“We’ll administer treatment,” Jasper said, taking the trash from her, “then you’re free to go back to Maryland.”
“Or you could stay and help us with our research.” Lawrence rolled his eyes and swatted the gum Jasper held toward him. “That’s what your parents did when they came to us years ago.”
“That’s not true,” she whispered.
“Yes, it is,” Jasper said with an easy smile, tucking his belongings back into his pockets. “Before I started here, your mother and father routinely donated blood in exchange for treatment. Right, Lawrence?”
“That’s right, Jasper.”
Vivienne swallowed. “What kind of treatment?”
Jasper yo-yoed his retractable keycard. “We’ve developed a miraculous serum that—”
“Enough, Jasper. Just ask her the questions so we can get on with the tests.”
“I’m getting to that, Lawrence.”
“Get to it faster.”
Jasper opened the notepad from his pocket and clicked the top of his pen. “Have you experienced any strange symptoms since your time in the hospital?”
“Define strange.”
“The most common one we’ve come across is memory loss.”
She tapped her finger against her chin. “I don’t remember having any memory loss.”
“All right.” He chuckled as he jotted that down. “No memory loss.” He clicked his pen twice. “Have you had any additional dizzy spells or lightheadedness?”
“Nope.”
Jasper wiggled his pen between his index and middle fingers. “Have you ever flown?”
“Like, in a plane?”
“No, as in flying through the air like a fucking bird.” Lawrence flapped his hands like wings.
“Lawrence!”
“Do I look like a bird to you?” She lifted her arms to look for feathers. “Are you sure you guys are scientists?”
“Enough with your pointless questions. She’s only going to lie anyway.” Lawrence waved his hand toward his female colleague. “Marianne will take some blood for testing, and after the results come in—”
“You’ll be back to tell me the good news?”
“Exactly,” Jasper said, clapping his hands together.
Lawrence glared at Vivienne before pushing away from the table. The Hooke brothers left the room, but the two guards remained outside the door.
Marianne slid across the floor on her rolling stool and told her to roll up her sleeve and lay her arm flat. She cleansed the area with a damp cotton ball and tied on the tourniquet. “Now make a fist.”
Vivienne’s veins rose, and she winced at the sharp pinch. “Why do you work for these monsters?”
“They’re not monsters,” Marianne said, her eyes fixed on the filling vial. “HOOK is responsible for groundbreaking genetic research.” She unclicked the first vial and attached a second.
“If you say so.”
After collecting the third vial, Marianne pressed a bandage over the dark bead of blood in the crook of Vivienne’s arm.
Vivienne stood too fast, and her head started spinning. She closed her eyes against the nausea and collapsed back onto the chair.
“Are you okay?” Marianne steadied her hands against Vivienne’s shoulders.
With a deliberately weak voice, Vivienne told her that she hadn’t eaten anything.
“Someone should’ve given you food before I took blood,” Marianne grumbled with a concerned frown. “Give me two minutes and I’ll be right back. Please, don’t try to go anywhere.”
Vivienne nodded but kept her eyes closed.
The door clicked closed.
This was her chance . . . maybe her only chance.
She ran to the door and peered through the small window. The two guards were talking in the hall, their backs to the room. One way in and out. No window. The vent above her head was too small to fit into.
Think, Vivienne. Think.
Right. The desk. She pulled open the drawers and searched for something that could help her escape. But there were only notebooks and pens and band aids and medical supplies and . . .
No good.
The blood. If she could make them believe she didn’t have the Nevergene, they’d let her go. Right?
There were a bunch of vials in trays, and a few still needed labels. She grabbed her three vials and swapped them for ones in the tray. Maybe that would be enough . . . Hopefully it would be enough.
She slumped back into the chair before Marianne returned with a glass of orange juice and a handful of saltines. “Miss Dunn?”
Vivienne blinked and whispered, “Yes?”
“Have a drink of this.” She held the juice toward her. “You should feel better once you get a bit of sugar back into you.”
Ten minutes later, Vivienne hobbled out of the room, saying a silent prayer that it would work.
The two guards escorted her through the fluorescent-lit hallway toward a door that looked like it belonged on the front of a bank vault.
Jasper rounded the corner and his eyes widened when he saw them. “What do you think you’re doing, Ted?”
The guards looked at one another, then the taller one answered, “Bringing her back to her…room.”
“She’s not staying in there. Come with me, Vivienne.” Jasper gripped her elbow and guided her down the hall. The guards fell into step behind him. “I can handle things from here, guys.”
“Are you sure? Lawrence said—”
Jasper’s incoherent grumbling included a few choice swear words coupled with his brother’s name. “Vivienne?”
“Yes?” She batted her lashes at him.
His blue eyes narrowed at her. “Are you going to run away?”
“Do I need to?”
“She won’t be any trouble,” Jasper said with a chuckle. “Take a break, and I’ll call you if she attacks me and makes a run for it.”
The two guards didn’t look happy, but they lumbered down the hall in the opposite direction without another word.
“Please, excuse my brother’s need to display power. I’m convinced he’s overcompensating for something.” Jasper’s grip loosened, and his hand fell to his side. “Allow me to take you somewhere more comfortable to wait for your results.”
He brought her to a room at the end of the corridor. The glass doors at the entrance made it feel like she was being escorted to a board meeting. Inside was a faded red couch, a water tank, and a long table surrounded by leather chairs.
The far wall was made entirely of windows. The last window nearest a panel of thick curtains had been left ajar. The opening would be large enough for her to—Her adrenaline stirred to life. No. There was something too convenient about the escape. Too good to be true. She had to keep her secrets.
“This should be more suitable,” Jasper said, pointing to the couch. “Help yourself to some water if you’re thirsty. I’ll send someone up with snacks and reading material as soon as I can. If you need to use the restroom, press the call button here and an escort will show you the way.” He tapped the silver box next to the door.
She walked to the water cooler but stopped when she reached it. “Why are you being so nice to me?”