Page 80 of Lethal Weakness

“Baby, I can’t.” My voice breaks. Tears stream down my face as I hold her little cheeks in my hands. “I love you so much, my sweet girl. You’re the light of my life, you know that?” I inhale her scent one final time as she cries into my chest.

“You see that glowing light? All the way at the top?” I point to the faintest glow from Jack’s house, begging, hoping, praying, anything that’ll tell me that I’m making the correct choice. “You have to run to Jack, baby. He’ll keep you safe.”

“I can’t,” she whimpers into my neck.

“You have to, Avery.” I sweep her hair and tears off her face, and hold her until we’re nose to nose. “Mr. Jack will know what to do. Just get to his house.”

Please, Jack. Don’t betray me.

“Otay, Mommy,” she cries.

“I love you, baby. To the moon, remember?” My lips tremble against her forehead as I kiss it.

She nods sadly. “To da moon, Mommy.”

I push her butt to get her going up the incline, and I can hear her sobs as she gets higher, letting her legs carry her further and further away from me. I have to muffle my screams of agony into my hands.

My baby.

I wail, tugging on the metal clamp, breaking deeper into the skin on my ankle. My shoe is filling with blood, but I can’t feel the physical pain when my heart has been ripped out of my chest and is getting further and further away from me.

I had to give her a chance.

But if I don’t make it, I’ll never see my baby again.

I want to scream. I want to cry out and curse the universe for doing this, but I hear the roar of engines getting closer, and I know that means I’ll be caught.

They’ll do whatever they want with me, and then they’ll go after Avery.

And she’ll be at the mercy of her grandparents and whatever evil they’re doing in their basement.

So I stay silent to give her a chance to get safe, prying at a chain that won’t break, and praying that she makes it to Jack.

“Please, be home, Jack,” I whisper when all I want to do is yell.

“If I don’t make it, make sure my baby is safe.” Another sob rips free from my chest, and I yank on the chain until my shoulders pop and the flesh on my hands shreds to pieces.

But when a twig breaks just ahead, my entire body stills as I search the darkness before me.

I love you, Avery.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

O’Connor

Page after page fills me with rage. They don’t want Avery so that they can relive the life they didn’t get with their deceased daughter. No, they want Avery so they can experiment on her. They want to replicate Avery’s DNA to bring their daughter back to life, and use her organs to piece her together.

Scientific studies and failed experiments. One thing after another, documenting all of their intentions. All of their experimentation up until this point was for research purposes before they can do it to Linden’s Avery.

My Avery.

Selling organs on the black market only funds their research and gives them contacts to purchase their equipment without going through legal channels. What they are doing is beyond evil.

I have to tell Linden.

Fuck Project Obsidian. Fuck my op. I’m telling Linden everything as soon as they get home.

I should have done it sooner, but I didn’t know how far their depravity went.