Chapter 2

Anna and Luke had been in the hospital for two days.

Anna's physician whom they knew as Doctor Jimenez often came to check on them each day- a kind, gentle woman in her late fifties that dearly reminded them of their mother. Neither Anna nor Luke would admit it. A psychiatrist had also arrived on the second day.

They didn't seem to have to do anything to get accommodated. Anna could only assume that the military police had made all the arrangements. They should. After all the Peterson kids had gone through, the military ought to pay for everything.

Anna had a newfound resentment towards them. Lying in a hospital bed, hopeless and helpless gave her plenty of time to think. Luke was a more productive though. He often went out of the room to stretch his legs. Anna didn't like it when he stayed out too long. She would call him whenever he was gone for more than an hour.

Nothing for two days.

It had almost put her at ease. But then again, who really knew the psychopath? Anna found herself clenching her teeth at the thought of David. Now she was angry. But that didn't mean she wasn't the least bit terrified of the man.

She turned her head to the sound of the doorknob clicking open. Luke stepped in with a paper bag of burgers. The person that followed was an unfamiliar face. A beautiful woman in her early thirties of African American descent. She was wearing a military uniform.

Anna remained still, but didn't bother to hide her immediate apprehension towards the stranger and her badge.

"This is… ugh… Sergeant Halway. Says she knew Major Carver." Luke said with uncertainty.

The woman smiled softly with a short nod.

"Good afternoon Ms. Peterson. I was the one you spoke with on the phone when you contacted the military base." Ah, right. "How's your leg?"

She was a communications officer and judging by her pleasant bearing, she was good at her job. It surprisingly eased away some of the hostility. But that for certain, was not the reason why she was here.

"Doctor said I'll live." Anna quipped with a lazy smirk. Halway smiled at this, hands behind her back in a cordial manner.

"Anna, can I call you Anna?" The young adult on the bed nodded. The officer paused before she continued. "I volunteered to come to you to talk about your temporary relocation."

The officer had spoken quite gently, much like a guardian. But how she spoke did not amount to the gravity of her words which took longer to sink in.

"Wait. What?" The officer now had her full attention as Anna propped herself up, obviously perturbed.

"It's for your own safety. There is an on-going manhunt for David Collins. We need to transfer you to a secure location before he gets the chance to come after you."

There were no flowery words of persuasion. She was direct to the point because there no time to win their consent. But Anna on the other hand was having trouble processing the facts.

"You want us to go with you? After what your shitty health experiment did?"

Halway looked contrite, but she was not going to take no for an answer.

"We're terribly sorry for your loss. But right now, this is the best way we can protect you and your brother. You will be well accommodated, I assure you."

"Bullshit." Luke stared at her as though she was some bratty kid. She wasn't acting so far off.

"Can we…? Can you give us minute?" He said to the sergeant, with his usual hesitance. The woman nodded politely before exiting the room. It was just the two of them- Anna looking away, arms folded, and Luke standing at the side of her bed.

"Anna. I think we should listen to them."

She turned to him sharply, glaring at her brother.

"Are you insane? They're talking about hiding us. Making us disappear. You think we'll be any safer? Why not just put up a huge sign on the hospital for David to find. Saves us from the trouble." Luke pursed his lips.

"I'm going with them."

Anna gave him an appalled look.

"Who else do we have left?!" Luke exclaimed, arms spread out. "Anna, please. We don't have a choice. We'd be a lot safer and we'd be keeping people safe from us. He's going to kill anybody who gets involved. You know that."

His sister placed a hand over her mouth, tears threatening to escape from her eyes.

There goes her college plan. Her inconspicuous life. Everything she dreamed of having for her and her family. Things were not going to be the same after this. She was sure.

…

Two months had passed. The wound on his leg had healed remarkably fast. It was the first time he ever had to perform self-surgery. A rainy day, he recalled. He couldn't forget. It was on Anna's twenty-first birthday.

The man hunt was still on-going. They were hot on his trail, and he was moving from state to state. He'd grown out a short beard during the time and dyed his hair a dark brown. He completed this 'new' look with a pair of large cheap Ray-Ban knockoffs. David Collins was no more. David now went by Kale Parker, a dead man's name he found in a small district hospital.

He avoided killing as much as possible. It caused more trouble than it was worth. Somewhere along his cross-nation hike, he learned other alternatives. Lies to cover lies. It was hard to cover up at first. The first few tries ended with a few kills. He has got to get a hold of it. But there was an improvement.

He was starting to run low on cash. The soldier opted to stay in a small dirt town and found himself a job as a mechanic in a small shop. It paid for the motel room, so that was fine.

Though the search for him had caused some complications in his agenda, he had made some considerable progress.

He was at the general hospital where Anna and Luke stayed in, two months earlier.

He disguised himself, found connections- made connections. A little difficult when his leg wound was fresh- but, he managed. And he learned that the military was taking them underground.

…

This protection program was bullshit.

Anna had been looking out the tall floor to ceiling windows at one of the military base's offices. She had been staring at the landscape for some time. Luke was lounging on the sofa, playing with a rubber band that he found among the stationary supplies inside an office desk.

"Halway said they're still making arrangements."

Anna smirked at Luke's passive statement. Of course they were. They had been in the facility for two months. Why hadn't they been relocated?

"How important are we to them, exactly?"

Luke looked up from his little distraction. Anna was expecting him to say anything. As usual, Luke hadn't bothered to put two and two together.

"The only thing that's keeping us here, is the fact we know about this fucking health program. If word gets outs, this could ruin them."

"So they're keeping us here for good?"

Anna didn't respond. There was no fucking way she was going to spend the rest of her days here. And no way in hell was she going to be a part of whatever this was.

"We better stick to Halway though. She seems to be the only one who cares about us." Anna nodded. For once, Luke said something that she completely agreed with.

…

Still making arrangements, was an understatement.

Irene Halway had been doing all she could to find them a suitable hideout. But coordinating with military personnel was more difficult when done alone. The well-being of the Petersons was not a primary objective to them. She stepped up to the task, and she was going to do everything she could to keep those kids safe.

But what was the safety of two non-assets to a private military corporation? They were liabilities. And what of their credibility if those kids don't keep their secret? It already ruined their lives.

Irene was aware of the situation. She was not going to leave Anna and Luke in the hands of the company that started the health program.

"Mr. Hendricks, you cannot take away these kids. They have a right to live in a safe home! The relocation process is underway. I'm telling you. I'm doing everything I can!" The private corporation's officer was walking briskly, trying his best to ignore her and shake her off. But Irene was persistent, trailing right behind the busy and frazzled officer.

"Oh yeah? How's that working out for you?" The man swiftly turned on his heels, daring her to answer. Irene was stunned and stopped where she stood. Hendricks had enough of this. There were more pressing matters. It would be so much easier to do away with the Petersons than deal with their security and everything that came with it.

"Sergeant Halway, Major Carver led this operation. He dedicated his career to developing advanced weaponry to protect this nation. Are you going to jeopardize his life's work, his legacy?"

Irene took a step closer, speaking dangerously low. "My uncle died protecting those two. I would do the same. If you do anything to them, you won't see the end of this." The look on her face said the truth. The man let out an exasperated breath.

"You're going to sue us?"

"I'm going to shut you down." Irene retorted, with a threatening edge to her tone. She meant every word. "Your corporation is not my uncle's legacy. I know he immediately stopped testing when one of your subjects began killing people." The man averted his gaze, obviously feeling some amount of guilt. He paused to think it over. Irene was still standing very close, refusing to give him the time of day.

"Fine. We'll do it your way." Halway's expression lightened considerably but fell as soon as it did. "But on our terms." The officer rubbed his forehead, his exhaustion was apparent.

"Sergeant, the Petersons' knowledge of the experiment can lead to a whole lot of people losing their jobs. Think about that. We'll help you find them a home. Outside the country. To keep them safe and away from the public eye."

Irene looked at him critically, lips pressed together into a thin line. This was the best option. She felt uncertain but her silence meant her agreement.

Super rushed. Busy college life. Sigh. oTL But I don't want to let this go and lose the mood.

Now about the Sergeant Irene Halway. Her first name is made up but you'd remember her as the military officer that Anna called. It was such a pleasant surprise to see a familiar face in the movie. She was played by Candice Patton, aka Iris West in The Flash :D

I decided to add her for the feels. And I'd rather you not try to go into detail about the whole military operation. I'm not that well read in that part and how the government works in this way. So yep :I It was just a vehicle to get the story going. Sorry!

Divided this whole thing into 2 chapters because you might get dazed by the walls of text. And this chapter was all about development.