He takes off his glasses, sets them on the counter, and turns his stool so he’s facing me. “Our genes don’t just determine physical traits and predispositions to diseases and disorders. They also influence personality traits and behavioral tendencies. I chose Marcus for my PHP team because he’s intelligent, analytical, strong, and he has the qualities needed for good leadership.”
“PHP?”
“Partnership for Human Progress. That was the name of the organization seeded by billionaires that I was recruited for.”
“Whitman.”
McClain uses the bottom of his T-shirt to wipe the lenses of his glasses clean, then puts them back on. “And others. Aldous Thatcher and Emily Monrovia were very involved. They bought their way into the original twenty-six, but they still had to pass the genetic tests.”
“So it was about power.”
He shakes his head. “Not at all. You may not believe this, Briar, but our work was intended to help humanity. We wanted to reverse climate change, eradicate diseases, eliminate famine.”
“I do believe it. My mom wouldn’t have been part of something that was going to hurt people.”
“You’re right. None of us set out to do that, including Marcus.”
That hits me hard. I’ve been waiting for Marcus to explain himself to me, but maybe I should initiate the conversation. I hate the distance between us. I’m confused, though, becauseMarcus resents McClain for being part of something both of them did.
“Why are you both so remorseful, then, if you didn’t do anything wrong?”
“I didn’t say we did nothing wrong. I said we didn’t set out to hurt anyone.” He folds his toothpick-like arms over his chest. “I never had children. Marcus ...” He sighs and looks away. “If I could do it over again, I’d make different choices.”
My throat constricts as I work up the nerve to ask him the next question. “How well did you know my mom?”
McClain looks away. “We had a close professional relationship. She was a force in the scientific community. Nothing lit her up like talking about her family, though.”
Hearing that makes me warm and cold at the same time. I’ve accepted that my parents are gone, but their loss is still an ache I think will always be part of me.
“Do you know how she died?” I hold my breath, wanting to know and not wanting to in equal measure.
“I know it was quick and painless.” When he looks at me, I’m taken aback by the sadness and regret etched into his lean, lined face.
“Did you do it?”
“No. Absolutely not. I tried to save her. It just wasn’t enough.”
There’s a small sliver of peace in knowing she didn’t suffer. “So it wasn’t the virus, then? She was deliberately killed?”
Shame floods his expression. “Yes. And it’s too little, too late, but I am deeply sorry for your loss. She was endlessly proud of you and your sister and she loved your father with everything in her.” He clears his throat. “I need to get back to work.”
He turns away, and I swallow back my tears. I knew it wasn’t the virus that killed my parents, but McClain’s confirmation that they were murdered stokes the fire of anger inside me.
I keep my fury simmering, doing what I have to do to survive and find a way off the island—and I will find a way. Once I’m back in striking distance of Soren Whitman and the men who follow him, I’ll let the flames flare and spread until they consume every one of them.
12
“You missed your last two check-ins. I’m worried. Contact me as soon as it’s safe to do so.” - Decoded message from ILF handler Hiro Tanaka to ILF undercover operative Nightingale
Six Years Ago
Briar
Something is very wrong. I switch from jogging to a full-on sprint, my gaze flying around the yard of my parents’ home.
The grass is wildly overgrown. Mom’s prized dahlias are browned and drooping from neglect. The bungalow my parents have lovingly been restoring for almost twenty-five years looks like it did when I left for my internship more than two months ago, but they’d never let their yard and flowers look this way.
I stop in the driveway, catching my breath. Getting here was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I’m down to one bullet, and I’ve only been moving between three a.m. and seven a.m. to conserve it.
