Chapter 58: Difficult Choices
331words
She met my eyes briefly. "I need to finish this. And… there's something else I need to do. Something only I can do."
Something in her tone made me uneasy. "What are you planning?"
"Richard has to be stopped," she said simply. "Permanently."
"You mean kill him," I realized. "Your own brother."
"He stopped being my brother the day he murdered your father and imprisoned me," she replied, her voice hard. "The things he's done, Charlotte—the experiments, the torture, all in the name of his crusade. It has to end."
"There are other ways," I argued. "Justice, not vengeance."
Elizabeth's expression softened slightly. "You sound like your father. He always believed in finding another way." She sighed. "Go find Sophia. Get her out. I'll meet you at the north exit in twenty minutes."
Though reluctant to leave her, I nodded and slipped out of the laboratory, following her directions to the east wing. The facility was surprisingly empty—most of the staff must have been at the main complex that had been raided.
I found Cell 12 easily enough and entered the code Elizabeth had given me. The door slid open to reveal Sophia sitting on a narrow bed, her expression changing from fear to shock when she saw me.
"Charlie?" she gasped, jumping to her feet. "How—"
"No time to explain," I interrupted. "We're getting out of here."
"Richard will have the exits guarded," she warned as she followed me into the corridor.
"We have help," I assured her, though I wasn't entirely certain what form that help would take. I had to trust that Liam had found us, that he was waiting for the right moment to strike.
We made our way toward the north exit, avoiding the few guards we encountered. As we approached our destination, alarms suddenly blared throughout the facility.
"They've discovered we're missing," Sophia said, her face pale.
"Or Liam's here," I countered, hope rising in my chest.
