“Fifteen minutes. But sir, I should mention that there seemed to be a change in their behavior today.”
Dr. Williams sat quietly, staring at the image of the meta child on the screen, and he wondered aloud, “what do you think you’re doing?” He rewound the scene and watched it again from the beginning. There was something here, he could feel it.
“Sir?”
“Nevermind. I know you have not initiated contact with them since you located their hideaway on the Big Island, correct? So, what brought on this change in their pattern of behavior?” Dr. Williams’ mind was racing on two planes of thought.
“I observed the metas conducting themselves as usual until today when all three of them changed their routines. The oldest male looked angry and spent the entire afternoon lifting weights behind the house in the bungalow. The younger male went into the laboratory about the same time and has not come out all day. And the girl,…” Creed’s voice wavered slightly.
“Yes, what of the girl?” Williams snapped impatiently.
“The girl ran out of the house at 11:12am and kept running. It wasn’t her normal jogging pace. It was obvious she was upset, sir.”
“Yes, well of course. She is the emotional one,” Williams mused.
“If it were just her change in behavior, I wouldn’t have thought much about it; but the other two metas behaving the way they did—something happened to upset all three of them.”
“No matter. After Meg gets our little “gift,” they’ll have a new reason to be upset,” Dr. Williams said, smiling to himself.
“Sir, we could have just as much access to either of the male metas. Are you sure you want the “gift” given to the female?” Creed couldn’t completely put aside his feelings for Meg, however important it was that he did.
In the five months since he last saw her, all he could think about was her. He and Farrow tried to track them, but their trail ran cold. No one knew where they were. Not at the hospital, not the government, not the police…no one was talking. It was like they fell off the face of the earth. So Williams had ordered them to return to the Facility. He didn’t like having his meta operatives away from his influence for long. Creed was sure Williams worried that if left with too much freedom, he would lose them to the appeal of the American civilian lifestyle. It had taken months of private investigation from an outside source to locate the family that had gone so deeply underground. It was only because Williams had spared no expense in their hunt that they were found. Creed was sent ahead for surveillance and Farrow followed soon after with the special “gift” designed specifically for Meg.
“It absolutely needs to be given to her. She’s the leader. You forget, Mr. Young. Combined, these three are the most formidable metas I have ever created. Alik’s strength and memory, Evan’s genius and problem solving, and then there is my M57—Meg is what they call her, isn’t it? Not very original of Margo,…” Dr. Williams’ voice dropped off.
“Sir?” Creed wasn’t sure he was following the Director’s line of thought.
“Well, Margo ‘named’ her Meg. M57. M, then the fifth letter of the alphabet is “E” and the seventh is “G.” M-E-G. Not very original,” he said condescendingly.
Creed’s mind easily slipped back to the hospital corridor when he stood so close to her he could smell the strawberry scent of her hair and looked into her deep, dark brown eyes. He had to force himself back to the present. “And what of Meg’s heightened ability?”
“Now that’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it?” Williams half said to himself as he continued to stare at the image of the dark-eyed child on the screen. “She can channel into the emotions of those around her.” His voice sounded very far away to Creed.
“‘Channel into emotions.’ Sir, what does that mean?”
“It means she may be the most dangerous of them all. It is she who gives the other two directions; her personality is that of leader. Without her, the two males will flounder. It is she who intends to be my undoing,” he said with a strange smile in his voice that translated to Creed almost as pride.
He’s proud of her, Creed thought to himself. In a sick way, he is happy at the thought of Meg wanting to kill him. This guy is one seriously demented individual.
The director continued watching the image on his screen. “Such a delicious morsel. What a gift I gave her…”
“Sir?” Creed heard every word the old scientist muttered, but he wasn’t making sense. Not for the last time, Creed grimaced at the thought of all the power this man had at his fingertips, yet how near the edge of insanity he seemed to hover.