Waking up after a tragedy was always very difficult for Cadence. That space between slumber and consciousness where one is just aware enough to know that something is wrong was the most unsettling sensation, and in the past, she had often avoided it by simply refusing to sleep under such circumstances. When she awoke, her emotions were juxtaposed between devastation and elation. She was immediately aware that Elliott was gone; however, the memories of the night she had spent with Aaron barred the grief just enough to let a light of hope and tranquility calm her spirit. They would find a way to move on from this together.
Sighing, Cadence turned to Hannah. "All right, Hannah, we're going to take the G5 back to headquarters. Christian's going to check his lab and see if anything is missing. Can you arrange for the plane to leave as soon as we get to the airport?"Hannah nodded, and Meagan asked, "What about us?""I'll send the plane back just as soon as we can," Cadence assured her. "Hannah will stay here with
"And why does Aaron think the serum works?" Cadence clarified."Well, when he asked me last night, I didn't tell him the percentages, exactly. He just asked me if it was ready to go, and I said yes. I didn't know he was going to.... I thought I'd have a chance to do some more work before we actually used it. ""What else did he say?" she asked, fighting back anger at his deception.
Cadence had been forced to take the airlines, since there was not another airplane at the Kansas City headquarters that could have made the journey any faster. She'd had to switch planes in New York to board her Aer Lingus flight to Kerry Airport. All-in-all, it had taken her significantly longer to make the trip, which included getting through customs and a layover in New York City. Considering Aaron had been able to fly there directly in less than half of the time, she was fairly certain that his lengthy head start would be problematic.But she wasn't willing to give up.
"Did you talk to Christian?" Aaron asked."Yes," she replied pointedly. "And he told me there was only an eighty percent chance that serum would even work. I was afraid I was going to find you dead."She expected an apology, or some sort of strong reaction to her concern, but instead, he looked only surprised. "Eighty percent?" he asked. "Interesting."
"Can you walk?" Cadence asked again, changing the subject back to the topic at hand, fully knowing she could carry him if she needed to."I think so," Aaron said, leaning back so that she could get up. She helped him and wrapped her arm around his waist, his arm around her shoulders."Okay?" she asked as they began their decent.
Once Aaron was down to his boxers, Cadence helped him beneath the blankets, and then sat on the bed beside him. Beads of perspiration dotted his brow, and she took a second to wipe them away. "I've got Jamie on the IAC, and he's going to walk me through this," she explained."Tell him I said, 'hi.' He'll know what it means," he joked."Green Aaron is weird." She couldn't help but giggle in s
As much as her friends didn't want Cadence to cut them off again, they seemed to understand, and she said her goodbyes. She leaned over and felt Aaron’s forehead. He still felt warm, but not as clammy. His breathing seemed fairly shallow, however, which concerned her. She kissed his forehead, and he stirred just a little bit. "Aaron?" she whispered into his ear. She got no response, however, and she scooted back into the chair, left in her own solitary thoughts with only the sounds of the insects outside to keep her company.Eventually, their cries brought her outside. The heavens were a
There was no dreaded moment of forgetfulness this time when she wasn't quite aware that Aaron was gone; even in her sleep she had held on to that truism. So, when her eyes fluttered open, and the familiar voice calling her began to register, she was more confused than she had been ever before. "Aaron?" she whispered.She shot up to a sitting position, and realized he'd been cradling her head on his lap and stroking her hair. She looked at him skeptically, glancing back at the house, confused. "How are you... here?" she asked cautiously.