Everland(6)

She is the same age as my mother, but other than that the Professor is nothing like her. As dark as my mother’s hair, eyes, and heart are, the Professor is equally the opposite. She possesses wild hair, bright eyes, and a nurturing demeanor with the kids my men bring to her. Her kindness to the children both maddens and intrigues me.

“Pack the lab up. We’re leaving Everland for good,” I say.

The Professor’s gaze flicks toward me and she does a double take, suddenly noticing me. Her eyes become wide and glassy.

“Leaving?” she asks.

“I’ve done what I came here to do. We will return to the Bloodred Queen tonight!”

She shakes her head and presses her lips together. “I am not going anywhere with you.”

“Trust me, I’d leave you here in a heartbeat. You’ve accomplished nothing close to finding a cure. Consider it an act of mercy that I don’t abandon you in Everland,” I say, tamping down a burst of fury. I head to the door, afraid to turn back. Afraid she’ll call my bluff. Even after all her failures, she’s still the best chance at finding a cure.

She follows behind, grips my arm, and spins me toward her. “We can’t leave yet. Your soldiers are dying, along with the remaining children of Everland. This virus is bound to kill all of us unless I find a cure. I have to stay!”

Her defiance stirs a burning ember within me, threatening to erupt into an infernal rage. No one challenges me and lives to tell about it. I slam my hand onto the counter. She takes several steps back.

“You’ve had months to figure it out. The best you’ve come up with is a means to treat the symptoms. All this time you’ve searched for immunity in the kids and you’ve come up with nothing! I’m tired of this forsaken city. We go home now!”

She glances down at her scarred and scabbed hands, evidence of her own infection, which she’s managed to keep at bay. For how much longer, I am not sure. I start again for the door.

“Wait!” she says, her voice hitching. “If we leave today, there will be no hope for any of us, not without a cure. I know how to develop it, but what I need is here … in Everland.”

“Why?” I ask, meeting her gaze. “What’s here that you so desperately need?”

The Professor bites her bottom lip.

Fury explodes within me and before I know it, I have stormed toward the Professor, peering down at her. My hands grip her shoulders and she whimpers. “Tell me!”

She hesitates. I dig my fingers into her flesh. “Now!” I shout.

“If we leave, we will all die. But there is one person, one child, who can save us all.”

Rage due to her months of lying boils over, and I shout, “Who? Who is it?”

Her eyes search mine and reluctance gives way. “Immunity lies in a single girl, the only one who was vaccinated for the virus.”

“A girl? And you can’t create a cure without her?” I ask, releasing the Professor.

She straightens her lab coat. Her eyes meet mine and the fear is gone. She takes a breath before she speaks.

“I’ve tried. Without her, we’re all as good as dead.”





I gently set Mikey down and slip my rucksack off my shoulders. Despite the chill of the early morning air, beads of sweat trickle down my face. I wipe them away with the back of my hand, trying to hide the mounting alarm racing through me.

“What are we going to do?” Mikey says. He rubs his nose on the sleeve of his threadbare blue pajamas.

“Don’t worry. We’re going to go find her,” I say, hearing the apprehension in my voice.

“How?” Mikey asks. “There must be a bazillion pirates out there.”

“I don’t know. We’ll figure it out,” I say, attempting to reassure him. Frantically, I untie the top of my rucksack and empty its contents onto the floor to make room for only the essential supplies. Mikey pushes the umbrella aside and picks up the dusty old teddy bear, snuggling it to his chest.

“Can I keep it?” he asks, his eyes still red and swollen.

I consider telling him to leave it behind, that we can only afford to carry necessary supplies. But looking into his tear-streaked face and the single button eye on the bear, I don’t have the heart to deny him this simple luxury. I nod and continue to fill my rucksack with the supplies from the shelf. As I lift a small sack of rice, a family of cockroaches scurries for cover. I brush away one that clings to the bag. In spite of the bugs, my mouth waters over our meager amount of food, but I push away my overwhelming desire to eat. This food is for Joanna and Mikey. I can live on less, have lived on less.

As if on cue, my stomach gives an audible growl while I’m putting a tin of tuna into my bag, reminding me that it’s been days since my last meal. There is no time to worry about the small discomfort of hunger, though. The Marauders could be back at any time and the coal-black night is beginning to fade as the first hint of dawn paints the horizon. Giant clouds in the distance warn of an impending storm.

Mikey tugs my sleeve with a trembling hand. “Gwen, I don’t want to go out there. What if they catch us? They’ll feed us to the crocodiles!”

I pull him into my arms and hug him tight. “They won’t get us, I promise. I’ll keep you safe. And there are no crocodiles running around Everland. That is just a silly tale.”