Will could feel the knife in his leg, but he had no desire to pull it out. That would slow him down. Besides, Chantal and Fearne were weakened as well and could not carry Imogen to safety faster than him, even with a six-inch buried in his leg.
The forest path around them was dark, his vision affected by the haze of pain over his eyes. Chantal urged them to hurry, but Will could hardly walk let alone carry little Immi. Fearne was right beside him, trying to channel peace into his mind. But it didn't stop him from worrying about leaving the others behind.
They reached the porch and Chantal threw open the back door. Inside, the house was silent and sinister. Will lowered Imogen into the armchair chair.
"Help me lock the doors Fearne," said Chantal.
Fearne nodded, running to the back door while Chantal ran to the front. Will grit his teeth and ripped the knife from his thigh, growling from the sting. It had been a week since he'd felt any kind of brutal pain, and it burned.
When he looked up, a shadow slipped past the kitchen window.
He froze, listening. There was a shuffle of footsteps.
"Fearne," he whispered. The girl whipped around.
There was a squeal of fright from the front entryway and, next minute, an Agent appeared holding Chantal in front of him, his hand wrapped around her chest and the other over her mouth so she couldn't persuade him to release her. Her eyes were wide with fear as she begged him for help.
"Drop the knife," he said to Will.
He obeyed.
"Hello Fearne," the Agent said. "My name is Alpha."
"I know who you are," she said. "And I know what you're doing here."
Will watched them make eye contact for more than ten seconds and knew she was hiding something from him.
"Fearne," he said under his breath. "Make him go away, change his mind."
"I can't read his mind," she said. Something about her tone told Will she was lying. Even though Fearne was one of the best liars he'd met, he knew her better than anyone.
"We have no intention of going back," Will said to Alpha. "Let Chantal go."
The Agent pushed Chantal down the stairs into the living room, keeping a firm grip on her. She squirmed in his arms but stopped the moment Alpha brought out a long blade and rested the tip against her side.
"I don't want to be violent with you. But I don't care that you're all mutants – I do my job and I get it done properly. There'll be no hiccups."
At that moment, two more Agents appeared from behind Alpha. They were Chinese, tough-looking and emotionless. Will looked behind him in panic. Where are the others?
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way."
"Whatever way you chose will be the last thing you ever do," said Will.
"Very well."
Instantly, the blade went into Chantal's hip.
She screamed.
"No!" Fearne shrieked. "I'll do it, please don't hurt her!"
Will's heart was beating erratically in his chest. He didn't expect the Agent to be so cruel. Then again, he was Dr. Wolfe's employee. Of course he'd have no mercy.
You idiot, you could have gotten her killed.
Tears of pain rolled down Chantal's cheeks as she slumped in Alpha's arms.
"We'll swap," said Alpha. "Fearne for Chantal. An even trade. And no tricks, or this knife will be going across her throat next."
Fearne released Will's hand.
"No-"
"Will." She turned and looked up at him. Her eyes, though young and wide, were strangely calm. "I have to do this. Tell Hunter I'm sorry. Tell the others I'm sorry. Keep fighting, but let me go with them."
"I can't!" Will struggled for her hand. "Fearne, please don't-"
"Time is ticking," shouted Alpha. Chantal slipped in his arms, blood dripping down her side.
Fearne gazed up into his face and smiled. "I love you Will," she said.
Final words wouldn't come. His chin quivered. He couldn't bear the torture of watching his closest friend and the most beautiful little girl he'd ever known walk back into the arms of the men who worked for Dr. Wolfe.
But he had no choice.
Fearne moved toward the Agents. When they were only feet away, Alpha released Chantal and shoved her at Will, who leapt forward and caught her limp body before she hit the floor. She was completely unconscious. Fearne was taken by one of the other Agents and did not so much as squirm.
"Well done Will," said Alpha. "That had to have been hard."
"Fuck you," he spat.
There was a sudden commotion from the front of the cabin. Three shots were fired and everyone inside froze in shock until a second later, the Agents leapt into action. Clearly they didn't expect anyone to be surprising them from behind. Alpha turned to his fellow Agents and handed one of them a box he'd pulled from his pocket. Will tried to see what it was but he was straining to hold Chantal up without hurting her. Blood was pouring from her wound, and only his hands could stop it. Fearne watched the exchange wordlessly. Why isn't she fighting back?
"It's too late to risk it, take her out," Alpha ordered.
The Agent ripped a silver syringe from the black box he was given.
"No!" Will shouted, but he wasn't quick enough.
Through tears, he saw the point of the needle go into Fearne's neck. Just for a split second, she met his gaze and let it happen. She let them poison her.
Fearne slumped in the arms of an Agent.
They were already pulling out their weapons, preparing for the intruders coming through the front door.
"What the hell did you do?!" he yelled.
"Not important," said Alpha. "Dr. Wolfe wants-"
"Dr. Wolfe wants what?" a voice spoke from behind Alpha, and suddenly, there he was.
Dr. Wolfe.
Will had never felt such a shock of emotional rage in his entire life. The man who turned his world upside down was standing in the entryway of the cabin, his hands behind his back in an over-confident pose, glaring at Alpha.
"Sir, you said you wanted Joshua, so-"
"Whatever the fuck I said," he growled. "I take it back."
There was a shriek from somewhere near the lake and a fiery explosion erupted through the trees. Will had to get back outside to warn them all, to tell them to run. If Dr. Wolfe was there, God knows what he had in store for them.
"What are your orders, sir?" asked Alpha.
Dr. Wolfe pulled his hands from behind him and produced a shotgun longer than Will's arm. Alpha stumbled back against the wall, his mouth agape.
"I want you to say hello to my little friend," said Dr. Wolfe.
Then he blew an apple-sized hole in Alpha's the chest.
The two Agents behind him raised their own weapons, but before they could fire, a blade appeared in both their chests and they fell, dead on the floor.
Dr. Wolfe turned to Will, who was stunned as he knelt on the floor with Chantal still in his arms. Suddenly, Dr. Wolfe started laughing.
Clearly I'm missing something, thought Will.
Then Dr. Wolfe was morphing, shrinking and quivering into Zac. Will breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, people were stalking through the door. A man in his thirties with rugged, handsome looks and a woman in all leather, followed by a curly-haired man who grinned with a bizarre kind of glee and a young Chinese boy who could not be more serious-looking charged into the room. Then came a man and a woman of Brazilian culture, clad in warrior attire and ready for a fight.
Zac turned to the rugged man and raised his hand as if for a high-five. "Wasn't that the best line ever!? Huh!?"
When no high-five was given, Zac turned back to Will. His usual joker grin faded when he saw Chantal. He ran to Will's side and started panicking, gently taking her from Will's arms and rubbing her cheek.
"We need to get outside," said the curly-haired man as Will scrambled to see if Fearne was alright. Whatever they had injected her with did not kill her – a pulse still beat beneath her skin. Perhaps it was only a tranquilizer so they could take her back to Dr. Wolfe without fear of their minds being hijacked. He thanked God for watching over them and scooped her up into his arms.
"Who the hell are these guys?" he asked.
"Oh right," said Zac. "Willy, this is Ace, Illya, Chevie and Yung. And that's Koko and Zokani. No time to explain anything else." A second later he was quivering into Alpha as a disguise. "It's time to end this. Take Fearne and Chantal outside – there's a car waiting to transport you to the jet."
"The jet?" Will gaped.
"Yes, and get Chantal there quick. She's losing blood." He clicked his hand and the rugged man bent down and gently pulled Chantal into his arms. "Hurry, Ace."
"I'm on it."
"But-"
"We'll go help the others," the woman in leather said fiercely to him. "Go with Ace and get yourselves to safety."
Nodding, Will hoisted Fearne onto one side of his body and lifted Imogen on the other. His leg had already healed. He followed Ace to the door. When he looked back on the dark cabin – his sanctuary and his first real home – he saw Zac and his team run through the back door to the lake and prayed they were enough to defend the others against the dozens of Agents and mutants.