His Wings (D.D. fanfiction)

Chapter 42

The following day, as I made my way to the lab, I couldn't shake off the lingering tension from the fight with Daryl. Despite his absence, I found myself relieved at the prospect of not having to face him.

After hours and hours of working at the lab with Professor Duncan and Maggie, we had made a lot of progress; we analyzed the progression of the disease, the changes in the victims' blood, and the effects on the brain.

"Great work, team. Shall we reconvene tomorrow?" Professor Duncan's voice snapped me out of my concentration as he hung up his lab coat, his satisfaction evident.

A knock on the lab door startled us, and turning around, we were met by Major's presence.

"Hello Professor Duncan and Doctor Walsh," Major Grove greeted with a smile. "I was wondering if both you and Doctor Walsh could accompany me? The Chairmen requests a meeting to discuss our progress."

I swallowed nervously, I hoped that our answers were good enough.

Professor Duncan glanced at me, a silent question in his eyes, to which I nodded in affirmation.

"Certainly, let's proceed," Professor Duncan replied and we followed Major Grove to the large conference room, where the men sat around the table with stern faces.

"Good evening, Chairmen Phelps," Professor Duncan saluted upon entering, and I followed suit. Taking our seats, Chairmen greeted us with a smile.

"Good evening, I just wanted to see the progress of the vaccine?" The powerful men glanced down at me, Professor Duncan gave me a friendly smile.

"Of course, Doctor Walsh?"

Shit, he was really going to just throw me into it. I gave a disingenuous smile and stood up from my seat, trying desperately not to shake under the powerful mens gaze.

"We have studied the progression of the disease, the changes in the victims' blood, and the effects it has on the brain. This meant that we were able to identify a unique set of enzymes within the human body. The enzymes are associated with the immune system's response to the virus, it attacks the parasite, but it seems more enzymes are needed to break down the parasite effectively." I stated.

Hushed murmurs spread through out the powerful men as they debated my statement.

"And what's your next plan of action?"

"Our next idea is to get blood from soldiers who have been bitten but have stopped the spread of the virus due to a limb being cut off and to see if they had more of this enzyme to fight off the parasite. If so we can extract it and see if that can attack the virus with human trials."

More hushed whispered followed and my cheeks gently dusted pink.

"Excellent news. Bringing Doctor Walsh on board has proven to be a wise decision." The Chairmen firmly nodded and I felt the anxiety leave my body, it seemed as if they had finally approved of me.

"Thank you, sir, for the opportunity," I expressed my gratitude to them for not killing me, returning the Chairmen a disingenuous smile.

A buzzing sound from an intercom interrupted the moment, and the door to the conference room swung open.

"Yes, sir?" a woman's voice echoed through the room. 

"Sorry just my assistant, Mrs Lane, could you fetch me Major Miller please?" Chairmen requested, prompting me to face the woman fully.

And in that moment, my world turned on its axis.

There she stood, with her short grey hair, dark green eyes, rosy cheeks, and gentle lips. She looked a little older, as if she had been worn down by the state of the world. Wrinkles danced across her face, and scrunched up at her forehead, probably the effects of years of her frowning at my decision to hang out with Daryl.