Page 155 of Us Defiant Few

The proof of his life sprayed across the walls.

The other guard screamed as Takeshi shot him in the gut and landed a knockout punch to his face.

They breathed heavily, bodies sprawled around them.

Khalani was operating on fumes, her eyes wide as she stared at the man she’d just killed.

“Did he hurt you?” Takeshi rushed to her side, his frantic gaze searching for injury.

“I’m fine,” she said, unable to cry any longer. She just wanted the bloodshed to be over. “We need to keep looking. Alan has to be here somewhere.”

His jaw tightened, like he knew she wasn’t fine. But time wasn’t on their side. She’d already started moving through the blue carpeted hallway, passing the white walls at lightning speed.

The hallway was long, but they kept searching.

She thought Alan might’ve fled somewhere else. But when they got to the final room, Takeshi kicked open the door.

And there he was.

The Governor sat in a chair, facing dozens of computer screens covered in lines of code. Khalani had no idea what they meant, but a black clock hung on the wall, counting down the time in bright-red numbers.

5:00

4:59

4:58

“Stop this, Alan! Call everyone off!” she yelled, raising her gun.

Alan calmly swiveled in his chair, his irritated glare centering on Takeshi before shifting to her with a placated smile.

“My failed experiments. I knew the two of you couldn’t miss the end. Even if one of you continues to malfunction and refuses to follow orders.” His glare cut back to Takeshi, igniting a volcanic anger inside her.

“We’re not experiments for you to control. Takeshi and I are just as human as everyone else.”

“That’s what you think—”

“That’s what I know!” she shouted. “I’m not going to let you manipulate us any longer. You’ve lost, Alan. The people are fighting back, and they know the radiation is a lie.”

Alan chuckled and rose from his chair, the clock continuing its countdown.

4:03

4:02

4:01

“You think I haven’t already run through a billion scenarios? My system works faster than you can even dream. If the chips failed and humans managed to survive, I still have workable bombs from the Great Collapse that I can activate to wipe out every remaining city.”

Her face drained of color, and the Governor nodded at her stunned expression.

“You realize it now, don’t you? There’s nothing you can do to stop me. The rest of humanity will fall, and I will be victori—”

Bang!

Takeshi shot him in the head. “You talk too much.”

But Alan didn’t fall to the ground. His blue eyes went cold, a terrifying roar escaping him as he rushed at Takeshi with unfathomable speed. Takeshi and Khalani fired their guns, but he kept coming.