Alive • Cake

Chapter 12

Luke's POV

My eyes skim read over the article, widening slightly as I took in the information. This wasn't true, was it?

'You don't believe this do you?' Michael asked cautiously, narrowing his eyes at the words on the small screen. Ashton cleared his throat, coughing, and then read out the second to last paragraph.

" 'After family member, Charlie James age 16, managed to work his way into his brothers thoughts the patient was brought out of his coma 2 hours later. Charlie spoke to us afterwards, claiming his saviour was as easy as attaching a couple of wires to and from a machine known as 'the thought tracker' and focusing on his brothers thoughts rather than his own. We asked him a few more questions and worked out that he managed to clear his own head of thoughts before entering his brothers, finding him through his memories.' "

Ash turned to look at us, uncertain, but shrugged.

'I think it would be worth giving it a go?'

I bit my lip, it seemed unlikely but I didn't have anything against trying if it would save Calum.

'What's a thought tracker?' Michael asked, confusion present in his currently creased forehead.

'I dunno?' I replied, looking over at Ash who was typing it into his phone. He pursed his lips, reading over something.

'It says here that you can read someones thoughts on the screen of the machine, but it was cheated later on by a boy attaching wires to his head and another persons so their thoughts were put together.'

I stood to my feet and opened the door to the room, looking out into the corridor.

'Excuse me,' I asked a doctor politely, 'do you have any idea where we could get a thought tracker from?'

I watched as the doctors face paled and his forehead crease in distress.

'Son, do you have any idea how dangerous those machines can be?' I shook my head, confused. 'Last time one was used in 2009, the machine sent an electric shock through the persons brain, waking them from their coma but leaving them thoughtless. Do you really want that to happen?' I shook my head again, but managed to speak up.

'I asked you where I could get one from.' I repeated weakly, my hands trembling.

I watched as the doctor sighed, debating whether to tell me. The confliction was clear in his eyes but he gave in, lowering his voice slightly.

'Look, I didn't tell you this okay? The locked basement area is out of limits but you take a left at the end of this corridor, take the stairs all the way to Lower Basement and find the locked room labelled DANGEROUS. There is a machine in there, its small and looks much like a computer screen. Unwrap the wire from around the CCTV and unplug the machine so you cannot be monitored.' The doctor looked nervous, fiddling with his clipboard as he directed me. 'And one last thing,' he said reluctantly, handing me a small, shiny item. 'Here's the key.'