Read H.A.L.F.: The Makers for Free Online

feet in an instant, but not fast enough to get out the door. It slid closed before she’d taken a step toward it.
    A lone creature stood just inside the door. This one was about a half a foot taller than the ones that had brought Dr. Randall.
    Erika braced herself to feel the painful buzz fill her head. But it didn’t happen. Instead the being spoke out loud.
    “I am designation Xenos. I have been sent to welcome you to Tro.”

6
JACK
    Did I hear Sewell right? It sounded like he said he’d help me. Jack waited motionless and silent.
    “You will have to wait a few days while we clear this place out. Lie low. Can you do that?”
    Jack wanted to get home alive. It had already been over two weeks. If he had to wait a few more days in order to get out of the stinking place in one piece, he could do that. He nodded.
    “Good. You know where Dr. Randall was living?”
    Jack whispered, “Yes.”
    Sewell was bent down, pretending to look for something in the bushes. “You can stay there until I come for you. There should be food left. Enough, anyway, to get you by. And it’s probably a bit better than the crud Sturgis was feeding you guys.”
    Jack’s stomach rumbled. He’d been so focused on escape, he’d ignored the fact that he couldn’t remember when he’d last eaten.
    He knew he should remain quiet, but he couldn’t resist asking the question that plagued his mind. “You’re going to let me go? Just like that?”
    Sewell stood and moved to the clump of bushes next to where Jack stood. “Not exactly.”
    Of course not. It couldn’t be that easy.
    “You must understand that you cannot go home right now. Your friends are gone. The cover story was that you all were kidnapped and presumed dead. If you come home – alone – there will be questions. You will be a suspect. And the only way out of A.H.D.N.A. is the train. You’ll be arrested as soon as you get off without proper credentials.”
    Jack hadn’t considered how it would look for him to roll into town alone while Erika and Ian were still missing. It had never crossed his mind that he could end up in jail over the whole mess. He knew Tex had escaped, but he didn’t know how. His head swam.
    “I can get you out of Aphthartos. But there will be a quid pro quo. We will discuss the details in a few days when I come for you.”
    Even if he couldn’t go home yet, he’d do nearly anything for the promise of leaving A.H.D.N.A. and never returning.
    “Our time is short. Remain here in the shadows. I’ll ensure they leave this area alone for now. As soon as we’ve cleared out, get yourself to Dr. Randall’s former abode. Stay there and stay hidden. I will come for you.”
    “But I –”
    “There’s no more time to talk. We’ll speak more in a few days. I must go.”
    Without waiting for Jack to say anything further, Sewell walked briskly away. His footsteps echoed on the bricks, and then he was out of earshot.
    Jack eased himself behind the bushes and sat on the cold brick pavers. The otherwise quiet town was filled with the gross sound of bodies being dragged across pavement and of a soldier calling names off the dog tags while another crossed the names read off a list. They transferred the bodies and body parts to a large army truck and drove them out of Aphthartos and back into A.H.D.N.A., presumably to incinerate them as they’d been instructed.
    Jack’s butt cheeks were icy cold and his legs had gone numb when Sewell finally called a halt to work for the day. “Let’s call it a day. We’ll come back down tomorrow and finish in here.”
    None of the soldiers disagreed. They talked about getting dinner, and Jack wondered how they could eat after handling bloody bodies all afternoon.
    Jack waited until he no longer heard the shuffle of feet or the din of conversation echo off the walls. When the place was entirely silent, Jack sat up on his haunches and peered over the bushes. His legs and feet tingled with the pins and needles sensation of blood