Arcadium by Sarah Gray

  Chapter 21

  I LEAN A hand against the bunk ladder and Kean stands with his back to the door. I search my mind for a plan but all we’ve got is going in blind. And that’s too risky. But how do I just let Trouble go? I don’t know what’s better, going out in a blaze of glory for love, or slinking out the back to live a long and haunted life. I couldn’t leave him back in the Burnley tunnel, and I know I can’t do it now. But we have to be smart about this.

  “If we go now we could get him back,” Kean says.

  “If we get caught Liss and Henry won’t have a clue what’s going on.” I look over at him. “We have to wait. We have to trust that Trouble can keep himself alive long enough for us to get to him. We have to work together, Kean. We can’t split up now.”

  “Ok, so… what? If we don’t go soon…”

  “Go where?” A husky voice sails down from the top bunk and Jacob sits up.

  Me and Kean stare up at him in silence.

  And then it comes to me. “You know, don’t you?” I say to Jacob. “They took Trouble, dragged him away. What are they going to do to him?”

  “Why did they take him?” Jacob asks.

  I climb the ladder and hang off it so I’m face to face with him. “You said… you said I didn’t know what was going on here. But there are hundreds of dead infected in the basement and now scientists are kidnapping people.” I grit my teeth. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  Jacob is frustratingly slow to reply. “It’s not good.”

  “Why won’t you help us?”

  Jacob shrugs and rubs his dark stubble. “You haven’t asked.”

  I jump down to the floor.

  “Look.” Jacob swings his legs around so they’re dangling over the side of his bunk. “Calm down. There’s nothing you can do right now. This facility is locked down. Every damned door has a code on it. How do you think you’re going to get your friend back, huh?”

  I try to keep my expression steady but I can’t stop myself from glancing at Kean. Jacob is too good, he reads me like I’ve just said it aloud.

  “You’ve got the code, don’t you?” Jacob looks between me and Kean, and begins to laugh.

  “I don’t have the code.”

  “Then I don’t help.”

  “Fine,” I say. “We don’t need your help.”

  A clink comes from the door and we all look over. The handle starts to move. Kean steps forward just before it swings open.

  Liss appears and takes in the scene with wide eyes. She’s not stupid; she’s seen enough fear to know when it’s plastered over my face. Liss looks at Jacob but says nothing, and then comes straight to my side. Kean pokes his head out the door and closes it. “Where’s Henry?”

  “Isn’t he with you guys?” Liss says. “The lady doctor came after lunch and took him. She said he needed a check up.”

  Me and Kean just look at each other. The silence is painful, heavy like a rainstorm of stones.

  “Give him the code,” Kean says in a low voice. It doesn’t even sound like him.

  I stare back.

  “They have Henry!” Kean’s words burst out. “Give him the damned code!”

  I glance back at Jacob. He’s watching with calm curiosity.

  “What’s going on?” Liss tugs at my arm.

  “We’re leaving tonight, once we get Henry and Trouble back.”

  Liss bites her lip and stares at me with her big round eyes. And I can’t believe what I’m about to drag her into.

  “How do we get past all the scientists?” Kean demands. He aims it at Jacob but I’m the one that answers.

  I sit on Henry’s bunk. “We’ll have to wait until midnight, when they’re asleep.”

  Jacob clears his throat. “You probably don’t want to wait that long, if you want to get your friends back alive.”

  “Why?” Kean says.

  Jacob draws a short breath and looks between Me and Kean. “Once they’re taken, the experiments start within hours.”

  Kean covers his eyes with his palm, blocking out everything, and then slides it down so it covers his mouth. I don’t know what to do for him; it’d be like me losing Liss and that would be the end for me. There aren’t words for that kind of thing.

  “What kind of experiment?” I ask.

  Jacob tips his head to one side. “They’re looking for a cure. So they’re going to need a steady supply of freshly infected. And they aren’t going outside to collect them, when people are sitting here in their little rooms, just waiting to be picked.”

  “All those infected people downstairs…” I look at Kean. “Came from inside Arcadium.”

  “A fresh pool of ignorant subjects to pick from.” Jacob leans forward, hands on his knees. “Any gender, any age they want, it’s all here. They control everything.”

  Kean drops his hand. “This isn’t a sanctuary, it’s a trap.”

  But something doesn’t add up for me. I frown at Jacob. “If you know this, why did you come here?”

  “You know, I can sit here all day and answer your questions, but aren’t you trying to save your friends?”

  “He’s right,” Kean says. “We have to go now. Maybe if we had some kind of distraction we could slip through unnoticed.”

  Jacob slides off the top bunk and lands on his feet with a resounding thud. He looks straight at me. “You give me the code and I’ll make sure you get your distraction.”

  I wait a few seconds, just in case a brighter plan comes to mind. I don’t know why Jacob wants the code so badly but I can’t see another way.

  I want Henry and Trouble back. There’s no choice. Finally I meet Jacob’s eyes. “Better be a big distraction.”

  Jacob’s mouth morphs into a wide grin. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  “Even with a distraction, how are we supposed to find them?” Kean says. “We’ll be running around blind.”

  “Not exactly,” I say. “I’ve seen the labs once before, and if we can get to the surveillance room we’ll be able to find out exactly where they’re being held.”

  Jacob is still grinning. “I knew I liked you for a reason.”