The Children - Episode 5
by Mia Siegert
Are you still hiding?
I still can’t figure out who’s been texting you.
You’ve got a lot of nerve texting me.
I told you I’d explain when I could.
Do you seriously expect me to play along with that?
What?
Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about.
But I actually don’t have a clue…
I found the children.
Shit. Keira, I’m so sorry. I should have told you sooner.
Told me sooner?!
Why are you keeping children in cells?
I should have told you the truth a long time ago.
What you SHOULD have done is NOT imprison children.
Children, Calvin.
It’s not as bad as you think.
Then explain.
And by the way, don’t bother lying. I talked to Doug.
Ok fine. Fine! Look, I’m part of a government study assessing children with a high propensity for extreme violence…
EXTREME violence, Kiera. They present an imminent threat to society.
My job is to locate the cause of their violent tendencies—
But I haven’t been able to do it.
We suspect it’s caused by a virus…but there’s no cure, hon.
We don’t know enough about it to make a vaccine.
Whoa, hold on — how did you get involved with this project in the first place?
Doug got me the job.
Originally, we were meant to counsel troubled kids at their schools. At least that’s what we thought…
We did tons of tests and wrote up reports about the children who failed them.
After the first two years, we were promoted — but with that came a heavy price.
The kids who failed the test were deemed “incapable of rehabilitation.”
We were supposed to “take care of them.”
Doug told me what that really meant — they asked to you kill them.
They did. They said we should make it seem like they ran away or were kidnapped…
And I just…I couldn’t do it.
Bullshit.
I’m serious.
I saw the children in the cages, Calvin.
Then you should know to believe me!
What?
I couldn’t kill them — that’s why they’re there.
Doug said I should just keep my head down and follow orders, but I couldn’t.
The whole nature versus nurture thing…
I think there’s good in every person.
I don’t believe someone could be a complete sociopath, especially not a child.
And I couldn’t lead kids to their death, even though they were deemed “evil.”
So you falsified records…
I had to.
You brought them into our home…
I fed them. I counseled them. I performed additional tests on them in secrecy.
I feel like I’m on the cusp of a breakthrough but it’s just out of reach.
Listen, this isn’t completely ethical…
Oh no…
I ran some experiments on them, Keira. Tried some new vaccines.
You did WHAT?! On kids?!
Isn’t it better than killing them?
And I’m getting close—
Maybe…maybe if I can just put together the last link, then I can save the kids.
Why didn’t you tell the government this?
That all you need is more time?
I did. Repeatedly. And then I got caught.
One of the children broke free and told them I kidnapped him.
I knew I had to run—
It was the perfect excuse for the government to throw me under the bus.
Their program wasn’t working and now they have someone to blame.
But if I went behind bars, I wouldn’t be able to help anyone. So I went away…
To try to cement my hypothesis.
What is it?
I think the children get more agitated in the face of chaos and destruction.
Okay…yeah, don’t we all?
Yes, but they have this virus — and when a body feels agitation or stress…
A virus has a better chance of ransacking it.
Oh no…
Exactly. That’s why I thought if the infected children were separated and confined, the virus wouldn’t activate.
You know, good environment isolation.
You seriously thought a prison cell was a good environment?
No. But it was the only choice I had.
Keira, you need to stay hidden and away from the kids—
They’re extremely dangerous.
Why didn’t you tell me before?
Because I couldn’t. I needed to hide to buy time.
So this whole time you had them in cages, you were trying to save them…
Oh no…
Calvin, I screwed up.
Badly.
I let the kids out.
You have no idea what you just did.
I didn’t know. You didn’t tell me anything.
It’ll be okay. Right?
I hear sirens. The police are here.
But Calvin doesn’t reply. Keira climbs back up the stairs.
She pulls back the curtain on a window and staggers back at the horrific scene.
Oh my God — the children are attacking the reporters…
The Police…
Even the parents. Oh my God.
Hide!
Keira’s vision hones in on Doug. He’s surrounded by children.
He tries to break free, but he has too many attackers. There’s blood everywhere.
Keira turns away, unable to watch Doug get torn to pieces.
She stares at her phone. Should she tell Calvin?
Before she can text, there’s a bang against a window.
There’s a child staring at me through a window.
What do I do?
HIDE!
Keira stares at the girl. It’s Lily—
The first girl who’d caught her eye in the basement.
Lily doesn’t look dangerous. She looks scared and empathetic.
The rehabilitation must have partially worked!
Lily presses her palm to the glass and, after a moment, Keira presses hers on the opposite side.
Glass suddenly shatters, shards raining on Keira.
She feels a brick hit her in the head and thinks…
I should never have trusted them. I never should have let the children go…
Then everything goes black.
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