He’s standing perfectly still in a sterile-looking white room.
His face is flat, devoid of any emotion.
Silhouetted figures move closer to him; they’re talking, but I can’t hear the words. At first, Wes doesn't react, then, suddenly, his head snaps up. The vision expands and what I see next brings bile to my mouth.
A child, strapped to a surgical table.
The little kid is screaming. I can't hear the sound, but his mouth is stretched wide in a silent, unending shriek of agony. Veins bulge in his tiny neck.
One of the shadowy figures steps forward and plunges a syringe into the child’s arm. Instantly, the boy goes limp, his eyes rolling back.
My heart rate hammers against my ribs.What's happening?
Then, the figure moves aside.
Wes walks closer to the table. He looks down at the unconscious child, his face completely blank.
No horror. No pity.
He looks at the doctor holding the syringe... and nods.
Oh, Gods.
He’s involved in this.
NO.
It’s impossible. The image blinks out, and I’m panting for breath. I need more, more clues about what this is and how to find the child.
Stop Wes from becoming this monster.
Change the ripple.
Closing my eyes again, I curse because the spinning sensation has gone.
My brain is back to normal.
Shite.
I beg the Lumina, but nothing changes. The professor comes over when I raise my hand. “Problem?”
“I saw something, but lost again. Please, professor, tell me how to get it back, I have to change the ripple!”
"You are pushing too hard, Theo," Professor Chen says, in a calm murmur. "You cannot force a vision. The moment you try to control it—to demand more—you silence the signal."
He leans a little closer, trying not to disturb the other students. "Think of it this way," he says, "The first glimpse you had was a fleeting connection. When you tried to force it, it's like you grabbed the thread too tightly. You snapped the string. You need to be patient and hope it returns on its own. It’s not up to you anymore.”
I really fucked that up.
I lay my head on the table, my breath hitching.
Wes.
He wasn't saving the child. He was authorizing the torture.
Change the ripple.
I have to believe Professor Chen. I have to believe that what I saw was afutureevent—a potential timeline.
