The Experiment

Chapter VI

The next few days passed in a blur. Katrina vaguely remembered Wyne lifting her up and taking her back to the furniture store. She was tucked into bed and taken care of.

She remembered being spoon fed some fish soup, which meant they had gone to the ocean. She remembered being in a haze and her mind being blurry, unable to think properly.

Katrina's illusions went out of control. One day, they caused the sun to disappear for hours. The next, they made Katrina think she was a nine-year-old again, being tortured by Derrick.

Katrina worked up enough energy to get out of bed one night, when everyone else was asleep. She could hear someone walking nearby, probably whoever was taking watch that night. Katrina walked towards the sound of the footsteps, her legs weak from disuse.

"Katrina?" Wyne whispered. "You're awake!"

Wyne joyfully bounded over to her and engulfed her in a tight hug, crying tears of joy.

"We thought we had lost you," Wyne said. "It's happened before; someone going crazy after being tortured with pain."

"How long has it been?" Katrina croaked.

"A week," he replied. "You were unresponsive for a week."

"Dean told us what he saw in your mind. I can't believe how Derrick tortured you, and all those other poor girls. And your parents! I didn't know you were an orphan. I swear, if I see him again, I'll rip his limbs off one by one," Wyne growled, his arms shaking with anger.

"And when you offered him a truce and didn't kill him... I admire you for that," he finished softly.

"What happened to him? Derrick, I mean," Katrina asked.

"He ran away while we were all tending to you. We don't know where he is, or whether he's still alive. I hope he died a slow, painful, death," he replied darkly.

"None of you guys got hurt during our fight?" Katrina asked.

Wyne shook his head. "We're all safe, thanks to those boxes you made. You should've let us help though."

"No," she replied flatly. "It was my battle to fight, not yours or anyone else's."

"I respect that," Wyne said. "Also, I have some news for you," he said, brightening. "Do you want the good news first or the great news?"

"I'll take the good news," Katrina replied.

"We found the others!" Wyne exclaimed. "You were right, they were all at the beach. They've already built a little village and everything."

"Really? That's amazing!" Katrina grinned. "How many were there?"

"Only thirty-two of them. The rest died in the flood or from the coyotes."

Katrina quickly did the math. Less than two weeks into the Experiment, only thirty-six of them were left, thirty-seven assuming Derrick was alive. That meant at least twenty-seven of them had died.

"Is everyone here?" Katrina asked.

Wyne shook his head. "They're all still at the beach, except for Celia. They decided to have us and Celia stay here, in the city, so that we can explore. Another group of five is also going to explore the forest."

"Celia?" Katrina asked.

"Yeah, Celia Wang. She's from LA and has precognition for danger."

"So, she basically knows whenever danger is coming? That's useful," Katrina said.

"Yeah, you can meet her when she wakes up. Oh, do you want to hear the great news?"

"Sure," Katrina replied eagerly.