Annihilation: A YA dystopian adventure (The Mind Breaker Series Book 3)

by Marina Epley

  Chase hesitates, then allows the journalists to go on inside. It’s an opportunity to collect some needed information. Having returned, the journalists report that there are about twenty terrorists inside controlling the hostages.

  “They’re keeping everybody in the auditorium,” one correspondent advises. “They have plenty of ammo and bags filled with explosives.”

  “Do they have any requests?” Chase asks.

  It happens that the terrorists demand Kitty, Holtzmann and me to walk inside the center, unarmed.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Chase barks before I can open my mouth to say anything. “You’re not going anywhere.”

  “Guardian must know why we stole the drug,” Kitty says. “That’s why he wants the three of us inside the building. He’s aware we’re planning to assassinate him.”

  “I may go in there alone,” I offer. “I could try to negotiate with the terrorists.”

  “Are you crazy?” Chase exclaims. “Don’t you understand why they really want to lure you inside? It’s not for any negotiations.”

  I understand everything better than Chase probably thinks. Guardian needs to kill Kitty, Holtzmann and me, before we can complete our mission. It may be the singular purpose behind this terrorist act.

  We discuss the possibility of storming the building. The problem is that the officers would have to walk through long corridors and pass a large open space, before reaching the terrorists. There’s no chance of getting inside the auditorium unnoticed. The terrorists would either start killing hostages or blow up the entire building. We can’t take such a big risk, at least not yet.

  An hour later, an officer reports that the terrorists have called again and request to speak to Chase. We proceed inside the office building. Chase puts them on speaker, so that we can all hear the conversation. One of the terrorists assures us that hostages will begin to die, should his demands remain ignored. Holtzmann, Kitty and I must enter the building immediately.

  “We can’t agree to that,” Chase says. “Adjust your demands and free the hostages. I personally guarantee to spare your lives if you let the hostages go. We will allow you to safely leave the city.”

  “Cut the crap,” the terrorist answers, breaking off the connection.

  Chase plops down on a chair, holding his head in exhaustion.

  “They’re gonna start shooting people,” he states. “And I don’t have a clue what we can do about it. I keep trying to think what Vogel would do in this situation. But I’m not Vogel, and can’t know what she would do.”

  “It’s all right,” I say. “You’re doing fine, Chase.”

  He pulls himself together and assigns Oliver responsible for checking out different scenarios for storming the center.

  “Find a similar building,” he instructs. “Take a few officers and run simulations to see if there’s any possibility of killing the terrorists before they could activate the explosives.”

  Oliver leaves with a squad of officers.

  We wait for the terrorists to contact us again, but the phone remains silent.

  “Do you think you possibly could hypnotize those breakers?” Chase asks.

  “I seriously doubt it,” I admit.

  Guardian certainly must have chosen the most resistant breakers to carry this out. And we can’t be taking any chances, because the current situation doesn’t leave any room for mistakes.

  Nobody sleeps that night. Oliver, along with his squad of officers and recruits train for the possible storming of the building. My team and I help evacuate patients from a nearby hospital, clearing beds for expected new patients. The city Department of Transportation provides a few buses, so we’re able to transport about three hundred patients into city schools. Surprisingly, most patients don’t protest, being very understanding. Everybody realizes this is war.

  The second day begins with another phone call from the terrorists. Their leader repeats the demand for Holtzmann, Kitty and I to walk unarmed inside the theater. He breaks the connection before Chase has time to respond. An upset Oliver enters the room and reports that he’s run all possible variants of storming the center, and there’s no way to do it before the terrorists shoot hostages or blow the building. The spacious floorplan of the former theater simply doesn’t allow enough time. There’s no cover on approach to the auditorium. So we’ll have to find another solution.

  “What about using sleeping gas?” Jessie asks.

  “We ran out several months ago,” Chase reminds her.

  “The hospitals may have some other gas available to use,” I insist.

  Chase shakes his head, patiently explaining how doctors have run out of most types of anesthetics and tranquilizers.

  “What about veterinarians?” Kitty asks.

  It seems like a good idea at first, but Holtzmann assures us that usage of these types of tranquilizers may be too dangerous for humans.

  “Any other suggestions?” Chase asks. Nobody answers. “We should try and gasify the animal tranquilizers then. Right now it’s our best shot. Holtzmann, you’ll coordinate with the veterinarians. Try to find some sort of acceptable drug.”

  “They’re all unacceptable,” Holtzmann mumbles angrily before leaving.

  The rest of us pass time observing the refuge center from out on the square.

  Around 3 PM, we hear gunfire coming from the inside. A window on the second floor suddenly breaks and somebody jumps out, falling into some bushes growing on the side of the building. I immediately recognize her hysterical girlish scream.

  “Marian!” I yell.

  I lunge forward, but Chase tightly grabs my jacket and holds me back.

  “Cover her!” he shouts.

  The Elimination officers open covering fire toward the windows, preventing the terrorists from shooting down onto my sister. She quickly scrambles to her feet, continuing to scream, as she sprints across the square. Marcus and Dave run forward and drag her back toward our group. Marian is limping and her hands are cut from the glass. She looks around blankly, then shoves away the officers and gives me a hug. I squeeze her in my arms, still not believing she’s safe.

  “I’m alive!” she cries.

  “You’re hurt,” I say, looking her over.

  “It’s just a small cut,” Marian answers, smiling.

  Medics pull her away from me and lead her toward one of the waiting ambulances. Kitty and I follow. The doctors assure us that my sister is all right and hasn’t sustained any life threatening injuries, only cuts and bruises. They clean her wounds and bandage her hands.

  “I’ve never seen anything like that before,” Chase says. “I don’t understand how she didn’t get herself killed during an escape like that.”

  “She’s my sister,” I answer proudly.

  “Yeah that sounds about right,” he laughs. “You two seem to specialize in all the crazy stuff.”

  He asks Marian what’s happening inside the building.

  “Gosh, Chase!” I exclaim. “Let her recover first.”

  “It’s okay,” Marian says. “I want to help.”

  She begins telling us how the terrorists are holding the hostages in the auditorium without food or water. They walk amongst the rows of terrified people, constantly threatening them with rifles and knives.

  “They’re lunatics,” Marian states. “They promised that nobody would be leaving that building alive.”

  Listening to her story, I become really worried. I realize the hostages won’t last for too long without food or water. The clock is ticking, and we still don’t have an actionable plan.

  “How did you escape?” I ask Marian.

  “It was Rebecca’s idea,” she answers.

  “Is she all right?”

  My sister nods.

  “She’s busy keeping people calm and trying to negotiate with the terrorists,” she answers. “Rebecca persuaded them to allow the hostages some water. They provided only one bottle for every five people, but it was still better than nothing.”
<
br />   I’m dumbfounded. I’ve no idea how Rebecca managed it. How did she find a way to reason with those crazies?

  “Rebecca and I were together,” my sister continues. “She pointed at the window and said that it was my only chance. She began speaking with the terrorists, diverting their attention. And I was thinking how I’m gonna screw it up for sure. Because I can’t do anything right. The terrorists will see me and then shoot me down. That’s what I thought, and of course I was absolutely correct. I did screw up, by trying to sneak too cautiously and slowly toward that window. Of course the terrorists noticed me. I heard gunfire, and thought I was a goner for sure. So I freaked out and just ran as fast as I could, and then,” Marian pauses, catching her breath, “just slammed full speed into that damn window and fell. I still don’t understand how the terrorists didn’t manage to hit me. I mean, they were firing from close range.”

  “That’s the craziest story I’ve ever heard,” Chase says, looking at me. “You know, she really is related to you. It definitely sounds like something you’d do in a similar situation.”

  I can’t decide whether it’s intended as an insult or a compliment.

  “Why didn’t Rebecca try to escape as well?” I ask.

  “She chose to stay inside to look after the other hostages,” Marian answers. “Cynthia truly seems to like her. Rebecca thinks she may possibly influence her.”

  “Cynthia?” I mutter. “What does she have to do with all this?”

  “You really don’t know?” Marian asks as her eyes widen in surprise. “Cynthia is the leader of those terrorists.”

  My jaw drops. Everybody stares at my sister.

  “Who’s Cynthia?” Chase asks. “Where does she come from?”

  “She’s just an ordinary girl,” I answer.

  “She’s a powerful breaker,” Marian insists.

  “Will somebody just answer my question?” Chase wonders.

  I tell him what I know about Cynthia, which is definitely not too much.

  “A gang of breakers were keeping her hostage,” I add. “She also had to leave town after Guardian’s soldiers destroyed her home.”

  Chase says that he needs to conduct some research. He leaves, returning to headquarters to check files. We remain inside the office building, sitting by the phone and waiting for the terrorists to call.

  Chase comes back an hour later and places a photograph on the table in front of me.

  “Is this your Cynthia?” he asks, grinning.

  I stare at the photograph, realizing it’s a mug shot of Cynthia. She looks much younger in the photo, probably in her late teens, and her head is shaved. Nasty-looking electrodes protrude from her skull, giving me a flashback of little Lena.

  “It’s Cynthia,” I say.

  “She’s a level four breaker,” Chase says, still smirking. “And a gang of breakers didn’t torture or hold her hostage. She was actually their leader. Elimination captured her while she was still a teen. She initiated several riots in prison and killed plenty of officers. Even after being transferred to a more secure facility, Cynthia managed to start a riot there as well. She finally escaped with a group of dangerous criminals and quickly became their leader. Then her gang began robbing and killing ordinary humans. We recaptured her a few months before the war started and kept her in the Death Camp. That’s likely where she met Guardian.”

  I listen to Chase, not really hearing his words.

  I remember Cynthia being shy and blushing, then suddenly becoming aggressive. I think about her telling me how I didn’t appreciate the opportunities I had been provided. I remember her saying that she’d do anything to have a life like mine. I also recall Cynthia vigorously insisting on meeting me somewhere alone.

  How stupid can you really be? I ask myself. I finally understand everything.

  Guardian must have promised to make Cynthia some sort of leader, should she manage to assassinate me. And it seems like I always suspected there was something a little off with her. If I’d only chosen to trust my gut feeling, if I’d only thought twice about everything she’d said…

  “Gosh,” I groan out loud. “I could have stopped her!”

  Everybody looks at me in confusion. I quickly explain what kind of conversation Cynthia and I had.

  “Whoa!” Chase exclaims. “You’re lucky you didn’t go on a date with her. It was obviously a trap. That chick would simply have killed you.”

  “I realize that now,” I answer flatly.

  “Did you really think she had a crush on you?” Jessie asks. “You actually believed that she would just immediately fall for you, after being tortured by other breakers? Rex, are you really that naive or just retarded?”

  I don’t have anything to say. I did swallow all the ridiculous lies Cynthia fed me. I only now realize how I could have prevented two acts of terror. I could have told Chase or Vogel about Cynthia, and we could have captured her. Many people would be still alive, including Vogel. And now, it’s just too darn late.

  The phone suddenly rings. The familiar male’s voice begins saying something, but Chase cuts him off, “I know your leader is Cynthia. I won’t speak to anybody except her.”

  The terrorist curses and hangs up on him.

  “I hope I haven’t just killed any hostages,” Chase sighs.

  A few minutes later we receive another call.

  “So you now know the truth,” Cynthia states.

  “We know who you are, Cynthia,” Chase assures her.

  “Shut the hell up,” she interrupts. “I won’t speak to any Elimination swine. The next time I call, I want Rex to answer. Is that understood?”

  She breaks the connection before Chase has time to utter another word.

  “You heard her,” he says, looking at me. “You’ll have to be the one to negotiate with Cynthia.”

  “Are you joking?” I ask. “How in the world am I supposed to do that? What do I say?”

  “She often asked Rebecca questions about you,” Marian mutters thoughtfully. “It sure seemed Cynthia is really interested in you.”

  “Do you remember Jack?” Kitty asks me. I nod because it’d be hard to ever forget Jack, who tried to kill me. “What if Cynthia is just like him?” Kitty continues. “What if she used to look up to you before becoming disappointed in you?”

  I doubt Kitty’s conclusion and I also doubt I could be any good at negotiating with Cynthia. Unfortunately, the other members of my team share a different opinion. They continue trying to persuade me on the most effective ways to influence her.

  “Just try to get her to free the hostages,” Chase instructs.

  “How?” I ask.

  “Gosh, just do what all guys normally do,” Marian answers. “Lie to her. Say you were an idiot and you regret having rejected her. Tell her you didn’t realize how special she was.”

  “C’mon, Rex,” Kitty says. “We believe in you. You’re a great liar.”

  I open my mouth to protest, but the phone suddenly rings. Chase presses the button for the speaker, as Jessie simultaneously shoves me over closer to the phone. I take a breath, readying myself mentally, and say, “Hello?”

  “Hey darling,” Cynthia answers. Her voice sounds annoyingly friendly. “I thought you were too busy to find any time for me. Have you finally changed your mind?”

  I linger for a moment, realizing that the lives of hundreds people depend on my words.

  “You have my full attention,” I say.

  “Well,” Cynthia sighs. “That’s not exactly what I want.”

  “What do you want?” I ask.

  “You,” she answers, “along with your girlfriend and the professor. Walk inside the refugee center and I might decide to spare the hostages.”

  I look at Chase. He shakes his head no.

  “That’s not happening,” I answer calmly.

  “Listen to this then,” she offers as the ominous sound of gunfire fills the room.

  “No! Stop!” I blurt out, envisioning her gunning down hostages.


  Cynthia hangs up. I stand unmoving, staring at the phone. I realize my hands are shaking. I look helplessly around at the members of my team. Everybody seems astonished. Nobody speaks.

  Cynthia calls back a few minutes later.

  “Will you be more agreeable now?” she asks, still using the same pleasant voice. “Drop your crappy attitude and be a good boy, or I’ll kill more hostages. So make it easy on everybody and just bring yourself in.”

  I steady myself and say, “I have to do what Elimination orders me to do. I’m not a free man.”

  I’ve no idea what I’m talking about. But there’s a long pause and I don’t hear any more gunfire. Cynthia must be at least thinking over my words.

  “You mean they’re keeping you prisoner?” she asks, letting out a laugh. “Well, it’s your own doing, you stinking traitor. Guardian offered you everything a human being could wish for. And you spit in his face, rejecting his generous offer.” She curses and adds with spite, “You didn’t even have to do anything in order to acquire his attention. Do you know what I had to go through to achieve my current position in his army?”

  “Tell me,” I suggest.

  “I won’t tell you anything, you piece of trash. Even hearing your voice makes me want to vomit!”

  “Why do you hate me so much, Cynthia?” I ask. “You don’t even know me.”

  “I know you well enough, traitor,” she assures me. “You chose to betray your own kind.”

  I look around, motioning for my team to somehow help me. Marian scribbles down something on a piece of paper and shows it to me. Apologize, her scribbling suggests.

  “Sorry, I’ve made a lot of mistakes,” I say. “I just couldn’t stay in the Death Camp. I had to return to my sister.”

  “She isn’t even a breaker,” Cynthia snorts.

  “You’re right,” I say. “And I regret leaving the Death Camp. It was a bad decision, because it turns out my sister doesn’t even like me. I should have accepted Guardian’s offer. I truly regret that I refused to cooperate with him.”

  “I’m getting tired of this,” Cynthia says. “I think I’m gonna kill a few more hostages now.”

  “Wait! Don’t do that,” I plead. “Talk to me. Please.”