Undisclosed (25 page)

“If you could just show me—”

“Sir, you’re holding up the line of cars.”

“This won’t take a minute.”

Meanwhile, over at the Pajarito access point, Lincoln jumped out of a pimped-out green Honda with several boxes of pizza in his arms.

“Pizza delivery for Gordon Clements.”

The officer stepped back and mumbled into his radio before turning back to Lincoln.

“No one ordered one.”

Lincoln looked at a slip of paper in his hand. “No, we got a call for a Hawaiian with extra anchovies.”

The officer looked at the paper. “Well, they must have got the address wrong.”

“Ah, not again. My boss is going kill me. Look, mister, can I leave this with you? No charge. It’s just this is the third prank call this week, and I’m tired of taking the flack. If I come back with the pizza, I’m outta a job.”

The protective officer looked hesitant for a few seconds before he gestured to the building a few feet away. “Just leave it inside there.”

Lincoln made his way over to the building surrounded by a few protective force vehicles. Inside, two officers monitoring screens gestured to him to place it on the counter. As he placed it down, a spark of electricity shot out of his hand, sending the technical equipment haywire. As Lincoln closed the door he sent one final jolt towards the equipment. Seconds later, sparks burst and then flames shot out of the equipment. The men jumped up to grab an extinguisher but the flames were already out of control as the entire place lit up as though someone had doused it in fuel.

Meanwhile, over at the west gate, an officer was holding the map and pointing out what direction he needed to go. Mason stood beside him mirroring his movement with one arm as if he was trying to understand. Wearing dark glasses and looking around as though he was still puzzled, he knew no one would notice his eyes blacken behind his shades. As he focused on the building, the place suddenly exploded as if someone had ignited dynamite beneath it. The force knocked them both against the hood of the truck. The officer told him to get out of there, which Mason gladly did.

An officer ran past Lincoln as he walked casually back to his car. Jumping back into his vehicle, he spun it around and got out of there too, joining a number of other vehicles that had decided it was safer to head in the other direction. Glancing back in his mirror he saw the officer helping the other two out moments before the place blew upwards and rained debris down.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Back at the Bioscience Division both Travis and Jayde, at different times, had asked if they could use the washroom.

“Jack? Jack?” Travis could hear Ty bellowing in his ear.

There was no response.

“Travis, it’s done. Yet I’m getting nothing from Jack.”

“No time. You’re up.”

Ty had hooked into the security system. In a flash the entire camera system went on the blink, as if someone had pulled the power.

Seconds later a loud alarm began blaring throughout the division. From the washrooms Travis could hear the commotion of his class moving as they were hurried off down the corridors. It was working.

“Jayde, you hear me?”

“Yes, actually probably more than I wanted to hear.”

“Hey, I had to go,” he said.

Peeking out the door towards the Genome lab he realized it wasn’t enough; there were still workers in the Lab. They had obviously heard that alarm before and were drilled in what to do, and presumably getting the hell out of there wasn’t it.

“Listen, they’re not going to be gone long before they realize they left us up here with the workers in the Lab. We need another diversion.”

“I’m on it.”

Jayde looked up at the fire sprinklers, stretching out her hands towards the ceiling. A fine mist that resembled dew formed around the heads of the steel sprinkler. She knew freezing the pressurized water would eventually burst them all. Within seconds an explosion of water shot out of the heads. She looked out the door into the corridor and watched as they went off everywhere.

Travis could see workers slipping as they tried to make their way out as quickly as possible. He knew he only had minutes to get into the storage area, find the vials and grab them. Once he saw there was no one left on the floor he bolted.

“Let’s go.”

Jayde shot out behind him. It felt as if they were skating on ice, there was so much water on the ground; it made it extremely difficult to run. Entering the Genome Science area, they slid over to the storage area; Travis pulled out Dr. Evans’s card and swiped it across the reader. Nothing. He did it again; still nothing.

“What the hell?”

“Try it again.”

Travis swiped several times but without success.

“Damn it.”

“Ty, can you unlock it?”

“Yes, ten minutes ago. Now with all that water, the system is fried.”

“Screw this, I’ll—”

Travis grabbed her arm. “No. As it stands, they’re going to assume this is all one electrical fault. You break that glass and they are going to know.”

On Ty’s screen he could still see what the security cameras were picking up.

“I don’t mean to rush you guys, but there are two coming up.”

“What a nightmare,” Travis yelled, completely soaked.

Water had already covered several inches on the floor.

“We need to open those doors now.”

Jayde stretched her arm across the front of Travis and pushed him back.

“Time for you to trust me.”

Water from the floor rose up, covering the doors. Jayde lifted her arms and pushed them apart as if slowly conducting an orchestra. Through the water Travis could see the doors parting.

Jayde went to step in but Travis stopped her.

“Hold on, what about the sensors?”

“Water probably fried them too.”

She took one step inside and another alarm rang out, this time different from the one before; this one was deafening. Travis knew it was over. If he was going to get taken in he would make damn sure the vial was destroyed. He rushed in and jerked opened the same storage unit he saw his father go into. Inside there were several vial holders, each one labeled. His eyes ran back and forth like a wild man searching desperately for 225. But it was nowhere to be found. He slammed it shut.

“It’s not there.”

“Guys, move it—they’re out of the elevators.”

“Forget it, we need to get out of here.”

They raced out of the storage room. Jayde reversed what she had done before and the doors sealed shut behind them. Through the glass, Travis caught a reflection of a security officer just before he grabbed Jayde and they hit the deck. Ducking down behind one of the work areas, up to their ankles in water, it was only a matter of time before they heard security enter the lab.

“It’s sealed shut?”

“Damn water must have set it off,” he said. “Go check the bathrooms, the kids are probably still inside.”

They heard one of them head out; the other must have been checking the storage area. Sitting there, out the corner of his eye, Travis saw a large metal container on a trolley. A white label attached to the front of it read:
Waste Disposal and Recycle
. Could it be possible? Travis nudged Jayde and jerked his head in the direction of the container. He began edging his way towards it, every movement making him screw up his face, hoping the guard wouldn’t hear. Rounding a workbench he could see the guard checking the security swipe system. He slipped across the floor, trying hard to not make a sound. He was just a few feet from the container when his foot hit a clear vial that couldn’t be seen in the inches of water covering the floor. Its sound instantly made the guard spin around. Travis nervously pressed his body tightly against the back of a workbench, his heart wildly pounding in his chest. He looked sideways at Jayde, his eyes wide open in anticipation of being found. Jayde’s eyes changed, ready for the worst.

The sound of heavy boots sloshing through the water coming across the room in his direction heightened his panic. Jayde gestured with her hand for him to move. From where she was she had a clear view of the guard. The guard reached the end of the workbench and turned to find no one. Travis knew he had been seconds from being discovered but had eased his way around to the other end. But it wasn’t over yet.

“They’re not there.” The other security guard had returned.

Reflecting off a steel cabinet, Travis could see the other guard looking around the room suspiciously. “Probably already downstairs. Let’s get the hell out of this water.”

They listened as the splashing and conversation grew faint. Moments later, Jayde and Travis hauled themselves up, checking again to see if the coast was clear. Travis dashed over to the waste disposal container and popped the latch, lifting its heavy cover. Inside was a huge collection of auto injector vials in trays.

Travis began pulling them out. “Quick, give me a hand.”

Over the ear piece he could hear Ty trying to say something but it was breaking up.

“Ty, speak up I can barely hear you.” The interference was getting worse; all he could hear was distorted words.

“One seventy-five to two hundred.” He reached in and dragged up the next tray. “Bingo! Two hundred to two twenty-five.”

He snatched up vial 225 and pocketed it. Travis put his finger up to his ear, as if pressing it might help him hear Ty. “Ty?” He looked at Jayde and shook his head. “I’ve lost him.”

“Don’t worry, we have the phone and—”

“Oh, you mean this phone?”

They spun around at the sound of the voice. Walking in with an umbrella held above his head by one of his men was Harlan Kaine, holding up Travis’s father’s phone. Four protective officers fanned out around the room. Jayde instinctively went to attack but was hurled forward by a pulse of warped air from behind. Deagan, Billy and Seth had quickly circled them. Wrapping an arm tightly around her neck, Deagan hauled Jayde up. She gripped his arm trying to loosen his grip, which was choking her and keeping her off balance. Travis tried to dive on top of him but was instantly swatted back by Billy. On his knees, Billy held Travis’s head back by a large clump of his hair. Harlan walked over, waving his finger at both of them, tutting.

“Jayde, it is Jayde, right? Hmm …” He paused. “I think you would agree fighting is a tad futile.”

“Call off your dogs and I’ll show you how futile it is.”

He chuckled. “Feisty. I like that.” He proceeded to put his hand out from underneath the umbrella. Water splashed against his hand.

“Would someone for God sake turn off this water?” Harlan bellowed.

One of the protective officers left, likely to attend to it. Harlan’s eyes narrowed as he studied them like cornered animals. He walked around them, running his fingers over the container they had been going through.

“Where’s my father?”

“All in good time,” he said. “First things first, what are you doing here? I mean if you had the phone, which obviously … you don’t now … why risk coming here? These are of no use to you, they are failed experiments. So what is it?”

Travis laughed. “That’s not the phone.”

“Oh, no?” Harlan held it close to his face so he could take a closer look.

“How did you get it?” Travis asked.

Harlan smiled. “Oh—you have your secrets, I have mine,” he said, making his way over to Jayde. “And let’s be honest, you had to know it was only a matter of time. I mean, Guardians just aren’t what they used to be.”

Jayde spat in his face.

Deagan reacted by smashing a fist into the lower part of her back. Jayde hollered in agonizing pain.

“You bastard,” Travis yelled.

Harlan pulled a white handkerchief from his suit breast pocket and wiped it across his face. The water from the sprinklers switched off. Harlan glanced up briefly, looking pleased, before he walked over to the container and flipped the lid; he pulled out one of the auto injectors.

“Now, you see, there’s just one hitch. This phone of your father’s is locked. So what you’re going to do is unlock it.”

Travis laughed. “Do it yourself.”

“Oh … you really are your father’s son,” he said.

Travis said nothing.

“Hmm. Okay.”

Harlan walked over to Jayde and tapped the side of auto injector pen against her cheek. Jayde was unable to move under Deagan’s firm grip.

“Now what will it be? In the eye or the side of her neck? Eeenie meenie minie—”

“Give me the phone,” Travis cut him off.

Jayde scowled. “Travis.”

Harlan smiled, looking at Jayde.

“Hmm … seems he has a soft spot for you.”

He handed the phone to Travis, who swiped the front in a zigzag motion.

“Completely. I don’t want it coming back on a few minutes from now, do I?”

Travis pressed a few more buttons and then handed it back.

“That’s a good lad.” Harlan motioned to Billy to bring him to his feet.

“Well, I believe that concludes our business. One last thing …” Harlan turned and in one swift motion jabbed the auto injector into Travis’s neck. Travis gasped and collapsed to the floor.

“That’s for being a royal pain in the ass,” Harlan yelled.