Chapter 22…here we go. I'm sorry, but I just had to put my favorite character in here. Whoops, no more spoilers! :)

My arm had been set on fire. Well, not really, but it sure felt like it.

"Amy!"

I groaned and stumbled, barely missing another bullet. I met Ian's eyes, and he had a horrified expression on his face. Suddenly, his dark eyebrows knitted together in anger and the remaining Vespers were finished.

I cradled my injured arm and tried my hardest not to cry. I wouldn't cry. Not here. Not now.

Dan ran over, tucking his gun back into his bag. He knelt down next to me, taking out a cloth and wrapped it around my arm. I winced as my brother's fingers brushed the wound, and he quickly apologized.

"I'm okay. C'mon we have to keep going," I ground out, my teeth clenched.

I started to rise, but I swayed back and forth, not able to catch my balance. Black spots filled my vision again and I found that the world was spinning. Ian caught me before I fell and, put his hand under my chin, forcing me to concentrate.

"I'm going to call back-up, okay? We're going to get you to a hospital," he spoke slowly.

I shook my head.

Ian's eyes widened, and he began to repeat what he said, but I interrupted him.

"I'm staying here," I whispered, getting out of his arms. "I'm not g-going anywhere."

"Amy, you're not thinking straight. You need-"

"I'm staying here," I said firmly.

Ian grimaced. "Now you're just being foolish. Daniel, call the Eyes," Ian instructed.

"You can't take me anywhere!" I said. "I'm finishing this mission whether you like it or not!"

Dan opened his mouth to speak to the Eyes, but cut the connection. I glanced at Madison who hadn't said anything the whole time. She was staring, slightly shocked, at my bloody arm.

"One hour and fifteen minutes."

"Ian, you know we don't have enough time for them to come and get me. We have to keep going," I said, trying my hardest to convince him.

He frowned, crossing his arms, but nodded. We set off on the same path. As the four of us began to run, I winced with every step. The pain was the worst I had ever experienced. Well, except for when I had morphed for the first time in a month, but that had only lasted for a short second.

Ian abruptly halted in front of a solid-looking door, which had a series of locks and chains.

"The heart," Madison whispered.

~You should leave me alone, stop calling my phone~

Group: The Eyes

Agent: Sinead

Time until shield is moved: One hour

I tuned into all signals and I nodded at Reagan to do the same. I had not expected to hear what the Body had said next.

"Amy has been shot. No time for back-up. We're going to continue with the mission. We're at the heart."

The sentences were choppy and static, so I could confirm that they were in the heart. The room's signal was so strong that it almost eliminated our signal, which I had created, so that says a lot.

Well, I could come to one obvious conclusion. This was not a stealth mission any longer. We would need all the muscle we could get. I called the Brains.

"We need Hamilton to meet the body. Reagan will follow. This is not a stealth mission anymore. Send Jonah back up here… now."

"Roger that."

I would've rolled my eyes, but now was not the time. I turned to Reagan.

"Reagan, you follow the same path the Body did. You will meet with Hamilton at Hallway Eighteen and you will continue all the way to the Heart where you will meet up with the Body and the rest of the mission will go as planned. Do you have that locked in?" I asked.

"I am somewhat intelligent."

I smiled. She was indeed my favorite of all the Holts. The others were just annoying.

"Good luck," I said.

"See you in a little bit?" Reagan asked.

"Of course," I said, and soon she was out of sight.

Now, I just had to sit here and wait for Jonah.

But until then, I was all alone.

~Hearts were never meant to race~

Group: The Body

Agent: Amy

Time until shield is moved: One hour.

No one moved.

The scientists stared at us, scared out of their wits. Anyone could tell that they weren't Vespers. They lacked the give-away of arrogance and daringness. Then one of them opened his mouth.

"Who a-are y-y-you?" the man stuttered, in a strong Russian accent.

"Don't worry. We're not going to hurt you," I said, taking a step forward.

They shrunk back from me.

"We're Cahills," Ian clarified.

That got a reaction.

"The enemy of the Vespers?" A blonde woman asked.

Dan nodded. "We're you kidnapped?"

All of them visibly flinched, except for one. He took a step out from the others, and I heard someone gasp (which, most likely, was me).

"Kidnapped. Taken away from our…families."

Ian recoiled in shock. There, standing only a few feet away from us, stood the great Vikram Kabra.

This just went from bad to worse.

"Fath- Vikram? What are you doing here?" Ian asked, coldly.

I saw that he was trying to keep all of his emotions down.

"Ah, my son, you've grown since I had last seen you," Vikram purred in a voice almost identical to Ian's. "You've grown so tall."

I looked at Ian who was about six feet tall.

"I'm no son of yours. Cut to the chase, Vikram. We haven't much time," Ian said, changing slightly in character.

"I ask for nothing," Vikram shot a pleasant smile, and I instantly knew where Ian got his charm.

I looked around at the other scientists at the room. There were about ten in the room. What was strange was that they were comfortable around Vikram, as if he was their leader.

"Of course you don't," Ian scoffed.

"We were captured," Vikram began," and-"

"Wait," Madison interrupted. "You were kidnapped."

Vikram frowned. "Yes, Ms. Holt. I was caught off guard. As I was saying before I was interrupted-" he shot her a cold glance that could've stopped a charging rhinoceros in it's tracks. Madison visibly flinched. "-we were kidnapped to work on the Vesper shield."

Silence.

"Is it here?" Ian asked, his pronounced voice cutting the air.

"You can answer that question. I have raised you better," Vikram snapped.

Vikram made a motion with his hands and some of the scientists scurried around to follow what the signal meant. Then they brought of the shield.

"Finally," Madison and Dan whispered, their eyes trained on the shield.

Vikram's eyes landed on me. "I see Ms. Cahill is injured. You can morph, can't you?"

I met his eyes and nodded.

"Why didn't you?" he asked.

Ian spoke for me. "It was a stealth mission."

"I believe this young lady can speak, Ian. And some stealth mission this turned out to be."

We looked down at our feet, embarrassed by the confrontation.

Suddenly, a few scientists came up to me with needles and a vial. They gestured to my arm, and back to the needle. I gulped. I was never cooperative at the doctor's office. I closed my eyes and nodded. I felt the cold needle press into my shoulder, and I bit back a scream. My arm coursed with pain and then it…stopped. I flexed my arm and it felt as good as new.

I looked up at the

scientists, amazed.

"Thank you," I said.

They nodded and hurried back to Vikram's side.

"Forty-five minutes."

Ian's eyes flashed as he heard the countdown. He took a step towards the shield, but Vikram took a step back. Ian looked at Vikram, and Vikram held Ian's gaze.

"I have a proposition."

Dan cursed under his breath, and Madison followed suit.

"And that is…?" Ian trailed off.

"You take us with you."

A/N: Well, I hope you enjoyed that chapter. I updated quickly, didn't I?

That's what I thought. :) I liked writing this chapter for some reason. Vikram is just…awesome. He's like Ian…but older and more devious. Hmm…well, I hope I surprised you because I like doing that to people. Anyways, I don't have a lot to say…so…next chapter up soon!

~Nataliya

P.S. 300 reviews! I love you guys! Thanks so much for listening and reading my nonsense!