The First

Chapter 43

Once again the generic chime and buzz startled Alexa. Without looking she clicked 'talk' on the cell.

"Teagan?" All she wanted, all she needed, was to hear Teagan's voice.

"Alexa, it's Ross," he whispered.

Wrong voice. Why wasn't Teagan calling from her phone? This question sank deep into her gut like a wild boar in quicksand. They should have been back by now. She couldn't help but think something must have gone terribly wrong.

"Where are you? Why are you whispering?"

"We're in the back of the semi truck. The Trills attacked our caravan. They crashed the fire truck. Semi's tipped over, the driver and guards are dead and our specimen is missing."

Alexa took a deep breath. She didn't want to ask the next question. But he did say 'we', so the spark of hope settled her nerves a bit. "Is she alive?"

"She's with me. We're safe, but not out of danger."

Reprieved for the moment from the insanity which followed the tri-alleles every move, she sighed. "You said Trills, plural?"

"Yeah."

"How many?"

"I'm not certain. Two attacked the fire-truck. Maybe three? I think they rescued the one we captured."

"Interesting." She meant to think it. Had the Trills somehow organized? Did they have a hierarchy? Their current actions certainly gave the perception of coordination, planning, and possibly plotting. Much higher brain function activity than she had anticipated. This could be a good thing. It meant they could be taught.

"Interesting?" Ross growled. "They killed everyone and rescued their own. This is so far from fucking interesting it's pitiful."

Stressful situations did breed acrimony. "You and Teagan are safe. What about Ellie?" She couldn't keep the tremble out of her voice. Although Ellie had the foulest mouth of just about anyone she knew, her fondness for the girl had grown over the years. If she had to choose, Ellie could be considered her favorite of Teagan's friends.

"I'm not sure. We heard her scream and I think I saw...Her attack is the reason we're hiding."

"There's nothing you can do?" Teagan sniffled in the background.

"You don't understand. There are at least three of them out there. If I give away our position, they'll kill all of us."

Alexa cringed at the thought of Teagan and Ross facing three of the vicious creatures. "Understandable under the circumstances, but I believe if you are talking, your position is already compromised."

At hummingbird speed her mind went through every scenario she could think of. Then, as if her synapses had all fired at once, she realized what she needed to do. "I'm coming to get you."

"No way! The world needs you where you are. Call the National Guard." His tone dictated command.

"This is not a democracy." She'd made up her mind. This would be a good opportunity to test out one of her theories.

"For a genius, you're out of your damn mind? You can't come down here."

"I can bring something to you that will help, possibly save your lives."

"What?"

"Tell her to bring the army," Teagan said in the background.

Ross shushed her.

"One of the side effects of the agent I'm developing should suppress the mutated gene, to an extent."

"Should? You're not convincing me. What if it doesn't work?"

"We die, dumbass," Teagan interjected.

Alexa knew, the formula would work. "It's a chance we have to take. It's been tested over and over."

"But you haven't tested it on a live Trill. What's it supposed to do?"

The equations spun in her mind. But in layman's terms, they meant a breakdown in the molecular structure of the Trill's thick skin. "It should make them more vulnerable to our weapons."

"How?"

"We don't have time to get into that right now. I'm on my way."

"Don't do it," Ross pleaded.

She'd already made up her mind and hung up on him.

"Ray!"

Ray speed-walked into the room. "What? The test is done. Another positive."

"Good. Make four vials of the serum. Get one of the guns we use to inject animal test subjects and load the vials into the darts."

"What the hell, Boss?"

"I'm going to get them."

He hesitated.

"Do it now!" Sometimes his lackluster raked her like nails across sandpaper.

"Fine. But you're going to get yourself killed." He stomped out of the room.

"I don't care. I have to do something." She sat back in her chair trying to think of another way. Police, fire, SWAT? They seemed to be the ones in trouble. "It's the only way."

Five minutes later Ray jogged back in. "Here." He slapped the gun onto the table and set a small case with several darts on the table next to it.

"Loaded with the serum?" She picked up the small box of darts.

"Yes." He covered the gun with his hand. "You can't do this."

"That's not your decision." Alexa pulled on her trench coat and put the gun in one pocket, the cartridges in another.

With the weapon secured she stormed out of the building and jogged to her car. Another ambulance sped by with lights flashing and siren blaring. No doubt another attack victim. This madness had to stop. No more attacks. No more killings. She couldn't even think of an alternative if the serum didn't work--it had to.

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