Page 138 of Degradation
But it won’t be.
Then the class is done, I say goodbye to Bennet, promising that I’ll check my phone and message him back today. I try not to look happy that I’m escaping him as I file out with the others and head down to the lab.
All three of them will be in there. They always are at this time of day on a Thursday. My heart is thumping hard as I unlock the door with my card and open it. The click of it sounds so ominous. It's like I'm walking to my doom.
But I don’t back out. I can’t.
I go inside and unlock the laptop first. I see the results and my excitement spikes, though it’s quickly followed by dread.
It’s time.
I locate Mav first. He’s messing around at one of the white tables in the far corner in a lab coat. There are beakers and bottles all around and he’s holding one over a burner, paying close attention to it as it begins to boil. I know what he's doing.
He's trying to see if the simulations were wrong, if he’s close to a good result on his modifications. He’s going to be disappointed though. I turn away. Maybe he’ll be excited, not angry that I’ve found the answer.
Shade is sitting on one of the benches with his laptop open. I'll bet he's going through the figures now as well. Blake sits next to him, pointing things out and it strikes me that all three of them seem a little more desperate than they were last week. It's like they're on a looming deadline.
Shade looks up and sees me, giving me a small smile. Blake's eyes roam over me. His look is more predatory. From the corner of my eye, I see Mav turn off the flame and give me a wink.
I take a deep breath. ‘There's something I need to tell you.’
My voice is too quiet. It doesn’t carry.
‘What was that?’ Shade asks.
I swallow hard and straighten, holding my head up. This is for my future, I remind myself.
‘There's something I need to... I need to tell you,’ I say, putting more force behind my voice.
Shade beckons me over to sit in the seat next to him, but I shake my head. I want to be standing for this.
‘All of you,’ I say.
Mav gives me a narrow-eyed look, but he comes over and sits with the other two.
I close my eyes for a second.
‘Are you okay?’
‘Yes,’ I say, wondering if Shade will still be as concerned about me in a few minutes.
‘I know there's a second drug.’ I blurt it out to get the ball rolling.
All three sets of eyes snap to mine, bore into my soul.
‘What are you talking about?’ Shade asks, shrugging like there’s nothing to know.
I give him a long-suffering look.
‘I've known there were two for ages. One that’s legit and on the books, and another you’re pretending is the same one to keep it under the radar and use the lab’s resources for. It’s called Envy.’
All three expressions shutter immediately and Blake glances at the door where the camera is. It could hear this. I didn’t think of that, so I decide not to be specific about anything else I say out loud.
‘Don't play dumb,’ I say, stepping closer and speaking much more quietly. ‘I already know it exists and I...’ I wince a little. ‘I know that you’ve been having trouble with it.’
They all stare at me, and I get the impression they didn’t see this coming. They seem to have no idea what to say.
I open my laptop, showing them the simulations that I ran this morning. Mav’s eyes survey the screen, and he scrolls down. When he looks up at me, there’s surprise in his eyes.
