someone isn't...sick. Then they will take the necessary measures. Otherwise, the parasite must be stopped. At all costs."

She knew that Spectre had to be stopped but not like this. Just when she thought Xerus' way was hard to swallow now she saw it was a hundred times better than what Jacob and the other generals were proposing. Jacob didn't know Galger and his team. They wouldn't spare anyone if they had to. And who would stop them? To them, the mission was the top priority. Take out all known and possible threats. And wipe out any information that the generals didn't want getting back to the rest of the population.

"You should have left," Jacob said. "I'm sorry, Lana, I really am. I have to go now." The line went dead before she could get in another word.

***

Lana sat there for a long time, too shocked to move.

A bad feeling finally forced her from the office. She limped back over to the Scibot at the bar and flipped through the feeds until she found Galger and his team. They were still on level two, taking produce and other food necessities for themselves from the food banks. A few raptor bodies were littering the floor. One soldier was ripping a few teeth out from a raptor's mouth as a souvenir. Lana's mouth went dry. She wanted to warn others but she wasn't sure how. All she could do was watch helplessly as the team moved on.

Frustrated, she went away from the bot for the time being and occupied herself instead with finding food. She had only water in the last few hours or so and, though her stomach turned and twisted from fear and anxiety and pain, she also felt empty and weak. She scoured the kitchen beside the bar not expecting to find much of anything. The commander probably only came to the base once a year, if even that, so they had no reason to stock up on any goods until he arrived. Thankfully, she did find a few cans of pears in the back of one cabinet. They were a little dated but they would have to do. She had no idea how Xerus was feeding himself but she would have to ask him to find food.

As she found a can opener in one of the drawers and was cutting the can open, a dark, but not entirely illogical, thought popped into her head.

Xerus could stop them. He could take out Galger and his team. The only issue waswouldhe if she asked him. And was it right? After all, she knew full well if he were to stop them it would mean their deaths. And as deadly as he was he still could end up severely wounded in the fight. The team had a plethora of weapons at their disposal and were merciless and violent. Could she ask him to take such a risk?

Her feelings were a mixed bag of vague, murky indecisions and uncertainties. As she took out a fork and sat down on the couch to pick at the fruit she tried to keep her nerves level. But she knew she was running out of time and needed to decide soon. Once Galger's team was finished hunting specimens, they would move onto people if they weren't taking out those they came across already.

As she finished up the pears and threw the can away, she heard the front door opening. Tensing, she wrapped the robe tightly about her and stood motionless as Xerus came through the second door.

He paused as he saw her and they each stared at the other without saying a word. Xerus was covered with blood and what looked to be oil, likely from one of the bots he had been tinkering with. In one hand he carried a large bag. When he saw her eyeing it he dropped it before her.

"For you," he said.

Lana gave him a nervous glance then cautiously opened and peered into the bag. There she found a few pieces of clothing–uniform pants, a couple of simple t-shirts, and a pair of red coveralls–and some cans of food that he must have scavenged from somewhere.

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