LifeWild

Dr. Modino just received two phone calls regarding Haley. An associate of his from the office was eating at the W cafe and noticed her there with two strangers. Neither of them is sure who they are, but they both know if she were to come back now and got to the authorities or reporters, she would ruin everything they had set up for themselves. His friend told him she is headed to Parlin. He is not sure what she is planning, but he knows he must find her and either get her back to the director or make sure she will never come back at all. He is aware due to Brent’s incompetence she knows they are after her, so the people she is with must be helping her get to the authorities.

He decides to take care of this once and for all in Parlin. He prepares a syringe of muscle relaxant from his medical kit and grabs a shovel from the shed behind the main building, just in case. He gets in his car and begins driving.

They have been walking for almost four hours. It is early evening as they arrive at the outskirts of the community of Parlin. With a population of just over one hundred, it can barely be considered a town. They have been keeping themselves in the trees and off the road, so they are surprised at how suddenly they come upon it. Arthur and Jasele had known they were approaching it for the last few miles, but even so they are shocked to see only a few buildings and very little else. Haley has informed them most of the community is made up of houses and cabins spread out throughout the area.

Haley is studying the notebook and comparing what she reads to the map.

“When we reach County Road 76, we are supposed to follow it for about a quarter mile and we will see the turnoff taking us to James’ house.”

They are within one hundred feet of the county road when Arthur seems to become more alert. At first, he is just smelling the air and looking intently toward the buildings. Within seconds, the hair on the back of his head and neck begins standing up and a low rumbling growl is coming from his throat. Haley notices he is agitated and moves towards him and holds his hand.

“What’s wrong, Arthur?” Her voice sounding a little worried.

“Something I smell reminds me of the town where you used to live. I can’t really tell what it is yet, but it is making me very uncomfortable.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing. A lot of these towns are probably built the same and most likely have many of the same scents.”

He is not sure. Something about this is wrong. He wants to stop walking, but their destination is up ahead, past the buildings. He knows they have to go that way eventually, so he keeps walking.

They are now around fifty feet from the county road. Up ahead there is a gas station, a couple of garage type buildings, a warehouse and a few homes. There are several cars parked in front of the gas station.

Haley trusts Arthur’s senses enough she has been paying close attention to the route ahead. She notices one of the vehicles parked at the gas station looks like the Mustang the doctor always drove when he would come to the resort for her appointments. She slows her pace a bit, prompting Arthur and Jasele to do the same. Arthur takes her slowing down as a sign and begins carefully scanning everything ahead of them.

They are about forty feet away when the door to the Mustang swings open and a man steps out carrying a shovel. Haley gasps as she recognizes the doctor.

“No!” She cries out in fear. “That’s him!”

Arthur and Jasele are instantly ready for anything. They are both focusing on the man beside the car and are growling in unison. Haley is sure they are both about to leave her behind and attack him. She squeezes Arthur’s hand tighter. He appears to regain a little bit of calm and looks into her eyes.

She whispers to him.

“You’re not an animal. You’re better than him.”

He sees her fear. He wants to protect her. He will protect her. He will not let anyone hurt her. He formulates a plan.

“Jasele.” He keeps his voice just above a whisper. “Grab Haley and get as far down the road as you can as fast as you can and find someplace to hide. I’ll find you in a little while. Protect her, Jasele, no matter what.”

Jasele nods quickly and indicates to Haley to hop onto her back. Haley climbs on piggyback style. As soon as she has is hanging on, Jasele hands her shoes to Haley and begins running.

“I love you, Arthur.” Haley says looking back at him. She is not sure if he heard her or not.

Jasele is not able to run at her full speed with the extra weight, but she still reaches at least forty miles per hour. She runs for about a minute and veers off the road towards a thick stand of trees. As they reach the trees, Jasele stops and Haley steps down off of her back. Jasele sits and begins taking extremely deep breaths. Haley is not sure if she is okay or not. She is not sure what to do.

Arthur watches them until they are a safe distance down the road. He saw Haley was trying to say something, but he could not understand what it was. As soon as he no longer sees them, Arthur begins to run toward the doctor.

Dr. Modino steps back in surprise as Arthur closes the distance between them. He lifts the shovel and swings it like a baseball bat right as Arthur lunges at him. To the surprise of both of them, it connects with Arthur’s head.

His momentum keeps him moving forward, but the blast from the shovel changes his direction enough he falls just to doctor’s side and slides past him smashing into the side of the gas station. Turning to hit him again, Dr. Modino is shocked when he does not see Arthur lying on the ground, but instead sees a huge hulking form standing over him, roaring at him and showing his teeth.

Before Dr. Modino can even move, Arthur smacks the shovel out of his hand with so much power he can actually hear the crunch of at least one bone breaking. With still no hesitation, he leaps onto him, knocking him to the ground and knocking the wind out of him. The force of impact of Arthur’s arm landing on his shoulder breaks the doctor’s clavicle. The fear in the man’s eyes causes Arthur to remember Haley’s words. He forces himself to calm down and stands up, leaving Dr. Modino lying on the ground, but he keeps eye contact.

“You and Brent deserve to die, but I am not going to do it.” His voice a low growl, “I promise you this: if you ever go anywhere near her again, or try to make any kind of contact with her, I will not hold back.”

He does not wait for a response. He just begins running down the highway in the same direction as Haley and Jasele.

The doctor lays there for a few moments as the gas station owner comes over carrying a shotgun and kneels beside him.

“Don’t worry, sir.” The owner reassures. “I called the police and the hospital. Help is on the way. What was that thing that attacked you? It was like a monster. It doesn’t matter, whatever it is, the police will catch it.”

The owner of the gas station looks down to see the man on the ground is no longer conscious. He stands up and backs up against the wall of the station. He will be ready if it comes back before the police arrive.

Although the pain in Arthur’s head is preventing coherent thought, he is still able to track them down in a matter of minutes. Haley runs up to him and holds him tightly. Jasele is also happy to see him, but remains seated on the ground. Arthur can see she is still recuperating from the run.

“What’s wrong, Arthur?” Haley’s concern is easily apparent in her voice. “Are you hurt? What happened?”

Arthur recounts what happened back at the gas station. Haley is relieved to find Arthur was able to stay in control even though she is not sure she would have been very upset if he hadn’t. She feels Dr. Modino certainly deserves it, especially for hurting Arthur. She can tell he is in a great deal of pain, even though he appears to be trying to play it off as nothing. She decides they must find this James fellow as soon as possible. Arthur and Jasele could both use a safe place to rest for a while.

“Do you think we are close to the turnoff to James’ house?” She is not sure how far down the road Jasele took them, but it has to be fairly close to where they need to be.

Jasele rises to her feet. She is looking much better now.

“His scent is actually pretty strong here.” Jasele turns a little to point towards a hillside. “I think he is just about a quarter mile from here. It would probably be quicker to just walk straight there.”

Arthur inhales, taking in the scent of the area.

“I think you’re right, Jasele. I hadn’t been paying attention. We could be there in less than half an hour.”

They begin walking in the direction Jasele had indicated. Twenty minutes later, they walk out into a clearing in the trees and see a cabin. It is a simple looking structure and fairly new, built within the last few years. It is only one level and probably only has two or three rooms inside. Smoke rises from a small chimney on the left side of the building. A little blue car is parked to the side of the cabin. Jasele and Arthur both recognize James’ car from seeing it at the Compound when they were in the courtyard training.

“It looks like he is here.” Arthur states to the other two. “I’ll knock at the door.”

They walk up to the door together and Arthur raps on the wooden door. It is silent for a few seconds followed by faint shuffling noises. The door opens and a man in his mid-forties appears in the doorway. He is just less than six feet tall and appears to be fairly fit. It is apparent he was once in top physical condition, and the years are beginning to take their toll. His short black hair is starting to gray at the temples and thinning ever so slightly on top. He stands with nearly perfect posture and holds himself in a manner indicating he is used to being shown respect. In complete contrast, his face is kind and gentle in appearance, reminding Haley of her father.

“Ah, Arthur, I was expecting you.” The man looks past Arthur’s massive form. “Oh, Jasele’s with you, too! That’s a relief!” He appears to study Haley for a moment before continuing. “I do not believe I have met you, young lady.”

Arthur moves slightly to one side to allow him to see her completely.

“This is Haley. She has been helping us and she wants to stay with us while we search for the others, as well. Haley, this is James.”

“Nice to meet you, James.” She extends her hand to shake his. “I’ve heard so much about you. It seems you are about the only good thing any of them have in their lives.”

“Well, I did what I could,” sounding a little sad. “I only wish I had found out about them sooner. Haley, hmm… You wouldn’t be Haley Turner by chance?”

“Yes, how did you know my name?”

“Oh, your name sounds familiar to me. Do I know your parents?” The look on his face seems a bit flustered at the conversation’s direction.

“My parents own a resort in Crested Butte, maybe you met them there.”

“That has to be it.” Her answer seems to satisfy James enough to move on.

“How did you know to expect me, James?” Arthur asks. “And how come I was the only one you were expecting?”

“Well, for one, you’re all over the police scanner, Arthur. Speaking of which, you should all come in right away. The radio announced the police will be canvassing door to door to see if they can find out more about the monster who attacked someone at the Parlin gas station.”

“We can talk more downstairs,” he continues. “When I built this house, I had a cellar put in, but I designed it so it can’t be found unless you know it’s there.”

He leads them all into what appears to be his living room. It is simple and plain, consisting of a couch and chair, a bookshelf and a television in the corner. A wideband radio is sitting on one of the shelves. James pulls back a large, circular area rug in the middle of the room. He pushes down on one of the wooden panels and grabs the edge of the panel beside it. He lifts up a large square of floor paneling, revealing a stairway descending into darkness below. He begins to walk down the stairs and flips a switch off to his right side underneath the floor. Several lights suddenly illuminate what appears to be a pretty good sized room below.

The room looks to be nearly as large as the entire cabin’s floor plan. The walls are covered with various framed documents, medals framed into shadow boxes and group pictures of people in uniforms. On the far side of the room is what appears to be a large work bench covered in various electronics and intricate looking tools. In another section of the room there is a couch and a recliner. A pillow and a couple of crumpled blankets lie on the couch. The wall closest to the stairs houses a computer desk covered in computer hardware, including two monitors, various sensors and recording devices and a couple of keyboards. In the little space left uncovered with computer equipment, stacks of paper sit in an organized fashion.

Haley looks around amazed. The room doesn’t seem to fit someone working as basically a caretaker and errand boy. With the number of medals and other awards she sees, she would expect this to be the room of a general or something.

James guides them towards the couch and chair. He quickly grabs the pillow and blankets and deposits them in a chest beside the couch.

“Have a seat. I can’t imagine what you have been through to get here,” he looks at them expectantly.

Arthur begins telling the story of the last weeks. As he goes over the basics, Jasele and Haley add details whenever necessary. Arthur is talking about their meal at the café when a banging noise is heard coming from upstairs.

Everyone except James is startled by the noise. They begin looking at each other in a slight panic. James rises from the chair and walks towards the stairs.

“That’s probably the police going door to door. I will go up and talk to them. I am going to close the paneling and replace the carpet. Try to be absolutely silent. The floor is insulated pretty well, but some noise will get through, so be careful. I’ll come back down after they leave.”

He ascends the stairs and lowers the floorboards. As they hear him sliding the carpet back into position, they hear the banging noise again. James’ muffled voice lets the people at the door know he is coming.

There are sounds of a conversation between James and what sounds like two other men. They exchange words back and forth for about two minutes before there are a few moments of silence. Jasele is very anxious and begins to pace around the room. Haley notices Arthur’s focus is constantly on the panel at the top of the stairs. He appears to be prepared to react at a moment’s notice if anything should go wrong.

The silence is broken by the sounds of at least two people walking around above them. The steps move methodically and slowly around the cabin, pausing occasionally, presumably time the strangers are using to examine something of interest. The footsteps stop again in the living room area, near the secret opening to the basement. There is no sound for several moments. Arthur is concentrating even harder on the floor panel, as if he is trying to hold it shut with his willpower. Jasele continues to circle around the room, becoming more fidgety by the second. Haley is even beginning to get a little nervous.

Jasele’s pacing brings her too close to the workbench and she grazes the handle of a screwdriver causing it to fall towards the ground. She reacts almost instantly, turning to catch the tool. Haley and Arthur turn and see what is happening almost like it is in slow motion. Jasele’s hand makes contact with the screwdriver, but she is not able to grab it. It bounces away from her fingers and hits the ground with a loud clang. As it comes to rest on the ground, it rattles back and forth a few more times before stopping.

All three of them freeze, hoping their silence will erase the clamor of the last few seconds. There is no sound anywhere for at least five seconds, when the footsteps begin again walking toward the part of the floor directly above where Jasele is standing. The footsteps stop again. A mumbling of voices is heard. The strangers are talking back and forth with James again. The voices of the strangers seem a little more insistent than before and James’ voice has become more direct and less conversational.

The footsteps begin again and move back across the room. Arthur follows the sound of the footsteps, like he is preparing to pounce on them through the floor. Jasele looks like she could scream or cry, her face is contorted with fear. Haley is trying to figure out the best way to take advantage of their situation if the panel should open.

The voices begin again, this time more light-hearted. James replies and they hear a door being opened followed a few seconds later by the shutting of a door. Relief begins to wash across all of their faces.

A single set of footsteps walks across the room. They hear the rustle of the rug being swept aside.

“It’s me, James.” He announces. “They’re gone now. I’m coming down.”

He comes down the stairs and walks across the room and picks up the screwdriver off of the ground and places it in a drawer on top of the workbench. He then walks back over to his chair and sits down, prompting the others to do the same.

“Well, that was a little bit of a challenge.” He points back to the workbench. “I had to do some quick talking up there.”

“I am so sorry, James.” Jasele voice is shaky. “I was scared and I couldn’t keep still and I accidentally hit it and I couldn’t catch it and I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, Jasele. It all worked out.”

“What did you say to them?” Arthur’s curiosity gets the best of him. “And who were they anyway?”

“It was the police, like we thought. They informed me they were asking everyone in the area if we had any information on a monster sighted down at the gas station. Apparently, Arthur, you had an altercation with Dr. Modino, a private practice doctor back in Crested Butte. I would like to hear more, but I’ll answer your other question first.”

“They asked to come in so they could look around. They told me it was just procedure. I let them in and they just walked around for a while. I think they were about to leave when they heard the clang of the screwdriver. The officers looked at each other and then walked over to that side of the room. They looked around and asked me what had happened to make the noise.”

“I told them when the house was being built, I was attempting to learn plumbing, so I had decided to put in all of the piping for this house as practice. I then told them it all works, but for some reason I can’t figure out, every time the hot water heater kicks in, the pipes clang. I continued by telling them it happens at least once an hour and even more often in the winter and it is really aggravating. They thought it was amusing, and they proceeded to tell me I should have hired a professional and I get what I pay for. As they were leaving, they told me to be very careful, especially at night and they went on their way. So, we should be safe now, unless there is something I still need to know.”

He looks at Arthur.

“Do you want to tell me the rest of your story now?”

Arthur finishes relating their story, finishing with the altercation in Parlin. The retelling still causes Haley worry and sadness.

James stares at Haley with a thoughtful look on his face.

“So, this was your family doctor and you say his assistant attacked you and tried to kidnap you?”

“I know it seems incredible, but yes.”

“I am so sorry all this has happened to you. It is certainly an unexpected turn of events. I will do my best to protect you from whoever is involved in this, but, in the meantime, it seems like you’ve formed a nice family with these two. I have been alone since high school and finding all of them was like discovering a family for me, too.”

James’ words raise Haley’s spirits and sense of hope, but part of his words seem out of place to her. He said the turn of events was unexpected. She feels like asking him about it, but it could have been nothing, so she decides to assume the same for now.

They spend quite a bit of the evening telling stories back and forth. It is a nice time of relaxation and peace for all of them. Haley tells of her life growing up in Crested Butte and many stories of her parents and the adventures they would have together. She seems torn between joy and sadness while she speaks and James notices Arthur seems especially concerned for her and comforts her quite often. He is not exactly sure what the extent of their relationship is, but he knows Arthur could use someone like Haley in his life. Likewise, Arthur would be good for Haley, as well. Jasele is very animated while they are talking about recent events, like shopping for clothes or eating in the restaurant. He looks at her with concern. She has always wanted to have people around her and she gets so sad when she is by herself. They have all grown very close in a very short time. He worries that the coming days will force them apart. They are risking everything they have recently gained in a rescue attempt. It would be better if he went by himself.

“James,” Haley interrupts his contemplation, “if you don’t mind my asking, could you tell me about yourself? I see all these awards and documents on the wall and this room seems to have a lot of technical equipment. You seem like so much more than someone who is laboring for and cleaning up after a bunch of technicians.”

“You’re very perceptive, Haley,” he begins. He leans back in his chair and a small smile appears upon his face. He is looking forward to answering her question.

“Growing up, my parents were very eccentric. They were of the mind that life is something that you need to enjoy all aspects of or you are not living it at all. They were constantly moving us from place to place and I was never in the same school for more than a year and a half. By the time I became accustomed to a new school and started to do well, we moved again. I was constantly struggling to keep up and barely graduated from high school.

“My home life was anything but stable. Neither of my parents ever had more than a temporary job, and at least four different times while I was growing up, we had to live in our car. I did get to see a lot of the United States and spent more time with my parents than most kids probably did, but I never had friends for very long and struggling to get by was devastating, especially when kids around me would make fun of my patched clothes and taped shoes.”

Haley’s thoughts turn to her parents. She has been feeling hurt and betrayed and more than a little angry at them for keeping it a secret she was adopted. She doesn’t believe there ever would have been a good time to tell her, though. They always seem to have her best interests in mind and, if anything, she takes their support for granted. They chose to raise her and did a good job and must have had reasons for their actions

“When I did graduate,” James continues, “I joined the Marines. My grades were not good enough to get scholarships and my parents did not have any money for college, so I figured that was my only option. I served for twenty-two years working my way up to a Colonel in Special Operations. I trained and specialized in electronics and computers.

“During those twenty-two years, I was involved in many missions and government deployments. I have served on special projects with all of the branches of the military. I have even had the privilege of serving on the security council for the United States.”

While James has been talking, Arthur has been looking around the room at all of the items on the walls. He had never realized how much James had done in his life before he had met him. He wonders why James had not told him about all of this before. Arthur focuses back on his story, not wanting to miss any of it.

“The military was a perfect fit for me. I needed discipline and order in my life and I found it in the service. There were times I thought about starting a family, but I was never able to get over the fear of being like my own parents, so I always pushed it off. I put everything I had into the service; I seized every opportunity and volunteered for every project and operation.

“About twenty years ago, I volunteered for an operation, code named LifeWild. At the time, the government was eagerly trying to find out as much as they could about the human body. I’d been involved in operations testing human endurance and limitations, projects trying to determine the parameters of human memory and recall, and I had even volunteered to participate in a study on psychic abilities.”

Haley is fascinated by the types of experiments James was involved in. She decides she will have to ask him more specific questions later.

“LifeWild was supposed to study the genetics of human subjects and other mammals and determine how the similarities and differences could be used to increase the knowledge of the human body and perhaps lead to discovery of ways to make humans stronger, smarter and healthier. For my part in the project, they took various samples from my body. The researchers wanted as many different genetic samples as possible. They drew blood, took tissue and bone marrow samples and even collected sperm cells. The operation was to be purely theoretical, they were going to use lab experimentation to draw conclusions and come up with new theories; actual creation and implementation was not part of the project.

“I’d forgotten about the project until about five years ago. I guess I was feeling a little bit like I had spent my whole life working toward a goal and had suddenly realized I didn’t realize what it was. I was getting older and was beginning to think I had pushed aside starting a family to the point where it was becoming very unlikely. It was then I remembered I had been a part of LifeWild.

“If my samples had helped come up with a cure for a disease, or been a part in making humans better in some way, then I would have left a mark in the world. I would have done some good for those who will come after me. I was excited at the prospect. I researched what had become of the project and was instantly disappointed. The project closed out all major research after only a year with no notable breakthroughs.

“I almost let it go right there. I don’t know why, maybe I was too disheartened to accept what I’d read, but I dug a little deeper into the files. It was then I found out a significant amount of the original funding was still being budgeted to ‘maintaining existing experimentation to its natural conclusion.’”

“What does that mean?” Jasele is leaning forward, listening intently.

“That’s what I wanted to know, too, Jasele.” James turns in her direction.

“I tried to dig deeper, but found the rest of the information was top secret. I couldn’t access it, even at my rank. That certainly got my attention!”

“Is that all you ever found out?” Haley can’t believe it. She would be so frustrated.

“Well,” James adds, “I backtracked a little and found the identification number of my samples and followed their paper trail. It turns out there are five secret locations in Colorado still getting funds for this part of the project. I also learned those funds are being approved through an agency called BARDA which is part of the US Department of Health and Human Services.”

“Barda?” Jasele is confused about what she is hearing. “That sounds like a woman’s name. Is she the one behind all of this?”

“No, BARDA’s not a woman,” James explains. “It’s an acronym. The letters make up the initials of a larger title. It stands for Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. Apparently, the agency works to research and develop medical products for public health medical emergencies. They work to prevent diseases from wiping out the population and making humans stronger against disease. LifeWild was designed to be a proactive way to improve the lives of humans; at least it was supposed to seem like it was doing that. I am pretty sure the project was always a cover for something illegal and corrupt. I think someone of high rank in Health and Human Services designed the project to hide and fund genetic experimentation. So, when the project was examined from the outside and shut down, contingencies were put in place to keep the secret goal of the project funded.”

“Was the Compound one of those five locations you were telling us about?” Arthur assumes it must be, but wants to make sure.

“Exactly, Arthur. The information I was able to find led me to the Compound, the lab just north of Gunnison.”

Haley is starting to piece all of it together. The lab Arthur and Jasele were in must be the same lab in which he traced his samples. She is anxious to find out if there is a connection there.

“I had some of the members of my office contact the location a few times and they always received the runaround. Nothing about this seemed right. I sent some of my enlisted up to the location to set up surveillance. They returned with incredible news. They reported seeing a flying creature the size of a human. They had watched it flying through the air and then they watched it being taken into the main building.

“Laila!” Jasele jumps up in excitement. “That had to be Laila.”

“That’s right, it was,” He confirms Jasele’s conclusion. “When they reported back to me, it certainly was not what I was expecting to hear, nor was it anything that anyone higher up would believe without proof. I decided if I turned in what they reported to the government, all evidence would be covered up or removed, especially if someone high up was pulling the strings. If I was going to find anything out, I was going to have to work outside procedure, so it was then I made the decision to let my military contract run out and retire.”

Arthur looks confused. He does not know very much about the military, but it seems powerful. He is not sure how giving that up could be helpful.

“Wouldn’t you have been able to do more if you hadn’t retired?”

James is quiet for a few moments.

“Believe me, I thoroughly debated both sides of the issue. I knew whatever was going on was most likely illegal, or at the very least not being disclosed to the government. Any threat of exposure would lead those behind it to try to cover everything up or destroy all evidence, so I was worried if I requested a formal investigation I would miss any chance at finding out what was happening.”

“If I retired, though, I would be free to investigate things myself. I could gather evidence from within and when I had enough, I would go to the proper authorities.”

“How did you know they would let you work at the Compound,” Haley asks, “especially knowing your background?”

“That was the tricky part. I didn’t know how I would get them to let me in. I called in some favors and had a brand new identity created.” He looks at Arthur and Jasele. “I don’t think I ever told you my last name, but the one I used at the Compound is not my actual last name. My real name is James, though.

“My entire background was made from scratch. I became a working class, high school graduate from Denver. I had attended a technical school and had focused on computer maintenance and electronic repair. I had some references falsified and I even had people ready to answer phone calls from my prospective employer.

“I watched the area for several weeks to get an idea of the comings and goings of the technicians when they left the Compound. One of the places they would often visit was City Market in Gunnison.

“I applied to work as a stocker there. I worked for several weeks getting a good reputation and making sure my face was easily visible whenever the technicians came into the store.”

“That seems really elaborate.” Jasele is amazed at what he is telling them. “How did you know they would hire you?”

“I’ve found most places are always looking for people to fill entry level positions. Once I was in, it was just a matter of time. With enough patience, almost anything is possible.”

“What did you do next?” Arthur is eager to hear the rest of the story.

“I began helping them load their truck when they came in, showing them how hard I could work. After some casual questioning, they told me they worked in a lab. I asked if they knew of any openings. I told them I wanted to work in a lab as an assistant and I had experience with computer and electronic equipment. They told me they would check into it for me.

“A week later, I was called in for an interview. My new background must have been good enough, because I was hired. They told me the lab was a highly classified government operation and that I was to stick to my duties and not ask any questions, or else I would be fired and charges would be filed for conspiracy against the government. I am pretty sure they were attempting to scare me out of being too nosy.

“Over the next five years, I was a busy man. I dutifully did everything the technicians gave me to do, to the best of my abilities and at the same time I did what I could for all of you in the Compound to hopefully make life a little less miserable. During the day, when I was not working, I spent my free time building this cabin, making sure to include the hidden basement in case a need for it ever arose.

“I also spent a great deal of time hacking into their computer systems. I reprogrammed their security protocols so that I could access their database from any location on their network. I found and read any and all files related to this project and spent a great deal of time copying and transferring relevant files to a dummy location on the server. I learned all about each of the secret compounds and how many are at each location. I even found out they had started the experimentation with a small group of infants just to see if the genetic recombination would work and then sold them off to the highest bidder.” He glances sympathetically towards Haley before continuing. “The thing that took the most time was getting the names of the people at the top. Hacking into the Health and Human Services databank is no easy matter. I was finally able to, this last winter. I finally have all the proof I need to go to the authorities. I just have to download it all to a flash drive. I should have already done it, but I was trying to find a last bit of information. Of course, now that I was fired, I no longer have access to their computers and the network where I have the files stored.”

“You were fired?” Arthur is shocked. He knew James broke a lot of rules to help them, but he always covered his tracks so well. He just assumed he would never get caught. It would explain, though, why Jasele saw him leaving the same day of the breakout and never coming back.

“Yes. I set off the master release for all the rooms in the Compound. It is a safety feature to be used in the event of a major fire. I saw the fire in the room you were training in, Arthur, and I figured it would be a perfect opportunity for you all to escape. It worked pretty well, too. Seven of you made it out after Arthur.”

He looks down at the ground, a sad look appearing on his face.

“If only I had mentioned chip removal more often. I know I brought it up from time to time, but obviously not enough. Arthur, you and Jasele are the only ones that remembered to take it out. They captured everyone else before I had even left. Everyone but Penelope, but you said she was captured that night, so I blew one of the best chances most of you had for freedom.”

“Don’t be sad, James.” Jasele says, trying to sound reassuring. “I’m out because of you. I remembered the chip. You told us enough, the others were probably too scared or frantic to think about anything other than getting away as fast as they could. I only remembered when I had to sit and rest after my initial run.”

“That is nice of you to say, and you may be right, Jasele, but part of me will always regret not making chip removal second nature to all of you.”

“You still haven’t said why they fired you.” Arthur mentions curiously. “If you saw the fire, wouldn’t it be correct to release everyone for their own protection?”

“That’s the way I had hoped they would look at it, yes.” James looks a little embarrassed. “They told me it was obvious the fire was very small and already being contained. Later, in the courtyard, they began arguing with me. They told me I seemed to be trying to help you escape and I had been helping all of you the entire time I had been there.”

He looks at Jasele.

“They also noticed the way I was gesturing for you and the others to escape. They told me I must have developed a soft spot for all of you and I was a liability. I was told to leave that day and never to come back.

“It turns out it didn’t matter if I came back or not, they completely abandoned the place a few days later.”

“Do you know where they would have taken the others?” Haley asks.

“I am pretty sure I do, actually. I told you already I had discovered four other locations besides the one near Gunnison. Well, one of the things I found out from looking through their files is the Compound is one of the smaller facilities. Two of the other four can house up to sixty and one of them can hold over one hundred easily. Of the four locations, all of them are nearly at capacity except one of the ones that can hold sixty. It only had twenty the last time I looked, so my best guess is they were all moved there.”

“Where is it?” Jasele is enthusiastic again. “Is it close to here?”

“Well, it’s reasonably close if you are driving. It is about twelve miles south of the town of Molina, in the Grand Mesa National Forest, which is about one hundred and sixty miles from here. I’ve been thinking about what to do. I could go there and sneak in somehow. Once I am in, I can download the files I’ve gathered onto a flash drive and release the locks on all the rooms on the way out. If all of the places are operated the same way, going in at night will be the best option. There will be very few people there, and I could easily subdue one or two of them.”

“That sounds like it will work,” Arthur agrees, “except for one thing. They are our family and we’re going to go with you, so don’t try to say otherwise.”

“I won’t.” James says with a smile on his face. “I actually know exactly how you feel. I would go to any lengths for my family as well.”