“Yes. I don’t want us caught off guard.”
“Were there any other rooms where you heard unidentified noises?” Meg crossed her arms, trying to sound serious.
“Yes, Alik’s.”
“And did you knock on his door to check on him, too?”
Creed pursed his lips together, his jaw working.
She couldn’t hold her giggles in any longer.
His eyes darted down to look at the girl, brows knitted in consternation at her laughter.
“I can see you’re fine. Good night, miss.” Creed spun on his heel and started down the hall.
“Wait, Creed. I’m sorry. Come back here.” She hurried after him and reached out to touch his arm.
He stood stone still, his back still to her, eyes locked on her small hand on his arm for a moment before turning around.
“Thank you for checking on me.” She smiled up at him, trying to ease his anxiousness. “The noise you heard was Maze toppling me from a handstand. He just decided he wanted to wrestle.” She shrugged innocently.
He nodded once and started to turn away again, though the look in his eyes told her he wanted to stay.
“Hey, if you have a minute, I would like to talk to you. That is, if you’re done making your rounds.” She watched his pupils dilate at her words.
“Everything’s secure, for now.” He nodded.
Meg reached out again, this time purposefully taking his hand in hers and led him down the hall to the living room. She didn’t let go until they were seated on a comfy sofa for two. Meg watched him sit stiffly, which is pretty hard to do in these couches. They were so plush; they nearly forced everyone to melt back into their folds. As for Meg, she curled her left leg under herself and snuggled into the corner being sure to angle herself to face the metasoldier.
Feeling a moment of unease, she looked down at the edge of the pajama shorts she wore and absently rolled the hem with deft fingers.
The room was silent for too long.
Meg couldn’t stand it anymore.
Still not sure what she wanted to say or ask, she just let her heart talk.
“We met for the first time late one autumn night in Kansas. Mom was in the hospital recovering from being beaten by Williams and his thugs, and my brothers and I were keeping vigil in her hospital room. I had stepped outside to take Maze for a walk. You stepped out of the shadows to talk to me.” Meg smiled at the memory.
“But I was so scared of you. We had every reason to be wary of strangers with Williams hunting us. I wouldn’t even tell you my name.” She laughed at the memory. “The next day we ran into each other at the hospital’s cafeteria. You bought breakfast for my family that morning and walked me to the elevator.”
Creed listened intently, desperate to know everything about his lost memories of this girl.
“We agreed to meet at noon that day,” she frowned, remembering, “but that never happened. We went into hiding that day.” She said simply, not wanting to tell him it was because of his attempt at her mother’s life that forced them to run.
“The next time I saw you it was five months later in Hawaii. I had been dosed with a mutant malaria virus and was at death’s door for a week. During that time, you helped my family find a way to cure me. You chose to help us and turned away from Williams, defying his orders. You even used yourself as a human shield to protect me.” Meg looked up at Creed’s handsome face. “You took two bullets for me that night.”
Creed stared at his hands, deep in thought.
“When I woke from the coma, we realized the illness had triggered my evolution.”
He looked up, a question on his lips. “You mentioned your evolution before. What exactly is it?”
“Alik, Evan and I were given a different serum than the metahumans who came after us. We were the original formula. Something was different about that formula. It not only heightened our natural abilities, but Evan and Paulie decoded something else. It was a countdown. At first, we thought the countdown was to our deaths, but we found out differently. It was a countdown to a form of rebirth.”
“Have Alik and Evan evolved, too?”
“No, not yet, but it could happen at any time, really. Alik, being older, will probably change first.”
“I was told I was exposed to the serum at Dr. St. Paul’s lab. Was that the same serum you were given?” Creed asked, worry in his eyes.
“Yes, or at least as close as it could be. Evan made those vials of the Infinite serum based on his own blood. He was given the most advanced version of the serum,” she shrugged. “So, yeah, you were exposed to it. Have you noticed a difference in yourself?”
Meg stopped talking and looked to him expectantly.
“Yeah, I have.” He took a deep breath and allowed himself to sit back in the sofa, as though finally surrendering to the comfort. His head leaned back as he stared up at the ceiling, thinking.
“And?”
He shrugged. “I was always strong, fast and accurate—but it’s different now.”