Alek POV

"She'll be okay. Are you sure all she had was the coffee and pretzels?" I nod and she says, "the girl's lucky. If I had a stalker, I'd want him to look like you too."

I understand why she's flirting with me, but really? With Chloe sprawled out on the doctor's table like that, is now the time? Plus the lady is ancient. I feel a shudder begging to run through me as she gives a heavy wink.

I ignore the last ten seconds, keeping my face emotionless. "When will she wake up?"

"I gave her an injection to level out her blood sugar. It must have been an overdose of caffeine." The healer adjusts her glasses and stares down again at some kind of chart.

"But she has that same coffee every single day. Are you sure it's nothing else?"

"Oh yes, I'm positive-"

"Im bringing sexy back...yeah! The other-" my phone burst out singing. "Excuse me," I say, stepping out of the room.

"Jasmine! It's about bloody time, where are you?" I ask her, pacing down the hallway.

"I got...held up. It doesn't matter, where are you?" Jasmine snapped, as if I wasn't where I was supposed to be.

"I'm at the Healer's with Chloe. She's fine, it was just an-"

"Don't lie to me, Alek!"

"What the hell, Jasmine? I'm telling the truth. I called you and you didn't answer so I called the Heal-"

"The Healers are here. With me. At school. They said you called and when they showed up, no one was here."

The implications of what she's saying hit me and I drop my phone. "Chloe." I run back and pull on the door but it's locked. Well that's never stopped us before...I pull back my elbow and brace myself, bringing it forward to smash the glass window. I reach my arm through and unlock it. Chloe's face is an ashen gray and the healer, or whatever she is, stands there maliciously grinning at me.

"You're too late. In that coffee was a virus called Tysis. The Order's harvested it just for her. Not only was it in her drink this morning, but I injected more of it into her when you arrived. I'm telling you this because my mission is complete and it doesn't matter if you kill me now. I have wiped out a Uniter life," she says this last part eerily pleased and I force the information not to enter. Not now. All that matters is possibly saving Chloe.

I push the Healer to the wall and hold the needle up against her neck, steadily putting pressure on her windpipe with my other arm.

"Fix this." I say in a voice probably almost as lethal as whatever was in this thing.

"I can't. There's no cure." I put down the needle and press on her neck's pressure point until she passes out.

If Chloe really is dead, I can only wait for her to wake up. I can't call Jasmine because my phone is back in the hallway, and there's no way I'm leaving either of them for a second.

What is this new enemy and how are we supposed to fight it?