CHAPTER 10 — THE WOMAN WHO BETRAYED ETHAN
CHAPTER 10 — THE WOMAN WHO BETRAYED ETHAN
“She is the disease.”
Amelia's words seemed to freeze the entire train.
I held Lily tighter.
Luka raised his weapon.
My mother stood between us and the woman who had just claimed to be my aunt.
Ethan stared at Amelia as though he had seen a ghost.
“You…”
Amelia smiled.
“Hello, Ethan.”
His face drained of color.
“You're supposed to be dead.”
“So many of you seem to think that.”
She stepped forward.
Luka aimed directly at her.
“Stop.”
Amelia's eyes moved toward him.
“Still protecting Elena?”
“Yes.”
“You always were predictable.”
Luka's finger tightened around the trigger.
“Take one more step.”
Amelia laughed softly.
“You won't shoot me.”
“Try me.”
“You can't.”
“Why?”
“Because your conditioning won't let you.”
Luka's expression changed.
Amelia turned toward me.
“Now you understand.”
I looked at Luka.
“What is she talking about?”
Amelia answered for him.
“He was never designed to kill you.”
She smiled.
“He was designed to protect me.”
Ethan suddenly stepped forward.
“That's a lie.”
Amelia looked at him.
“Is it?”
“You betrayed me.”
Her expression softened.
“I saved you.”
“You handed me to Victor.”
“I had no choice.”
“You knew what he would do.”
“I knew exactly what he would do.”
Ethan's voice shook.
“You promised you'd protect Elena.”
“I did.”
“You gave me the marriage contract.”
“Yes.”
“You told me to monitor her.”
“Yes.”
“You told me to make her pregnant.”
Amelia's face became cold.
“Yes.”
I stared at her.
“You ordered Ethan to marry me?”
“Yes.”
“You ordered my pregnancy?”
“Yes.”
“You planned Lily?”
“Yes.”
My hands shook.
“And now you want to destroy her.”
Amelia nodded.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
She looked at Lily.
“Because I made a mistake.”
Ethan stepped closer.
“You said Lily would save us.”
“I believed that.”
“What changed?”
Amelia looked at him.
“You.”
Ethan froze.
“Me?”
“You were supposed to remain obedient.”
“I refused.”
“You fell in love with Elena.”
“Yes.”
“You interfered with the experiment.”
“Yes.”
“You altered the medical records.”
“Yes.”
“You changed Lily's genetic sequence.”
I looked at Ethan.
“You did what?”
He closed his eyes.
“I had to.”
Amelia laughed.
“You see?”
She looked at me.
“He's the reason your daughter survived.”
I couldn't speak.
Ethan looked at me.
“Amelia wanted Lily to carry the complete M-17 sequence.”
“But you changed it.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I discovered what Amelia really intended.”
“What?”
“She didn't want to cure M-17.”
Amelia's smile vanished.
Ethan continued.
“She wanted to perfect it.”
My mother stepped forward.
“I knew it.”
Amelia looked at her.
“You always were suspicious.”
“You lied to me.”
“I had to.”
“You told me Elena would be safe.”
“She was.”
My mother laughed bitterly.
“She was married to a man who was monitoring her.”
“That was protection.”
“You turned her life into a laboratory.”
Amelia's eyes hardened.
“And you would have done differently?”
“Yes.”
“No.”
Amelia shook her head.
“You would have hidden her forever.”
“I would have kept her alive.”
“Exactly.”
Amelia pointed at Lily.
“And what happens when Victor finds her?”
My mother didn't answer.
“He will never stop.”
Amelia stepped closer.
“Neither will I.”
Luka lowered his weapon.
“Enough.”
Amelia looked at him.
“You know what happens if you resist.”
“I don't care.”
“You should.”
She raised a small remote.
A red light appeared.
Luka suddenly dropped to one knee.
He gasped.
I rushed toward him.
“What did you do?”
Amelia pressed a button.
Luka screamed.
His body convulsed.
“Stop!”
I lunged toward Amelia.
Two guards blocked me.
“Stop!”
She released the button.
Luka collapsed.
I looked at her with hatred.
“What did you put inside him?”
“Nothing.”
She smiled.
“The conditioning is entirely neurological.”
“You can control him remotely?”
“Yes.”
I knelt beside Luka.
He struggled to breathe.
“I'm sorry.”
I looked at him.
“For what?”
“For not telling you.”
“Tell me now.”
He stared at me.
“Ethan wasn't the only one who betrayed you.”
My heart sank.
“What do you mean?”
Luka looked toward Amelia.
“She has been inside your life since before you met me.”
I looked at Amelia.
“How?”
“She was your doctor.”
My blood went cold.
“What?”
“When you were sixteen.”
I remembered.
A woman who had treated me after I collapsed at school.
A calm woman.
Gray eyes.
A soft voice.
I had forgotten her name.
Until now.
“Dr. Amelia Vale.”
My aunt smiled.
“Yes.”
My mother's face collapsed.
“She examined Elena.”
“Of course.”
“What did you do to her?”
“Nothing dangerous.”
“You took samples.”
“Yes.”
“Without permission.”
“Permission was irrelevant.”
I stared at Amelia.
“You took my DNA.”
“Hundreds of samples.”
“For M-17.”
“For the original project.”
“And Ethan knew?”
“Yes.”
I looked at Ethan.
He nodded.
“I discovered it later.”
“Then why didn't you tell me?”
“Because Amelia had already threatened Lily.”
“She wasn't even born.”
“She told me she would make sure you never became pregnant unless I obeyed.”
I felt sick.
“So everything…”
“Was controlled.”
My mother whispered:
“I tried to stop her.”
Amelia looked at her.
“And failed.”
Suddenly, a phone rang.
Everyone froze.
Ethan reached into his pocket.
His face changed.
“It's Victor.”
Amelia's expression hardened.
“Answer it.”
Ethan hesitated.
“Put it on speaker.”
He answered.
Victor's voice filled the train.
“You've made a mistake, Amelia.”
She smiled.
“I expected you sooner.”
“You don't have the child.”
“I do.”
“You have the wrong child.”
Silence.
Amelia's smile disappeared.
“What?”
Victor laughed.
“You still believe Lily is E-08.”
“What are you talking about?”
“E-08 died.”
I stared at Lily.
“No.”
Victor continued:
“The child you're holding isn't E-08.”
Amelia stepped forward.
“Then who is she?”
Victor's voice became colder.
“Ask Ethan.”
Everyone looked at him.
Ethan went pale.
“I…”
I turned toward him.
“What did you do?”
He couldn't answer.
Amelia grabbed him.
“What did you do?”
Ethan pulled away.
“I changed the embryo.”
“To what?”
He looked at me.
“To Elena's original sequence.”
Amelia froze.
“What?”
“I replaced the modified genes with the original Vale markers.”
My mother stared.
“That's impossible.”
“No.”
Ethan shook his head.
“It was possible because Daniel had preserved them.”
“Daniel's samples?”
“Yes.”
Amelia stepped backward.
“You used Daniel's DNA.”
Ethan nodded.
“Lily carries it.”
My heart pounded.
“Then Lily…”
“Is the first true Vale descendant born outside M-17.”
I looked at my daughter.
Amelia whispered:
“She isn't the disease.”
Ethan looked at her.
“No.”
“She isn't the cure.”
“No.”
“Then what is she?”
Ethan answered:
“The reset.”
Victor suddenly laughed through the phone.
“You still don't understand.”
Ethan's face hardened.
“What?”
“Lily's DNA isn't the key.”
“Then what is?”
“Her mother.”
I froze.
Victor continued.
“Lily can only activate the sequence because Elena is carrying the original maternal marker.”
My mother covered her mouth.
“No.”
Victor laughed.
“That's right, Mara.”
My mother stared at the phone.
“You're lying.”
“Ask Amelia.”
Amelia's face had gone white.
Victor continued:
“Your sister didn't create Lily.”
A pause.
“She created the conditions.”
“Then who created Lily?”
Victor's answer came quietly.
“Elena did.”
The line went dead.
Nobody spoke.
I looked at my mother.
“What does that mean?”
She shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Amelia suddenly moved toward me.
“Give me the child.”
“No.”
“You don't understand.”
“You just tried to kill her.”
“I was wrong.”
“Why should I believe you?”
“Because Victor knows something I don't.”
She reached for me.
Luka grabbed her wrist.
“Don't touch her.”
Amelia stared at him.
Then pressed the remote.
Luka collapsed again.
I screamed.
“Stop!”
Amelia released him.
“Then listen.”
She looked at me.
“Victor is right about one thing.”
“What?”
“Your daughter is not the weapon.”
“Then what is?”
“You.”
I felt cold.
“Why?”
“Because your blood contains the original activation sequence.”
My mother whispered:
“That's why they never killed you.”
Amelia nodded.
“They couldn't.”
I looked at Ethan.
“You knew?”
He looked down.
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Since before our wedding.”
I felt betrayed all over again.
“You knew I was the key.”
“Yes.”
“And you still married me.”
“Yes.”
“You used me.”
“I protected you.”
“Stop saying that!”
My voice echoed through the train.
“You all say you protected me while making decisions about my life without telling me.”
I looked at Lily.
“She was planned.”
“Yes.”
“My pregnancy was planned.”
“Yes.”
“My marriage was planned.”
“Yes.”
“My childhood was monitored.”
“Yes.”
“And now you're telling me my own body is the key to some experiment.”
Ethan whispered:
“Yes.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
Everyone stared at me.
“No more.”
I stood.
“I am not a project.”
I looked at Amelia.
“My daughter is not a project.”
I looked at Ethan.
“My marriage was not a contract.”
I looked at Luka.
“And he is not your weapon.”
Luka slowly raised his head.
I stepped closer.
“You can all fight over bloodlines.”
I held Lily tighter.
“But you don't get to decide what happens to us.”
Amelia stared at me.
“You don't have a choice.”
I smiled bitterly.
“Then why are you afraid?”
Her expression changed.
I continued.
“If I were powerless, you wouldn't need me alive.”
Silence.
“If Lily were only a child, you wouldn't need an army.”
Silence.
“And if Luka were really under your control…”
I looked at the remote.
“…you wouldn't be afraid of him remembering.”
Amelia's face hardened.
I had touched something.
A weakness.
Then Ethan suddenly grabbed Amelia's wrist.
“Run.”
“What?”
He shoved her toward the guards.
Luka stood.
His eyes were clear.
Amelia stared at him.
“You broke the conditioning.”
Luka smiled.
“No.”
He looked at me.
“She did.”
Amelia's face went white.
“What did you do?”
I looked at Luka.
“I reminded him who he was.”
Amelia stepped backward.
Then the train lights suddenly changed.
A red emergency signal flashed.
The speakers came alive.
Victor's voice returned.
“Congratulations, Elena.”
My stomach dropped.
“You've finally understood the game.”
The train began moving faster.
Amelia looked toward the front.
“What did you do?”
Victor laughed.
“This train is heading to the original M-17 facility.”
My mother froze.
“No.”
Victor continued.
“And when it arrives…”
A pause.
“…every surviving member of the Vale bloodline will be waiting.”
The speakers went silent.
I looked at Luka.
“How long?”
He checked the control panel.
“Twenty minutes.”
My mother grabbed my hand.
“We have to stop the train.”
Luka shook his head.
“We can't.”
“Why?”
He pointed ahead.
The tunnel was sealed behind us.
And ahead…
a massive steel door was opening.
Beyond it stood a vast underground complex.
Hundreds of lights illuminated rows of laboratories.
And in the center of the facility was a glass chamber.
Inside stood a woman.
A woman who looked exactly like me.
I stared.
My breath stopped.
Luka whispered:
“Elena…”
I couldn't move.
The woman behind the glass slowly opened her eyes.
Then she smiled.
My mother began crying.
“No…”
I looked at her.
“Who is she?”
My mother couldn't speak.
Amelia finally answered.
“Your twin.”
I stared at the woman behind the glass.
“That's impossible.”
Amelia shook her head.
“No.”
She looked at me.
“She was born first.”
My heart stopped.
“And Victor erased her.”
The woman behind the glass placed her hand against it.
Then mouthed three words.
I remember everything.
And suddenly I understood.
The bloodline hadn't been erased.
It had been divided.
May you like
And the woman Victor had hidden all these years…
was the person who knew exactly how Lily had been created.
