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Invidia TWENTY-THREE
"Sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is just say no," Cameron's mom had said the same words to him that Madison just had. "What if I can't?" Cameron asked. He was fourteen at the time, and he'd had an old friend confide in him. "What if I don't have a choice?"Christy put her hand on Cameron's hair, gently stroking it. "You always have a choice."Now, Cameron had realized that wasn't always true. He'd been into life or death situations, and sometimes, he had to live when he would've gladly chosen death. That's such a sad thought for a seventeen year old, Cameron thought with a bitter taste in his mouth."What exactly am I saying no to?" Cameron dragged himself back to the present. He'd gotten too caught up in the memory that he'd already forgotten."If you're going to try and bust out or not," Madison said.He glanced down at his arm. They'd taken most of the gauze off. The regular nurse that checks on him informed him that it was healing well, but he'd need to continue
Invidia TWENTY-FOUR
Cameron really wished he had shoes. His feet were sore from sneaking through the hospital on his tip toes. Not to mention the cold tile floor was freezing. However, he was very grateful that the gown the nurses put on him was not one that his butt hung out of. "Officer 147, do you copy?" The officer approximately fifty yards ahead had their HoloComm's talking system turned on, the ones made specifically for automatic talking. "I copy," 147 responded quietly. The man kept his voice down, trying to force silence amongst the crowd around him, successfully."What is your location?" The other voice asked."I am on the west wing, about 30 yards from the desk. I'm keeping an eye on the civilians.""Good. Do you see anything unusual?" At that question, Cameron ducked into the nearest room. He could not risk getting caught. If he were caught trying to escape, they would never let him get away again.The room he ducked into was a patient's room. In the bed was a girl about his age, maybe a li
Invidia TWENTY-FIVE
He finally found the ending hallway. There was a man at the desk in front, wearing purple. He was speaking to someone on his earpiece, clearly upset. "No, I don't know where he is. If I did, don't you think I would've told you?" A moment of silence. "No, I would. I don't want to lose my job over some regular damn kid, but definitely not Hendrickson's." They know I'm gone. I knew I wouldn't get so lucky. With an ever-growing lump in his throat, he melded into the commotion of the hallway. He glanced at the doors, and with a moment of luck, he found it.PI--right there on the door. It was the sign that Madison told him to look for, but of course, there was a guard directly in front of the door. I need a distraction. He snuck into the room next to him, giving no more than a quick glance to the old woman laying in the bed. He pulled out his HoloComm and sent Madison their code word for when he needed help: MONSTER. It seemed fitting, since this entire operation was run by a monster. Withi
Invidia TWENTY-SIX
The inside was as advanced in security measures as the President's manor. It had eye scanners before each new room to be entered, as well as passcodes and thumbprint scanners for each window and door in the house. Cameron just didn't have the luxury of all these doors being opened for him like he did in the manor."This is freaking epic," Justin said. "Have you not seen this yet?" Cameron asked him."No, and it's awesome," Justin sounded like a kid again, but this was his element, after all: software technology."Shane hooked us up with this safe house. I can't go into any more detail than that," Madison said. "Rooms are back that hallway," she pointed to their right. "Bathrooms are scattered throughout. Kitchen is down the other hallway. Make yourselves at home."Justin immediately launched himself onto the cream leather couch and picked up the controller for Galactic Omega. "Come on, Cam. We haven't played this in forever.""Maybe later," he was lost in thought. Shane hooked us up
Invidia TWENTY-SEVEN
"Justin, what the hell!" Cameron ran over to pull the boys apart. Justin raged in a way he'd never seen before. "Mads, help!" He called to her. He didn't have the strength to pull them apart on his own. She grabbed Justin under his stomach and pulled him over."Stop!" She cried at them. Shane's blood was coating all four of them. The metallic tangy smell doused the room, and it was only a matter of time before the fork came out of his shoulder. Before he knew what was happening, Cameron felt his face jerked sideways with the force of a punch. That was a punch, you moron, he thought to himself. The bruise was already creeping up on his jawline. He didn't know who punched him, but he got angry now too--just angry in a different way. He couldn't find himself to forgive whoever punched him for a long time because everyone in this room knew he was hit on a regular basis. With all the furiousness of a boy who'd spent the last three years being beaten and abused, with all the strength that
Invidia TWENTY-EIGHT
"I started working with Frank months ago, before we got close, to try and get a man on the inside. It was the first time I came over to work on a project, and I found him in a room. He had a blueprint spread out across his HoloComm--""Why were you wandering around my house?" Cameron asked. His arms were folded, and he was getting hostile with her in a way he didn't like."I was looking for the restroom. I couldn't remember which way you said it was, so I just figured I'd find it. But anyway, I found Frank instead. He begged me not to tell anyone, especially Hendrickson, so I told him I'd never do that, especially since I wouldn't even know what it was I wasn't telling. I stepped into the room after he invited me in, and I shut the door," Madison was in full flashback mode, and Cameron could picture the scene in his mind."'Do you know of Keegan Enterprises?' he asked me, like it's not the biggest name out there besides Hendrickson's. I said 'yeah, of course. Why?' He's a sweet man. '
Invidia THREE
When Cameron woke up to the sound of his alarm blaring “Highway to Hell,” he always found it ironic how relatable that song really was to his life. He always felt like he was on the highway to hell, and no one would be able to redeem him. Brushing his hair out of his face, he groaned and dragged himself out of bed. Hey, how is everything going? He shot to Justin. Carly and Justin never left his mind. Hey, you up? He saw he had a text—not from Justin, but from Madison. Hmm, he thought to himself. That’s weird. He typed back; I am now. Sorry. I had a late night last night. She responded Yeah me too. Are you able to talk on the phone before school? Cameron didn’t know what the hell was going on, but he said he’d talk for a few minutes. Pulling her up on videochat, he saw where she looked like she’d just woken up too. “Hey,” he said while yawning. “Hi,” she said awkwardly. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he said, “Sooo, did you need something?” “Uh,” she said, then threw her
Invidia TWENTY-NINE
"My father's journal started getting strange," Cameron interjected. "He was eager to start this new job at Keegan Enterprises. He just mentioned that some of the workers looked dead inside, and honestly, what job doesn't have some people like that? But he mentioned it was everyone. They all looked like they'd lost their will to live. He started to get suspicious and nosy when he knew he shouldn't have. He started prying, and then all of a sudden, his entries got shorter. He got paranoid, convinced someone was following him and watching both him and my mom. I don't know what to believe.""No one expects you to have all the answers, Cameron," Justin patted his shoulder. "That's too much to ask of you. As for me, I'd say he probably wasn't wrong about everyone looking dead inside. A job like that is sure to be killing people, both inside and out.""But why'd he get so paranoid all of a sudden? I don't get it.""I'm sure people would actually be keeping an eye on him if he were straying w