The Anomaly Project

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

AUTUMN

"Dad," I croak out. I meant to say it louder, but all that comes out is a hoarse whisper. My legs move of their own accord, carrying me forward, toward him.

"Autumn..." Haley says in a warning tone, but I ignore her. She snatches my sleeve and pulls me back. "Autumn," she says again, looking hard at me. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"What?" I yank my arm free of her grip. "We came all this way just to find my father, and now here he is sitting in front of us, and you don't think it's a good idea for me to go to him?"

"No, I don't," she says matter-of-factly. "There's something weird about this whole setup." Haley glances around the room, a worried look casting a shadow over her usually cheerful face. "It seemed almost too easy, you know? If having your father locked up really mattered that much to Forrester, the security would have been a lot better."

"Who cares?!" My voice is irritable. "We found him. That's what we came to do. And I don't care if it was 'too easy' or not. I'm just glad it wasn't harder."

I step in his direction again, and Haley once again pulls me back. "Come on, Autumn, you have to admit there's something not right about this. What if this is a trap? Or a trick?"

"You can leave if you want," I say, nodding to the door. "I won't stop you." To be fair, Haley's probably right; it is most likely some kind of trap. But I'm so overwhelmed to see my dad that I'm totally beyond caring at this point.

For the third time, I walk to my father, but this time Haley doesn't stop me. She just sighs and takes out her spear. The sound of scraping metal echoes throughout the room as the spear extends and unfolds.

I reach Dad, and kneel by his side. Luckily, he's not chained or shackled, excluding the metal cuff on his ankle. His eyes fix on me, but they're as blank and unseeing as they were in Forrester's office so long ago. "Come on, Dad," I say, picking up his arm and slinging it across my shoulders. "We have to go."

He doesn't answer. I don't think he's even aware of the situation. He isn't responsive, but he isn't resisting, either. "Haley," I call. "Come help me out."

I think I hear her sigh quietly, almost inaudibly, but she comes over and swings Dad's other arm across her own shoulders. Together we move forward, supporting his weight. His feet drag along the floor, and his head lolls to the side. He's passed out again.

"We won't get very far like this," says Haley. I clench my jaw, knowing she's right. We'll be caught within minutes if we keep moving this slow. But we can't move any faster.

"We have to find Colton," I suggest. "He'd be able to carry my dad, no problem."

"Autumn, this is a huge building. We'd be lucky to find an exit. We have no idea where Colton is, and we don't have the time to run around looking for him. How are we going to—?"

"I know!" I interrupt. "I know. But we have to try."

There is absolutely no way I am leaving my father here again. Not again.

Haley nods, gritting her teeth. She knows she can't change my mind. "Fine. Let's find Colton. Hopefully he's somewhere on this floor."

I don't respond; I'm too focused on moving as fast as I can while supporting my dad. He's not nearly as heavy as a man of his age should be, but he's still pretty heavy.

The overhead lights snap on, momentarily blinding both Haley and I. "They got the power back on," I mumble, my eyes aching. I squint over at her. "Can you shut the electricity down again?"