Breeders (Breeders #1) (8 page)

Chapter 12

We shared a bed together for the first time since the night
copulation was scheduled. Mason enveloped me and held me protectively all night
long. The next morning we went about our routine as normal. The train ride to
the Medical Centre was the first time we spoke. “Go to your medical,” he whispered.
“I’ll be waiting outside as normal. When Dr. Weler is not looking, your Carer
will hand you a needle with Haze in it. You need to find a way to inject it
into the Healer’s neck when he is not looking. You only get one shot at this,
okay?”

“Yes,” I whispered.

The train came to a halt. We scanned our way into the
Medical Centre, waving hello to the Carers as per normal. The newly assigned Carer,
Eden, greeted me at the entrance of the testing facility. She eyed Mason
nervously. He nodded in response. Placing a hand gently in the small of my back,
Eden escorted me down the corridor. Without looking at me, and with a forced
smile fixed in place, she whispered through clenched teeth, “I’m Paige’s cousin.”
The door opened before I could respond, and I came face to face with Dr. Weler
looking significantly less pleasant than normal.

“Please get changed, Ariet, we need to repeat the testing from
last week, same procedures, you understand.” I nodded. Eden placed a robe
gently in my hands. Unfolding it to get changed, I noticed a long metal cylindrical
object in the middle of it. Lying gently on the table I clasped and unclasped the
syringe in my sweaty hand, unsure if I could go through with this, but knowing what
was riding on this. After a few minutes, Dr. Weler came in, “Ready?” he asked.
I nodded silently, trying not to show how stressed I was. “Your urine levels
this morning indicated some abnormalities, Ariet. Anything you want to tell
me?”

“I, ummm...just had some nausea and I’m worried about how
that will affect the offspring.”

“Okay. Well, try not to worry too much.”

I gave him a small tight-lipped smile. He turned around to where
Eden had surgical gloves extended out toward him. She looked stoically past
him, focusing her attention on putting gloves on him. I crept off the table and
slid up silently behind him. He turned as I pulled out the hypodermic needle
and I lunged towards him. Eden grabbed him around the waist as he fought both
of us. I slammed the needle sharply in the side of his neck pushing down with
all my might. Dr. Weler struggled for a few more minutes before becoming very
still, blinking up at us.

Stepping over him, Eden rapped twice at the door with her
slender hands. Mason slipped in silently. “You okay?” he asked. I walked to my
clothes to get dressed.

“No. You need to stay in your robe, Ariet,” Eden instructed
quickly.

Picking up Dr. Weler under both arms, Mason dragged him onto
a chair. Kneeling in front of the Healer, he whispered in a calm but strong
voice. “Dr. Weler, there has been a small complication following Ariet’s
testing. You have authorized for her to be kept in a private medical wing in
order to monitor the fetus and ensure her wellbeing. Ariet will be kept there
for a few hours. You will personally take her there with Eden. Do you
understand?”

Dr. Weler nodded firmly. “Yes, Mr. Black.”

Eden obtained a roller medical bed with a glass cover over
it resembling a cocoon. “Ariet, you need to lie down in there and pretend to be
asleep. No matter what happens, do not open your eyes until I tell you to.”

I climbed in the cocoon-like bed and wrapped myself up
warmly, the chill of the situation starting to affect me. Dr. Weler ushered me
through a set of double doors at the edge of the examining room, with Eden
directing the bed at my head. There was a small opening on each side of the
cocoon lid, where Mason had slipped one hand through and was rubbing circular
motions on my palm as we moved. There were a few minutes of silence before I
felt us slow slightly and could hear Dr. Weler instruct the Carer on duty to
allow us access to the medical recovery room. Mason squeezed my hand sharply.
The bed came to a full stop and I heard the beeping of machines around me. “Stay
here for a few moments, Ariet,” he whispered. “I will be back”.

“Thank you for your help, Dr. Weler. You will check on Ariet
in three hours. No one is to disturb her until then, do you understand?”

“Of course, Mr. Black.”

A sharp gust of cold air blew over me. I opened my eyes to
find Mason smiling down at me. “Right, Ariet,” he said softly. Eden was pacing nervously
in front of a sealed metal door. “The next part is going to be tricky. There is
a medical disposal tunnel that only one person can enter at a time. I’ll go
first and then you will follow. Eden will stay up here to keep watch. Thor will
meet us at the exit of the tunnel. Okay?” He smiled warmly but it didn’t reach
his eyes. They were laced with fear and worry.

Crawling gingerly into the small opening after Mason, I had scooted
around carefully until my bottom planted firmly on the cold, hard metal. Slowly
I shuffled downward, feet first as instructed. After what seemed like forever,
I saw a small opening ahead of me. “Mason,” I whispered. “Are you there?”

A light shone up into the tunnel. “Yes, I can see your feet,
keep going. There is going to be a sharp drop at the end. Thor will catch you.”

I had no idea where I was, and having twisted and turned in
the dark access way, the only thing I knew was that we had descended far
downwards. All of a sudden I felt the tunnel give out from under me and I had a
quick sensation of falling until landing safely in Thor’s arms. He nodded curtly
as he lowered me to the ground. I scanned the room in silence.

“Did your part go okay, Thor?” Mason asked. “The engineers?”

“Without a Hitch, Mas,” he replied.

“Thank you for this. I know what a risk both you and Jules
are taking.”

“Well, we have nothing else to live for,” he smirked sourly.

Mason quickly yanked me behind a small alcove in the wall
with Thor following suit. He quietly held a finger to his lips. Shaking
silently in position, I heard footsteps coming from the right of us. Two men,
who looked as though they were Guardians, shined beams across the platform in
front of us. Thor nodded silently. This was expected. We waited for a few more
minutes until we were certain they had passed. Mason led me out slowly, his arm
protectively around my waist.

We crept along the wall, staying in the shadows with Thor
leading the way. After a few feet, we came to a heavy grate with a valve attached.
Thor opened it with ease. Gesturing for us to kneel, we crawled for a few feet
until the roof reached high enough so we could stand. The small service way
ended on an old train platform. The whole area was dark, except for a small
light beam held by both Thor and Mason. On the tracks was a large oval shaped
craft. It couldn’t have fit more than two people in it. Turning expectantly to
Mason, I held out my hand. He looked at it for a few seconds then enveloped me
in his arms. Thor stood back as if to give us a moment of privacy and carried our
supplies to the craft. Mason held my arms firmly, locking eyes with me. “I’m
not coming with you, Ariet.”

Angry tears stung my eyes. “You are leaving me to fend for
myself and this child out there?”

“No. Thor is going with you. We need his strength and
agility to keep you safe. Jules has also been teaching him how to be a Carer
and what is needed to keep the baby safe and to bring it to term. He has also
packed a bag of medical supplies. You will have to source more rations within a
few days of exiting the tunnel.”

“You have to come, Mason,” I begged. “What about the baby,
your baby?”

“I’ve got to stay here, Ariet. I need to stop this from
happening to more families. I’m going to stop Evelyn once and for all.” He
turned to Thor, “Take care of her. And yourself, my friend.” They roughly
hugged each other, emotions rising. Mason pushed back. “It’s time to go.”

I felt torn between the two of them. This stranger, who was
to protect me yet our dislike for each other mutually evident; and Mason, who I
had grown to care deeply about, who was the father of my offspring.

Thor grabbed my wrist tightly, pulling me towards the craft.
“We have to go. The Guardians we saw just now will be back, they do their
rounds every fifteen minutes. We need to give Mason time to close the tunnel
and get back up to the rehabilitation room.”

“But they’ll kill him!” I cried, my voice bordering on sheer
hysteria.

“Mason can take care of himself, trust me.” Thor said
strongly.

I allowed myself to be led into the craft, all the while
never taking my eyes off Mason. He held the light beam over a panel of buttons
aligned next to the craft on the platform. On his command, the lid of the craft
slid back. Thor gently lifted me and tucked me safely inside, clipping a
harness over me. “Put this on, Ariet.” He held out a dirty looking helmet.
Ignoring him, I was still staring at Mason, willing him to switch with Thor,
when he rammed the helmet over my head. He jumped into the seat in front of me
wearing his own helmet. Giving Mason the thumbs-up, he faced the front. I had
my hands pinned to the glass lid, sobbing frantically now, searching for a way
out. Mason waved slowly as he pushed the last command button. The craft came to
life and, with a final wave, we shot into the darkness.

I had this uneasy feeling that my nightmare had only just
begun. Too stiff and tired from crying, I couldn’t move. The craft traveled in
darkness for a few hours, eventually slowing to a stop. Thor opened the lid and
exited quickly. He gestured frantically for me to get out. I felt nothing but
fear and bewilderment. Giving up on my refusal to budge, he disappeared behind
me and yanked me out of the pod.

“We have to hurry, Ariet,” he reprimanded me sharply. “The
Creators will be looking for us now.”

Quietly, we followed the wall, with the light beam gently
illuminating the way, until a heavy metal ladder appeared before us. Thor
indicated for me to stand still and pushed me flat up against the wall. He
climbed the ladder two rungs at a time and disappeared out of sight. I could
hear his movement above me, heavy grunting sounds and clangs of metal. All of a
sudden there was light, blinding me from above. Thor slid down the ladder
jumping down to a halt in front of me. “I’ve opened the hatch. You need to
climb up, be careful. It’s damp and the rungs are slippery. I’ll be right
behind you.” Gingerly, I climbed the ladder. Reaching the opening, I froze, not
sure of what dangers awaited us in this world.

Thor nudged me from below. “Hurry, Ariet. I hear something
in the distance below us.”

Panic swept through me, and I scrambled through the opening,
Thor right behind me, almost landing on top of me. With some effort he swung
the hatch closed and shoved a thick metal object he removed from his back pack
through the handle opening.

“They must know we are missing by now, Ariet, and are
tracking us. We need to get as far away from the hatch as possible.” He grabbed
my arm and we ran across what seemed to be a wide pasture of some kind. The
golden grass was long enough to cover us midway so we could barely be seen if
we ran in a crouch of sorts. Thor guided us to the edge of a wooded area ahead.
It looked cold and dark but would provide the necessary shelter to hide us
temporarily. Reaching the edge of the forest, he knelt down and gestured for me
to do the same.

He removed a square object from his pocket and pushed a yellow
button. A loud crunch sounded from the direction we had come in. We rose slowly
to see a tuft of smoke billowing from the hatch in the centre of the pasture.

“What was that?”

“I’ve just melted the metal of the hatch closed. It will buy
us some time.” He stood up fully and walked slowly into the forest. Although it
was damp and dark, it was not at all cold. Warm musty air matted my hair and
skin. “We need to get as far into the woodland as possible and find shelter for
tonight. It will be dark soon.” I nodded in silence, following his every
footstep, stepping in the exact spot he stepped. Fearful that we had blocked
Mason’s only way of escape if he managed to survive the fallback.

My life and that of my unborn son were completely in his
hands. I wasn’t sure which frightened me more. The fact that we were in the
middle of nowhere, and there were people looking to terminate us, or that I was
in the middle of nowhere with someone that I distrusted and couldn’t frankly
stand. We pushed on through the forest silently, neither of us speaking. The
heat was starting to take control, and I needed to rest for the baby’s sake.

We had been walking for what felt like hours, and I was
certain the hatch was far behind us. Reaching near exhaustion, I lost my
footing on a rock and stumbled, crashing into Thor. With his instincts super in
tune, he turned to catch me before I fell to the ground. Panting heavily and
rubbing my stomach, I motioned for water. He pulled out a small metal flask. “That’s
it, that’s all we’ve got?” I asked, panic stricken at the sight of the tiny
flask.

“Just drink it. Three small sips at the most.” Ignoring him,
I gulped back the liquid; it stung my throat as I swallowed. He grabbed the
flask from me. “Don’t you ever listen?” he growled.