listen to me, they get results.
Her eyes slid past Josh, refusing to settle on him as he smirked in her direction. Her vision started to dim, the edges blurring as she sank downward. “So much for not passing out,” echoed through her mind, and she couldn’t say or even care who had expressed the sentiment.
CHAPTER FIVE:
Reading You
Pain. Her mind held nothing but pain until she faded out again.
When she awoke once more, the pain had lessened to the point that she didn’t want to arch her back, didn’t want to remove her head from her body in the quickest way possible. Still, though, her breath caught at the pounding, each rush of blood stabbing through her skull.
She focused on her breathing until she could think, until she could remember what had happened. The new drug had made her pass out again. She didn’t want to open her eyes, remembering how bright everything had been just before she’d lost consciousness.
It didn’t feel like she was resting on her cot. This surface was sturdier and more cushioned, not just a strip of canvas. She ran her fingers along the surface near her legs, finding sheets covering what was maybe a plastic mattress. Was she on an exam table or a medical bed? It felt like she was still wearing her scrubs. There was a slight pressure around her upper arm, on the good side. A blood pressure cuff, maybe?
It made sense they were monitoring her after she’d passed out. She must be down in one of the rooms in the lower level, unless one of the regular labs had an exam table she hadn’t seen.
Jemma couldn’t feel Jack’s connection. She must have been out long enough for the drug to wear off, at least the one that let her Talk to Jack. She didn’t know much about the new drug. It had seemed like, right before she passed out, she was actually reading Dr. Harris’s and Josh’s minds.
Was that even possible?
Talking was very much deliberate conversation. Emotion sometimes slipped through accidentally, if it was strong enough, but surface thoughts? She’d either read their minds or imagined it with the stress and the pain.
If she really had read their minds, they can’t have known that was a possibility, could they? She couldn’t quite get her mind to focus, but it didn’t seem like it would be a good idea, somehow, to give her the ability to read the minds of the people around her.
Jemma heard a door open and close. Soft footsteps moved toward her before her wrist was lifted professionally.
Heart rate, blood pressure still elevated. Subject seems to be regaining consciousness. Increasing pain medication.
Again, she got the impression that her mind was translating. She wasn’t really hearing anything, just getting flashes and impressions, but she was able to make sense of it, and it left her dizzy. The careful hand moved to her elbow, and she felt something cool rushing through her.
Maybe she hadn’t been unconscious as long as she’d thought. Dr. Harris had said pain medication would interfere with the drug, so maybe that was keeping Jack out.
What would her head feel like right now if she weren’t medicated?
The medication might be affecting her focus as much as the pain.
Think, Jemma.
The door opened and shut again. Had someone left or had someone else entered?
Scans are showing more damage. Still manageable. She’d benefit from reversal, but she’s still our best chance at making all this worth something. Look at her. If we could give the cure to just one person instead of everyone, I’d find a way to get it approved.
The words continued slipping past her, nearly impossible to keep hold of for long enough to interpret. After a while, her pain lessened, and she fell asleep again; she wasn’t sure which happened first. She woke to more of the same impressions.
Some want to deploy the cure now because they think you look so pathetic. Admire you. You don’t fool me. Smarter than most of the people in this place. Not
Her eyes slid past Josh, refusing to settle on him as he smirked in her direction. Her vision started to dim, the edges blurring as she sank downward. “So much for not passing out,” echoed through her mind, and she couldn’t say or even care who had expressed the sentiment.
CHAPTER FIVE:
Reading You
Pain. Her mind held nothing but pain until she faded out again.
When she awoke once more, the pain had lessened to the point that she didn’t want to arch her back, didn’t want to remove her head from her body in the quickest way possible. Still, though, her breath caught at the pounding, each rush of blood stabbing through her skull.
She focused on her breathing until she could think, until she could remember what had happened. The new drug had made her pass out again. She didn’t want to open her eyes, remembering how bright everything had been just before she’d lost consciousness.
It didn’t feel like she was resting on her cot. This surface was sturdier and more cushioned, not just a strip of canvas. She ran her fingers along the surface near her legs, finding sheets covering what was maybe a plastic mattress. Was she on an exam table or a medical bed? It felt like she was still wearing her scrubs. There was a slight pressure around her upper arm, on the good side. A blood pressure cuff, maybe?
It made sense they were monitoring her after she’d passed out. She must be down in one of the rooms in the lower level, unless one of the regular labs had an exam table she hadn’t seen.
Jemma couldn’t feel Jack’s connection. She must have been out long enough for the drug to wear off, at least the one that let her Talk to Jack. She didn’t know much about the new drug. It had seemed like, right before she passed out, she was actually reading Dr. Harris’s and Josh’s minds.
Was that even possible?
Talking was very much deliberate conversation. Emotion sometimes slipped through accidentally, if it was strong enough, but surface thoughts? She’d either read their minds or imagined it with the stress and the pain.
If she really had read their minds, they can’t have known that was a possibility, could they? She couldn’t quite get her mind to focus, but it didn’t seem like it would be a good idea, somehow, to give her the ability to read the minds of the people around her.
Jemma heard a door open and close. Soft footsteps moved toward her before her wrist was lifted professionally.
Heart rate, blood pressure still elevated. Subject seems to be regaining consciousness. Increasing pain medication.
Again, she got the impression that her mind was translating. She wasn’t really hearing anything, just getting flashes and impressions, but she was able to make sense of it, and it left her dizzy. The careful hand moved to her elbow, and she felt something cool rushing through her.
Maybe she hadn’t been unconscious as long as she’d thought. Dr. Harris had said pain medication would interfere with the drug, so maybe that was keeping Jack out.
What would her head feel like right now if she weren’t medicated?
The medication might be affecting her focus as much as the pain.
Think, Jemma.
The door opened and shut again. Had someone left or had someone else entered?
Scans are showing more damage. Still manageable. She’d benefit from reversal, but she’s still our best chance at making all this worth something. Look at her. If we could give the cure to just one person instead of everyone, I’d find a way to get it approved.
The words continued slipping past her, nearly impossible to keep hold of for long enough to interpret. After a while, her pain lessened, and she fell asleep again; she wasn’t sure which happened first. She woke to more of the same impressions.
Some want to deploy the cure now because they think you look so pathetic. Admire you. You don’t fool me. Smarter than most of the people in this place. Not
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