Where We Go | Book Three

43. When Did You Get Bitten?

"No, no, no. Shit. Shit. Shit," I repeated as I swung my feet out of the bed and ran to the door.

In the hotel lobby, Lucy backed out the door into the open space. Her face was white as a sheet, her eyes wider than I'd ever seen them. "No! Stay away from me!" she shrieked, holding up her hand.

Guards in dark clothing converged around her. Their guns were raised, and bright lights trained on my silhouette in the doorway. The mirror to my right flashed with my reflection and I turned. 

My eyes were bright white, the pupil devoid of any hint of colour. No trace that they'd ever once been a deep ocean blue. They looked more sunken and hollower against my skin than I remembered. I turned away from the likeness I didn't recognise, realising I couldn't talk my way out of this one.

"Lucy, it's not what you think!" I tried to reason as my bare feet hit the damp grass.

Her right hand reached behind her body and pulled a gun from her waistband, aiming it directly at my head. "Stay where you are!" she repeated louder as she raised her hand to steady her aim.

"Okay," I stopped in my tracks, lifting my hands and lowering my stare to the grass. "Okay, okay. I'm not moving."

"How are you talking?" she panted. Her chest was heaving, and she was holding her gun tight to stop her hands from shaking.

"I'm not one of them..."

"Bullshit!" she yelled. "I can see your eyes. When did you get bitten?"

Please let this be a dream.

From behind me, Ben charged past with a torch in his hand illuminating us in the open space. He stepped between me and Lucy, shielding me with his body. He was barefoot but still wore his black hoodie and plaid pyjamas.

"What's going on?" he said, his voice firm. I pressed my body against him, trying to control my shivering.

"Your girlfriend is Infected!" Lucy raised her voice, keeping her aim steady. "Look at her! Look at her eyes!"

His frantic pupils danced in the bright light as he took a glance at me, confirming her accusation before turning back. "Luce, I need you to calm down and lower the gun."

"Fuck off, don't tell me to calm down right now," she spat. "We haven't had an Infected inside Land's End for months. You lot all turn up at once and look what happens. Someone is missing, there's a herd near the wall and now there's an Infected inside the gates. That doesn't sound like a coincidence to me."

"It's not what you think, Luce," he tried to reason with her.

She waved her gun at him. "Then somebody better start talking. Fast."

"I was Infected..." I explained, stepping out from behind Ben with my hands still raised. "I'm not anymore."

"That's impossible," she shook her head. "Everybody knows there isn't a cure."

"There was," Ben answered.

She scowled, pressing her brows into a single line. "What are you talking about?"

"Put the gun down," he said again. "We can explain."

"No," she shook her head. "This gun doesn't go away until one of you tells me what the fuck you're talking about."

"Before we came here... I was at EDIN for a year," he said. "I helped them make the cure that worked on Em... She's human."

"But her eyes..."

"It's the only part they couldn't revert... She's not a threat."

"He's telling the truth," I begged. "Please. I can show you the serum."