The Lost Ones

10 - Adrian

"Why, hello there Adrian. It is very good to see you again," Dr Magannor looks at me beadily through his spectacles. "Do you remember me?"

I nod my head slightly. Of course I remember him. He was in charge of all my testing in my childhood, he is the reason I had no childhood to speak of. He made my life a misery.

"Well, since your little, uh, incident a few days ago," He says, referring to me and Lela escaping into the desert. "We at the hospital have had to double the security. You've caused us quite a lot of trouble, my boy."

"At least part of my plan is going right, then." I growl. Magannor stays perfectly calm and composed.

"Now, now, you musn't go on with that kind of attitude. Think of all the people you're helping..."

"Stop. Stop right now. Stop saying that. Put another record on. You are helping nobody. People are dying. I'm not helping anyone." Can't they see that this is just all pointless?

"Anyway, that isn't what I want to talk to you about, Adrian. Your little friend Lela, she's been found. We know her whereabouts." Magannor says in a monotone. I look up. Lela's alive. She's okay. Suddenly, I feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest, like I can finally breathe after being underwater for quite some time.

"Ah, that's caught your attention, hasn't it? Yes, we know where she is. We've offered her a deal." He smiles again, but his tone of voice is strange. The way he says it makes me think the deal he's giving Lela isn't a very good one.

"What exactly are you offering her?" I say suspiciously. His face remains a fixed smile, but his eyes are dead and staring.

"Nothing you need to worry about."

"You're lying."

"My, you're not very trusting, are you?"

"Why should I have any reason to trust you?" I expect him to not have an answer, but he brings his face closer to mine.

"Look, Adrian. If I'd wanted to kill you, I could have done it a very long time ago. Despite you being immune to the disease, you are of no use for treatment. Lela, however," My stomach tightens; I'm dreading what he's about to say. "Her blood type is compatible for patient treatment. We need her, but she wasn't willing to carry on without you. Trust me, I like you no more than you like me."

"So... the only one you actually need is Lela?" My short-lived feeling of happiness that Lela was alive was soon followed by a strong feeling of dread. What would they do to her if she was the only one that could create a cure for the disease?

"Yes. Her blood could, mixed with certain chemicals, destroy diseased cells and create immune cells in their place. We have found treatment to prolong the lives of our patients, but it doesn't stop them losing their minds and eventually dying." He shakes his head.

"But what does that mean for Lela?"

"Well, son, unfortunately she would have to die. She'd lose most of her blood; making it impossible for her to survive the operation." Magannor makes an attempt to pat my shoulder comfortingly, but I wriggle away, disgusted.

"Can't she have a blood transfusion?" I refuse to accept that they want Lela to die.

"We have discovered through other immune people like yourself that normal blood doesn't work with your organs. Your bodies have grown so used to immune cells in your body it makes it impossible for it to function without them. It would kill her anyway. So you see, the girl must die." He doesn't look at all sorry. I can feel the anger building.

"And how exactly did you find that out? By testing on people? By cutting them open and taking a chance to see if they die? You make me sick!"

Who knows how many people have died for a pointless cause. I just knew that I didn't want Lela to become one of the hundreds of names that have been forgotten through the years of the hospital testing on them. Then I remember the people I met in the waiting room: Maisie, Thia and Jake.

"What about the three kids in the waiting room that you put me in? What about them? What are you going to do with them?" I ask, frowning. Why has Magannor kept them alive too if he only needs Lela?

"They are immune, like you and Lela, but we only need them for test trials. We want to see how certain chemicals will react with their blood. You'll soon be joining them; don't worry about being alone. You'll soon forget about your little girlfriend in no time." He smiles again, but it's like he's trying not to kill me.

There is a buzz on the intercom and a crackly voice speaks.

"Dr Magannor? A large group of minors are headed to the building, armed with guns. We need your assistance. Thank you." It buzzes off.

"Ah," Dr Magannor turns to me, but he's no longer smiling. "That must be Lela."