No one moves until I raise my hands to surrender. Just as I take a step forward, this riles them up.

"Stay right there!"

My body freezes. I've never seen people this wary of me; eyes that are on high alert, distrustful and full of qualms about me.

I swallow my nerves. I can imagine what I look like in their eyes; wet hair plaster to my face, torn clothes and skin scattered in light bruises. My gunshot wound has mostly healed itself while I was in the water earlier, but I don't need to get a shot at again for the second time.

"Help, please." I beg. "I-I got swept out to the seas. I don't know where I am—"

"Keep your hands up."

Without even giving me a chance to explain, they tackle me to the ground, pushing my face into the prickly sand. A heavy weight presses down on my back. Soldiers pin my arms behind my back, securing my wrists with metal cuffs. They confiscate my dagger and flank me on all sides, keeping a close watch on me so that I don't make a run for it. They shove me in the back sharply with a rifle to get me moving.

Even though I'm captured, I'm not as afraid as I thought I would, because this time I'm not defenseless. But I have to figure out how to tap on my powers again.

We carry on walking for some time, leaving the shore and taking the stone steps of a cliff. At first glance, there doesn't seem to be anything until we find ourselves at the mouth of a small cave. We sidestep around the small boulders to reach the rear of the passage.

There's a steel door built into the wall—the entry into their hideout. A soldier steps forward to swipe his electronic wristlet on a small panel on the side and we clear the security check. After the door slides open with a grating sound, we step into a white tunnel with several cameras mounted on the ceilings. Red lights blink at us, and I know they're watching us as we make our way deeper into this place. An elevator awaits us at the end, and a soldier punches a button—B5.

We're descending. The ride feels pretty long as we go past several floors, but it gives me the chance to scrutinize everything. Seven abductors—all who look pretty intimidating in size, not to mention they're heavily armed. Each time I connect with someone's gaze, they glower at me. It's best not to mess around with them first.

At last, the elevator opens up to a laboratory bustling with scientists in white lab coats. They are analyzing liquid specimens and don't seem perturbed by our appearance. People in hazmat suits exit containments. A large digital symbol plays brightly on a glass wall like a welcome sign—World Solutions. The renown company that's known for bringing in new inventions.

We head past a large screen and I stop to gawk at it, watching a live feed of the places on the other floors; civilians hanging out in groups, just chatting and laughing. Greenery fills up the space, a minimalist blend against the white tiles and walls. The interior has replicated something akin to a luxurious hostel. Apart from humans, robots roam the place too.

I'm gobsmacked by the size of the underground city and how technologically advanced everything looks on the inside. This could be a haven from the apocalypse. A second chance at life.

Except that I'm getting an ominous feeling about this floor I'm currently on.

Someone shoves me forward. "Keep moving."

With a short grunt, I shuffle forward, wincing at a bruise that's forming in the small of my back when they had pushed me earlier.

"So, where are you taking me to?"

"Quiet. No questions allowed."

They bring me into a small room with stark white walls, a bed and a toilet–a prison cell. I turn around just as someone grabs my arm and plunges a needle into my vein. "Hey!"

After extracting a tube of blood from me, they hurriedly leave and slam the door behind them, confining me to this tiny room with no chances of escape. The deafening silence grows louder, ringing out in my head and building the pressure in my chest. Without Zarius, I've to fend for myself.

I've never felt this alone before until now.

***

Some time later, I wake up with my cheek pressing into the mattress, feeling cold, hungry and exhausted. There's no food, water or blanket provided in this place. No one has come looking for me, and I can only imagine that they're doing a background check on me. But why would they need my blood sample?

Are they going to turn me into their experiment subject?

I glance at the walls instinctively, looking for a clock where it's supposed to be, but there's none. With a disappointed groan, I'm about to head back to sleep until someone in the room clears his throat, startling me.

"If you're wondering what time it is, an hour has passed."

I leap off the bed to stand in the furthest corner, scowling at the man who's leaning against the door. He's the same soldier who had pointed a gun at my head earlier when they captured Zarius. He has changed out of his vest and now wears a much more casual uniform. A look at his name tag tells me he's possibly one of the big shots in this place—Lieutenant Johan.

He smiles a little, but it's enough to send a chill down my spine. "So, we meet again. Didn't think you would actually survive that shot."

I clench my fists tightly. "So you're admitting you guys are murderers?"

"It was you who insisted on chasing after us."

"And that gives you the right to kill me? And leaving the rest of us to die?" I snap back. I think back to the days when our group fought our way to survive through this hell, and how many people I've watched die before my eyes. "Your team received a call from Old Orchard Beach High School, didn't you? You knew there were more of us waiting for help."

He raises a brow at me, crossing his arms haughtily. "You've seen the other floors and the occupants, haven't you? We're at maximum capacity right now in this city, so we couldn't bring your group back."

"So you tried to kill me?"

"We tried to leave you behind to fend for yourself, but you blew away your chance and intervened in our work. We always do what's best for humanity, even if that makes us appear inhumane."

I scowl at him. He's trying to butter his words and justify his actions, but I'm not buying it. "What work? Capturing Zarius?"

What happened on the beach earlier today replays in my head and it somehow triggers another memory.

That night on the school's rooftop, I felt something watching us.

I suck in a deep breath. "The drones... You guys have been watching us for a while haven't you?"

Lieutenant Johan maintains his smug smile. "When we found some of the mutated creatures dead, we got curious. We deployed some drones to scan the area. By some sheer coincidence, we ended up receiving a confirmed report," he revealed. "Merfolks are mysterious indeed and they make such exquisite specimens."

My heart roars with fury. "What are you going to do to Zarius?"

"You'll find that out in due time. But first..."

Lieutenant Johan pushes himself off the wall and stalks towards me. He runs his gaze over my features, trying to search for something about me. "Are you one of us? Or one of them?"

"Ask that to my blood test results. Isn't that why you guys took my blood?"

He gave me a hard stare for several long seconds. "It confirms you're human, but you were with that merfolk," he reminds me coldly. "You got shot, fell in the water, but you just walked out from the ocean, miraculously alive. We're miles away from the mainland, so there are no boats around. What's your secret?"

"There's no secret," I answer brusquely. I've an awful feeling that if he finds out that I've merfolk blood in me, he would do worse things to me. "The apocalypse must have turned you mental, Lieutenant Joker."

Lieutenant Johan's face twitches once, as if he's impatient with the lack of respect in my tone. He snaps his fingers and swivels on his heels, swiping at the panel beside the door to unlock it.

"Follow me."

The guards who are on watch duty immediately flock to his side. They grab my arms roughly and we trail after Lieutenant Johan. "Let me go! I can walk on my own!"

But of course, they choose to ignore me. I breathe through my nose heavily, trying to rein in my emotions. As much as I would love to zap this guy to death, I need to gather more information about this place and find Zarius.

And Mom.

According to Mia's recount, she should be here.

The guards shove me into a dark, sinister-looking room with concrete floor and walls, and I hear the door shutting after them. Lieutenant Johan is nowhere to be found, until his voice transmits into the room via the speakers.

"Good luck, Cordelia Walters."

"What?" I glance up at the surveillance cameras in confusion. I've never told him my name before, so he must have run a background check on me. "What on earth are you talking about—"

And that's when I see him walking out from the shadows.

A tall figure with a classic Herculean build advances towards me slowly. Platinum blonde hair, blue eyes and a sharp nose... He looks awfully familiar, like the merman who had saved me from drowning when I was kid.

As the distance between us narrows, my heart pounds faster. There's another strange sensation stirring within my chest as I study this captivating merman's facial features. He feels like someone whom I used to see all the time, like how I used to look into the mirror every day before the apocalypse happened.

I'm seeing myself in him.

Didn't Mom always say that I look like a splitting image of Dad?

The resemblance is shocking. My voice comes out in a breathless, shaky whisper as disbelief rocks me on my heels.

"Dad?"