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Barnes backed up to the door and lifted his shotgun to his shoulder. Now, Robert, please do untie
Sarah and David. And don t try anything, you two, because I will shoot you without hesitation.
I bit my lip, glaring at the doctor as The Kid unlooped the ropes around our wrists. Once we were able
to break apart, Dave and I turned to face each other, each rubbing our raw wrists and looking at the
other. There was no need to say much, we d been together long enough to read something of the other s
mind and mood.
Neither of those were filled with very positive thoughts. As the door we d entered slammed shut behind
Barnes and The Kid, I reached out to take Dave s hand. I shook my head.
Sorry. This is my fault.
His brow wrinkled and he stared down at me. Not likely. The only one at fault here is that prick and his
brat. They were the ones who preyed on your desire to find some kind of hope in the future.
I dipped my chin as heat flooded my cheeks. Yeah, well, so much for that, huh? I mean, I should have
stuck with your way and only trusted what I could see around me. See where hope got me? Us?
Hey. He lifted my chin with his finger. I like that you have hope. When you believe there s a future out
there& it kind of makes me think that maybe there could be. There can only be one cynical jerk in this
partnership and it s me.
Very sweet, came a voice from the speakers that were mounted around the room.
We both looked at the big window that faced into the adjoining room. Barnes was now sitting at a desk
behind the glass, holding a microphone as he stared in at us.
Where s The Kid? I asked.
Still worrying over him even though he s entirely capable of taking care of himself? Barnes asked, and
I thought I detected a hint of surprise in his tone. He went out to collect the specimen you caught for me,
Sarah. And by the way, thank you for that.
Thanks for almost getting me killed with your freak machines, asshole, I snapped as I took a long step
toward the glass.
Dave caught my arm and held me steady so that I couldn t waste my energy going for the window.
Barnes shook his head. I didn t actually intend for my& what did you call them? He seemed to ponder
for a moment. Oh yes, I remember now, bionics. I like that name. But I didn t intend for my bionics to
attack you in the school. I had hoped to drag our partnership out for a while longer before you learned the
truth. Perhaps even to find a way to convince you to come around to my way of thinking.
I burst out a grunt of disgust and turned my back on the glass.
Sarah, if you did decide to join me, we could be a remarkable team, his voice continued behind me.
You are like a warrior woman from some extinct tribe. Think of what we could do with my brains and your
brawn and, may I add, beauty. What do you say? Join me?
I spun around to face him. I would rather gnaw my own arms off.
His brow arched through the glass and then he shook his head. Well, it may come to that eventually,
I m afraid.
Aside from wanting to fuck my wife, Dave snapped as his hand came to rest at the small of my back
protectively, what the hell are you thinking, Barnes? Were you involved in the zombie research? What
the hell are you doing creating bionics?
Barnes settled back into his chair and steepled his fingers in front of him.
I wish I had been involved in the initial research. I d heard about it, though it was deeply classified. But
there are always whispers in the scientific community. But the research was in Seattle and I wasn t able
to get a transfer. They kept me here, working on other war elements. Like making soldiers stronger.
Faster. More obedient.
I blinked. Making them bionic?
In a way. Barnes shook his head. What I told you about the plague hitting the city and us being in
lockdown was true. When the alarms went off, though, I insisted that Robbie be brought down to the
safety of the lab.
And what about his mother? I asked softly.
Let the bitch rot, he snapped, his anger brightening his face in a rare display of his emotions. She
was sleeping with some army major anyway. A real man, she called him. I enjoyed watching her try to
claw her way into the facility.
Wait, you watched her? Dave asked in horror.
Of course. I let her see that the boy was taken down to the labs. She begged the cameras, she
pleaded with me& but I let the infected swarm over her. She was so torn apart, she didn t even re-
animate.
I backed away from the window a step and stared. Sadistic bastard.
He shrugged. Vengeance is commonplace in a world such as this. Are you saying that since the
plague broke out you ve never just killed someone because you didn t like them? I mean, there s no way
you wouldn t get away with it.
There s been enough killing to last me a lifetime, I said with a deep breath. I don t need to do it to
frivolously satisfy my pride or my sense of moral outrage because someone took a parking place from
me once.
Interesting that you compare stealing a parking place to stealing a wife, Barnes said softly. Either
way, once she was dispensed with, the remaining survivors had to deal with the reality of our situation.
And when one of the military men became ill, we realized that the infection had been brought down into
the lab.
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