I eased up on my feet, keeping low, already adjusting the plan in my head.
My new objective was to get to Taryn. My girl was more than capable, but I’d never trained her for this scenario. How could I? I didn’t even know what the fuck this was.
I got on my bike and headed home. I had to start preparing; I knew Adrian would be coming this way. That boy wouldn’t let anything stand in his way of getting Taryn back.
I was counting on it.
ADRIAN
“How fast did he turn?” I asked.
“He didn’t,” Ben shook his head. “The students fed on him, like hogs at a trough.” He knocked his fist on the table. “I got the fuck out of there. And that’s why I know this flu crap is bullshit.”
“Before I left work,” I held his stare, “the data from the meteor event didn’t reconcile. Fragment size, particulate spread, and atmospheric burn. None of it triggered any alarms. And it should have.”
“So?” Ben looked confused.
“So, nothing was flagged.” I raised one brow. “Which means whatever came down wasn’t considered dangerous, or it didn’t behave like anything we knew to look for.”
“I need to get to Taryn.” He took a deep breath. “I’ve prepared her for every eventuality I could have imagined. But not this. How could I have possibly known to prepare her for this?”
He looked lost.
Ben was a hard man. I knew Taryn resented his treatment of her and didn’t think her father loved her. But she was wrong. Taryn wouldn’t be who she was today if he hadn’t pushed her. He loved her the only way he knew how…ensuring she could survive anything.
And I knew she would… unless she was sick.
No.
I wouldn’t accept that thought. Taryn was too strong and too beautiful to suffer the fate of the people I’d encountered on the road. I knew that wasn’t logical, but I didn’t really give a shit. I’d keep her well by my will alone if I had to.
“You couldn’t. None of us could.” I reassured him. “Let’s get Lucas out, and then we’ll find her.”
Ben studied me for a long moment, then nodded once. “Let’s get to it then.”
He spread a blueprint of the school across the table.
“Why do you have this?” I tilted my head, looking at him with curiosity.
He glanced up, “Do you think I’d allow my daughter to spend every day in a place without knowing it inside and out?”
It was a shame Taryn couldn’t see how much he loved her. They were more alike than she’d ever admit, both hardheaded as hell.
I didn’t bother replying since the answer to his question was obvious. I blamed my stupidity on a lack of sleep. “Lucas is in the teacher’s lounge.”
He tapped the blueprint, “I think our best option is to observe and then decide.”
“I agree. We can’t finalize a plan until we know all the facts. I’ll try to get a message out to Lucas again.”
We both stared at the print, memorizing the school's layout for several minutes.
“Why don’t you get cleaned up, and I’ll fix you something to eat?” He rolled up the prints. “If we don’t hear from Lucas, we can go back tonight when these things are likely more active and calculate numbers. Then we’ll head in early in the morning.”
I nodded in agreement, then reached into my shoulder bag for my computer, opened it, and glanced at the screen. “Taryn is still in the same location.”
“After we find her, I’m going to need an explanation.” He was staring at me with intent.
“The explanation is simple, she’s mine.” I was just as straightforward as he was.
