“He serves me purpose,” I protested. “He’s important to me.”
“That is human weakness, emotions,” she said, sharply, pushing me out of the way, to stand next to Ash. “To be part of this new world, you need to find a new mate, a strong one. Holding on to those who would only make you weak is a false move, Zoey.”
Razi leaned over Ash, running her long fingers over his forehead, smoothing out the wrinkles of stress. “I’m not cruel though, of course! I will allow you to say goodbye.”
This was all happening too fast. It seemed like it had only been hours (though I had no idea how long I had been under) that Ash and I had been on the road, heading to what we thought was Sanctuary, and now we were captured, kidnapped by this crazy doctor playing God who I was pretty sure was going to kill the boy I loved. I was not ready to say goodbye. I was not ready to join this ridiculous utopia that she thought she was creating. She was crazy, and all these people that she had upstairs working for her, they were crazy as well. They had been killing innocent people on a false cause, and they weren’t stopping anytime soon.
She woke Ash up gently, coaxing him awake. His eyes flew open and darted around wildly, taking in his surroundings. His lip curled at the sight of Razi; this was definitely not the first time that he had seen her, and his previous experience had not been good, judging by the disgusted look on his face. His eyes wandered and fell on mine, and I felt a sense of relief as I crossed the room toward him.
“Zoey,” he breathed. “You’re all right.”
I nodded. “Of course. Are you okay?”
He coughed loudly. “Of course I am. Never been better.” He tossed a glare at Razi who didn’t flinch as she watched us. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m…I’m…” I started to say. I could feel tears building up, and the words got caught in my throat. How could I tell him that we were trapped, stuck with the people who were responsible for the deaths of everyone we loved and cared about?
“She’s come down here to say goodbye to you,” Razi cut in, pressing a few buttons on the machine. There were so many wires connected to it, and I was sure that at least one was connected to Ash in some way. I watched her apprehensively, afraid that there was one button, a simple button, that could just end his life right then and there.
Ash turned to glare at her, and I stepped back. “Should I be grateful to you, Doctor Cylon, that you brought her down here to say goodbye? Did you tell why I am forced to say goodbye to her? Did you tell that I didn’t fit into your ridiculous idea of a perfect world?”
I gaped at him. “You know?”
“Of course,” Ash spat out, though his venom was aimed at Razi, not me. “She told me that you were the only one that they wanted. You were strong, and I was weak, and I would only hold you back.” He met the doctor’s eyes squarely. “They’re going to kill me.”
“No!” I shouted, looking over at Razi, who was still regarding me calmly. “No, you can’t do that. This is ridiculous.”
“I am building a perfect world, and I cannot afford you to be emotionally weak. He is sick; his immune system is not as strong as yours. He would be a waste to keep around,” Razi explained, no remorse in her voice.
“You’re sick,” Ash yelled at her, struggling against his bonds. “You’re a sick woman, and you’re acting like you’re God, like it’s a game, but you’re taking away innocent lives. Who gave you this power? Who decided that you could do this?”
Razi didn’t answer. She blinked her large dark eyes at us and used her hands to wipe off imaginary lint off the perfect creases of her blazer. She was too far gone to be reasoned with. She’d been planning this for the past four years, and there was no stopping her from her objective now.
“You should just kill me too,” I said angrily. I saw Ash shake his head out of the corner of my eye, but I refused to look at him. “I want nothing to do with this new world you think you’re creating.”
“That is not going to happen. Say your goodbyes,” she said, firmly. “I’m tired of this. I have better things to waste my time on.”
Ash shifted, turning his head toward mine, a smirk on his face. “Can I get one last goodbye kiss, Zoey?”
All the words that I wanted to say, the “I love you” that I needed to say, were stuck. I couldn’t get them out. Now was the time. It didn’t matter if he didn’t feel the same; I needed to say it now. I leaned forward and pressed my lips tightly to his, feeling the sparks dart through me. I went to pull away, but the look in his eye stopped me. “Now,” he whispered.