Chapter 12: The Name She Forgot
The man dragged Maya through the smoke and into an overturned transport van.
Rafe followed seconds later.
The stranger removed a corrections helmet.
His face was badly scarred, but his eyes belonged to Lucas.
“How many of you are there?” Maya demanded.
“Enough to make the truth useless.”
“Are you my brother?”
“I was the first host.”
Maya stared at him.
He explained that the real Lucas had survived the riot but suffered severe brain damage. Dr. Price copied his memories into several other men to preserve the information he carried.
Some hosts remained loyal to Helix.
Others believed so completely that they were Lucas that they tried to rescue Maya.
“Which one is the original?”
The scarred man pointed toward the yard.
“Possibly the one who was shot.”
Maya pushed past him.
Rafe blocked the door.
“You’ll be killed.”
“I can’t leave him.”
A phone inside the van rang.
The scarred Lucas answered and activated the speaker.
Elias’s voice came through.
“Maya, listen carefully. North Gate will open in two minutes.”
“Are you Adrian Cross?”
Silence.
“Answer me.”
“I was once.”
The words struck harder than any confession.
“What does that mean?”
“It means Adrian’s memories have lived in more than one body.”
Maya remembered the folder marked 1178.
Former federal agent.
Reactivated under Lazarus Protocol.
“Did my father die?”
“Yes.”
“Then who are you?”
“A man who remembers loving you.”
Maya’s eyes filled with tears, but she refused to let them fall.
“Where are you?”
“North Medical. Warren Vale is preparing to transfer the Blackridge archive.”
“I’m coming.”
“No. Take the memory card and leave.”
“I need the truth.”
“The truth is why your family was destroyed.”
An explosion shook the van.
Elias’s voice became urgent.
“Maya, there is something you need to know about your mother.”
“What?”
“She survived Redwater.”
Maya gripped the phone.
“My mother died two years after Dad.”
“No. The woman who raised you died.”
“Who was she?”
“A Helix employee assigned to watch you.”
Maya felt as though the floor had disappeared beneath her.
Elias continued.
“Your biological mother created Lazarus.”
The call abruptly ended.
Outside, the northern gate began opening.
Hundreds of inmates ran toward it.
Rafe started the van.
Mercer and Anna climbed inside through the rear doors. Anna was barely conscious.
The scarred Lucas pointed toward the gate.
“We leave now or we don’t leave.”
Maya looked through the smoke toward North Medical.
A lone figure stood on the roof.
Elias.
He raised one hand.
Then a second figure appeared behind him.
A woman wearing a white coat.
Even from a distance, Maya recognized her face.
The woman looked exactly like the mother who had raised her.
May you like
Maya opened the van door.
Before she could jump out, Elias fell from the roof.
