8. 8 #3
Dr. Novikov had suggested that I might enjoy the meal more on Fridays because they had pizza, but I would have been happier with any frozen pizza from an American grocery store.
Reindeer was not something I would typically eat, obviously, and I imagined it would have been much better if not used as a pizza topping.
I should have suggested a cheeseburger day.
Elias never dared to complain about food, even if it was something lackluster I had made at home, and I had a feeling he was just happy that he was able to eat something besides the chalky protein bars he kept on hand.
He wasn’t particularly keen on the pickled fish options they had, but he ate most everything else.
“Please eat something,” he pleaded. “Even if you don’t like it, eat the crust or something. I don’t know.”
I set my fork down, pausing the deconstruction of my pizza. “I told you I wasn’t hungry.”
He leaned over the table to speak quietly. “You’re being really pissy because I know you and I know you're hungry. It is frustrating me. I don’t like to feel frustrated. Food. Mouth. Please.”
“You know what frustrates me, Elias?”
“Is this later? Are we continuing our conversation?”
I ignored him. “You bossing me around. Every day, all you do is tell me what to do. I’d like to make a choice today, for the first time in a while, apparently, and that choice is to go back to our room and skip the shitty food.”
Elias was the dictionary definition of disbelief, and he blinked three or four times before he could respond.
“You just tried to touch the virus without gloves after you gave yourself a chemical burn. Was that a choice that we all should sit back and let you make? Do you want to traumatize me while I watch you turn into a monster, or are you looking forward to me having to shoot you? Because I’m not going to. ”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re being a bit dramatic. The virus was contained to the vial. It’s not like I would’ve died touching it.” Sure, if I had fumbled it as badly as I did the bottle of acid, I might’ve broken the vial and doused myself, but I wasn’t going to admit that to him.
“I’m being dra–Jesus Christ,” he groaned. “I’m not asking you to jump off a skyscraper, Cassie. I’m asking you to eat. You have to eat to live.”
I deflated. He was right, and I was hungry, but I was struggling to find an appetite. It wasn’t the food, and it wasn’t my lack of decision making, not really. It was him. It was us. “I’m afraid of what else you're hiding from me.”
“Nothing, Cassie.” Elias planted his elbow on the table and propped up his chin, angling closer to me.
He took a deep breath, wiping the frown from his face.
“There’s plenty of things I haven’t told you, but most of it is more painful than relevant.
When it comes to Richmond, I knew Dr. Taylor was behind it all.
I didn’t know he was there, obviously, so I was just as surprised as you were to see him.
I wasn’t aware of his ability to reassemble people I’ve killed, either.
It was just Dr. Fassi and I. Baker and Pryor had the virus, and we wanted to learn more about it, so I was in charge of sneaking around the building and creating a dossier about everyone and everything.
We paid a few people off to make sure we were hired, but no one else knew what we were doing. ”
“Baker and Pryor didn’t know who you were?” I asked.
“Absolutely not.”
“So they actually employed you?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “They paid me fourteen dollars an hour to clean up after you people. Which is not enough, by the way, for the shit I had to do. I don’t know how anyone could live off of that.”
I’d grabbed a fruit cup, and I managed a bite of the peaches before I continued.
“Why did Dr. Fassi want me to join you?”
Elias took a bite of his pizza, and spoke with his mouth full. “Your work with the adenovirus, that was all true. He believed in your research, and he thought you could make the vaccine. He was right.”
“I just don't understand why he picked me. There's plenty of people doing great work out there. Surely, someone else could have been satisfactory.”
Elias shook his head. “I don't know how he found you, exactly. You're incredibly smart. Impressive, at least to me. If Dr. Fassi had a fraction of the faith I have in you, then it was a no brainer.”
I looked down at my empty fruit cup. “I'm not that impressive. I'm really not. Lucky, maybe.”
“Do you think I'm still alive because of luck?” He asked.
“No.”
“Don't disparage your work.”
I laid my head on the table. Even if he was a foot away from me, I missed him.
We'd fought so much during our time here and I was so tired of it.
The anger that consumed me earlier vanished, and all I wanted was to forget it happened.
Emotionally depleted, the only thing on my mind was leaning on Elias for support.
He was my best friend. He was my everything.
“I know I’m a broken record, and I hate to ask again, but I swear it will be the last time. It’s all real?”
“It’s all real, pretty girl.” He held out his hand, his pinky extended to me. “I pinky promise.”
I smiled, hooking my finger around his. “Okay.”