Not What It Seems | Octavia Blake [2]

Chapter 12

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"The one and only: Emilia Wallace."

  Stunned by the revelation, Addison muttered, "I didn't know your granddad's married, or anything."

  "Never knew her, my grandmother. She died before I was born," Emilia's unbothered expression never once faltered. "My grandfather's only other family, besides me, is his son: Cage."

  "Is he married, too?"

  Emilia shook her head, folding her arms across her chest, "No. his only relationship of any kind is with Dr. Tsing. They're awfully close."

  "If he's not married," Addison stepped forward, "then who's your mother? Where is she?"

  Emilia shrugged as she swept her blue eyes around the warehouse, "I have no idea. All I know, is that she died when I was still in the crawling state of my life."

  Addison's expression softened, "I'm sorry. About your mother," her voice had also grown softer.

  "Eh, don't be." The mountain girl waved the brunette off, unbothered by the subject. "I don't have any memories of her, and what little people who do in Mount Weather, refuse to speak about her."

  Addison's forehead creased. If the radiation from above the surface has trapped generations of Mount Weather civilians below the surface, you would think every person knew one another in some way. Addison found it all odd. "You're not even the slightest bit curious that only few people knew your mother?"

  "At this point, I've given up. My grandfather's and Cage's lips are sealed tighter than this bunker."

  "You don't call him 'Dad' or claim him as your father?" Addison found that even stranger.

  "He's never been much of a father to me. Why call him one when he's an acquaintance?" Addison swallowed the dryness in her throat, and Emilia sighed, nodding to the vent. "Come on. We'll lose our window of opportunity."

  She crawled into the vent, and Addison followed. Many confusing turns and straightaways later, Emilia stopped. She remained still before awkwardly turning —feet first— and kicking the vent out.

  It clattered loudly to the floor, echoing throughout the room. Emilia's soon out and crouched by the squared-hole in the wall.

  As Addison crawled to the exit, she heard pained moans and groans. She placed her hand in Emilia's and is helped out. Straightening her posture to stand fully, her eyes widened in horror.

  "Oh my god .  .  ." Grounders, caged like animals on the concrete floor and in the air. Her stomach churned as their pained noises continued, the room holding the strong, metallic smell of blood.

"I told you we're not the good guys."

"Emilia . . ." Addison continued to look around as she stepped further into the large room. On her left, stacked cages in two reside on either side of the 'path' that's created to what's on her right —chains and more medical or 'torture' tools, floor stained with blood and the smell of death wafting from behind the cloudy curtains. "What is this place?"

"It's called the Harvest Chamber."

Addison stepped further and began to walk between the cages. She stopped by one cage, locking eyes with the occupant. Mid-twenties, light brown eyes full of exhaustion and discomfort. She walked closer to the cage and knelt, noticing the natural highlights in the Grounder's dark hair and the black tattoo that covered part of her —the Grounder's— right shoulder.

"The transfusions . . . you get them from the Grounders?" Addison turned her head from the woman, and met Emilia's gaze. To Addison's horror, Emilia nodded.

"I don't receive the transfusions willingly." Addison eyed her curiously. "Seven years ago, there was a radiation leak in one of the upper levels. A lot of us were affected, and only two died. Shortly after the fun, I stopped receiving them because I found this place." Emilia placed her pointer finger on her collarbone, "This thing that's implanted in me . . . it's more for me to 'fit in', as my grandfather puts it." She came to Addison's side and knelt beside her, she too observing the Grounder woman in the cage. "I don't know what it means, nor do I know how to help these outsiders you call 'Grounders'," she whispered. "I'm not one of them." Their eyes met, "You have to know that."

Addison's lips parted to speak, but they're slammed shut as a door swung open, followed by two pairs of quick moving footsteps, one quicker than the other. Crouching, she followed Emilia as she silently backtracked up the row and rounded the cages, hiding in the dark and behind the cages as the two figures stopped by the cages.

"She's not here." Addison recognized the voice —Dr. Tsing. "She was our only chance to convince her people." Clarke, Addison realized. This 'she' Dr. Tsing spoke of, is Clarke.

"Not all hope is lost," man's voice, one Addison's never heard, said. "There is another, Lorelei," he began, "another that could persuade all of their people."

"Who?"

"You know who."

"Addison," Emilia whispered, barely audible, as the Harvest Chamber's echoey. Her lips are slammed shut as Dr. Tsing and her 'friend' walked closer as the man observed the Grounders in the cages.

"You mean the boy?" Dr. Tsing asked.

The man stopped, his shoe sliding across the floor, "Not just the boy, Lorelei . . ."

Emilia tried grabbing any article of clothing Addison wore to stop her from peering around the corner, but it slipped through her fingers. Dr. Tsing smirked, as did the man, and Addison's blood ran cold —but to her surprise, she remained still, and not once tried to engage.

The man's —tall, dark-haired, well dressed like Dante— smirk only grew after Dr. Tsing asked, "And you have a plan?"

  "Of course I do. We'll discuss it after we sort through our latest subjects." The man answered, and soon after, the pair exited the Harvest Chambers —but before talking in hushed whispers as they looked at certain Grounders in cages.

  As soon as the closing door echoed shut, Addison's shooting up from the cold concrete floor, away from Emilia. "Who the hell was that, and what does he mean by 'latest subjects'?"

  Slowly, Emilia stood and approached Addison, as if she were a frightened animal. "Addison, I need you to listen—actually listen." Despite the panic and fear for her people that pulsed through her veins, she remained completely still. "Your concern needs to be on your people. I don't know what those psychopaths have planned, but in the meantime, you have to keep this place and everything you learned and heard between us. Understand?" Addison swallowed the nervous lump in her throat and nodded. "Good." Emilia glanced at the spot Dr. Tsing and the man once occupied, "I'll see what I can find out about this 'plan' and these 'latest subjects'."

  "I'll—I'll," Addison took a deep breath as she looked around for the hundredth time, and locked eyes with the Grounder woman from earlier.

  "You stay with your people. I don't trust them." Addison met Emilia's gaze, "Be careful. And keep your temper in check. Things are going to get dangerous really fast if you don't."

  And for once, Addison agreed. She's not in Kansas anymore —far from it, and the girl she calls 'home'.

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