Fever by Kailin Gow Read Free Book Online Page B

It sounds like there’s a full blown battle in there, especially when I hear the dull thud of a grenade detonating. It’s loud as it rattles through the building ahead of me, and in that moment, I have only one thought. Jack .
                The first few shots made sense. The first few shots were his distraction. This isn’t a distraction. It can’t be. It’s more than that. I spin the man with me to face me.
                “Listen,” I say. “I need to know everything you can tell me about what is going on in there, and I need you to tell me now.”
                Maybe it’s the look on my face, but he doesn’t argue. “What do you want to know?”
                “What exactly is in there?” I demand. “What is Jack up against? How many, and where in the building are they? What exactly happened here?”
                He hesitates.
                “Tell me!”
                “We couldn’t predict what would happen!” That comes out as a startled bleat while he raises his hands as though he thinks I might hit him. “We couldn’t predict the solar behavior. No one could. We couldn’t know what it would do to our equipment, or our experiments.”
                “What experiments?” I ask. “Who exactly are you?”
                “Dr. Troy Florence. I’m a neurologist. My team was doing research that could have helped everyone, but now… they’re loose!”
                “What’s loose?”
                Dr. Florence shakes his head. “Not what. Who. We thought we were advancing humanity, but things changed so rapidly. The solar… event must have done something to the experiments.”
                “Do they look like they’re part lizard?” I ask.
                “No. Nothing like that. They look human. But they aren’t. They can do things that no human could ever do. They can manipulate energy in ways that are unbelievable… I know how mad this must sound.”
                “It doesn’t sound mad,” I assure him. C asan>Or at least no madder than the rest of my life. “Now tell me more.”
                “Some of them must have been overwhelmed by the effects of the solar energy. They’re… insane. Aggressive. They’ve killed people, and others of their kind. I saw them burn people. They burned people with the power of the sun, and I still don’t even know how they did it.”
                “Can they be stopped?” I ask. “Will bullets stop them?”
                Dr. Florence looks like he doesn’t know how to respond to that. “They’re still human. Tougher, stronger… but still human shaped. I guess that a bullet would stop one, or maybe several bullets, but you aren’t seriously considering…”
                I point to the stand of trees. “There’s a helicopter hidden behind those trees. On it, you’ll find food and supplies. If you know how to use a weapon, you should find those there too.” There’s more shouting from inside the main building. “Right now, I have to go help the man I love, and if you can’t help me, then you need to keep out of the way. Stay on the helicopter until I come, understood?”
                Dr. Florence nods. “Who are you?” he asks. “You have helicopters, weapons… are you with the government?”
                I think about Wilson Hammond being handed the presidency. Then I think about my own presidency, so far in the future now. “That’s pretty complicated. We don’t have the time.”
                “At least tell me your name.”
                “I’m called Celestra. Celestra Caine. Now go. Head for the helicopter.”
                He turns to go. I un-holster one of the pistols I got from Jack. I’ve seen him shoot with one in either hand, but I guess that without practice, this is better. I