Page 41 of Echos and Empires
“Move out. We can’t afford to find William. He’ll be pissed, but he’s not here and I’m not waiting.”
He left, the rest of the unit’s heavy steps behind his, the momentum of their fury propelling them forward. They were shadows and steel against the ash-gray world, silent and purposeful. Every step beat out a war drum cadence, closing the distance with measured intent.
“We stay tight,” Chris ordered, the weight of leadership grounding them. “Get eyes on her, then move.”
Each nod was a promise, a vow sworn in silence and sealed in blood. They moved with the precision of a unit that had fought and bled together. Unspoken signals passed between them, a language of instinct and urgency.
The make-shift streets blurred under the pounding rhythm of their strides. Buildings loomed and vanished like ghosts in the poisoned fog. There was no stopping, no slowing. Nothing mattered but the goal that pulled them ever closer, a magnet of raw need. Chris cut the distance to the medical center with surgical precision.
The medical center loomed ahead, a monolith of sterile white and gleaming glass. Its pristine facade mocked the chaos churning within, the secrets festering behind closed doors.
A blur of motion exploded from the entrance. Chris tensed, his rifle snapping up in a heartbeat, ready to neutralize any threat.
But then he saw her—Emma, his Emma, rushing towards them like a force of nature unleashed.
Relief crashed over him like a tidal wave, threatening to buckle his knees. But he stood firm, catching her as she collided with him, her small frame slamming into his chest with the force of a freight train. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close, breathing her in like oxygen to a drowning man.
“Emma,” he rasped, her name a prayer and a plea. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” His eyes roamed over every inch of her body, checking for any sign they’d dared to harm her while acknowledging they didn’t have long to stand out front before someone would likely be coming. She was running. She’d escaped.
She pulled back, her hazel eyes wide and wild, her curly brown hair a tangled halo around her face. Panic and relief warred in her expression, a battle played out in the trembling of her hands.
“I’m fine,” she gasped, her voice shaky but determined.
“What happened?” Liam asked, his voice tight with concern. “How did you get away?”
Her eyes swept over them, flickering candles of relief and urgency. “You all came for me.”
“Of course we did,” Alex said, his voice threaded with love and frustration. “We’re not losing you. Not ever. I wouldn’t have left had I known you were going to kick their ass all on your own. I’d have stayed and waited for you.”
Emma met Chris’s gaze, the connection raw and unfiltered. “The only reason I got out is because you and Bash pushed me so hard. I’m so sick of needing that type of training, but it’s saved me so many damn times.”
“You did good,” Chris interrupted, pride an unhidden treasure in his voice. He held her close, like he might never let go. “Now, answer Liam.”
Emma took a shuddering breath, her words tumbling out in a rush. “Warrington is the monster who attacked us. It may havebeen a cover up to save the island, but Warrington is not human. Not as far as I’m concerned. He’s only allowing the best children to survive. Even with how difficult conception is. He’s picking and choosing!”
“That son of a fucking bitch!” Chris snarled, now moving with Emma half in his arms back toward the house. “I’ll kill him.”
“Besides that, we have to accept that many people know what he’s up to.” Liam added, somehow level-headed.
“How did you get away, you were running?” Alex asked, of course Alex would ask for details.
“They were going to give me some memory-erasing shot. I assume it’s similar to a truth serum concept. Bash, you saved me without evening being there.”
“How the fuck do you figure?” The big guy snarled, surprising Chris that he could be so gruff with Emma.
“Your defense tactics. I was able to break free and then inject the nurse. They tried to use some memory suppressant—like they use in surgeries. As far as she knows, she did exactly what she’s told and there’s no reason to track me down.”
“You think there aren’t any cameras?” Alex hissed.
“There weren’t. It was a giant white room. He’s too vain to record his criminal acts I would stake my life on it.” She reached into her pocket, slightly shoving Chris’s arm off her shoulders, and pulled out a small thumb drive. It glinted in the harsh light, a tiny beacon of hope. “I managed to steal this,” she said, pressing it into Chris’s hand. “And a few of those shots. I have to believe they’ll keep trying to control me with them, I’ll be ready to turn the tables.”
His voice was gravelly with awe and anger and gratitude all woven together. “You’re amazing. How the hell did you do this?”
“I’m not entirely sure,” she offered a shaky smile.
They moved as a unit, the thumb drive clutched tightly in Emma’s hand, which he held in his, like a beacon of hope and uncertainty. Chris’s mind was a rapid-fire reel of what-ifs, possibilities that branched like cracked ice beneath his feet. His grip on Emma never faltered.
“Think there’s anything on it?” Liam asked, words winded with the rush of their pace.
