CHAPTER 6 – THE WALL OF NAMES
CHAPTER 6 – THE WALL OF NAMES
Noah held a small flashlight.
The light swept across the room.
Emily was stunned.
The four walls were covered with names.
Hundreds of names.
Each name was carved with a sharp object.
Next to many names was a cross.
Others only had dates.
Emily stepped closer.
Her trembling fingertips touched a line of text.
LUCY HART – 2018
ANNA GREEN – 2019
SOPHIA LEWIS – 2020
All were women.
In the corner...
There was a newer name.
EMILY CARTER – 2026
Emily gasped.
"This... is my name."
Noah nodded.
"They always write the name first."
"Before it's all over."
Emily spun around.
"Who are they?"
Noah was silent for a few seconds.
Then he whispered.
"They call this place..."
'The Garden.'
Emily frowned.
"A garden?"
Noah gave a wry smile.
"No."
"It's a graveyard."
"Because all the people brought here..."
"...are believed by the world to be dead."
Emily felt a chill run down her spine.
If Noah was telling the truth...
Then she wasn't the only one who had ever been declared dead.
How many others had disappeared this way?
Just then...
An alarm blared throughout the basement.
Red lights flashed.
Noah's face turned pale.
"They've discovered you're hiding."
Emily heard the loudspeaker.
"Lock all exits."
"Don't let subject E-17 leave the facility."
E-17?
Emily looked at Noah.
"What did they call me?"
Noah took a deep breath.
"That's not a name."
"It's a number."
"They numbered all the victims."
Emily didn't have time to ask any more questions.
The entire room shook.
The sound of metal grinding against the floor echoed.
A secret door in the wall slowly opened.
Inside...
It was a pitch-black tunnel.
Noah took Emily's hand.
"If you want to live..."
"Then never go alone."
As the two of them stepped into the tunnel...
Behind them...
The wooden door was flung open.
The masked man stood there.
But this time...
He wasn't alone.
There were six other people.
All wearing white lab coats.
And all...
Were all wearing the same mask.
A cold voice rang out.
"Bring E-17 back."
"Alive..."
"...or dead."
At the end of the tunnel, Emily suddenly saw a steel door with silver lettering that had peeled away over time.
WARD C
Below was a warning that made the blood in her veins freeze.
AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY
SUBJECTS ARE NOT TO BE RELEASED UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
Noah stopped.
His voice trembled for the first time.
"Don't open that door..."
Emily looked at him.
"Why?"
Noah swallowed hard.
May you like
"Because..."
"...not everything inside is a patient."
