Origin Read Free Page B

skin and I could move again, I rushed the door. I wasn’t making any progress, and by the fourth cycle of being doused with onyx and then drowned, I was done.
    I was really, truly done.
    Once I was able to stand without collapsing, I shuffled toward the cold table in slow, achy steps. I was pretty sure the table had a very thin layer of diamonds over the surface. The kind of money it must’ve taken to outfit a room, let alone a whole building, in diamonds had to be astronomical—and further explained the nation’s debt problem. And really, out of everything to be thinking about, that shouldn’t even make the list, but I think the onyx had shorted out my brain.
    Sergeant Dasher had come and gone during the whole process, replaced by men in army fatigues. The berets they wore hid most of their faces, but from what I could see, they didn’t seem much older than me, maybe in their early twenties.
    Two of them were in the room now, both with pistols strapped to their thighs. Part of me was surprised they hadn’t broken out the tranqs, but the onyx served its purpose. The one wearing a dark green beret stood near the controls, watching me, one hand on his pistol and the other on the button of pain. The other, face hidden by a khaki beret, guarded the door.
    I placed my hands on the table. Through the wet ropes of my soaked hair, my fingers looked too white and pasty. I was cold and shivering so badly I wondered if I was actually experiencing a seizure. “I’m…I’m done,” I rasped out.
    A muscle popped on Khaki Beret’s face.
    I tried to lift myself onto the table, because I knew if I didn’t sit, I was going to fall, but the deep tremor in my muscles caused me to wobble to the side. The room whirled for a second. There just might be some permanent damage. I almost laughed, because what good would I be to Daedalus if they broke me?
    Dr. Roth had remained the whole time, sitting in the corner of the room, looking weary, but now he stood, pressure cuff in hand. “Help her onto the table.”
    Khaki Beret came toward me, determination locking his jaw. I backpedaled in a feeble attempt to put some distance between us. My heart pounded insanely fast. I didn’t want him touching me. I didn’t want any of them touching me.
    Legs shaking, I took another step back, and my muscles just stopped working. I hit the floor hard on my butt, but I was so numb, the pain really didn’t register.
    Khaki Beret stared down at me, and from my vantage point, I could see his entire face. He had the most startling blue eyes, and while he looked like he was so over this routine, there seemed to be some level of compassion to his stare.
    Without saying a word, he bent down and scooped me up. He smelled of fresh detergent, the same kind my mom used, and tears welled in my eyes. Before I could put up a fight, which would’ve been pointless, he deposited me on the table. When he backed away, I gripped the edges of the table, feeling like I’d been here before.
    And I had.
    Another cup of water was given to me, which I accepted. The doctor sighed loudly. “Is fighting this out of your system now?”
    I dropped the paper cup on the table and forced my tongue to move. It felt swollen and difficult to control. “I don’t want to be here.”
    “Of course you don’t.” He placed the chest piece under my shirt, like he had done before. “No one in this room, or even in this building, expects that from you, but fighting us, before you even know what we’re about, is only going to hurt you in the end. Now breathe in deeply.”
    I breathed in, but the air got stuck. The line of white cabinets across the room blurred. I would not cry. I would not cry.
    The doctor went through the motions, checking my breathing and blood pressure before he spoke again. “Katy—may I call you Katy?”
    A short, hoarse laugh escaped me. So polite. “Sure.”
    He smiled as he placed the pressure cuff on the table and then stepped back, folding his arms. “I need