Free Darkness Fades (Darkness Falls Series, Book 3) by Jessica Sorensen Page A

everything?
You were a part of it?” he asks Mathew. “How can you stand to live
with yourself after the torture you put all of us through?” He’s
shaking from head to toe and I can tell he’s about to do something
based on his anger.
    I gently place my hand on Aiden’s arm. He
glances at it as I pull him back down in his chair. “Easy, okay?
Let’s hear what he has to say.”
    Mathew’s expression is full of remorse as
Nichelle sits back down in her seat. “When I found out how bad
things were,” he says. “The horrible experiments and torture that
were being conducted, I didn’t stay. I left the colony and came
here. But it was already too late to stop the cycle of what was
going on. All I could do was try to prepare myself, and as many
others as possible, for what was going to be inevitable.”
    “Cedrix told me that the world is this way
because of greed,” I say. “Can you tell us what happened? How the
world became this way; how the vampires came into existence?”
    He looks surprised. “You know Cedrix?” he
asks. I nod. “He’s one of the few doctors that tried to put an end
to the madness before it became worse.”
    “I knew him,” I tell him. “We all did… but
he’s not alive anymore.”
    Mathew’s eyes fill with anguish and he lets
out a deep sigh as he looks down at his hands. “I’m sad to say that
I’m not surprised. Death is more common than life anymore.” He
returns his eyes to me and they’re watery, something I don’t
understand. “And he was right when he told you that it was greed
that started this. He knew exactly how it all started; we all did
because we were all part of it. We are all responsible.” He takes a
trembling breath. “And the reason the vampires came into existence
was all because of one little girl named Kayla.”
    My jaw drops. I’m shocked, stunned and a
little pissed off, amongst other things. Everyone looks in my
direction, waiting for me to say something or hurt them.
    I shake my head, my hands starting to
tremble. “You’re lying.”
    “Kayla, please calm down,” Mathew says. “I’m
not saying you’re responsible. The doctors kept trying different
injections on all the children. Usually they would end up dying or
worse, turn into something that was half-dead, half-alive. However,
when the injected you, it was as if your body became stronger and
adapted to each serum they tried. Monarch decided to turn you into
a perfect soldier. He didn’t allow you to make any connections with
children. There was a day in the lab when he thought everything was
perfect and he tricked you into biting someone.”
    I can remember sinking my teeth into someone
very well. “Gabrielle,” I say quietly.
    “Yes, and that day started the change,” he
explains. “Gabrielle immediately knew that he was changing into
something; something stronger and more powerful than he had ever
imagined. The rest of the doctors became excited and envious; they
wanted to experience the same thing. So they injected themselves
with the virus. The shot was called the fountain of youth; it would
provide eternal life to those who took it. By this time, I’d left
the colony, but from what I understand, the virus was marketed to
the elite within the next few weeks. These elite groups of people
became known as the Highers.”
    “But something went wrong with the virus?”
Aiden asks, pushing up the sleeves of his jacket.
    Mathew nods, reclining in his chair. “It
wasn’t too long before the Highers developed a thirst for blood and
started feeding off humans. In addition, there was something about
the Highers’ bite that caused people to forget they’d been bit. But
the humans could only endure so many bites before they became
infected and turned into what we now call vampires. As you know,
their bite is deadly and immediately infects their victim, causing
the disease to spread as they turn.”
    I remember the Highers feeding off the
vampires, and so this doesn’t make sense.