Precedent

Chapter Sixteen

A-M and I are able to drag Taylor to the Mission Leader's office before we are too tired. I keep pulling though. A-M takes Taylor's hand out of mine.

"Hey, Ardal, stop it. You're going to strain a muscle," he tells me.

"Well, he's going to die!" I wail.

"Here, let me do it." I can tell it's straining him too, but he hoists Taylor mostly over his bag. A-M wears a pained look as he makes his way to the door. I feel a twinge of pain as I see that he is limping more than usual.

I open the door for him, the least I could do. To my delight I find Ryan and Danny standing on the other side. It looks like Danny was about to open it.

"Oh, I've never been so glad to see you two!" I exclaim, hugging them quickly. They look surprised.

"Is that Cray Anderson?" Ryan asks, pointing to Taylor.

"Yes, but he's also dying. Can you help?" Danny nods and he and Ryan push past me to reach A-M.

A-M sets Taylor down on the floor. He then lifts up his upper body. Ryan and Danny carry the rest of him. I bite my lip. What if this still isn't enough? It turns out to be though. They are able to carry him up stairs and half-way to the hospital-wing before they have to stop for breath.

"I could help," I suggest. I don't want to complain, but we don't have time for breaks. Taylor doesn't have time for breaks.

"No," A-M says, "we're fine. You go try to find your mother."

"Wait...her mother?" Ryan asks. "You know who your parents are?" I nod.

"Cray, who is really Taylor Greycen, Franklin's son, is my father and Mission Leader is my mother." Ryan and Danny stare at me. Finally A-M breaks the silence.

"Ardal, you really need to go find Venus...I mean, Mission Leader. We don't know what Franklin might have done to her."

I hesitate. That's when I remember Sabrina.

"Where's Sabrina?" I ask. Danny and Ryan exchange glances.

"Unconscious," Danny states.

Ryan explains, "We did what you said and distracted your mother. However, when we found Franklin, he didn't buy it. We tried to subdue him, but he hit Sabrina over the head. We're good, but we only fight R.A.C.O.'s."

"Where is she" I repeat.

"In a downstairs corridor. Can't remember which one," Ryan says.

"Thank you," I tell them before hurrying back down the dimly lit corridor. I have to find my best friend...and my mom.

I find Sabrina lying in the doorway to the stairs. She was on level three, two levels below Mission Leader's office and the time machine. It looks like she was going after Franklin when he hit her.

I feel a surge of anger towards him. Maybe I gave him too kind a fate. It was my only choice at the time though.

I shake Sabrina. Hopefully Franklin didn't use something on her. Ryan just said he hit her though.

Sabrina stirs.

"Olivia," she says, recognizing me immediately, "I'm sorry...I...I wasn't able to stop Franklin."

"It's okay," I assure her. "Is your head okay?"

"But Franklin..."

"Was actually the Originator," I finish. Her eyes widen. Before she can inquire, I ask, "Is your head okay?" She smiles.

"Yes, Olivia. I'm fine. Where's Cray?" I wince. Sabrina picks up on it.

"What happened?" she asks, sitting up.

"I found out my parent's identities. Taylor Greycen is my father, which makes the Originator my grandfather." I squirm at the thought. "And Mission Leader is my mom."

"Wow," she says quietly. I nod. "Do you want help finding Mission Leader, well, your mother?" I smile. She's definitely fine if she's ready to see Mission Leader face-to-face after tricking her.

"Yes, thanks." I help her t her feet. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Ditto," she agrees. "Where should we begin?"

We search all of the levels below. We don't find her. I begin to get worried as we approach level four.

We don't find any trace of Mission Leader-or anyone else-until level six. I see blood and light brown hair.

"Do you think that's hers'" Sabrina asks cautiously as I kneel down to examine what we've found. It's her color, but I don't tell Sabrina this.

"I don't know," I state. "Maybe." Sabrina tries for a smile.

"We'll find her," Sabrina promises. "I'm sure of it." I'm skeptical. I think we'll find her. I don't know what condition we'll find her in though. That is what frightens me.

"She could've gone up to the hospital," I suggest tentatively. "Someone could've told her what happened. Danny or Ryan."

"Wouldn't they have found you to tell you not to worry? I mean, if they spoke to her. You were supposed to be finding her, right?" Sabrina asks. I shrug.

"They might not have had time if they were too busy with Taylor," I reply. "But, yeah, I was supposed to be looking for her."

I open the door the leads to the level five corridors. When I do, I see more blood. Sabrina screams.

"What?" I hiss, looking around for any signs of my mom or the others. The hospital is on this floor.

Slowly and shakily, Sabrina points to something down the hall.

I approach it hesitantly. I'm praying it isn't what I think it is. It's dark, so I can't tell.

The shape turns out not to be my mother's body. It's the body of one of the nurses. Her name was Ivy, I believe.

Even in the dim light, I can tell she's dead. There is a bullet hole in her chest. Did Franklin kill her before coming to his workshop? Probably. But this corridor is pretty far from where I found Sabrina. The odds are...slim at best.

"Not my mom!" I call to Sabrina. She nods nervously. I realize then that she's expecting to find Venus dead. I also realize that I am too.

I shiver. Not because it's cold, although, now that I think about it, this place is too cold to be a hospital. No. I'm worried, really worried now.

Then I have an idea. We found a trail of blood. Maybe Franklin shot Ivy downstairs and she came up here. That would make sense.

But I don't think that's what happened.

Before following Sabrina down the corridor, I close Ivy's eyes. I hate the unstaring eyes of the dead. It's what tells you they're not unconscious or asleep. The eyes tell you there isn't any hope.

Sabrina and I tip-toe into the hospital room. Sprawled on his chest in the doorway is the doctor, Reynolds. He too was shot.

Dread begins to creep into my chest. I step over Dr. Reynolds' body. Who else am I going to find dead.

The room is big. White curtains separate parts of it. It's probably for privacy for the patients. I begin throwing them apart, searching for Taylor, A-M, Danny, and Ryan.

Only two beds are occupied. One must have a body in it, because the bed-sheet covers the face and everything.

I move past them to the other occupied room. Inside, Taylor is lying on the bed. Ryan and Danny are unconscious on the ground.

I breathe in sharply. So does Sabrina from a little ways behind me. I hear a thud.

I turn around. Sabrina is lying on the ground. She's unconscious.

I'm not alone in here. Someone else is awake. This someone who has killed two people and knocked out three.

I hear a muffled scream just before I feel something slam into the back of my head. As I fall to the ground, I realize I was the one who was screaming.