Have you ever gotten that feeling in the pit of your stomach of deep dread and disbelief, literally to the point where you might just drop to the floor and pass out from shock?

"T-Tommy," I whispered, unable to take my eyes off of him. I slowly scooted back until my back hit the base of the couch behind me, eyes never leaving Tommy's face. "B-but you.."

"Died?" Tommy asked softly, lowering the poker and placing it against the tiled fireplace. He rubbed his hands of the charcoal and glanced at the window before stuffing his hands into his pockets. "Yeah, that's a long story."

"Damn right." I folded my arms over my chest and eyed him with distrust. "We found your body–" I stopped myself, jaw dropping as I thought back to my incident. Oh God.

"Are you..like me?" I whispered shakily, moving my eyes up to Tommy's again.

Tommy hesitated for a second, uncertainty flashing in his eyes. Was he really debating with himself on whether to tell me or not? He'd better fucking tell me, I've earned the right to know after all the bullshit I've been through these past few days.

"Well?" I snapped, working up just enough of my anger to muster courage. I stepped forward and stared him in the eyes, making sure mine were angry, demanding flames.

"Okay, it isn't exactly my place to tell you, McKenzie," he said, fidgeting under my burning gaze and snatching his eyes away from me and to his feet. "I want to, believe me, but I've been ordered to keep silent until the Council and Chieftain Silo speak to you first."

Silo. That name sounded familiar to my ears, but I was having trouble fetching memories from yesterday. All I remember is a lot of violence, a lot of yelling, and a shit ton of snarling. The rest is fuzzy and unclear, and that pisses me off big time.

"Alright." I drew my arms out and held them wide on each side of me. "Where is this almighty Silo who has to speak to me? Where is this Council that seems to be telling you what to do." I paused, then added nastily, "Oh, and since when do you care about what's best for me?"

He flinched. "I never said that it was best for you to wait, I said that it isn't my decision. I will get in a lot of trouble if I tell you anything before they have the chance to explain everything to you."

"I don't want to hear it from them," I spat, storming forward and poking a finger hard into his chest. "I want to hear it from you, Thomas. You owe me big time. You have no fucking idea the shit I've gone through ever since you got into that crash. I was so fucking ashamed to be at your funeral because I had to face my bitch of a cousin who I found naked under you. How the hell do you think I felt after that, huh? And then I turn into some kind of beast and have to run away from my home, only to end up here and see you're not dead!"

By the time I had finished my little rant, I was breathing heavily. The sounds of my heavy breaths were the only noise to be heard in this room, and Tommy was as white as new sheets on a bed.

"McKenzie," he said, his voice hollow with pain and sorrow, reaching out to take my hand. I, however, stepped back again so he couldn't touch me. "I'm so sorry."

"Sorry for what?" I cocked my head, pretending to feign confusion. "There's a lot to apologize for. For example, is it the cheating? Is it the sex with my cousin? The part where my cousin thought she was pregnant? The part where you faked you death." I tapped my fingers on my chin.

"Don't be a hypocrite," he said, looking almost irked behind the cloud of guilt on his face. "You're exactly like me."

I felt acid start to burn in the pit of my stomach, but it wasn't indigestion. It was from how livid I was right now. I saw red flashes begin to color my vision.

"How dare you?" I whispered in a low, cold tone. "You are such a douchebag," I said in a low hiss.

He apparently caught on to his own mistake and started to stumble out an apology but I cut him off, already on my way to yelling.

"I am nothing like you, you ass!" I yelled, suddenly shoving the palms of my hands against his chest hard. It was enough force to send him scrambling back against the corner of the fireplace, which dug into his side. "I didn't cheat on you with your cousin! I didn't fake my death because I don't fucking know what's going on! Whatever happened left a dead body exactly like mine, but you – you knew what was happening didn't you?"

"Yes," he managed out, breathless from the shove. He held his side, which sent a rush of triumph and satisfaction through my bones and entire body, right down to the tips of my toes.  "Not the entire process, just that I was going to become what I am. They refused to tell me anymore; not when they wanted to use me as their personal weapon."

"What are you talking about?"

"Thomas." That familiar deep voice cut my ex-boyfriend off before he could tell me. His eyes snapped over my shoulder and he swallowed, lowering his head slightly and staring at his feet once more. I raised a brow at his stance – looking to be almost submissive – and turned myself on my heel to look at the source of the voice.

His features were instantly recognizable. The beard, the stylishly messy blonde hair, the eyes. My memories of him cleared, one by one, as I stared at him with my lips parted in awe and surprise.

He was the one who brought me here. He broke into my motel room, him and .. Someone else, I think. I attacked him, but he injected me with something. He took me from Jada.

A strange feeling washed over me, making me want to storm over to this Silo character and rip his throat out, but I held myself back. I could not, however, keep my mouth shut as well. 

"You," I growled, clenching my fists, nails digging deeply into the palms of my hands. Breath, Mckenzie, breath. Remember what you've been told to do at the counselors whenever you get angry: deep breath in, deep breath out. Don't think about what's making you angry, don't even think about other things. Focus on your body, whether it's the way your chest moves up and down when you breath – you know what? Screw the exercise. Screw it all. I'm done trying to reign in my anger, I'm tired of pretending to be able to control it. From now on, my anger will not be controlled.

The man smiled, an amused expression crossing his handsome but punchable face. "Hello, McKenzie," he greeted.

"Don't say my name," I spat.

"Why not? What am I supposed to call you?"

"Nothing. I don't want you even talking to me."

"Mckenzie," said Silo, sighing and walking in to the room more. I stiffened, but instead of facing me he walked around the couch, towards the other side of the room, "I know you don't trust me, I know you're scared–"

"I am not scared," I snarled, the lie easily slipping off my lips without a stutter. Good job me.

He ignored my statement. "– but we really need you to listen to us. What we have to tell you can and will save your life, and it will lighten up your confusion."

I wanted to believe him, I really did, but how could I trust someone who stuck a needle in my ass back at the motel? How could I trust someone who took me away from Jada?

Jada... I thought, swallowing a worried lump in my throat. I lifted my chin and narrowed my eyes at Silo. "Before I agree to anything, tell me where my friend is.

"We brought her with us," Silo told me, smiling like he had assumed that this questioned would be asked. "She's still asleep."

"Where is she?"

"I'll take you to her as soon as you let us explain."

I hesitated, then nodded and slowly edged towards the couch. I sat on the arm rest and said, "Explain."

Silo sat on the other end of the couch while Tommy stayed where he was, wisely for him. Silo turned his upper body so he could look at me. "Over the years, the world's governments have been creating new weapons to use in war on terror. Or, most unfortunately, war on each other." He crossed his arms over his knees and rubbed his hands together, as if cold.

"The United States has always been trying to go above and beyond with their weapons. There was the atomic bomb, the Cold War, the CIA intel," he continued, watching my expression carefully, "but with recent events, they're desperate. Do you remember the science facility incident three years ago?"

I racked my brain for the memory, glancing at Tommy. I was watching the news with him, then it lightened. I blinked and nodded. "Eighty four scientists were killed by testing animals, right?"

He nodded. "Yes. Except this wasn't exactly any testing facility. A scientist by the name of Gerard Flatchenger was hired by the government to discover a way to create a new weapon, only this time a live weapon that can be sent into battle."

I swallowed, having the ability to connect the dots but still listening.

"This project, as they adoringly call it today, is called Combined Organisms in Action and Research," he said, his eyes darkening. "How they do this is plant a chip inside your head, right here," he tapped the right side of his temple, where a small scar was, "and they plant an identical connecting chip inside of an animal. When those two chips are activated, the chip will cut off regular brainwaves of the animal and replace it with artificial ones that contain orders to kill that certain human. When it kills the human, the DNA from the human will intertwine with the animal's, creating a genetic mutation."

My stomach twisted, my throat felt as though someone had stuffed it with pebbles until it was full. "I don't get it," I managed. "How does that make the human alive? With the ability to move, talk, remember?"

"The chip saves everything from their brains, and when the DNA creates the mutation, the chip from the animal's head will receive all of it. You are just a copy of your old self, McKenzie. The real you is dead." He paused. "In a physical sense. However, you're still you. You still have the memories and personality in which you had before the kill, but the mutation provided your DNA to physically copy your appearance and mix it with that of your animal's. This created a superhuman, and that's exactly what the government wanted."

"Then you're apart of this?" I got out, my heart pounding against my chest. My instinct was to run, and run as fast and as far from this place as I could.

"Yes and no," he told me, scanning me. He edged closer, seeming to notice my stance and position. He looked ready to catch me in case I made a break for it. "I am one of the few who have escaped the experiment and run away. Like you."

"There's more like me?" I whispered. "How have they not found you."

"The chip can't be tracked. They were stupid when creating it, thinking that everyone who received it would be willing participators. It costed millions to create a single chip, imagine if they had to redesign it with tracking devices as well. They just can't afford it in the program, so they have to rely on rats – humans who get paid to track the experiments for them – to capture and bring them to the facility."

"H-how many are there?" I asked. "Experiments."

"Hundreds," he said darkly, shaking his head. "Most of them are lapdogs. They feed right out of the hands of their enforcers, believing every word. The ones who escaped – this group of people – know the truth. We're disposable to them. Valuable, worth a lot of money, but easy to replace if determined necessary."

Dread courses through me and I put my head and my hands. My parents were both scientists. They never told me what they did, as it wasn't allowed. I just hoped that they weren't doing this. I hoped they weren't one of those people.

"How many people are here?" I murmured, still in shock.

"Around 200 all together. Many come from all over the country, taking shelter here. We call ourselves the Clan."

How cliché of a name. But I didn't mention that out loud for fear of offending Silo. Right now it looked like I needed their help, so I wasn't about to shit myself out of getting it. Knowing now what was going on, I couldn't afford to be alone.

"What does this mean for me?" I asked, forcing myself to lift my head and look at the man across from me.

"The Council has voted for your stay. Today is almost over. You will be fed and shown to your cabin, given money and a fresh set of clothes. Tomorrow you'll be shown the village, learn our customs and ways, and then be told how to earn your way into membership."

I blinked tiredly. "I have to earn it?"

"There's been betrayal in our Clan before, and we cannot risk it again." His shoulders lowered for a moment, a sign of pain when he spoke the words.

"What do I have to do to earn it?"

He looked up at me again and smiled softly. "You will find out tomorrow, little one. Everything will be clear then, but for now it is your time to rest and prepare. You have a long day ahead of you, and even more hardships to face."

He stood up and glanced at Tommy. "Please take her to one of the cabins. Give her the key, and make sure you stop by Lucile to get her some things on the way."

"Of course, Chieftain," Tommy said respectively, folding his hands and lowering his head in a brief bow before straightening up.

Silo nodded and moved his eyes back to me, locking with my own. He smiled. "You'll be safe here, McKenzie. I hope you earn your place in the Clan."