𝐄𝐂𝐇𝐎, the gifted [1]

chapter twenty one

Winona walked about the Underground with Clarice. She was tired. All she did at night was toss and turn. The most amount of sleep she got was a few hours. Even so, she was ready to tackle the day's events. She had told Clarice about her suspicions regarding Esme. Clarice just thought she was being paranoid.

"I don't know what it is, Clarice. But there's something not right about her," Winona said. "She's just trying to find her family. Like someone else I know," Clarice said, nudging Winona's shoulder with her own. "Yeah but I'm not willing to risk everyone else's lives like she is. She doesn't even understand the extent of what she's asking us to do," Winona said.

"Tell me this, aren't you willing to do everything that you can to help Elaine?" Clarice asked. "Well yeah, but--" Clarice cut her off. "And before you got to know everyone, weren't you okay with them risking their lives for her?" She asked. "Well, no I wasn't okay with it," Winona said. "But you would've let them," Clarice said.

Winona thought for a moment. "I don't know what I would've done then because I'm not the same person that I was before," Winona said exasperatedly. "She's just doing what she feels is right. Same as you," Clarice said. "So what you're telling me is that I'm a hypocrite?" Winona said.

"No, I'm telling you that you should cut the girl some slack," Clarice clarified. The two entered the room where they were meeting the others. Sage was already sitting at her computer. Winona and Clarice were the last to arrive. "Okay. I've been looking into the Trask lab. This place is out in the middle of nowhere. There is no information on it," Sage began.

"But there is this," she added before tapping a button on the keyboard. A picture of a building popped up and Winona leaned in to get a closer look at it. "A bar? What good does that do us?" John asked. "I cross-referenced credit card activity with places near the lab, and this place is popular with Trask employees," Sage explained.

"I could go in. Pull some information out of a guard or an operations person," Sonya suggested. "That's a good idea. I'll go for protection," Marcos agreed. "No. I will," Lorna objected. "Are you sure, babe? I mean, you haven't really been sleeping well," Marcos said warily. "I'm okay," Lorna assured. The look on his face told her that he didn't believe her.

Lorna stepped away from him and walked forward. "Marcos, if you want to get information from a guy at a bar, you don't send a girl and another guy," she said. "We'll be fine," she added, now standing next to Sonya. Both girls smiled.

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John was leaning forward on a desk in an office when Winona knocked on the door. He pushed off of the desk and turned to the door, surprised to see her standing there. "I need to talk to you," she said, walking into the office. He cleared his throat and folded his arms against his chest.

"About what?" He questioned. "About Esme and this insane idea to break into Trask Industries," she said, coming to a stop a few feet in front of him. John sighed and looked away. "Look, I know it probably seems like I lack faith in us and what we can do. And like I don't want to help my sister or Esme's family. Neither of those things are true. I just have a really bad feeling about all of this," she said.

"We can't leave them in there," John replied. "I know that and I don't want to. But come on, John. Don't you think that this is a little extreme? I mean, breaking into a prison transport bus is one thing. But breaking into a government facility? That's insane," Winona said. "I know that. But what choice do we have? There are people in there, mutants. Mutants that are gonna be turned into monsters just like Pulse. Now I couldn't help him but I sure as hell can help them," John said.