The Key to Fear - Kristin Cast Page 0,46

looking for another one,” Sparkman began without acknowledging Whiskey. “A child. Younger this time.”

Whiskey’s blurred squares bounced with a presumed nod. “Jumpin’ right in, are we? Gotta respect a woman who gets down to business.”

“Another child?” Echo’s voice was whisper-soft. And when she spoke, everyone listened.

Sparkman’s fingers clenched. “Yes, ma’am. Aubrey Masters, Patient Ninety-Two, passed yesterday afternoon.” Only at the MediCenter did Sparkman call the men, women, and children strictly by their assigned numbers. In her home and in front of the faceless board members of Eos who she trusted with her life, the ninety-two souls weren’t numbers. They were human beings.

“There is nothing we can do.” Echo’s screen lightened as she spoke. “It’s terrible, but we mustn’t intervene. We must allow Normandy to choose another.”

Delta’s screen flashed as she cleared her throat. “Echo’s right,” she said, clipped and clear. “We shut Normandy down now and they’ll have someone in his place in a matter of days. The doctor might think he’s irreplaceable, but I’ve seen many young people readying themselves to take over the Genetic Technology divisions. In a few years, Normandy will be obsolete.”

But a few years wasn’t now, and now was all Sparkman had. She knew Eos had a plan. A grand, all-consuming plan to right many of the Key’s wrongs, but how long would that take? How many children would she have to watch die?

Sparkman stiffened. “There’s more. Aubrey was …” she paused, unsure of how to describe the remarkable little girl. “Different.” Sparkman set her jaw, displeased with the vagueness of the word, but unsure of how to elaborate.

Echo’s pixelated form shifted. “Different how?”

Sparkman had asked herself the same question. She pressed her fists together, cracking her knuckles. “The science behind Aubrey’s changes is unclear. As Normandy gets closer to perfecting the serum, he becomes more secretive. What I witnessed yesterday was unlike anything I’ve seen before. She’s a child. Even partially awake, she was stronger than I am. She seemed …” Sparkman focused on Echo. To sway the body, she needed the head. “More than human.”

Whiskey’s screen flashed with a huff. “Fucking fuck. The Key let Normandy have free rein of the GenTech Unit and this is what they get.”

“Tell the Doctor they’re coming.” Sparkman interjected. “She woke up and said, tell the Doctor they’re coming.”

Zulu’s screen brightened. “Who’s coming?”

Sparkman shook her head. “I’m not sure Aubrey even knew where she was.”

“Your suggestions, Sparkman?” Echo was stern and soft and calm and confident.

Sparkman’s braid grazed her back as she nodded. “We need Aubrey,” she said, her gaze intent and unwavering.

Whiskey grunted. “You said she was dead.”

“But she’ll be in Cold Storage.” Zulu spoke for the first time. “If I can get her to my lab, I can work backward. Figure out what Normandy’s been developing while the Key has had its head turned.”

There was silence, all members instinctively awaiting Echo’s response.

“Sparkman, you have a plan.” Echo didn’t phrase it as a question. She didn’t need to. Sparkman was always prepared before she reported in to Eos. “I assume you’ll need access to the End-of-Life Unit. We have someone who can get you in. Someone young and eager who won’t be suspected.”

Eos blanketed the globe with eleven total board members, soldiers in every unit of each MediCenter around the globe, and operatives within different careers. Sparkman had only ever spoken with Echo, Zulu, Whiskey, and Delta, the heads of the North and Central American factions of Eos. And those four were the only people out of the eleven to know Sparkman’s identity. Layers of protection. That way it was more difficult for one person to bring down the entire resistance organization.

Once again Sparkman nodded and clenched her fists, cracking her knuckles. “As always, I will work with anyone you trust.”

“Good,” Echo said. “Let’s get started.”

Elodie drummed her fingers along the hard cover of the nursing textbook that hid her deepest, darkest secret. She’d pulled it out to catch up with Vi, but the bright empty space of Patient Ninety-Two’s former room drew her attention like a flower to sunlight.

Elodie’s toes tapped feverishly against the tile. Since she’d arrived that morning, she’d waited for one of the doctors to come tell her what had happened with Aubrey. Through Holly, she’d submitted four status update requests. It wasn’t odd to follow up on transferred patients. Elodie had done it many times. Currently, she had update requests pending for each of her patients that had been transferred to different units in the blur of activity that had filled