A yowl seared the air. Kristi froze, not sure which direction the sound was coming from.
“They found a trail,” a voice rang out.
Sniffers! Her brain screeched. Get back to the koi-pond before they spot you. She traded caution in for speed, hurtling through the vegetation and not caring that she was trampling patches of meticulously cared for flowers and plants.
“Sir! I saw a movement to the left,” a female voice called out. “Requesting permission to investigate.”
“Permission granted.”
Kristi leapt over a rotting log and skidded around a muddy patch of ground. She backpedaled immediately. A Sniffer snapped at her ankles and let out a bark.
“Target located!” the Searcher behind the Sniffer yelled.
The other Searchers shouted back their replies, but Kristi was too distracted to make out their words. She sprinted towards the pond. Halfway to the pond though, she abruptly changed directions. What am I thinking? I’ll give away the hiding place if I go there, Kristi thought.
Something heavy pounced onto Kristi’s back, sending her sprawling across the ground. A Sniffer pinned her in place. Jeez, how much does the droid-dog weigh? 150 pounds? 200? The other dogs were onto her in an instant.
The Searchers came into view. A woman officer knelt down besides Kristi and said, “Where are the other Accidents?” She made a command for the Sniffer to get off Kristi then wrenched her onto her feet.
“I don’t know,” Kristi said. “I lost sight of them.”
The Searcher snapped to attention when the commanding officer of the Search unit arrived. “Sir, requesting permission to search surrounding area for trail.”
“Permission granted.”
“Here, somebody take care of this thing.” The woman pushed Kristi away from her, as if she was infected with a transmittable disease.
She stumbled into a pair of open arms.
“Well, we met again, Freak,” said a familiar voice.
Kristi spun around. “It’s you.”
Mason smirked. “Who else would it be?”
He released Kristi for a moment, but it was only so that he could pull her arms behind her back to secure them in a pair of handcuffs before she had a chance to run away.
“I’ll take care of her,” said a Searcher, stepping out from the back of the group.
“Who are you?” Mason asked.
“Officer Holnes.”
“I don’t recognize you.”
“New member to this Search unit,” Holnes said. He made an attempt to grab Kristi, but Mason jerked her out of reach.
“Commander Klove, when was Holnes added to this unit?”
That was when Kristi noticed Commander Klove was missing.
“Imposter!” Mason yelled. He directed the remaining Searchers, “Seize him!”
The Searchers lunged for Holnes, but more people had melted out of the shadows. None of the newcomers were clothed in Searcher uniforms. Nobody knew who was on whose side. It was complete madness.
Now’s my chance to make an escape, Kristi thought. But she hadn’t taken three steps before a person tackled her to the ground. She fell on her back, her handcuffed hands digging into her lower back. Her attacker was Officer Holnes.
“Are you part of the Revealers?” she asked.
“No,” he said, then stuck a needle into her arm.
The world turned into a kaleidoscope of colors and patterns. The last thing Kristi thought before she lost consciousness was, At least I kept Chelsa, Finn and Troop safe for now. If only I could do the same with the Accidents in New Genes Lab.
chapter fifty-one
The trapdoor swung open and a body fell through the entryway. Troop jumped to his feet.
“Kristi?”
His heart sank immediately when he saw that the person was a guy.
The guy stood up and shook Troop’s hand. “I’m Pier. Nick sent me to let you know it’s safe to go back to their apartment. The door-to-door search has been called off for the day.” Pier ceased his talking for a moment to look about him. “I thought there were four of you.”
“There are,” Chelsa said.
“Then who’s missing?”
“Kristi,” Troop answered. “You haven’t seen her by any chance, have you? The last time I saw her was…about four hours ago.”
Pier shook his head. “Come on, we better leave before curfew’s in place.”
“But what if Kristi comes back here and doesn’t know where we are?” He faced Chelsa and Finn. “You guys go ahead with Pier. I’ll wait here for a bit and see if Kristi comes back.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Pier said.
Chelsa flashed Troop an understanding countenance. “You stay here if you really want to. Don’t get caught on your way back to the Filches’.”
Pier didn’t protest against Chelsa. “See you in a while,” he said to Troop. “I’ll leave you a change of clothes behind the koi-pond plaque. You’ll attract too much attention if you walk around the city in soaked clothes.”
With that, Pier pushed open the trapdoor and allowed Chelsa and Finn to exit the hideout before him.
You can’t stay here forever, Troop’s conscience nagged him. It’s almost midnight. It’s time to face the truth: Kristi got caught. He clenched his fist and cracked his stiff neck. It was time to leave.
He repacked his belongings into his backpack and zipped it shut. Then he shoved the trapdoor upwards and jumped, breaking through the thin gel membrane acting as a barrier between the water and underground shelter. The sudden change of pressure shocked Troop for a second, and then he swam towards the surface.
The full moon radiated a strong glow, making the droplets of water suspended midair fracture the rays of moonlight shining through. Using strong strokes, Troop made his way to the pond’s perimeter and located the spare clothes. He exchanged his sopping t-shirt for a dry one and left the Meditation Garden.
chapter fifty-two
She was a bird again. A dove, to be precise. Like in her previous dream, all species of flamboyant birds flocked around her, screeching, cawing, and squawking. The noise was not the least bit euphonious.
She knew she was dreaming, but that didn’t make the dream seem any less surreal.
The other birds continued to barrage her with claws and talons and beaks. She simply spread open her wings and took flight. Soon, she was coasting over the highest mountain peaks on Earth.
She kept on ascending and saw the thin layers of the Earth’s atmosphere come into view. She was flying at a speed faster than the speed of light. No longer was she bound to the Earth’s gravitational pull; she was floating in space.
She gracefully flew her way around stars, planets and moons. She circled the sun three times and then left the Milky Way. She flew through stellar nebulas, asteroid belts and black holes. She experienced vertigo when she spiraled through dark matter. She shadowed a shooting star, flying faster than she had ever dared. Faster. Faster. She was a mere speck in the universe. Then she was nothing.
Her eyelids flashed open. She sat upright, appraising her surroundings. Where am I? she wondered, then, Who am I?
chapter fifty-three
12 days. 288 hours. 17,280 minutes. That was the amount of time that had elapsed since Troop had lost Kristi. The Revealers had dispatched a search party, but came up with nothing. The search party was cancelled three days ago. The trail had gone cold.