This chapter took me a little longer to get through, and I'm not overly happy with it, but I had to throw the Adam scenes in there sometime. Originally he was supposed to be introduced much earlier, and Kiri was going to notice him watching them, but I got so distracted by everything else that I didn't do that. Also the timeline's moving a little faster than I was expecting, so once Helen goes back to school for her senior year they won't be working on the blood as much so I can make sure they experiment with it when I want them to.
Also, it took me a little longer to get through because every single story I have on alert all updated within the last 24 hours, even ones that haven't updated for a month, so I've been busy reading those. Annnyway, enjoy.
Disclaimer
The next few months passed with the five of them spending most of the time in the lab, even over the summer. Kiri left over the summer, off doing something for her employer. They started out testing undiluted samples of the blood on rats, and quickly realized that the blood was dangerous in its pure form. Half of the rats went mad, cannibalizing each other or killing themselves by slamming their heads against the cages. The other half of the rats just sort of slipped away, dying in their sleep. They began to experiment with diluting the blood. Kiri returned a month later, her right arm wrapped in bandages and a scratch that went from her left forehead to just below her lips on her right side.
About a week after Kiri had returned they were working in the lab, Kiri helping out where she could, when the door opened on them. A man who appeared to be about a year younger than Helen and Nikola entered, startling the five scientists.
"Ahoy," the man greeted in a strong Scottish accent, shutting the door. They all rushed to hide the experiments, glancing at each other in alarm.
"I thought I locked the door," Nikola remarked, sighing. Kiri walked forward from next to Nikola, cocking her head.
"Who are you?" she questioned, narrowing her eyes.
"Adam Worth, he's a third year," Helen responded. "What are you doing here, Adam?"
"I was just wondering how the experiment is coming along." Adam moved forward, but Nigel and Nikola moved to block his view. John moved closer to him, standing over him imposingly.
"Don't you have somewhere else to be? A lecture, perhaps?" the older man demanded.
"Mr. Worth, you have a mathematics course right now," Kiri told him, walking over to stand beside John.
"Must be very important whatever it is; it's been keeping you all quite busy the last few weeks." Adam ignored them as he began to flip through a notebook, which Nikola quickly grabbed and handed to Kiri.
"I believe Mr. Worth has been spying on us." Nigel moved to stand in front of Kiri, effectively blocking the younger girl from view.
"Adam, please. You can trust me." Adam told them, furrowing his brow in mock hurt. "Secret shipments of plasma, sounds really exiting, some kind of a new breakthrough." The man moved closer to the table, looking over their equipment.
"Mr. Worth, I really think you should be leaving now," Kiri remarked from behind Nigel and Nikola, peering out from around them.
"I could be quite useful to you. Top marks in me anatomy course." Adam allowed John to force him out the door. John closed and locked the door, turning to face the others.
"Nigel, Nika, I don't need to be protected, you know." Kiri forced herself out from between them, glaring at each of them in turn.
"He seemed questionable," Nikola responded, moving back to where he'd been before the interruption.
"Not as questionable as you," Nigel joked, throwing a smirk towards the Serbian. Nikola made a face at him as they both turned back to their work.
They didn't see Adam again for at least a week, during which time they had managed to make a great deal of progress in their experiments. Adam knocked this time, and Kiri let him in after checking to make sure the others had covered everything up.
"Mr. Worth, what a surprise," she exclaimed, taking a step back.
"Hello again. I would like to speak with you." Adam moved farther into the room, barely glancing at Kiri before turning to face the others.
"What do you want, Adam?" John demanded, stepping forward.
"I wanted to plead my case to you. You really could use me, you know. I would be quite helpful." Adam was at the desk by now, looking over the various chemicals they had. Helen walked closer to Adam, trying to remain calm.
"We will consider it, Adam. If you would wait in the hallway." She smiled as she opened the door, and Adam left, throwing a searching glance over them. Once the door was closed, Helen turned to face the others.
"We'll consider it?" Nikola questioned, furrowing his brow.
"He deserves that much, at least." Helen responded.
"You have to admit he's brilliant," John pointed out, glancing around at them.
"And scary," Kiri added from next to Nikola.
"And British." Nigel gives Nikola a pointed look, and Nikola makes a face in response.
"Hysterical," he remarked. There were several chuckles throughout the room as Helen turned to face them from where she was standing near the board.
"Does anyone else notice anything odd about Adam?" she inquired, looking around.
"He just pointed it out. He's British." Nikola winked at Nigel, causing another round of chuckles.
"Did anyone read his monograph of forced tissue regeneration?" Nigel questioned, glancing up.
"The thing he did with door mice? Poor creatures grew two heads." John looked disgusted at the fact.
"That was him? Oh, we can't work with him!" Kiri exclaimed, looking horrified as she looked away from the bucket of water she was using to wash things off in the corner.
"Very nearly worked though," stated Helen. "A daring theory to say the least."
"I'd lean more towards twisted myself," Nigel piped up.
"Twisted, daring it doesn't matter. The point is, we don't need anyone else; the five of us are enough," Nikola told them.
"I agree, as clever as Adam is, our group is fine without him." Helen made her way to the door as everyone nodded their assent. Helen went outside to talk to Adam while Kiri turned to Nikola.
"Did he really do that to the mice?" she questioned, her eyes worried. Nikola wrapped an arm around her shoulders comfortingly.
"Don't think about it, sestrice." He kissed the top of her head lightly as Kiri stared ahead with wide eyes.
"But-" she began to say, before being cut off by Helen's entrance.
"Well, we should return to work." She remarked as she entered, moving back to stand beside James at the chalkboard.