Chapter 87

The drive back to her old hometown is long and uneventful, the highway gradually becoming more and more crowded. The scent of grass, trees, mountains, and earth is replaced by metal, tar, and garbage festering in the rain.

Ariadne listens to soft jazz on a CD that Victor burned for her for Valentine's day. It's calming, mixed in with the windshield wipers and the gentle patter of rain on the glass.

The clicker comes on as she takes the exit, blue signs expanding into view, directing her to the hospital parking lot.

The Omega doesn't know how she'll react. She's ready for anything, from hysterical crying to bitting numbness to white-hot rage.

There's no one in this life that Ariadne considers more to be her brother than Edward. And she's already seen one too many people lying in a hospital bed to be calm about it.

Ariadne parks the car somewhere on the third level before she makes her way over to the reception area.

"I'm here to see Edward Park," she speaks politely to an elderly