Freak of Nature - By Julia Crane Page 0,45
If you need information, double click on the round button and speak into the phone, asking it what you need.”
Kaitlyn looked at him like he was crazy. “You want me to talk into the device, and it will answer me?”
“I know it sounds silly, but it really works.”
“Where am I going to go?”
“I-I don’t know. Just trust your instincts. Remember, try not to draw attention to yourself. Harrington will not stop looking for you.”
“I don’t want to say goodbye.”
“It’s the only way.” He whispered. “Don’t underestimate the guards, Kate, they know what they’re doing.”
She shot him a look. “I’ll be fine. I’m quite efficient, thanks to IFICS.”
Lucas looked down at the floor. A flush of red covered his cheeks. “I’ll still worry about you. Every day.”
Kaitlyn reached for his hand and entwined his fingers in hers. His hand was large and warm in her own; it felt so natural. How could she walk away from him? And Quess?
“Quess!” she blurted out.
“I’ll tell her you’re safe, but you have to go. Now.” Lucas picked up the rucksack and handed it to her. “Don’t kill anyone getting out. The guards are just doing their job. They all respect you. I think some have even grown to like you.”
“No collateral damage. I’ll get out without loss of life.” She nodded and slung the bag over her shoulders.
Lucas peeked out the door first and motioned for her to follow. They hurried down the empty hallway. At the back door, Lucas came to an abrupt stop. “I have to go back to the lab so I’m seen.”
“I’ll never be able to repay you for giving me my freedom back. I will find you again,” Kaitlyn told him, her heart pounding.
Lucas’s eyes glistened under the fluorescent lights. “Goodbye, Kate. I’ll never forget you.”
Pushing the metal door open, Lucas hurried to the right, and Kaitlyn silently took off to the left, blending into the night. Her night vision kicked in, and her eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness. She had to admit the technology came in handy. At first, it had taken her a bit to get used to, but now it felt no different than her day sight. It was an advantage the guards did not have, at least not automatically like she did. They would have to go to the supply closet and pick up night vision goggles, buying her more time.
Kaitlyn knew the location of all the guards, and she also knew that at any minute they would be alerted that she had escaped. She had to act fast.
She flitted across the campus, aiming for the far reaches of the compound. It only took five minutes before she heard crashing in the bushes behind her. The erratic bouncing of flashlight beams danced around her, followed by excited yelling. Lucas must have sounded the alarm.
A bullet whizzed past her ear. She heard it thump as it hit the grass. They’d spotted her! It took all of her self-control not to turn around and break the guard’s neck. Lucas had told her no death. She ran in a zigzag pattern—typical of her training. It was hard to hit a moving target. Let alone at her speed.
Vectoring in through her location sensors, Kaitlyn found the nearest wall almost four hundred meters away. So close. She increased her speed, legs and arms pumping, breaths equal and strong. Just a little further, and she would be free.
Don’t think. Just move. Let your body do what it was made to do.
The high fence loomed before her. Skidding to a stop, she tossed her bag over. One quick glance behind her, and she scaled the fence. Once she was close to the barbwire she jumped over, her arms flailing as she fell towards the ground. She hit the ground, bending her knees and tucking in her elbows to absorb the impact.
With one last glance behind her, Kaitlyn shrugged her rucksack on. Her heart constricted and an aching pain filled her chest. So that was what pain felt like, she thought sadly.
Move, Kaitlyn scolded herself and took off in a full sprint, disappearing into the night as if she’d never existed.
Chapter Twenty
Kaitlyn crashed through the woods, the cracking branches beneath her feet filling the dark silence. The green-tinted night forest spread around her as far as she could see. She had been on the run for thirteen minutes and eleven seconds. Scanning the forest she could see the body heat of several startled animals. There wasn’t a human form in sight. If