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They smiled at her gently, obviously convinced she was rushing in to see someone. Little did they know they’d nearly been the latest victims of her inability to control her emotions and panic.
She mumbled an apology and moved farther away from the door. A woman caught her eye and rushed toward her. “Jenna Franklin?”
“That’s me.” She somehow managed not to sound like she about to keel over.
“My name is Lauren Marino. I work with Callum Webb. He wanted me to make sure you have everything you need.”
Jenna nodded. “Sounds good. Lead the way, but Mark Outlawson is here with me. Can you make sure he knows how to find me?”
“Of course.”
Lauren started walking, and Jenna followed. Now that she was inside and her heart was calming, everything was much better. Her mind was clearing, and she was thinking about what she was going to need.
“We have a lab set up for you and ready to go,” Lauren said. “Hopefully it has everything you need to run your tests.”
“Okay. I’ll need new blood samples and vitals as soon as possible.”
“We’ll get them for you.”
Lauren opened the door to the lab, and once again, Jenna had to take in a breath to settle herself. Yes, she had a PhD in bioengineering, but that wasn’t much a part of her daily life any longer. Since her captivity, she’d moved her focus over to her other degree: computer science.
Jenna gritted her teeth and slipped on the lab coat hanging by the door. She categorically refused to lose this like she’d lost the ability to go outside. She was needed, and it didn’t matter if the last time she’d worked in a lab wasn’t of her own free will.
The county hospital was small, and the lab wasn’t extensive or polished, but they’d done well to pull the equipment she needed on such short notice. It would have to do.
“If you’re all right,” Lauren said, “I’ll grab your friend and make sure all info and samples are routed directly to you.”
“Thank you.”
Jenna didn’t look up as the woman exited. The previous samples were already logged, but the tests she needed hadn’t been run. There wasn’t a lot of time if she was going to save Brett Cochran’s life.
Jenna started working, autopilot kicking in as she ran tests and began analyzing Brett’s genes and responses to the genetic manipulation. She heard Mark enter, but he stayed out of the way, letting her work. The hours flew by with test after test as Jenna tried to combat the tail that had been left in the robot’s system.
Not robot—Brett. Brett Cochran. Barely more than a kid.
He wasn’t Joaquin’s robot anymore; he was a person. But his system was shutting down.
A nurse brought in the latest blood work, and Jenna ran it through her system.
“Shit.”
One glance at the clock told her it was early evening and she’d barely noticed the hours passing. A cup of coffee sat next to her, and she didn’t remember how it got there.
“What’s wrong?” Mark asked.
“Nothing we’re doing is helping. Brett is getting worse.”
“Is it the tail like you were mentioning before? That’s what’s killing him?”
Jenna pulled up the video image of Brett’s room. “He’s dying. And the tails don’t kill the victims exactly. The tail is a splice that creates an addiction. Except a normal addiction is like a wave, and a tail is more like a tsunami. It makes the host completely dependent on the chemicals, and if they don’t get them, they die. Deadly withdrawal.”
“Fuck,” he said quietly. “But you figured out the tail is there. That’s good, right?”
She turned off the footage of Brett. “Yes, it’s good that I figured out it’s in there, but this isn’t my work. Or rather, it’s not only my work. The tail has been tweaked, and I have no idea what combination of chemicals his body needs to keep him alive.”
Mark winced. “How long do we have?”
“Hours, at most. Like I said, he’s getting worse.” Dread and panic flowed into her system. This was her fault. She’d created this protocol, and if she couldn’t crack it, that young man would die. “I’m going to try what I can. If I hit on what works, it will help immediately, but—”
