"Here at BioGene Pharmaceuticals, our mission is to further the development and the commercialization of safe medications. This will help us thrive, so that your family flourishes as well."

My eyes ascended from polished flooring, looked beyond the succession of glass that showcased the rainy, winter night. I disregarded the photographed spectacle of revered doctors, and discounted the summarized accolades listed in polished bronze.

It was strange how such small engraved paragraphs contained such grand fabrications.

Instead of embossed names to identify the staff, inmate numbers would have been more fitting.

I ignored the framed displays of prestige to regard the screen that remained adjacent to my seat within the empty lobby. The actress upon the monitor appeared so falsely joyful.

Scripted lies told of how my mother's employers were intent to save humanity rather than profit from it.

"BioGene, credits its life saving medicines to-"

"It's lack of morals and greed," I finished for her before I shoved the black strands of my wayward hair behind my ears with pursed lips.

Bitterness was pungent upon my tongue, and the grinding of my incisors seemed almost deafening.

"You say something, Miss Kara?" Dean asked from his position behind the counter. The aged guard hunched over its glossy surface to address me with blue eyes that held kindness that verged on sympathy.

"Just repeating her words in verbatim," I lied with an artificial smile. "Feels like I've seen this video a million times."

His hand moved to pick up the receiver. "Should I phone her again?"

A routine of sorts commenced as I glanced down at the watch around my wrist, took in a face that had become more familiar than my mother's.

Seven... like the number of birthdays missed.

My reflection, a depiction of discontent, was mirrored in the spotless white tiles beneath my sneakers.

"That's not necessary. I'm sure she's finishing up something of great consequence," I mocked, "and will be down soon." Oh, how I internally choked on those words.

"Time sacrificed equals advancements made and lives saved, or at least that's what the good people of BioGene are fond of saying." Grabbing a set of keys, he continued, "I have to make my rounds, but I'm sure she won't be long."

He was so nice, and yet so delusional.

My focus shifted toward the affixed screen to view such mind-numbing propaganda once again. Basically, I did what I did best when it came to her... I waited.

Eventually, with a faint groan, a ping, and the illumination of the ground floor symbol, my mother's frazzled figure was revealed with the opening of the elevator's doors.

She was supposed to meet me twenty-five minutes ago.

Once enclosed in steel, the scent of disinfectant was almost as strong as my annoyance.

Manicured fingers scanned an identification card before she pressed the twenty-fourth floor. I refused to look at the esteemed Dr. Harlow, and yet I could feel her eyes take in my pissed stance within the opposite corner.

"BioGene has your family's welfare at the center of everything that we do," that same annoying actress stated from the monitor installed within the elevator's wall.

God, was this bitch everywhere?

"How is your father?"

"Happy and still divorced."

Her sharp intake of breath was unmistakable, but still she forged on. "How was school?"

"Long."

"And that little club of yours?"

Finally, I glared at the source of my rage. "Are you really asking me that while we're here?"

"Kara, I'm trying to show an interest in something that you care about."

Well, that would be a first.

I snorted, unamused. "My little club held a meeting that I missed because I was ordered to meet you here."

A small victory was won in the sight of her clenched fist before it released again. "Your father and I have shared custody. That means-"

"That for a couple days out of the week I'm forced to decorate the lobby in order to assuage your guilt." My vision focused on that stupid display again rather than expose the hurt triggered by revealed truths.

She sighed. "I was in the middle of analyzing-"

"Trust me, it's not important."

Once again, her movements were predictable. Without looking, I knew from experience that her fingers ran through her short brown hair in frustration before she'd shove her black rimmed glasses further upon her nose. "It was a few minutes, Kara."

My livid gaze met hers. "It was twenty-five, but as a BioGene underling, I understand your tendency to exaggerate."

"You never give your father this much attitude when he's late picking you up."

A smirk stole over my lips, my hands tightened around the strap of my book bag. "He's a real doctor. He actually saves lives."

She rolled her eyes. "And, what do you call what we're doing here?"

"Creating another expensive, marketable form of aspirin and yet labeling it a cure."

Her jaw tensed. "It's nice to know how you view my career. You know, BioGene has reinvented the way the world-"

"Benefits off agony?" I suggested.

She grunted, her eyes intent to watch the displayed numbers above the elevator doors. "Wow Kara, tell me how you really feel."

Smiling sweetly, I replied, "I thought I just did."

"You know that here at BioGene, we-"

"Put the company before family?"

Mother took a deep breath before she insisted, "This is just a job, Sweetheart."

True amusement lay behind my grunt this time because at fifteen, I knew better. "No, Mom. Your family is your job; BioGene Pharmaceuticals, is your life."

"Kara-" she began, only I didn't want to hear those same old excuses; thus, I did my usual. I hid the emergence of my emotions behind a wall.

The elevator doors slid open, and yet her hand on my shoulder halted my exit. She shoved my resistant body into her customary hug, and yet now even the gentle squeeze I felt seemed foreign and oddly out of place. Nevertheless, this moment of obligatory tenderness did provide me with what I wanted.

With baited breath, my fingers quickly slipped into her lab coat to pilfer her badge before I slid it into the back pocket of my jeans.

She pulled away to utter, "Look Kara, you may not respect what I do here, but for the time being, let's cage the family dysfunction while we are in this building."

The pace of my heart increased with every second that passed. Fear of the moment when she'd discover my actions thrust me into an usual silence. Rather than retort with my typical cutting comeback, I instead forced a grin onto my lips but said nothing more than, "No problem, Mom."

"BioGene Pharmaceuticals, the wave of the future," the actress finished.

I certainly hope not.

.......

The panning the long hallway once we exited the elevator resulted in a structural design that consisted of a series of glass laboratories. The outer walls were windowless, and yet behind the inner transparent barricades held state of the art technology, spotless equipment, and most importantly, several deplorable employees.

Although this visit wasn't my first, I couldn't stop my body's abrupt standstill. Behind the thick translucent partition, a woman shoved a needle into the leg of a puppy while another held the defenseless animal in place.

Its little, black tinted, fur lined body wiggled in protest before its big brown eyes met mine. Such agony lied in those pupils, such unnecessary suffering. However, these doctors disregarded its whimpers, its weak struggle to regain freedom... all under the guise of science.

They were all monsters, fucking monsters. Why couldn't they see that pain experienced felt the same no matter what our genetic makeup was?

As I blinked away my emotion it fed my inner rage. Quickly, turning away became the only solution to dampen its escalation.

"Hey Kara, nice to see you again," another guard commented, his stride never decreased as he moved toward the other end of the hall.

How someone could keep a smile on their face while surrounded by so much anguish, I would never know.

My vision's descent from his elated expression to the gun at his waist happened naturally. "You too, Tony."

We passed countless torture chambers, was rewarded with fleeting displays of scientists' execution of similar experiments on other powerless beings before we finally entered my mother's lab.

"When did security replace flashlights with Glocks?"

Distracted already by the tablet in her hands, Mom muttered, "Once competitors made it their mission to steal what we have."

Yeah, wouldn't want the countless murders to be all for nothing.

"Well, if it isn't little Kara."

This was a greeting that I knew all too fucking well.

Andrew's condescending tone irked me almost as much as the creepy grin upon his leathery face. My mother's lecherous cohort panned my figure, his disgusting gaze hugged slight curves before it finally rested on my face. "I don't think I've seen you since you were... about twelve."

"You're a man of science," contempt was interwoven within every word I uttered. "You should know that every living organism eventually matures, develops."

"Kara-" my mother warned.

"Dr. Harlow, Dr. Stevens-" words spoken from an assistant were all it took to make them completely forget my existence. For a minute, I stood there, and watched my mother's observation of an imprisoned monkey before she consulted her chart.

Dr. Harlow in action. This is how she, as she put it, 'saved lives.'

The memory of the woman I used to believe she was didn't fit with the image of the woman I now knew her to be. How could someone who comforted me in my youth, kissed away tears when I was wounded alter into this person? This callous brute who now calmly stated, "It's no use. You can dispose of it."

A sudden clamor beside me thankfully diverted my attention from her hardhearted actions. Within metal confinement, lay a rabbit. Its body cowered within the corner of black bars.

Subject 357.

As if these assholes had the right to number one of nature's creatures.

With my eyes on my mother's oblivious form, a piece of my granola bar was pulled from my bag before I moved to offer it between the small gap.

"Come on, girl," I encouraged.

Its back was to me, its small body busy as it gnawed away at something.

"Come on, how about a treat?"

Its frame jerked toward me with an unnatural speed, its bones popped as it moved. I openly gasped at the sight of its black eyes. Its jaw extended, saliva dripped down to disappear into white fur, and the inside of its mouth was devoid of several teeth. The ones that remained, were unlike those seen within Easter bunny ads, but rather fangs that dripped with its own blood.

"What the-"

My fingers were yanked back from the cage just as the feral animal's face rammed into the bars.

"Kara," my mother exclaimed, and yet my attention was consumed by the animal currently biting viciously at the bars where my fingers used to be. "You know better than to interfere with an experiment."

My enlarged eyes met hers. "You call that an experiment? What did you do to it?"

She ignored my shock as she checked her charts. "Did Subject 357 have its assigned dosage of the KPM virus?"

"Yes, just like the others," Andrew droned, ignorant to the rabbit's continued attack. "Along with an increased dosage of Adlofloxine to see how it would affect temperament."

Temperament? It was going fucking crazy.

My jacket was quickly removed with fingers that trembled before I shoved my cell phone within my pocket.

A tired sigh slipped from my mother's lips as she took in my PETA t-shirt while her associates attempted to shield their amusement behind the surface of iPads. "Really?"

"If this is a surprise to you Mother, then you really don't know me at all." Squaring my shoulders defensively, my vision wandered back to the rabbit that continued to strike metal. Firmly, I retorted, "What can I say? Clearly, you have your cause and I have mine."

"That's funny," Andrew mocked, his voice laden with amusement. "I remember a time when little Kara used to want to follow in her mother's footsteps."

His words were like a jab to the gut for it struck a nerve on so many levels. "Unfortunately, that was back when I was gullible enough to believe my mother's lies about being a vet. But on the bright side, it seems my body isn't the only thing that has matured." My gaze moved to linger upon her face. "My bullshit detector has certainly improved as well."

Such frustration radiated in her stare, but her inner emotions were visibly swallowed rather than soil that false representation of valued technologist. As I started for the door, she questioned, "Where are you going?"

"Your office, of course. I'd rather not watch your continued cruelty of animals. But thanks for the quality time, Mom."

Thanks a lot.

........

Head lowered, I quickened my pace before my courage could waver.

Appear normal, Kara. Appear normal. This will only work if you don't attract attention.

My sneakers squeaked against endless colorless tile. All around me great minds remained too consumed with their narcissistic thoughts of the invention of the next 'great pill'. No one paid any notice to the hooded girl who sprinted in the opposite direction of her mother's office.

"Embrace enlightenment and enforce change, or cower and be a part of the problem," that quote was a mantra that had quickly morphed into a freaking curse.

Rounding the corner, I found myself in opposition of a series of heavy footsteps coming from further down the hall. Panting, I quickly sunk down onto hard flooring. In that instant, my internal wish was for anything that offered concealment other than BioGene's sterile white passageways.

If one person had entered the corridor at that moment, I would have been discovered.

Peering around the edge of the wall, I silently willed Dean not to come in this direction. Faintly, what sounded like the out-of-tune whistle of the opening of Law and Order could be heard, his movements were slow as he casually inspected empty labs around him.

Go the other way. Please, go the other way.

My phone's unexpected vibration initiated panic. Struggling, I hurriedly crammed fingers into a frayed jean pocket before my ringtone could get louder. Hitting the ignore button as fast as humanly possible, I was forced to watch as Dean paused in the entrance of a lab two rooms from my current location. My legs shook painfully from my attempt to remain in my awkward position, labored gasps released from my lips in spurts that I couldn't seem to control. Sweat trickled down my forehead, stung the edges of my eyes, but I refused to budge until Dean resumed his rounds.

His head swiveled in my direction.

Stupid Ashley, stupid Ashley. Why would she call me now?

Blessedly, the sudden noise within the laboratory in front him captured his attention. I sighed in relief at the sight of the swipe of his badge before he ducked into darkness. The lab's illumination spilled out into the hall just as I crept through the intersecting corridor.

As I hurried, the hall transformed from darkened glass to plain white plaster until; at last, a windowless room labeled 'inhabitants' lied in front of me. Pausing just before its door, indecision glued my hands to my side while my sight focused on that key-less entry pad.

Powerless, my mind's voyage back to my earlier conversation with Ashley seemed inescapable...

"Are you, or aren't you the girl who is constantly spouting that fucking chant?"

Groaning, I barely managed to dodge the influx of students as they retreated from the school building. "It's not a chant, and this is different."

"How?" Her brown eyes practically bulged from her skull, those freckles appeared even more prominent along the bridge of her nose. "They go against everything we believe in."

"I know that, but-"

"But what?" Ashley exclaimed in outrage. Her book bag met dirt before she stripped off her coat even though the dead of winter raged all around us. "What does this shirt stand for?"

I rolled my eyes in frustration. "I am the one who begged the principal to allow us to form this version of the club on school ground-"

"Well, you've obviously forgotten its meaning." She started to pace before me, her arms a whirlwind of movement. "Peta: people for the-"

"Ethical treatment of animals, I know," I insisted. The need to calm her down intensified with every new set of eyes we attracted. "I know the cause, and I know our beliefs."

Ashley's hands rose to rest on her hips before she countered, "Then, what's the problem?"

The problem is, you aren't the one who would be risking everything.

She snorted in disbelief, red hair smacked frostbitten cheeks as her head shook in denial. "It's her, isn't it? You're scared of your mom."

"I- I'm not scared of anything," my stuttered response certainly sounded weak; however, my willpower was not.

"Good," Ashley proclaimed as she struggled back into her coat, "because you are the divisions' leader, and I'd hate for the others to learn that their elected official, who talked us into creating the petition for healthier food choices, was now punking out."

"I'm not punking-"

She grinned in the face of my denial. "That the person who almost got us suspended for the liberation of the school's frogs was losing her nerve."

"My nerves are just fin-"

"Why they might even seek another leader if they knew. After all, you are the girl who staged the sit-in to protest the pep rally. You remember the pep rally, don't you? The one that would have consisted of burning the opposing team's mascot, Porky. The one that you deemed inappropriate because you claimed it was a representation of harming a pig."

"I know what I've done," I stated through clenched teeth. Ashley's jealousy wasn't a surprise to me; however, her threat to dethrone me was a new low that I hadn't seen coming.

"Then, you also know that you almost got us expelled that time," she retorted as she took a step closer. Her finger rose, its tip almost touched my nose as our eyes met and held. "We have all taken risks for the cause. You have the ability to initiate some serious change. To not do so, Kara, would be a slap in the face to us all."

"Ash, I'm not saying that I don't want to initiate change-" I attempted to argue; however, it was like she couldn't hear anything but the plight we fought to prevent.

"Embrace enlightenment and enforce change, or cower and be a part of the problem," Ashley reiterated as she moved to gather her things. With eyes that shot fire she hissed over her shoulder these last words of bitchy wisdom, "Just know that if you choose the latter, stay the fuck out of my way! We don't have time for posers..."

I am not a fucking poser!

With newfound determination, my ponytail swung over my shoulder as I surveyed the empty hall.

Every action that I take will protect another animal from abuse, will save another life.

With hands that shook, I took a deep breath before my mother's identification card sliced through the keypad's slot.

I have to do this.

Unlike the other doors, this one didn't slide back. Its weight slammed open rather harshly against the surrounding plaster. With its release, fate seemed to welcome me into darkness. I glanced back hastily to see if it's sound had alerted someone to my presence.

But at the continued silence, I inhaled deeply then moved forward.

..........

Covering my mouth with a sweaty palm, I gagged while in virtual darkness as my foot snagged on what felt like a stool. The sound of its scrap against flooring caused me to freeze in anticipation of my arrest, my capture. When nothing happened other than the continual sounds of howling and the slam of metal, my heartbeat leveled and I persisted on.

The temperature felt colder, as if all the warmth had been extracted from the space. My eyes tried to adjust in the darkness, but thankfully as I stepped further inside I could see the start of the room's scarce beams of light up ahead.

One hand waved instinctively out into the open space, like a guide leading me on my path. The other palm blindly searched for my phone while my brain suffered the assault from past recollections. Memories of Mom tucking me in, my parents' laughter during dinner, the joyful expression upon her face as she watched me open presents on Christmas day caused me to reconsider my actions.

However, as quickly as they formed was as swiftly as those reflections altered. It triggered thoughts of BioGene's influence, the long hours, the fights beyond my parents' bedroom door, the strain on our relationship, and yet still I wavered...

The grip tightened around my cellphone with my thoughts centered around Ashley's claim, "It's her, isn't it? You're scared of your mom."

I don't fear my mom. I'm scared for her. What consequences will she face when this comes to light?

A sorrowful bellow pierced my ears. Its melody was so wretched that its sound caused the constriction of my heart, produced the moisture that blinded my view. Its tone was so poignant that all sentimentality aimed toward my mother instantly dissipated. Outrage nourished my courage, and with the earlier vision of my mother's order of disposal still fresh in my mind, I hit the record button.

"My name is Kara Harlow, daughter of the illustrious Dr. Allison Harlow."

My footsteps were silent, and yet the sound of suffering was undeniable as I eased further into the room. There was no natural light, only the sparse illumination from hanging fixtures above my head. The space was now lined with rows of cages, some prisons were too small to hold its residents. Excrement lined the base of many enclosures, its texture fused into fur and open sores.

And I recorded it.

I had to capture it all.

"My mother works for the heartless company, BioGene Pharmaceuticals," I quoted in verbatim of my practiced speech. With my camera aimed at the rows of metallic chambers, I crept toward the first aisle. "And these are the conditions they force animals to endure."

I filmed rabbits that cowered, cats that trembled, and stationary rodents yet to be disposed of. Some cried out, placed disfigured paws up against the gated rods while others simply sat with soulless eyes that watched my figure closely.

Mom, what have you done?

That moisture trickled from the edges of my sight, for I wanted to release them all from their confinements. I wanted to free every encaged soul. However, with a heavy heart, logic triumphed over emotion and I compelled myself to move on.

My footsteps somehow brought me to that same black puppy. From behind silver bars, it watched my approach with an emotionless, oddly distrustful gaze. Its small head tilted to the right, its tongue exposed as it panted.

Clearing my throat until it was free of sentiments, I stated, "I watched this animal, personally, be injected with some unknown virus. It cried out in protest, and yet it was only held down by the respectable BioGene employees."

Focused on the animal in front of me, I didn't notice the blood that stained the empty enclosures around me. I paid no mind to the bent wiring, the residual pieces of skin that lied along the bottom of several cages.

My knees bent to have a closer shot of this tortured being. Leaning in, through the view of my camera lens, I realized quickly that the brown in its eyes was becoming extinguished by a black hue. Its limbs began to jerk as bones grew and skin expanded. It was only as its jaw opened to allow room for its elongated teeth that I took notice of the empty cages next to it.

I turned back to the mutated monstrosity when it began to viciously strike the cage like the rabbit had previously. The only difference with this occurrence was that this creature's force bent metal. Broken steel spokes dug painfully into its skin as the hole expanded, and yet it persisted to ram against the surface.

The continuous growth of its physique was like something from a horror story.

Then, indistinctly beyond that repeated thump, there was a noise...

I recognized that sound.

It triggered the dread that crawled along my spine, the trail that escaped the haze that gathered along the rim of my eyes. It generated the ascent of tiny hairs along the surface of my skin, for my senses told me that the monster that lay before me wasn't my biggest threat.

Although my mind screamed for me to do the opposite, with limbs that quaked, my head slowly shifted to my right.

A shaky camera captured the sight of two growling animals crouched mere inches from my paralyzed figure. They were fully formed beasts three times the size of an average dog. Patches of fur were detached, and in its place, were exposed infected flesh that continued to peel off as they tore into the chest of a lab assistant.

Instinct told me to flee, the sound of the continued transformation of the beast beside me urged my body to move, and yet I couldn't.

There wasn't much flesh left along the man's torso. Snapped bone remained along with torn muscle while portions of intestines floated in a puddle of blood. A gentle wheeze was all that could be heard as he choked on his own fluids. I took a measured step back, my eyes glued to the horrific scene, just as the phone slipped from my fingers.

Its screen cracked on impact.

Pained eyes rose toward me while the heads of his attackers repeated his actions. Blood and tattered human muscle gushed from muzzles and teeth.

"Oh, my god..." was all I could manage.

Genetic fiends arched dilapidated figures while blood soaked lips mastered his final words, "Run."

......

They pounced, claws missed the opportunity to slice into my skin by mere inches as I tore down the passageway.

Bodies slammed into bars, but I refused to turn around to see what damage resulted from the collision.

Just keep running, just keep fucking running.

Around me, a frenzy initiated. Captives went crazy behind barriers, figures were thrown at locked entrances while shrieks became chants that seemed to spur on my aggressors' pursuit. A snarl prickled the base of my neck, warm breath feathered my spine as I reached the aisle's end. Ducking to the ground, decaying flesh flew over my head until it crashed brutally into the nearest wall.

The ends of my ponytail slapped against my cheek as I dared to glance back.

This can't be happening.

The other creature climbed from its original position of impact while that puppy, now fully formed beast, joined its side. Scrambling, I rose back onto my feet, my legs hurtled over the body of the fiend I had evaded. The roar of their paws' scrape against the ground fueled the energy I needed to sprint. On foot I dashed through darkness, my eyes transfixed on the vision of that open door.

"Help," came the screech from lungs that burned. "Somebody help!"

My body virtually collapsed through the doorway before I used my weight to push at its heavy surface. My dwindling strength managed to seal the opening closed; however, the resounding pound of heavy forces almost tore it back open.

"Stop," I screamed, "Please stop!" My back became the victim to the thump of their assault against the entrance. I searched my mind for a solution, but could only achieve the useless mutter, "Oh god, oh god."

Tragically, the door's latch connected before it budged open again.

"No!" I shrieked with feet planted firmly against bleached tile. "Tony! Dean!"

The door wasn't going to hold, and there was no way I'd be strong enough to contain them forever. With what little muscle I possessed, I succeeded in bolting it once more just as the sound of a crash arose from further down the corridor.

My eyes rounded in horror as the consequences of my earlier actions dawned on me.

I'd left the door open.

Mom...

Heedless to the possible danger, my body raced toward that noise. Recklessly, I bypassed those same colorless walls while the wind swept through tangled tresses. I left behind darkened labs, traveled the maze of corridors, and yet nothing but silence greeted me.

Rounding the bend, I almost crumpled at the speed in which my body traveled. The recovery of my balance was a waste, for as soon as I straightened while in mid-dash, my feet completely slipped from underneath me as I neared that intersecting hallway. My figure was airborne for a few terrifying seconds before gravity remedied its mistake, and my back met the full impact of the hard ground.

The pain caused stars to blanket my vision for a second. My eyes closed in the face of the agony that plagued the base of my spine. An odd dampness seeped into my clothing, pressed against skin before I managed to rise into a kneeling position.

Mom...

My eyelids peeled back, the massive pool of blood that surrounded me was almost my mind's undoing.

"No-" With frantic fingers, I tried to rub away its existence from my palms, but such a feat was impossible. "Not her, not her."

Mentally, I knew what the sight of so much blood meant, but I wasn't ready to face that possibility yet.

"Mom?" I cried out weakly.

My sight lifted from endless crimson to spot its identical trail along walls, glass, and entrances. Almost every portion of the once spotless hall was now painted with death.

Then, I heard that damning noise...

No, not again.

My fragile limbs struggled to crawl through the massive amount of liquid on slick tiling, and yet I managed to make it back to my former position behind the cover of plaster. A steady stream of liquefied fear dripped from my chin while shaky palms covered irrepressible pants. Before me were two more of those mutated animals. One set of fangs clutched Dean's amputated arm while another scavenger tugged at its other end. What was left of the security guard, remained partial chewed, stationary, blocking the path of sliding glass that repeatedly tried to close.

Mounted within a wall covered in blood beside the lab, another glitchy monitor ironically droned on in repeat, "Ad- advancing you-your health so that your years spent with loved ones are ex-extended, is the main ambition of BioGene scientists."

A sudden hand on my shoulder almost released my repressed shriek.

A palpable sense of relief threatened to overwhelm me at the sight of Tony's face. He signaled for me to remain silent before he helped me back to my feet. Quickly and yet quietly, we gained ground away from Dean's body.

Turning yet another corner, gun at Tony's side, I winced in my attempt to keep up. Thankfully, we paused within a darkened alcove.

"What happened?" I finally dared to utter.

His panicked-stricken eyes strayed back to the path we had just taken. "The animals they broke free." Shaken hands wiped at the sweat along his brow, his actions resulted in a streak of blood along brown skin. Wheezing, he recounted, "There were too many to sedate, too many already... chomping away at the staff." He shook his head as if his mind tried to erase the image. "I don't think I've ever seen so much blood."

"How?" I whispered brokenly. "How- did this happen?"

Clearly frustrated, he turned back to me as if the answer was obvious. Never had I seen brown eyes so consumed by terror. "You know how. Those scientists tampered with shit that never should have been tampered with, and their cocktail of experiments landed us is this hellhole."

My mind was full of questions I didn't want to voice but needed answers to. "You said," I forced myself to state, "you said that the animals were eat- that they were eating the doctors?"

His jaw clenched, silence fell between us before he finally retorted, "I lost my keys, my badge during the attack. And honestly right now, all I can think of is trying to get us out of here."

Mom's identification card burnt a hole in my pocket, and still I said nothing but, "Where is my mother?"

Incredulously, he simply stared at me. It seemed as if he could see what I internally felt, my mind's unravel. "Kara, I think we both know what happened to Dr. Harlow."

I need to see it. I need to know.

Denial controlled my actions. "May-" I stuttered, "maybe, she's just hiding. Maybe, she's waiting for me."

"Kara-"

"Did you see her?"

"Kara-" he began once again.

"Did you actually see her?" I persisted, my voice rose to dangerous levels in our current predicament.

"Kara," he urged, "you have to keep your voice down. These things have amazing tracking skills once their alerted to your presence. They don't stop until they see blood."

I can't just leave her...

Tony paused before gentle hands took hold of my shoulders. "Look, I know what you're going through. Hell, I've known some of those people for years, but I need you to understand that there is nothing that you can do to help the dead. You want to do something to honor your mother, stay alive." He glanced back to see if the coast was clear, then stated, "We need to go."

Tony began to sprint toward the other end of the hall, but stopped when he realized that he ran alone. "Kara?"

I shook my head as my eyes met his. "You go."

He called my name; however, I had already followed the bloody path we had previously escaped. I fell back on bended knee at the sight of those transformed creatures, those jaws still firmly preoccupied with deceased flesh. Quietly, with measured movements, I carefully crept through a slippery scarlet coating in the direction of my mother's laboratory.

The further I traveled, the less transparent the glass became. Behind red streaks, lay shrieks and that never-ending chaotic uproar. One primate caught sight of my movements behind a sliver of clean glass. Then enraged, threw its body, full speed, at the exterior in its aim to reach me. Its blood stained the barricade with every thrash. And still as if possessed, like Tony had warned me, it continued.

Hurrying by it, my destination finally came into sight. The partition looked identical to all the others, smeared in bodily fluids, nonetheless I whispered, "Mom?"

Slowly, I neared the entrance. "Mom, are you in there?"

My fingers itched to remove the badge from my pocket for I couldn't see through the dense layer of red. "I'm here Mom. You can come out now."

My body paused, fingers trembled in mid-air as I reached out. Badge in hand, I halted inches above the key-less entry pad.

"Kara, I wouldn't do that if I were you-" Tony cautioned just as that fucking rabbit slammed into the door's surface. My body jumped, ready to retreat, when his voice stopped me once again. "Don't move."

Too afraid to look in the direction of what caused such alarm to enter his voice, my sight remained glued the doors before me. Fear overshadowed common sense as unintentionally, I discovered a tiny fraction of unsoiled glass. Inside, my sight scoured the room, searched for something that, my internal voice of reason, had already realized.

My vision trailed over broken shards, overturned equipment, and... bodies. My knees buckled slightly, earning an intensified growl from my left.

"Kara, don't move," Tony repeated. A glance out of the corner of my eye revealed his hand as it slowly inched toward the gun in his holster.

As if magnetized, my sight shifted back to that small portion of glass, my peephole into hell. Papers flooded the floor within the lab, along with shattered beakers and blood... there was always that massive amount of blood.

The atrocity at my side snarled menacingly, and yet my eyes still traveled that trail of red. It traced its path until my vision discovered something as ordinary as a shoe.

Oh god-

I could barely see the pump, for the tears made it difficult to make out the black and white lace design along its heel. It was a shoe that I had seen buried at the bottom of our hall closet. A shoe that had been a birthday gift many years ago.

That heel... was attached to what was left of my mother's leg.

"No," slipped weakly from my lips before the control of my limbs was lost to me. Broken, my body wilted from the sheer weight of my grief.

As if it contained the internal detection of assessing weakness, the beast leapt forward just as my body met the ground. It took two bullets to take it down and still its heavy mass managed to flop partially on me, but mostly on Tony.

Together, we heard the door to the inhabitant's room finally collapse, listened to the snarls of those I had escaped.

Still restrained, Tony yelled, "Run, Kara, run!"

Panicked, I drug my legs free. Over my shoulder, a horde of scientific mutations bolted in our direction. Limping toward the main lobby, A discharge of several bullets sounded before Tony's screams impaled my guilty conscience.

I made him come back for me. He was pinned down because I had to see. I had to see what I already knew.

Instinctively I halted, an unexpected torrent of bullets took out the beast that I hadn't realize had launched itself at me from behind. The dead animal lay wounded at my feet, kicking out at nothing before it became still. I turned back to peer at Tony's now deceased form. Half of his body lay in my hallway while the other half lay hidden around the corner. Several chunks of skin were missing from his neck and still he had managed to drag himself far enough to protect me.

He had saved my life again.

He shuddered, and I almost ran to offer aid, but something stopped me. Several members of that feral pact viciously launched themselves atop his corpse. Teeth tore into skin as if human flesh was now categorized as a snack.

Horrified, my silent footsteps made the mad dash toward the elevator's entrance.

I can't die this way.

The card slid through the entry pad's slot before my finger smashed repeatedly against its button. Internally, my mind prayed- fucking pleaded for the cart's arrival.

Come on! Oh God, come on! I can't die here.

The doors unfastened, the alleviation of dread made my heart rejoice... then plummet, at the heavy weight that abruptly slammed me to the ground.

Twisting around onto my back, my attempt to hold off the fangs' venomous snap became a feat that was near impossible. Up this close, its black eyes appeared crazed, its intention to kill unparalleled.

"Stop," I screamed, I begged as my grip weakened. "I was here to help!"

"BioGene Pharmaceuticals, the wave of the future," that actress spewed once again. The world turned red as, the animal that I once felt desperate to record, chewed its way into my abdominal.