*~~Chapter One Hundred and Thirty-Six~~*

{~~Avery Sterling~~}

Working in the basement of the hospital with Martin Miller had become a routine that I found oddly comforting. The sterile smell of antiseptic, the soft hum of machines monitoring vitals, and the quiet chatter of the medical team were all familiar now. Martin was lying on a gurney, his skin pale but his breathing steady as I checked his blood pressure and other vitals. He had been through a lot, and seeing the numbers slowly stabilize gave me a sense of satisfaction, a small victory in the midst of the chaos that had engulfed our lives.

There were others with us, members of the team who were just as invested into finding this cure just like I was. Their presence was a comfort, a reminder that we were all in this together, no matter how dangerous the situation became. We worked efficiently, sharing small smiles and words of encouragement as we moved from task to task, each of us doing our part to keep things running smoothly.

After what felt like hours, the work wa