Eden

by C J Singh

  I laughed. “You can’t be serious.” But watching his unchanging face, all smiles and determination, I widened my eyes. “You are serious. A plot to take over the world?”

  “Of course, I am! After the war, our weak president wasn’t strong enough to do what needed to be done. I had the virus created in order to help control the world, but there was a mishap.” He paused, looking down at his unwrinkled hands.

  “A mishap.”

  “Yes. Unfortunately, President Jacobs contracted a mysterious virus which spread quickly. A shame really.”

  “Yes. A shame,” I said, watching Zane’s cheek twitch.

  I looked over at Dr. Hahn, who was trying to look busy with work, but I knew he was listening.

  “Don’t worry about him. He’s been in on the plan this whole time, haven’t you, Dr. Hahn.” Zane didn’t take his eyes from mine, but his voice pulled Dr. Hahn from his fake work.

  “Yes.” Dr. Hahn cleared his throat.

  “Why are you telling me this?”

  He gently picked at his jacket and said, “Oh I don’t know, maybe just so I can see your reaction.” I blinked, and he let out a loud laugh that crept up my spine. “Maybe so I can control you.”

  “Control me? And if I don’t care what you do to me?”

  “Well, I still have people you love under my thumb, now don’t I? And I’m not just talking about Eden. Think of your father. It would be a shame if anything happened to him after everything he has done to keep you alive.”

  I pursed my lips. My hate for him boiled my blood, but right now I had to play by his game. “So, you created the virus. Everything that has happened, all the people that have died is because of you.” He watched me with a look of satisfaction that chilled my bones. “How do you expect to travel to the rest of the remaining world? It’s not easy these days.”

  “No. You’re right, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it, plus, I can’t be giving away all my secrets now can I?” Zane gave me a satisfied look before he walked away. “Remember, Jace. Be a good boy!”

  This time I didn’t resist the growl from emerging, and I let it fill the room. Zane’s laugh echoed after him until the sound of his footsteps disappeared. My head was dizzy, so I rested my forehead in my hands. Dropping to the ground, I pulled myself over to the small toilet, dragging my injured leg behind me, and vomited. The virus was man-made. Zane did all this in a crazy plot to take over the world. Or what was left of it.

  I sat back and wiped my mouth. I don’t know what is more disturbing. That Zane made the world the way it is, or that he may not let me live to tell anyone about it.

  Chapter 56

  Eden

  I watched men replace the glass wall of Jace’s cage after they cleaned the old shattered glass from the floor. I waited hopeful and crouched in the corner for him to return, but he never did. Just before I was about to retire to my den for the night, I saw a flash of movement enter the lab. I focused on the door. Someone came through. A face with gold curls and baby blue eyes, the face from my knotted dreams. Tristan’s smile was wide when he saw me. The man that has been helping LaRae shoved him through the door of the cage, and he stumbled forward. My hands fisted lightly at the aggressive act, my claws pinching into my palms, but I relaxed when I watched Tristan stand and move to the window. We watched each other a moment before he put his hand on the glass. The tangled thoughts of my memories started to unwind and flashes of our life hit me. Running through the trees, jumping in the lake, hunting, fishing, and my favorite, telling stories by the fire. Tears welled in my eyes, but I didn’t let them slip. I set my hand on the glass for just a second before retreating to my den.

  ***

  The days passed by me like a blur, and I rarely left my den. Tristan did nothing but workout and watch me. The man that was helping LaRae was now here permanently, sent by Zane. I learned his name. Scott. I despised him. I involuntarily growled whenever a whiff of his soapy scent filled me.

  I missed Jace. He was my constant in all this craziness, but now that he was gone, I had less control over my human side. Seeing Tristan every day was nice, but it was not the same. I cared for Tristan, but I needed Jace. I wanted to let the animal inside me take over; it would be so much easier.

  “Eden?” LaRae hesitated in my doorway. “May I come in?”

  “Oh, for the love of... just go in!” Scott fidgeted impatiently.

  “Eden? Please respond.”

  Peeking my head out of my den, I gave her a small nod. When Scott started to follow, I snarled and lunged toward him.

  “Just wait there,” LaRae said forcefully, stopping him.

  “Wait, you’re listening to her? She’s a prisoner!” He stomped his foot like a child and LaRae whipped around to face him.

  “She is a patient, not a prisoner. You need to learn better interaction skills. You can’t treat everyone like they are nothing but... but useless animals.”

  “Have you looked at her?” He motioned an open hand toward me. “She is an animal!”

  I crawled out of my den and instantly relished the lack of fire that once inhabited my body. It was gone and replaced with something new. Confidence, loyalty, and indifference. I stood behind LaRae.

  “What do animals do to their prey?” I asked him calmly, narrowing my eyes like he was a piece of juicy meat. I took a step toward him, passing LaRae, and I finally saw a flicker of fear pass over his face.

  “What?”

  “I said”—I paused dramatically—“what do animals do to their prey?” I was only ten feet from him now, and I could smell his anxiety.

  “Eden,” LaRae warned.

  He licked his lips letting out a quick, quiet laugh trying to figure out if I’m serious or joking. “They... they kill them.”

  I smiled slowly, making sure to show my new elongated fangs, running my tongue along the new length of my canines. “Yes. You say I’m an animal. I say you’re my prey. So, what do you think I’m going to do to you?”

  He let out another nervous laugh. “What is this, LaRae? A joke?”

  “Scott, I think you better leave,” she said evenly. “I don’t think Eden is joking.”

  He jolted his eyes from her to me, taking another step back. “If you hurt me...”

  “What?” I crooned. “What will you do to me that you haven’t already done?” I took another step toward him, holding out my hands to show him my thick sharp nails. “You have captured me, infected me with the virus over and over, taken the man I care for, and made me... this.” I held out my arms and turned in a slow circle. I spotted Tristan, watching us with squinted eyes. I forgot his human ears wouldn’t be able to make out our conversation. Probably a good thing since I don’t think he would like what I have become.

  “Whatever. You’re crazy. You deal with this.” He looked to LaRae and quickly retreated, slamming the door in my face.

  Pushing up against the glass, I trailed one claw down it as I smiled at him. He tried to show no fear, but his smell gave him away. He reeked from terrified sweat.

  “Eden,” LaRae said. “That’s enough.”

  Still smiling, I turned back to her. “That was fun. Think he’ll want to come back in here?” I walked over to the chair.

  She chuckled. “Knowing him? Probably.” She took my vitals.

  I turned back to watch Scott as I sat at the table. He was noticeably still shaken up and very angry. “Good. I can’t wait to do that again.”

  ***

  “Infect her again!” Zane slammed his fist on the table, causing the half-full cup of water to splash to the floor.

  “Yes sir, but—” LaRae shrank back as Zane towered over her. “Yes, sir.” She bowed her head.

  Zane leaned forward, putting his mouth right next to her ear. “And if I hear that you refused my order, you will be waving to me from the other side of that glass, D
r. Rammell.” Her face blanched, and I growled at the scent of her fear.

  With my eyes fixed on Zane, I slowly emerged from my den and crawled to the corner of the glass. Crouching, I inspected Tristan’s cage first where he leaned on the window watching the show before I moved my gaze over to the others. Scott nervously tapped Zane’s shoulder, motioning toward me.

  “Sir, she’s out.”

  Zane turned to me and his smile grew wide. “Oh, my. She’s magnificent.” He walked toward me slowly, and I cocked my head, gauging every step he made. “Beautiful! I think her eye sparkles even more gold. And are those... claws?” He looked down at my hands.

  “She has fangs too.”

  “Fangs!” He smiled back at Scott before turning back to me.

  I stood when he reached me, only the glass separated us, but I still sniffed the air to catch his scent. He’s tall, but I know I’m faster, stronger, and smarter. Giving him a look from his head to his feet, I smiled. “You’re weak.”

  He clapped with a bark of laughter. “She can still talk!”

  “Of course, she can still talk, sir... that’s not what I’m worried about.” LaRae stepped to his side.

  “What are you worried about then? She’s perfect.”

  “Yes, she’s healthy and strong and can talk, but she’s... she’s—”

  “She’s what?” Zane encouraged impatiently. I watched LaRae, curious how she would describe me, but it was Scott that spoke.

  “Dangerous.”

  “I want her dangerous.” Zane turned back to me and his smile grew.

  “Unpredictable,” LaRae finally said. “When she was first infected, everything happened as it usually does, then she was infected again, and it was less typical and her reaction changed her. She’s less human now than she was before. The virus is making her more of an”—she gave me a quick, apologetic look—“animal.”

  I kept my gaze on Zane, inspecting him, memorizing his movements and every little wrinkle on his face. LaRae’s words didn’t anger me because they were true.

  Zane met my eyes. “That’s exactly how I want her to be.”

  “Right, sir, but she won’t be controlled! She’s still a person. A person with free will.”

  Zane’s smile dropped and he narrowed in on LaRae. “You don’t need to worry about the control. I’ll deal with that.”

  “I don’t understand what this has to do with finding a cure.” LaRae wrung her hands together, but she wasn’t backing down. Her strength was building, and I liked it.

  “I want to know if she can withstand multiple doses of the virus. I also need to confirm what she gave Jace. Something doesn’t add up.”

  “But, sir, Dr. Hahn—”

  “I know what Dr. Hahn gave her! Animal blood!”

  I tilted my head, watching Zane carefully as LaRae froze in shock.

  “What?” she said. Zane rose a single eyebrow at her. “You mean... you know?”

  “Of course, I know!”

  “Then, what’s the point of all this? I mean... you know the cure.” LaRae took a step back, sucking in a breath. “All those people, their lives. How could you just let them all die?”

  My laugh brought all their eyes to me.

  “Is something funny?” Zane asked.

  “If you already know that, then what do you think I did to Jace?”

  “Animal blood?” Scott answered with an unsure tone.

  I clapped slow and loud. “I wasn’t sure your inferior human brains could figure that out.” I hopped off the table and walked back to the glass. “All I did was give Jace animal blood. It’s that simple.”

  Zane examined my face. “Is that so?” I nodded. “We will have to see about that.”

  They all jumped back when I let out a screeching roar, and I smiled as I moved my claws to the glass, clicking them at Zane. “Good luck with that.”

  “With what?” Zane asked me curiously.

  “Well, using your human brain to control me.” After seeing a flicker of uncertainty float through his eyes, I sauntered back to my den.

  Chapter 57

  Jace

  “How are they feeling?” Dr. Hahn examined my hands, dabbing the cuts with a wet cloth. I gritted my teeth at the stinging ache of his touch. Every time I looked at them, they reminded me of how I didn’t save Eden, so a little pain was good. I tried opening and fisting them and hissed.

  “Better.”

  “It will take a little more time, more time. But I think you’ll have a full recovery. Yup, a full one.” He stood with his bag of items, opening the rolling bar door. “You haven’t asked me any questions.” He watched me as the door clicked back into place, separating us.

  “Would you answer?”

  He gave me the same steady incorrigible smile. “You never know.”

  “All right. How is she?”

  “She’s fine.”

  “Just fine?”

  He shrugged. “Well as fine as she’s going to be. She’s alive, very alive.”

  Memories of Eden building her den and scurrying around like a scared rabbit have consumed me over the past few days. The ache in my heart to see her was always there, a persistent annoyance that wouldn’t go away until we were near each other. I moved to the bars. “What’s that mean? How is her...” – I searched for the word – “demeanor?”

  Dr. Hahn set his bag on the table and turned to me. “Well, when you last saw her, she was what?”

  “Scared, you could say. Scared of what was happening to her but also scared of others. Always ready for an attack.”

  He nodded his head in thought. “Well, that has changed a bit. Yup, it’s changed.”

  Furrowing my brow, I tried to grasp the bars, but the bandages on my hands inhibited it. “Changed how?”

  “She’s not scared anymore. She’s much more aware. . . very, very aware. And... oh, how would I call it... feisty?” He smiled again.

  “Feisty?” He nodded, but I shook my head unbelieving. “I have to see her. Please take me to her. Something’s wrong. Did they infect her again? I’ll rip their throats out if that man touches her again.”

  Dr. Hahn approached my cell calmly. “All right, all right, relax. You’ve been fine the past few days, so I see no reason you can’t see her.”

  My breathing ceased and I studied him. “What’s the catch?”

  “No catch, no catch, just a reward for your good behavior.” The lines deepened around his grey eyes as he smiled, but the way he moved his hand through the wild white mane of his, I knew he was hiding something.

  “I don’t trust you.”

  “Well, I guess I wouldn’t either if I was you, but it’s the only way you can see her.” He paused. “Your Eden.”

  The words warmed my heart. My Eden. I missed her, needed to see her, but I know Zane.

  “And you want nothing from me?”

  “Well, I guess it’s not nothing, but it’s nothing big. No, no, nothing big.”

  I laughed. “I knew it. So, what is it?”

  “You need to convince Eden to tell us the truth about what she did to you.”

  My head was shaking before he even finished his sentence. “No way in hell I’ll do that.”

  “Jace, just listen to me. Listen.” He clasped his hands in praying motion, pleading with me.

  “No! Did you really think I would sell out that easy?” I leaned as far forward through the bars as I could.

  “I created her.” I stepped back at his words, speechless. He nodded. “When she was just a child, a baby. It was me.” He pulled up a chair and sat down, clasping his hands in front of him. “I was good friends with her mother. Kim and I... well, we knew each other a long time, even before the Fever hit. When she said she and Dan were putting Eden in the trials, I thought she had lost her marbles. Yes, yes, I did. I pleaded w
ith them, but they were insistent. Very insistent.” He paused, taking a few breaths before continuing. “When they first infected her, she responded like everyone else. She got the Fever, cough, weakness, the works. I couldn’t stand seeing an innocent child suffer, so I snuck in at night and did my own experiment.”

  I watched him as he confessed, tasting his words in the air. He was telling the truth. I stayed silent and listened.

  “I had infected animals before and none showed any symptoms but their white cells increased to fight off the Fever, so I figured I would try and inject her with animal blood, just to see if that helped. Usually, animal blood in high doses can be fatal to a human, but I used a small amount, very small, just to see if anything happened. It was a shot in the dark really, yup, a shot in the dark. But... well it worked. Within twenty-four hours, she was better, much, much better. But there was one defining characteristic of my interference.”

  “Her eye,” I whispered.

  He nodded. “Her eye. Kim knew something had been done but couldn’t figure it out. When I told her, she panicked. Yes, yes, she panicked. We drew Eden’s blood, and it was noticeable what had happened. The mending of two DNAs.”

  “So why didn’t you tell Zane then and be done with this whole charade?”

  He sighed. “You’ve seen Zane. Heard his... plan. He’s always had such determination. So much so that he caused many of us to fear him, still does, yes, still does. Kim was fearful that Eden would become... well, I guess like she is now, a lab rat.” He wrung his hands nervously, causing his knuckles to go white.

  “Do you know who helped Zane create the virus? I mean, couldn’t they have some idea how to cure it?” I watched his cheeks grow red, and he kept his eyes on the floor. “You. It was you!”

  “And Kim.” His words were so quiet a human wouldn’t have heard him. “That’s why she was so insistent on putting Eden in the trials. She wanted to try and fix things.”

  “Why not Tate?” I asked without thinking of the repercussions. They thought Tate was dead.