Page 70 of All Saints Day
That little trinket will have to come out—if I ever get out of here, that is. A problem for another day, another Frank.
“Now what? The higher-ups can't be too pleased. I know that they were already looking to move up the release of the altered Zeitnot virus,” I grunt.
At this, Susan buries her face in her hands.
“We are very nearly out of time. You and I have some time with her this afternoon, but I can tell you they're not going to wait very much longer.”
I shake myself out to make sure that I've heard her properly.
“They want us both in there this afternoon?”
I do my best to keep the anxiety—the incredulity—from my voice. Susan gives a grim nod.
“I tried to put it off, but if you hadn't woken up. It would have been me going in solo. If she doesn't give them what they want—I think there's a very good chance that they'll dose her tonight.”
“Are you serious? But what if she's the cure? If they dose her tonight before they've come up with a cure or a vaccine…” I trail off into nothingness, terror gripping my chest.
“I've tried to explain that all signs point to the likelihood that she is our golden ticket, but after three months of near zero progress on a cure or a vaccine, and no luck with acquiring the results of the Penny's original research—the board members are becoming restless.”
“They'd really turn out the virus into the general population without a safety net?”
Lowry slumps in her chair.
“It certainly seems that way.”
Not long after I'm up, I'm out of bed and preparing myself to face Louise again.
This time there can be no failure—I need to find a way to keep her safe; to leave a pathway open for the cure.
So, I roll my shirt sleeves and fold the small respirator mask into my back pocket alongside a small atomizer of what will appear to Susan as suppressant melters. In actuality, the compound contained in the atomizer is a special blend of Cazzy’s psychotropic theta compounds.
During my time in captivity with the others, I had a few brief windows of time—be it in the back of the van, in the bunker, in those last dire minutes of freedom before my recapture—in which I had been able to spirit away a few vials of the precious secret sauce.
Luckily for me, the Windmill didn't get rid of my shoes when they rescued me from the Saints, and I was able to reclaim the three tiny glass vials from the holding spot in the heel of my boots.
As worried as I was for the safety of the others, I didn't ask Susan any details about the Saints' escape earlier—whether they made it far, if they're being tracked, or if the Windmill even cares now that they've got Louise back.
My only hope is that they've all managed to escape unscathed—that they have been planning from the very moment that they ran from the back door of the cabin how to rescue Louise.
There's a knock on my door, and I know that it's time.
I meet Lowry on the other side of the heavy oaken portal and, without a word, the two of us make our way to my private torture chamber in the east wing, where Louise is already bound to the mahogany St. Andrew’s Cross near the sheet glass windows. The late afternoon sun paints her like the gildedfigurehead of a ship—with her ivory skin, scarlet hair, and her cinnamon eyes searching mine, still alight with defiance.
“I hope you enjoyed your little vacation, Penny,” Susan snips icily, slowly rounding in front of Louise, arms crossed over her narrow chest.
Louise says nothing, just continues to stare at me as if to ask me If we're really going to go back to this after the horrors we all endured together during Quentin and Louise's brutal dual interrogation.
“Lucifer,” I boom, low and rumbling. “You're going to have to answer some questions for us or things are going to get very bad, very quickly.”
She says nothing, just lifts her head high—tears spilling from her eyes.
I can feel Rook pressing to the fore, making a bid to take over, but I refuse him—shoving him down, continuing onward without giving him a chance to make his entrance.
“Well, no point in wasting time, Suz,” I grumble, pulling my mask from my back pocket along with the specialized atomizer of Caz's special sauce.
Susan nods knowingly and pulls her own respirator mask from the pocket of her navy blue blazer.
Frantically, Louise begins to struggle against her bonds, but is still otherwise silent.
