I hate hiking. By hate, I don't mean strongly dislike. No, I mean rather burn in hell than walk around for the fun of it. I spent enough time working outside before coming to live here in London; I don't want to spend anymore time outside. And I definitely don't want to pretend it is fun while doing so.

Joy enjoyed today's walk around the area surrounding London, but she enjoys everything short of torture. However, it is finally over and I am back at our house. Joy is out with her friends and Kayla went to the library. I am sipping a cup of tea and decoding the journal.

However before I can get very far, the words I am reading make me physically sick. The experiments they were running are horrific. I can barely stand to continue reading, but I have to because I think there is more going on than my mother with all her paranoia could have ever imagined.

The horrors they put these children through are the stuff of nightmares. Every change had an unexpected consequence. If they tried to make the child extra smart, then it would lack emotional connections and stability. Trying to change their appearance is one of the worst. Every "correction" they tried to make resulted in a bigger issue elsewhere in the child.

They also tried building immunities into their genetic code, but it backfired. Editing the potential for Alzheimer's out of their DNA could lead to a weakened immune system or  even an increased likelihood for cancer later on in life. My father wrote that when they were forced out of the Elite, experiments were being done in an effort to design a genetic weapon that would only target a certain group of people.

"Hey Coral!" I shriek in shock as Joy speaks out of nowhere.

"I'm back. Did you miss me? I had fun on the hike today! We should do that more often. I love the outdoors. I got a lot of studying done with my friends. Maybe they could come with us next time we go on a hike. On my way home, I saw Alyssa, but she ignored me like she always does. Have you already had dinner? I ate in the Common Building with my friends after we finished studying. What do you-" I cut her off before she can continue her never ending rambling.

"I ate a snack earlier, so I'm glad you ate while you were out. Why don't you go to bed now? It is already nine o'clock." I suggest in a gentle tone.

"Sure," she responds cheerfully. "It's a school night and I need my rest." I just smile at her and tell her I'll see her again in the morning. Unlike most kids, Joy likes going to bed early so she can be well rested for school the next day.

Before I can return to the journal, Alyssa stomps in and slams the door like she always does before climbing the ladder to the beds. By the time Kayla arrives home, I've given up on reading anymore of the journal tonight.

The next day at work consists of a fairly uneventful morning. Hunter and I work in companionable silence until a short time before lunch when he surprises me with an unexpected request.

"Hey Coral," he suddenly says out of the blue.

"Hmmm...What is it Hunter?" I ask more focused on my notes about my current experiment than I am on what he is saying.

"Would you like to get dinner together sometime?"

"Sure, wait what?" I question suddenly comprehending what I heard. He rarely reaches out to me. Usually I have to talk to him first if I want to have a conversation.

"I asked if you would like to get dinner together sometime." He repeats this time more confident with a shadow of a smirk on his face at my initial confusion.

"Sure, I would enjoy that. Maybe it will give us a chance to get to know each other better."

"Alright," he said. "Sounds good. I'll pick you up tomorrow at six. Is that okay?"

"I'll be ready." I smile as I respond.

"Good, shall we get lunch now?" He asks nervously as though I might refuse even though I am hungry and already agreed to have dinner with him tomorrow.

By the time we reach lunch, John and Robert are already waiting for us. They even got our food for us so we won't have to wait in line.

"Finally, you are here." John welcomes us to our table.

"What took you so long?" Robert interrogates us once Hunter and I have sat down.

"We got caught up in an experiment and couldn't leave in the middle of it." Hunter replies with a smirk knowing full well we hadn't been running a time sensitive experiment.

However, they seem to buy it given that they both roll their eyes and Robert responds saying that we both spend more time working than anyone else he knows in the labs. We make small talk for a while before lunchtime ends and we have to go back to continue our work.

The afternoon drags on because all I can think about is dinner with Hunter tomorrow. At least he no longer hates me. I hate how lonely work was when he refused to talk to me and convinced others to do the same.

The other thing I can't stop thinking about is the experiments the journal revealed. It almost makes me sick just thinking about it. They were horrific and I understand why my parents willingly left the Scientific Elite. I cannot understand how Lillian was able to leave our family to join them. I doubt mom and dad ever told her about their past with the Elite because in the journal it says they were sworn to silence.

"Coral!" Hunter's voice startles me out of my thoughts. "You've been staring at your notes for twenty minutes without doing anything productive. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sorry I'm just tired." I respond with a smile.

"It's almost time to leave. While don't you head on home and rest. I'll finish everything up for the day." He offers.

"Are you sure?" I ask tiredly, and he just responds with a distracted nod already immersed in his research.

"Thanks, I'll see you later." I say with gratitude as I gather my things and leave the labs.

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