∞ The Tethered Ones ∞

Chapter 7

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• Amir •

Quietly stepping into the hall, Amir was met with Sergeant Trent standing two inches behind him. "What the hell have you been up to?"

Amir stepped around him and laid a hand on the railing of the stairs. "It's your business . . . because?"

"Just answer my question."

Amir turned around and eyed the door to the office. "I was watching the news."

The sergeant's mouth dropped open. "You can watch the news in the guest house, where you sleep."

"I'm sure he was doing something else," Nurse Smith said as she exited a room down the hall. "He just came out of the office connected to our very important patient. Luna doesn't need to be disturbed."

Amir stiffened. "I didn't bother her. Now, if you two will excuse me . . ."

The sergeant's eyes narrowed. "You're up to something, and I'm going to find out what it is."

"What is your problem?"

"I'm assigned to monitor her. That's my problem, Amir."

"Yeah, Mr. Khan. You and Luna better not be getting . . . cozy," she remarked. "Chase can't have that."

"To hell with him, and to hell with both of you," he grumbled under his breath.

What was with these people and their meddling?

Amir was baffled by them. 

As the sergeant and Nurse Smith chatted amongst themselves, Amir was singing a song in Urdu, desperately trying not to think about kissing his wife. But he must've failed when Sergeant Trent's mouth shut and he turned away.

Nurse Smith looked over at him. "Is everything okay, Ethan?"

Shaking his head, he muttered, "Whatever. This ain't my drama."

He'd read Amir's mind. Amir hoped the nurse didn't pick up on anything, because then he wouldn't know how to cover it up. He knew she hated Luna, and she wasn't the most delightful person to be around.

"There you are, Amir," Dr. Kim said, stepping inside the house from the front door. "Did you find everything you needed upstairs?"

He nodded. "Yes, sir, I did. Thank you for letting me use the computer."

"Of course. Please come with me. There's something I'd like to show you in my study."

Sergeant Trent and Nurse Smith gave him a look. Nurse Smith was the most curious, but Amir shook his head, trying not to give anything away. He knew he needed to keep it together and pay attention to whatever he was shown. He realized he was in the midst of enemy lines when Luna informed him that everyone was a criminal. He didn't want to take any chances and freak out, knowing the staff could pump him the same medication as they do for her. That wouldn't help him, and it certainly wouldn't help either of them leave this place.

Approaching a closed door, Dr. Kim turned to Amir. "Once I show you why you came to our institution, maybe then you'll understand what we're about."

Maybe, he thought, but Amir still obliged. When the door opened, it revealed a large, round room with four doctors and two nurses. As he stepped forward, he immediately winced at the smell of antiseptic, as the sight and scent brought a wave of memories back into his mind. Memories of when he was in medical school.

There were two U-shaped stations in the back along a wall, and a patient was using one of them. A woman in her thirties, who seemed like she wasn't even aware she was hooked up to a bag of fluid, lay still and observed her surroundings.

On the opposite side of the room, a long table was spread out, with scientists peering into a microscope and continuing to measure their medicine. One person wearing a white lab coat was typing quietly on the computer, deep in thought.

Stopping near a table, Dr. Kim asked, "Does anything feel familiar to you?"

"Yes. Memories of my medical training," Amir answered.

A small smile appeared. "That's good. What was it about genetics that piqued your interest?"

He squared his shoulders and raised an eyebrow. "Studying genes and the science of heredity is rewarding to me. It's a challenge to determine the origins and governing laws of different traits, especially with patients who have medical conditions. I want to help them understand their body and what is going on."

The doctor's gaze moved toward the patient on the bed, who was a few inches away from them. "I'd like for you to meet someone."

Stepping forward, they stopped next to her legs. "Mr. Khan, this is Lily." He pulled out her chart. "Miss. Montgomery, this is Amir Khan."

She turned those big, friendly eyes toward him and extended a cold, pale hand. "I know who you are. You helped break Cami and Luna out of St. Matthew's and left me behind."

"Uh . . ." he stuttered, unsure what to say.

"Now, Lily," Dr. Kim warned in a stern voice. "What did I tell you about speaking out of turn? You know better."

She huffed. "Shut the hell up, Dr. Kim. I'm tired of being hooked up to these machines, and I'm sick of these treatments."

"Behave, Lily. General Browning will be in here shortly to collect you." She rolled her eyes and gave him the bird.

Amir snorted.

"Don't worry about her. She's only acting out because we're not in the hospital." He waved an arm forward. "Let's move on to the next station, shall we?"

Before he could respond, they stepped around the white cubicle, stopping at a recliner. A young Asian woman in her teens with a shallow skin tone and a bald head lay still, her eyes heavily focused on the ceiling.

"Meet Karoline." He winked at her. "Karoline, this is Mr. Khan."

"Hi," she whispered, giving him a weak smile. "Are you a patient, too?"

Amir shook his head. "No."

"This is a brilliant geneticist from Islamabad," Dr. Kim said as the young woman met his gaze. "Karoline has grade four primary CNS lymphoma and has been in treatment for two years."

Understanding what was happening to her, his eyes watered. He wanted to look away so neither of them would see it, but he couldn't. He slightly nodded and gave her a pleasant smile. He knew she'd been battling her cancer for months, and it was exhausting for her.

"Her disease has progressed rapidly, but she is a fighter," the doctor added.

Amir forced another smile as Dr. Kim reached over to check her bags. Her dark eyes bounced back at him. "The medicine isn't helping me, Uncle," she mumbled, biting down on her lower lip. "It makes me feel sick."

"I'll find something that works for you," he told her, adjusting her blanket around her shoulders. "Just get some rest, and I'll be back after dinner. I love you, KK."

She smiled. "I love you, too, Uncle Danny."

As the two men stepped away, Amir turned and asked, "So, Karoline is your niece?"

Dr. Kim nodded. "Yes. And I'm sure you can understand the severity of her disease," he said, turning his attention to the other scientist. "Cancer, autoimmune diseases, skin infections, and so much more rob a person's life, sometimes before they get a chance to live it. Decades have been spent on finding a cure for each of them, and every year, a new disease arises, capable of destroying life."

Amir looked around the room, and then Dr. Kim continued.

"But with active Tethered Souls, they don't have to worry about sickness. Do you remember the last time you were ill, like really ill, and had to be placed in a hospital?" Dr. Kim's eyes then bulged open. "Wait. Sorry. You don't have to answer that, Mr. Khan. I'd forgotten about your current memory condition for a second there."

"I still have memories of my childhood, Dr. Kim. I just can't remember events after my birthday last year."

"Oh, right." He took a deep breath and spoke again. "As I was explaining, Karoline is very dear to me. She's not a Tethered Soul, and she has to live with a disease that she's not immune to. DNA from Tethered Souls is valuable to us. We could inject them with the AIDS virus, and they wouldn't get sick. That's been done before."

A shudder rolled down Amir's spine. "Is injecting Tethered Souls with diseases necessary?"

He nodded. "Yes, Mr. Khan. We can study how their bodies fight off diseases compared to people who weren't born advanced. Our mission is to replicate Tethered Souls' DNA so it can help patients in need. We've had a little success, especially with the TS-12 serum."

"TS-12 serum?" he choked, watching a man in a full military uniform walk over to Lily. He started chatting with her as she was having a new bag of fluid administered.

"It's a replicant of a healthy Tethered Souls' gene," he said. "It slows the growth of most types of cancer. My niece hasn't responded well, but other patients have. The serum is a product of years of research, and we're hoping to find more ways to help the population."

He was silent for a moment as his gaze moved around the room. "Can I ask, have you ever shown me this, Dr. Kim?"

"No, Amir," he replied. "This is the first time you've seen what the Biological and Research Development Agency has been conducting. I've shown you this today because I have good faith you'll help us."

Following him to a computer, Amir flattened his palms. Part of him wanted to believe that's what they were doing—figuring out ways to cure diseases—but another part of him knew there was more to this than meets the eye. Believing the organization was doing something good in the world was like believing in the tooth fairy. "Is that why Tethered Souls are hunted?"

"Yes, Mr. Khan. We are trying to make the world a better place. Well, once things go back to normal, of course." He chuckled and smiled like he was giving him a sales pitch.

Amir almost felt like punching and throwing the man against the wall, but he wasn't in any position to fight him. He was already plotting in his mind a way to get Luna out of there. They'd probably injected her with God knows what. His nerves shook at the thought of that.

Meeting his gaze, Amir asked, "How do you need my help?"

"You have extensive knowledge working with many types of patients, Mr. Khan." He placed a hand on his shoulder. "You'll be useful to us."

Just then, Alisha stepped in through the door and nodded as she stopped at a computer.

"Come," he insisted. The two men strolled to the opposite side of the house, where a section of the wall was a boarded-up window. Opening a door next to it, he asked, "What do you see?"

The air went out of his lungs. He murmured, "Cancer patients," as he followed a line of people who were lying on identical beds and having their blood work taken by doctors and lab technicians. He counted around seven patients, each with frail skin, who were battling an illness.

"Do any of these people look like they'd rather be somewhere else?" the doctor asked. "Do they look like hostages to you?"

Placing his hand against the doorframe, Amir leaned in. The patients were chatting and eating snacks while they joked around and didn't look like they were even bothered by what was happening with them. They were in their early twenties and seemed at ease with their condition. They definitely didn't look like they were held against their will.

"They look like they're getting the care they need, am I right?" Dr. Kim went on.

Amir nodded but was still thoroughly confused. Were any of them getting better? Why wouldn't they be in a hospital? How long have they been here? He couldn't figure out why they'd choose to be in a doctor's home.

"They are here of their own free will," Dr. Kim added.

"If I'm not mistaken, isn't Luna being forced here?"

He cocked his head to one side. "It doesn't have to be that way. We just need her to cooperate, Amir."

"So, you don't deny it?"

"No. Luna is kept here for her safety."

"That's... That's absurd. She's not a danger to anyone."

"There are different kinds of Tethered Souls in the world, Mr. Khan. Some have special abilities that can be useful to us; some understand their biology and can greatly improve the lives of others by giving us their DNA. And some of them are a risk to the public. You've seen the destruction we're facing, so I'm sure you can understand why we do what we do."

"The third group... Wouldn't it be easier if they had guidance instead of being captured and treated like prisoners?"

Dr. Kim was silent for a moment. "Those types of Tethered Souls are unpredictable. Some of them wish to take control and rip mankind to shreds. Destroy humanity at any cost."

Amir swung his head toward him. "That's a little dramatic, Dr. Kim."

"How many Defectives do you think are out there?"

"I'm not sure." Since Amir had woken up and been informed the world was in the middle of an apocalypse, he didn't know who to watch for. Anyone could be defective, but not his wife. He didn't sense any evil coming from her. "Maybe a hundred?"

Dr. Kim shook his head, then spoke with authority. "There are roughly thirty thousand people who have defective genes."

Amir gulped. That was a lot.

"About eighty percent of them were held in our hospitals. Another ten percent haven't developed their dark abilities yet, and the other half are ready to see mankind under their thumbs. We had everything under control until you and Luna opened Pandora's box and exposed yourselves."

Staring at him, Amir had no idea what to say. Aside from observing the news, he had no recollection of that day.

"Let me ask you a question, Amir. Where do you think your wife falls on that spectrum?"

"I know Luna is not interested in wreaking havoc on the world." He scoffed, growling under his breath. "She's trying to survive, and insinuating more is preposterous."

"You think so?" He paused. "You can never truly know a destructive person's motives. You don't have memories of her, so I wouldn't expect you to see it my way. But you've seen how much power she possesses, right?"

Dr. Kim had him there.

"You have to admit that what you've seen her do makes you question things," he continued. "The biggest question is, how destructive can she be?"

Amir opened his mouth, but no words came out. He didn't believe a word the doctor was saying, and he'd said those things like he hoped he'd be on board. As if he didn't have an ounce of remorse when it came to his wife receiving insane treatments.

Turning back to the patients, Dr. Kim lifted his chin. "There are dozens of destructive souls, Mr. Khan. Many have lived undetected for decades, with no remorse for the pain or suffering they cause others. What side would you be on if you encountered one? What if your wife turned on you?"

Shaking his head, Amir turned to him. "I'll worry about that when it happens. There's no question in my mind that Luna is a good woman. I know she'll never do anything to jeopardize the world more than it already is. She is not the threat. This organization is."

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Ooh, look at Amir standing up for Luna against the big baddie. Two previous characters from the first book made their reappearance. Sergeant Ethan Trent, and Lily Montgomery. They've been upgraded to major characters down the line. :)