Maira Dawn's Newsletter - Free Story Part 10

and Book Deals!

Feb 19, 2024

Hello!

I hope this finds you doing well.

This is the last part of the prequel short story about Albert Anderson PhD. I hope you enjoyed it. It will remain free and part of the newsletter, so feel free to read it again or recommend it to your friends, if you’d like.

Don’t forget to check out the book promos toward the bottom of the page.

Happy Reading,
Maira :)

What Used To Be series: Albert Anderson PhD (Part 10)

Previously: Albert is with the military in a secret underground bunker eagerly watching the beginning of The Fall. He begins to see all his plans for any experiments that make it to earth crumble when the Captain orders the larger debris to be broken up. In desperation, he uses his secret experiment—a transporter—to move some of the experiments from space to his lab. It was a one-in-a-billion shot, but it worked.

Knowing there are more experiments to find, Albert convinces two soldiers to join him in a search for more experimental boxes. Outside the compound, Albert finds more science experiments and an injured woman. He takes the woman to his lab. The scientist injects her with his super vaccine. She wakes up.

Albert offers her something to eat. Then watches closely as she devours her meal.

Part 10:

Albert watched as the woman devoured the food he had offered her.

He’d given her enough to knock out a rhino. It was only a matter of time before the poison he’d laced her food with would take effect.

He clenched his jaw, waiting for the moment he could tell her what he’d done.

As she finished the last bite of the sandwich, her eyes drooped and her movements became unsteady.

He felt a twinge of guilt but reminded himself that it was for her own good. Someone like her couldn’t just roam the streets.

She shook her head, dropping a hand to the metal table to steady herself. Her knees seemed about to buckle under her weight.

How could she still not see what was happening?

“Is everything ok?” Albert asked, feigning concern.

She glared at him through heavy-lidded eyes. “What did you give me?”

“Just something to help you relax,” said Albert with a reassuring smile.

She stumbled towards him, reaching out for support, and losing control of herself. Her movements were jerky and uncoordinated as if she were being controlled by invisible strings. “No...” she gasped, clutching at her head. “What did...you do...”

“I’m sorry,” said Albert, his voice tinged with regret. “But I couldn’t let you leave here in this state.”

The woman’s legs finally gave out, and she slumped onto the floor, semi-conscious.

Albert stared down at her limp form. He’d done the right thing. No doubt about it. But a wave of guilt washed over him even as he tried to convince himself otherwise. He could never fully convince himself that he had done what needed to be done to save her from herself and others. Sighing, he turned to the phone and called for security.

Two military men arrived within minutes to take the woman to a holding cell. It was better if she wasn’t here for what was coming. He didn’t want suspicion for her death to fall on him.

With a heavy heart, Albert returned to his desk and began packing up his notes on the serum project. Then he stopped and watched as they carried away the seemingly unconscious woman.

Right before the men left the doorway, she opened her eyes. Albert’s gaze met hers.

She stared at him, her groggy eyes still holding a flicker of defiance, a determination that seemed to triumph over the serum he had given her.

Albert shivered.

Her eyelids drifted shut.

He sank into his office chair, his head in his hands. He’d just wanted what was best for her.

After a moment, he straightened and shuffled the notes he had taken of his experiments with her. The weight of his actions settled into his chest like a heavy stone. Would his behavior ultimately serve humanity or cause more suffering in this already collapsing world?

One thing was certain: there was no turning back now.

A scuffle outside caught his attention. One man yelled in pain.

Albert rushed to look out the door. Down the hall, one man lay on the floor. The second man punched the woman in the face. It seemed only to make her angry. She returned it.

The man flew across the corridor, slamming into the wall behind him.

“No!” Albert cried, his heart pounding. This was not what he had planned; this was not what was supposed to happen.

The woman turned her sights on him, her fierce expression telling him what she had planned.

Ice swept over Albert’s spine as he rushed to close the thick metal door of his lab.

He shuddered, realizing that he had truly underestimated the power he had unleashed. As the woman’s strength grew, so did her anger and determination.

Albert scrambled backward, then immediately forward towards the door. He must shut and lock it. The bank vault-type door was the only thing that would stop her.

The military man groaned as he rose from the ground behind her. He hadn’t given up yet.

Taller than the woman, he easily grabbed her from behind, wrapping his arm around her neck.

For a moment, she was taken by surprise. Then she used the man’s move against him and flipped his body over her head, slamming him to the concrete floor.

Something snapped. The man whimpered.

She stepped over him, marching toward Albert.

Fear jolted through the scientist. He had seconds before she would reach him.

He pushed the lever on the wall beside the large doorway from automatic to manual, then shoved the large metal door with everything he had. It was heavier than he’d imagined.

Groaning, sweat broke out over his body, whether from fear or his exertion, he didn’t know.

The woman was closing in, clearly confident she would be the winner in this race.

Somehow, she had survived the poison he’d given her. But there was little doubt that he wouldn’t be so fortunate if she made it to him.

Albert redoubled his efforts. The door moved faster.

He had one quick glance at the enraged woman’s face before she disappeared from view.

As soon as the door met the frame, he engaged the lock and slid to the floor, his back against the cool metal. Gasping, he lowered his head to his knees. Then he wept.

On the other side of the door, the woman pounded the metal, screaming an enraged howl. The fiery flame of wrath enveloped her, something that had started the moment the scientist had given her the drug. The feeling had been disconcerting at first. She’d never been a particularly angry person.

In the short time between injection until now, she’d grown used to it. In fact, she’d found she liked it.

Realizing she was wasting her time, she kicked the door in frustration and turned, searching for an exit.

As she walked out of the building, she felt a renewed surge of power coursing through her veins. She knew now that she could do anything she wanted, and no one could stop her.

She was a god among humans. Nothing would stand in her way.

The end.