Designed : A Young Adult Dystopian Romance
Designed : Chapter 24

I told Heath everything I could remember about the peeping Tom, which wasn’t much. I’d only gotten a quick look at him before he’d disappeared among the thick foliage.

“We should try to replace him,” I said again, attempting to get up.

Heath put a staying hand on my shoulder. “We’re not doing anything until I treat that wound and give you something to knock the fever down. Besides, if he really was from the Haven—and one of our late-night visitors, as I suspect he was—he knows exactly where we are. If his people want to make contact, I’m sure they will. If not… well, I doubt the three of us are going to be able to locate them on their own turf if they don’t want us to. Now roll over and let me check that hip.”

I did as he asked, partially because he was so insistent but also because I’d begun to worry about it myself.

The pain was much worse today than it had been yesterday, and I was feeling light-headed and unsteady. I’d never had a fever before. It was odd to be so weak.

This time when Heath pushed my clothing out of the way, I didn’t fight him.

“Oh man, this is bad, Reya,” he breathed. “Really bad.”

I twisted my neck, straining to look behind me and see it. “Yeah, the bruise feels pretty big—must be sooo lovely to look at,” I joked.

Heath did not laugh. “It’s not a bruise. It’s sepsis. The taser prongs got you really good—the guy must have ripped them out instead of removing them carefully. Now the tissue around the wound is infected. I don’t understand. It’s like your nanos have stopped working.”

I rolled over to face him, wincing in anticipation of his reaction.

“Well… I might have stopped taking my pills.”

“Your anti-rejection meds? You stopped taking them? But I gave you a month’s supply.”

“I know. But when you told me what they were really for… I didn’t want those things in my body anymore. I wanted to be a hundred percent organic—like you.”

Heath’s head dropped back until I was looking at his Adam’s apple while he stared at the sky.

“That’s it then. We’ve got to go. Now.”

He got to his feet and started pacing. My eyes followed his worried path.

“Okay. You’re probably right. We can go back to Charlottesville and maybe replace a walk-in clinic or something.”

He stopped pacing. “You’re not going to make it to Charlottesville—not on foot—not without the nanos to help you.”

I had to swallow hard before speaking again. “What are you saying? I’m going to die?”

“No. I won’t let that happen. We’ll go back to Atlanta. To Gideon Corp. They can help you there.”

I sat up, wincing from the pain of the motion. “No. I can’t go back there. You can’t go back there. You said it yourself. And what about Daniel?”

Heath shook his head, resuming his pacing. “There’s no choice.”

“Yes, there is. We’re close to the Haven. I know it. I saw one of them. They’ll be able to help me there.”

“You don’t know that. You don’t know who that guy was, or where the sanctuary is, if it even exists.”

My head jerked back in surprise. “But you said it was here.”

“Maybe it is. Or maybe it was—at one time. Or maybe it’s some myth that we’ve been chasing. No one knows for sure, and we don’t have time to figure it out. All I know is I’ve got to get some help for you—today.”

He reached for his boot. I assumed he was about to tighten the laces in preparation for our hike out of this place. Instead, he reached inside and extracted something.

His eyes darted to me quickly before he held the object up over his head and I saw what it was.

“Is that… a holoconn? But… I saw you leave yours. You’ve had that thing on you the whole time?”

When he didn’t answer, my tone became more hysterical. “You said we couldn’t bring any devices. You said they could be used to track us.”

Heath didn’t answer but returned my stare with his steady gaze. And then it hit me. We had been tracked. And he’d known it.

That was how the Retrievers had found us at the cabin yesterday. Maybe it hadn’t gone down the way Heath had expected it to, but his father—and his henchmen—had known exactly where we were the whole time.

What an idiot I am.

He must have had this second holoconn hidden while making a big show of tossing his into the van before we left Atlanta. It was all an act… part of the plan.

Part of the study.

I pushed up to my knees and knelt in the dirt, wadding up my sleeping bag. I would need it as I continued my search for the Haven. Alone. I’d have to transfer the remaining MRE’s from Heath’s pack into my own as well. He could just be hungry.

Well, maybe I’d leave one for Daniel.

Furious at myself for believing Heath had ever intended to help me, ever wanted to be with me, I used more force than was necessary as I attempted to cram the bulky roll into my backpack.

The pain in my hip flared. I fell forward onto my hands, dropping the pack and causing the sleeping bag to unfurl on the ground again.

“Dammit.” Frustrated tears brimmed in my eyes.

Heath reached me in two strides, placing a steadying hand on my shoulder. I slapped it away. He stood up straight again, towering over me as I resumed the task of rolling the sleeping bag.

“What are you doing?”

“Packing,” I said without looking up.

“Don’t waste your strength. Someone else will get our gear. You should rest. The helicopter will be here in ten minutes.”

“Then I’d better hurry up and get out of here. I’ve got a lot of ground to cover today in the park, and it’s going to be slower going than usual.”

“Don’t be silly, Reya. You need help.”

Now I looked up—to glare at him. “I’ve had quite enough of your help, thank you. And I’m not being silly. I’m telling you—I won’t. Go. Back.”

Heath dropped to his knees, putting himself at eye level with me and grabbing my shoulders. “You’ll die. Your infection is too severe.”

Jerking away from his grasp, I lurched to my feet. “I’ll take my chances. Anyway, I’d rather die out here—free and my true self—than go back and have my memory wiped—again—and become a complacent, obedient, perfect child, like Ketta. Or spend any more time with someone whose every word is a lie.”

Slinging the pack over one shoulder, I began to hobble away toward the creek, fighting back tears from the physical pain, which was nothing compared to the emotional gash ripping through my heart.

Heath stalked close behind me.

“I didn’t lie.” He had the decency to add, “Not about this. The holo was turned off. They couldn’t track us with it.”

“Oh really? Then how did they replace us yesterday at the cabins?”

“I don’t know. But I didn’t tell them where we were. Did you happen to notice me fighting them tooth and nail yesterday? I was being honest when I told you I went off assignment a while ago. I was genuinely trying to help you replace the sanctuary. Reya, stop, please. How far do you really think you’ll make it like that?”

“As far as I need to. Go back to Daniel. You two have a helicopter to catch.”

He circled in front of me and planted his feet, blocking my path. His jaw was clenched, but his eyes were wet, and there was a tremor in his voice.

“I’m not leaving you here. I won’t let you die. I love you too much.”

My own eyes welling with tears, I put my hands on his chest to push him away. It didn’t work. Heath wrapped his arms around me and drew me tightly against him, pressing a hard kiss to the top of my head and speaking into my hair as I struggled weakly.

“I’m sorry, Mireya. I know you’re mad at me. I know you want to run, but I will protect you—even if I have to protect you from yourself.”

In spite of my fury, I sagged against him, allowing his strong arms to support me. I was so tired. And hot. And weak. I had no more fight left in me.

My head was spinning, and my heart was hopelessly confused. I wanted to forget everything that had happened and stay there like this forever, breathing in his scent, my head resting on his chest, not thinking about the past or the future.

The loud hum of helicopter blades broke the spell. I pushed against Heath’s body, shoving myself back from him. My words were strangled by sobs.

“No. Death is better than living an artificial life. Please. Please don’t take me back. If you really love me, you won’t make me go.”

I turned and attempted to run, but my backpack weighed a thousand pounds, and my feet refused to work properly. I made it three steps before stumbling and collapsing to my knees.

Heath scooped me up into his arms. “You’ve given me no choice, Reya. You’ll forgive me for this later.”

“Put me down. Put me down,” I demanded, but he ignored me, carrying me until we reached the clearing where Daniel was waving excitedly and pointing at the aircraft.

He ran toward us. Heath set me on the ground and knelt to reassure his brother.

“It’s okay buddy. They’re not going to hurt you. They’re here to help us. Reya’s sick and needs help.”

Rising and striding toward the chopper, Heath went to meet the black-uniformed men who poured out of its open side door. They moved quickly despite their crouched posture, which I assumed was due to the swirling chopper blades overhead.

Fighting to keep my wind-whipped hair out of my eyes, I watched the men approach Heath—and then veer around him and move toward Daniel.

One of them grabbed the boy around the waist and lifted him.

Daniel screamed and kicked his legs violently. “Heath! The bad men have me. The bad men—”

His captor slapped a black-gloved hand over the child’s mouth, muffling his screams as he carried him toward the chopper.

Heath charged toward the man. “What the hell are you doing? You’re scaring him. There’s no need for this—I called you, remember?”

The man ignored him and continued toward the chopper as another soldier stepped into Heath’s path and put a restraining hand on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry Mr. Gideon. It’s your father’s orders.”

“I called for a rescue,” Heath corrected him. “This has nothing to do with my father.”

A man emerged from the open chopper cockpit. “That’s not entirely true. He might have some interest in your activities over the past few days.”

I strained to peer around several pairs of black-clad legs, trying to get a look at the speaker.

When I did, the shock siphoned all the air from my lungs.

It was Dr. Rex.